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Shape Memory Alloys: The Latest Architecture and News

How Do Mysterious "Memory" Materials Work?

Imagine a material that shifts and moves according to the temperature of the outside air - like a flower opening up for sunlight and closing its petals at night. New high-tech smart materials have allowed this idea to thrive and the possibilities are endless. Originally posted on Design Curial, the designer and smart material guru Chris Leferti answers a few questions behind these mysterious materials.

There are many materials that are defining the future: renewable resources, completely new materials such as graphene, but one of the biggest and most fascinating groups -- that continues to grow -- is smart materials.

Find out more about these amazing materials after the break

When Biology Inspires Architecture: An Interview with Doris Kim Sung

When Biology Inspires Architecture: An Interview with Doris Kim Sung - Image 3 of 4

Material Minds, presented by ArchDaily Materials, is our new series of short interviews with architects, designers, scientists, and others who use architectural materials in innovative ways. Enjoy!

Before attending Columbia University for her Masters in Architecture, Los Angeles-based architect Doris Kim Sung took a fairly non-traditional approach to becoming an architect: she was a biologist. Naturally then, Sung’s architectural work tends to take inspiration from the biological world, particularly in the way she experiments and innovates with materials. Much of her work involves thermal bimetals, a material that expands and contracts with temperature swings; it can even act as a sun shade and ventilation system, without the need for electricity.

So where does a biologist-turned-architect draw inspiration from? We interviewed Ms. Sung to find out for ourselves -- the responses, like her work at dO|Su Architecture, are simply fascinating.