Interesting Engineering

This 50-story building will be the first skyscraper in Paris, France. Also known as Projet Triangle, the office and residential building will use solar and wind power. It will overlook Paris from its southwestern extremity at the porte de Versailles, already home to a vast exhibition center.  Mayor Bertrand Delanoe was able to overturn Parisian law limiting buildings heights to under 37 meters.  The tower is the first of six gratte-ciels (high-rise) projects to be launched by Mr Delanoë. These are all in “exceptional” designated zones on the outer limits of the city, with some to include subsidised housing to ease the capital’s housing crisis.

With most of the major work done, only the finishing touches are left for the grandest sporting stages. From the Olympic Stadium, where the roof design was inspired by the form of the human muscle, to Zaha Hadid’s Aquatic Center with its dramatic, S-shaped roof, many of the buildings stand on their own, in terms of form and function. As a collective group, the Olympic complex is truly fit for a celebration of the world’s greatest athletes. The Olympic Park is made up of the nine Olympic venues, listed below, plus the Olympic Village. Come 2012, it’ll be THE place to be!

Located in the Sumida Ward of Tokyo, Japan, this 630 meters (2080 feet) structure is the tallest artificial structure in Japan even before its completion and also doubles as the tallest broadcast tower in the world. In July 2011, Japan ceased all analog broadcasts for televisions. The Tokyo Sky Tree was built, in large part, to serve as the digital broadcast antenna for the country. It will also feature restaurants and observation decks and serve as a disaster prevention broadcast signal. The completed tower will have curves that are meant to represent the blade of a samurai sword and other features found in traditional Japanese architecture.

4. Marlins Stadium

The Miami Marlins (formerly the Florida Marlins) are going to be playing baseball in their new stadium starting in the 2012 season. In terms of a baseball stadium, it is small, but what makes this building stunning is the dome shaped retractable roof and the nearly 15,000 square feet of retractable, transparent panes that allow for the stadium-goer to have an amazing view of the vibrant Miami skyline. Further adding to the flair will be the two seawater tanks behind home plate that will feature various forms of local sea life. The stadium is designed for the casual fan to have a fantastic experience that will be unrelated to the game itself.