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

 

Burj al-Taqa Dubai Energy Tower - High Tech Badgir

The Burj al-Taqa skyscraper is the latest in a series of amazing buildings that will have people saying "Only in Dubai!" The Burj al-Taqa tower uses a cylindrical shape that exposes as little surface to the sun as is feasible.


(Burj al-Taqa)

The Burj al-Taqa (which means "Energy Tower") will have a unique 197 foot diameter wind tower on its roof and arrays of solar cells totalling 161,459 square feet.

Not content with this energy output, the building will float an additional island of solar panels within view of the building.

Architects selected an ancient Persian design feature as the model for the futuristic building. Wealthy business owners built wind towers on the roofs of their houses, which gave them a natural air-conditioning system. Louvered openings in the towers suck in cooler air high off the ground like a chimney; this sinks down and displaces the (lighter) hot air, creating a cooler interior space.

These windtowers are called "badgirs" (or "badghirs" - the Persian word is "barjeels"); first found in Persia, the idea spread throughout the Middle Eastern world.


(Badgirs (or Barjeels) in Yazd, Iran)

The building will also have a dramatic internal view, because the atrium is part of the energy-efficient design. The negative pressure created by winds breaking against the tower will pull spent air out of rooms via slits in the facade. Fresh air will come in through ducts; seawater will be used to pre-cool the air.


(Burj al-Taqa interior space)

Note that science fiction author Frank Herbert also put the idea of a badgir to work in his sf classic Dune, which borrows many things from Middle Eastern philosophy and design:

He led the way through past a dark honey-comb lattice that directed a cool wash of air across Paul when he passed it. "That air felt damp." A man behind them said "Plenty of air in the trap tonight."
(Read more about windtraps)

Readers will no doubt be familiar with the Burj Tower - see Burj Tower In Dubai To Be World's Tallest Building and Burj Dubai Tower Update for more Burj-related information.

Via New Tower Creates All Its Own Energy via Metaefficient.

Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 5/15/2007)

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 - (" Living Space ")

LiquidView Ersatz Windows, ala Philip K. Dick
'due to his bad financial situation he had given up trying to imagine that he lived on a great hill with a view...' - Philip K. Dick, 1969.

Solar House Concept Unfolds Solar Panels Like A Flower
'They are heated and air conditioned by a solar plant that tops anything... that we have today.' - Clifford Simak, 1953.

San Fran's Tiny Homeless
'Each person got a 5 foot by 10 foot room with a bed and a TV — the world’s best pacifier...' - Marshall Brain, 2002.

Rotating House in Bosnia
'... feel free to turn the house on your own.' - Frank Herbert, 1972.

 

Google
  Web TechNovelgy.com   

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

Europa Clipper Plate Carries A Special Message
'...a universal cryptogram — yet it is one which can be interpreted by any intelligent creature on any planet in the Solar System!'

Micro-Robots Are Smallest, Fully Functional
'With a whir, the Scarab shot from the concealing shadows of the corner where it had hidden itself.'

AI Enhances Images Your Brain Sees
'I could have sworn the psychomat showed pictures almost as sharp and detailed as reality itself'

Illustrating Classic Heinlein With AI
'Stasis, cold sleep, hibernation, hypothermia, reduced metabolism, call it what you will - the logistics-medicine research teams had found a way to stack people like cordwood and use them when needed.'

Deflector Plasma Screen For Drones ala Star Wars
'If the enemy persists in attacking or even intensifies their power, the density of the plasma in space will suddenly increase, causing it to reflect most of the incoming energy like a mirror.'

DIY Robotic Hand Made After Loss Of Fingers
'I made them... with the fine work of the watchmaker...'

Cheap Drunk Driver Detection From UofM
"Look, I can drive... Start, darn it!"

Can A Human Land A SpaceX Rocket On Its Tail?
'If she starts to roll sideways — blooey! The underjets only hold you up when they’re pointing down, you know.'

Robot Snakes No Longer Stopped By Stairs
'...she dropped her hands from the wheel, took the robot snake from his box.'

Has Turkey Been Stealing Rain From Iran?
Can one country take another's rain?

We Need To Build Anti-Drone Systems For Civilian Spaces
'the real border was defended by ...a swarm of quasi-independent aerostats...'

SensorWake Scent-Based Alarm Clock
'The odalarm awoke Jorj X. McKie with a whiff of lemon.'

AI Worms That Spread
'...there were so many worms and counterworms loose in the data-net now'

Challenges Of Two-Armed Robots
When the left hand knows what the right hand is doing.

FlexRAM Liquid Metal RAM And One Particular SF Movie Robot
'Its lines wavered, flowed, and then painfully reformed.'

Ulm Sleep Pods For The Homeless
'The lid lifted and she crawled inside...'

More SF in the News Stories

More Beyond Technovelgy science news stories

Home | Glossary | Invention Timeline | Category | New | Contact Us | FAQ | Advertise |
Technovelgy.com - where science meets fiction™

Copyright© Technovelgy LLC; all rights reserved.