Urban planning

Literally a Map Showing All the Buildings in the World

Well, here's something you don't see every day: all 2.75 billion buildings of the world shown together in a single 3D map.

Earth Science Gayoung Lee Dec 3

Cities Are Growing Up Instead of Out, New Research Finds

Urban areas are growing around the world, but rather than sprawling outwards, their skylines are getting taller.

Climate Change Adam Kovac Aug 6

Tech Billionaires’ Plan for a New City in California Doesn’t Include a Local Government

California Forever plans to create a thriving urban metropolis in the heart of the state's cow country that doesn't have any local bureaucracy.

Tech News Lucas Ropek Feb 13

AstroAccess Is Making Space for Disabled Astronauts

Disability means something different in space, and AstroAccess is working to ensure everyone has a place in the off-Earth future.

Science George Dvorsky Mar 1

Dems Debut Bill Updating Tech Accessibility Requirements for Streaming, AI, and Video Conferencing

The bill, designed to improve tech access for people who are blind and deaf, has the full backing of the FCC's chairwoman and multiple accessibility groups.

Tech News Dell Cameron Nov 17

Screenshot: Strava/Alison Mariella Désir

Strava’s Jogging Data Illustrates the Persistence of Gentrification

"The previously redlined areas of Harlem and Brooklyn were nearly dark, signaling little running, while Manhattan was lit up, showing high levels of activity."

Tech News Alison Mariella Désir Oct 21

Google’s Concept for Its Massive San Jose Campus Actually Looks Kinda Neat

Google isn’t exactly a name you associate with urban planning, but newly released renders for its San Jose campus are… pleasantly surprising. Unlike the typical closed-off tech campuses, the Downtown West project looks like an open plan neighborhood that’s actually part of the city itself. In a roughly 40-minute video presentation, Google explained that it…

Tech News Victoria Song Oct 9

Disney Now Sells a Line of Wheelchair Covers and Adaptive Costumes for Kids

Disney's new kits make it easy to turn wheelchairs into fantasy rides with matching costumes for children who use adaptive devices.

Books & Comics Andrew Liszewski Aug 11

Pigeons With Tiny Backpacks Are Gathering Climate Data Now

Steadfast pigeon defenders have something new to crow about: The oft-maligned birds may be scientists’ latest tool in combating air pollution and tracking climate change. Researchers at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom have developed a tiny set of sensors that can be strapped onto the backs of pigeons. Rick Thomas, the research…

Biology Giuliana Viglione Mar 16

The Futuristic Skyscrapers of 1923 Were Supposed to Solve Traffic, But Had a Notable Lack of Dwayne Johnsons

We’re still waiting on our flying cars. But back in 1923, the magazine Science and Invention assured readers they were just around the corner. And to top it off, the buildings of tomorrow would be built to “solve” the traffic problem. An article in the July 1923 issue of Science and Invention highlighted the ideas…

Tech News Matt Novak Jul 12

‘End of the World Atlas’ Reveals Future Human-Nature Conflicts

The world is rapidly becoming more urban, but as cities grow in size, their impact on Earth’s biodiversity grows in step. As a new mapping effort led by landscape architects at the University of Pennsylvania shows, the conflict is far more dire than most of us appreciate. Of the 423 cities growing in one of…

Conservation Maddie Stone Feb 9

Paris Is Giving 50 Percent of Its Legendary Roundabouts Back to People

When you think of Paris, you probably think of narrow, tree-lined streets. But consider some of its most famous monuments: They’re ringed by several lanes of busy vehicular traffic. Now the city is promising at least half of that space will go to pedestrians instead of cars. Seven sites in total are getting people-friendly makeovers,…

Tech News Alissa Walker Apr 8

Cities of the Future Could Look Like Burning Man

Once a tiny counter-culture gathering on a San Francisco beach, Burning Man has ballooned into what could be considered an impressive experiment in rapid urbanization. Last year, the population of Black Rock City, which is erected for the festival in the Nevada desert, swelled to over 70,000. Sure, those people are only there for a…

Tech News Alissa Walker Mar 22

How We Could Build a City on Mars

If we want to someday live on Mars, spaceships won’t be enough. We would need a Martian city—and this is how we might build one. In many ways, the problem of moving to Mars is simply a packing problem. We need a lot of gear (food, water, shelter) to keep us alive, and the only…

Space & Spaceflight Ria Misra Jan 19

#BlackFridayParking Highlights Just How Much of the US Is Wasted on Parking Lots

A quick survey of any big-box store will show you that Americans devote far too much real estate to the parking of their vehicles. But wait, argue businesses, we need that parking for our customers! Yet even today, on the biggest shopping day of the year, chances are the parking lots near you are nowhere…

Tech News Alissa Walker Nov 27

How Bad Data Caused the Fires That Leveled The Bronx in the 1970s

“The Bronx is burning.” Throughout the 1970s, hundreds of buildings went up in flames in New York City’s poorest neighborhoods. But nowhere were the fires more prevalent than The Bronx, where on a single night in July 1977, 400 blazes were raging. And flawed urban planning data was to blame. The photos and films from…

Tech News Alissa Walker Oct 30

How a Former Video Game Designer Created the Best Intersection For Bikes

Riding through a city on a bike lane that’s separated from cars feels great. But when you roll up to a light, the infrastructure often vanishes, leaving you feeling vulnerable as you cross busy lanes of traffic. Now a new type of intersection might keep cyclists safer and more visible. And it was created by…

Tech News Alissa Walker Oct 15

This Competition Takes Repurposed Shipping Containers To A Whole New Level

Recently, SuperSkyScrapers held an interesting architectural competition in Mumbai, India: how do you tackle housing shortages in densely populated regions around the world? The competition was focused on one type of repurposed resource: shipping containers. The competition brought together architectural firms from around the world to design container-scapers, which, according to CRG Architecural Consultants (which…

io9 Andrew Liptak Aug 22

Boston May Refuse to Bid For the Olympics

In what the AP calls a “hastily called news conference” this morning, Boston mayor Marty Walsh announced that he will “refuse” to sign its host city contract unless he’s sure taxpayers won’t be paying the bill if the games go over budget. Earlier this year, Boston won the right to be the US bid city…

Tech News Kelsey Campbell-Dollaghan Jul 27

This Crumbling Highway Overpass Is Becoming a Sky Garden

If you live in a post-industrial city, odds are good that it’s got its share of abandoned, blighted transit infrastructure. Some cities demolish it, some cities let it fester, and other cities repurpose it. In Seoul, they’re choosing the latter. Seoul has spent the past year deciding how to renovate a long stretch of highway…

Tech News Kelsey Campbell-Dollaghan May 14

Urban planning

Literally a Map Showing All the Buildings in the World

Cities Are Growing Up Instead of Out, New Research Finds

Tech Billionaires’ Plan for a New City in California Doesn’t Include a Local Government

AstroAccess Is Making Space for Disabled Astronauts

Dems Debut Bill Updating Tech Accessibility Requirements for Streaming, AI, and Video Conferencing

Strava’s Jogging Data Illustrates the Persistence of Gentrification

Google’s Concept for Its Massive San Jose Campus Actually Looks Kinda Neat

Disney Now Sells a Line of Wheelchair Covers and Adaptive Costumes for Kids

Pigeons With Tiny Backpacks Are Gathering Climate Data Now

The Futuristic Skyscrapers of 1923 Were Supposed to Solve Traffic, But Had a Notable Lack of Dwayne Johnsons

‘End of the World Atlas’ Reveals Future Human-Nature Conflicts

Paris Is Giving 50 Percent of Its Legendary Roundabouts Back to People

Cities of the Future Could Look Like Burning Man

How We Could Build a City on Mars

#BlackFridayParking Highlights Just How Much of the US Is Wasted on Parking Lots

How Bad Data Caused the Fires That Leveled The Bronx in the 1970s

How a Former Video Game Designer Created the Best Intersection For Bikes

This Competition Takes Repurposed Shipping Containers To A Whole New Level

Boston May Refuse to Bid For the Olympics

This Crumbling Highway Overpass Is Becoming a Sky Garden

Anthropic’s New Model Is So Scarily Powerful It Won’t Be Released, Anthropic Says

Musk Asks Court to Give Potential Winnings in OpenAI Suit to OpenAI’s Nonprofit

Pro-Iran Hackers Target Critical U.S. Energy and Water Infrastructure

‘She-Hulk’ Was Apparently One of Marvel’s Most Successful Shows

The World’s First Eye-Tracking Smart Glasses Are Intriguing and Unpolished

Noah Hawley Is Remaking ‘Terrified,’ Which Shouldn’t Happen

Unprecedented Observation Reveals 2 Supermassive Black Holes Locked in a Tight Death Spiral

This Apple MacBook Pro Is Now Under $500 After 78% Off, Grade-A Refurb Deal (16GB RAM, 1TB SSD, Touch Bar)

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

Let us help find what you are looking for...