Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Pasona Office Building Is An Urban Farm
How much do you want to be green? At the offices of Pasona, a Tokyo agency, twenty percent of the space is devoted to growing fresh vegetables and other edible plants.
(Pasona building - livin' large)
... the urban farm—the largest in Japan, with a layout that architects around the world should be paying attention to—doesn’t just exist to produce fresh food for Pasona’s employees. With young Japanese citizens giving up agriculture for business in the city, Pasona and its architecture firm, Kono Designs, hope the lush surroundings will inspire urbanites, and give them a newfound appreciation for agriculture.The green areas use a combination of soil-based and hydroponic farming. One of the greatest challenges is balancing the climate needed for growing produce with temperatures that are more comfortable for humans. Some say this is the building’s greatest pitfall, with certain rooms repelling visitors. The main entrance, which sports a rice paddy, is a bit warmer, brighter, and moister than most people would prefer. Workers use a side entrance to avoid it.
I was going to use the Chlorella Plantation from Pohl and Kornbluth's 1952 novel The Space Merchants as an early example of an urban farm (which it is).
Update 27-Mar-2020:
End update.
However, take a look at this next photo.
(The plants are taking over!)
Apparently, some of the building spaces are a bit uncomfortable for business-suited humans, because the plants have taken over! I'm trying to think of examples (which I'm sure I've seen) that depict space ships at least partly taken over by plants.
Via QZ.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 8/19/2013)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 1 )
Related News Stories - (" Food ")
3D Printed Cheesecake Not Quite Food Replicator Quality
With each successive print, our model needed to incorporate more structural ingredients to minimize print failures
Porcine Fat Cells For 3D-Printed Whole Pork Products
'I grabbed two Syntho-Steaks out of the freezer...' - Robert Heinlein, 1950.
Microbial Protein Production More Efficient Than Crops
'It's the food situation I'm worried about...' - James Blish, 1950.
NASA's Deep Space Food Challenge!
What's your favorite science fictional space food? How about your favorite REAL space food?
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Athena Smart Security Guard Robot With Face Recognition
'You are who we say you are, Dr. Dakin,' Turner said.'
The FLUTE Project - A Huge Liquid Mirror In Space
'It's area, and its consequent light-gathering capacity, was many times greater than any rigid mirror...'
Robot Preachers Found To Undermine Religious Commitment
'Tell me your torments,' the Padre said, in an elderly voice marked with compassion.
CyberCab - Tesla Renames The Robotaxi
'A cybercab dogged their heels...'
SpaceHopper Microgravity Robot Lands On Its Feet
'...a slender-legged tripod surmounted by a spherical body no larger than a football.'
Brin's 1990 Novel Earth Still Full Of Predictions
'... making the point that their likenesses, every move they made, were being transmitted.'
'Whisper Mode' ala Blue Thunder Researched At Bristol
'Forest Lawn.'
Gaia - Why Stop With Just The Earth?
'But the stars are only atoms in larger space, and in that larger space the star-atoms could combine to form living matter, thinking matter, couldn't they?'
Microsoft VASA-1 Creates Personal Video From A Photo
'...to build up a video picture would require, say, ten million decisions every second. Mike, you're so fast I can't even think about it. But you aren't that fast.'
Splendid View Of Eclipse From Orbit Visualized And Repurposed By Arthur C. Clarke
'The area affected was five hundred kilometres across, and perfectly circular.'
Bespoke Environment Music From AIs
'Call 'em Winter Mute," said the other, making it two words.'
Goldene - A Two-Dimensional Sheet Of Gold One Atom Thick
'Hasan always pitched a Gauzy - a one-molecule-layer tent, opaque, feather-light, and very tough.'
SpaceX Wants A Moonbase Alpha
'And he had been sent with troops, supplies and bombs to command Russia's most trusted post, the Moonbase.'
Vast Apartment Living Will Get Even More Vast
'What is your population', I asked. 'About eighty millions.'
NASA Wants Self-Driving Or Remote-Controlled Vehicles For Lunar Astronauts
'THE autobus turned silently down the wide street of Hydropole. Robot-guided, insulated from noise and cold...'
Elon Musk Says Robotaxis Will Be Ready This August, 2024
'The car had no steering wheel, and no one drove!'
