In an interview with the British inventor James Dyson, Ben Schiller discusses the future of engineering and design in America and the fallacies behind much "green" design.
James Dyson has a few ideas about the relationship between engineering and efficiency, and rightly so – over the past twenty years, his company has garnered international attention for a small collection of products built on highly innovative designs.
For one, he sees serious problems with academic trends in the West, claiming that American universities produce nine times as many lawyers as engineers. "Other nations have lower manufacturing costs, and generally lower expectations of profit," he explains. "They can make me-too products much more cheaply than we can. So, we've got to produce products with better design and technology."
Moreover, Dyson calls out superficial attitudes about green design as "lazy engineering": "People install a small motor and say, 'This is green, it's good for the environment.'... But that's just a cheap marketing trick. It's not answering the real problem..."
As Schiller suggests, we don't "need a design revolution if we want to cut energy use and conserve scarce materials. We just need to go back to making durable products, and get people interested in engineering again. The rest should take care of itself."
FULL STORY: James Dyson on the Lazy Engineering behind Fake Energy Efficiency
Mental Health Facility Uses Design to Improve Outcomes
Far from the drab and claustrophobic mental health facilities of cinematic fame, Ohana aims to serve patients in an aesthetically soothing, nature-driven environment.
How To Reduce Energy Use in Buildings
The cheapest energy is energy not used.
Berkeley Natural Gas Ban Remains Reversed
A court declined to revisit its decision to invalidate a city ban on natural gas hookups.
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features
It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
