Current computational, sensing and fabrication technologies provide new opportunities for architects and designers to embed intelligence and responsive behavior directly into architectural matter. Such design tactics not only elicit new sensibilities and socio-aesthetic desires, but also instrumentalize new understandings of hierarchies, networks and organization of building systems controls. Responsive technologies play a critical role in advancing the evolving relationships between humans, constructed environments, administrative controls and natural systems. Systems that mitigate human-machine-environment interaction are evolving to encompass more complex methods of collecting and managing data that can produce subtle differences in feedback and response. 

In a recent article for the Atlantic Cities, Richard Florida examines some new research from MIT that criticizes the idea that slums are a natural stage in the modernization of cities, showing that many slums continue to persist and even grow in cities/countries experiencing increased prosperity. Rather than economic growth, argues Florida, accountable governments and institutions make much more of an impact on slum development. You can read the full article here.

Earlier this week, the Guardian launched its new Cities website, which - as discussed by Oliver Wainwright in his opening article will be "an open platform for critical discussion and debate about the issues facing the world's metropolitan centres". In this introduction, Wainwright offers a fast-paced rundown of some of the major challenges facing cities, from technology to transport, housing to high streets, and economic to environmental disasters. You can read his full article here.

It is difficult to even imagine an architectural practice more influential than OMA. Not only has Koolhaas' practice completed high-profile buildings worldwide, but it has also been the incubator for some of the world's most famous architects, with many striking out alone after a period working under Rem. This article in the Wall Street Journal profiles some of the latest crop of "graduates", including Bjarke Ingels and Ole Scheeren, who have founded their own practices in the last decade and are now acting as some of OMA's biggest competitors. You can read the full article here.

Launch of Volume #37: "Is this not a pipe?".

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has selected 18 recipients for the 2014 AIA Young Architects Award. Defined as professionals who have been licensed ten years or fewer, regardless of their age, the “young architects” will be honored for making significant contributions to the profession and providing exceptional leadership early in their careers. All recipients will be presented the award at the AIA 2014 National Convention and Design Exposition in Chicago.

The City of Tampere, the Finnish Transport Agency, the VR-Group and Senate Properties are organizing an international design contest for the Tampere Travel and Service Centre and its environs. The design contest for the travel and service centre is looking for a shared vision for the area’s development as well as shared view on the guidelines for future measures.

The competitors’ task is to create an overall plan for the travel and service centre area that is of high quality in terms of its services and congruence with the cityscape. The travel and service centre area must incorporate the following elements: a travel and service centre that serves different modes of public transport; easy accessibility by different modes of travel; pleasant urban spaces as well as high-quality office, service and housing construction. This is an ideas competition.

On the twentieth anniversary of South Africa’s re-birth, the UIA Congress will celebrate the African profession as a meaningful contributor to world architecture and thought leadership in city development; as well as the continent’s contribution in the affairs and evolution of architecture globally.

Architects, engineers, designers, technologists, planners, thinkers and writers from all over the world will gather, with the public, for a week of lively and challenging talks, workshops, events and happenings.

South Africa’s concerns are strongly linked to Africa’s concerns. 2014 acknowledges the link between urgent human need for housing, infrastructure, basic services, employment and social development are acknowledged as being strongly linked to political decisions and economies. UIA 2014 is an opportunity for African architects to make their mark in the debate that perceives poverty eradication as a first unavoidable step in human progress. 2014 will explore how architects might play a pivotal role in addressing social inequalities. 2014 also explores concepts of sustainability through links to OTHER global initiatives and refers to COP 17 (Built Environment Charter) and RIO+20 (Soil Programme) – with a focus on urbanisation and the agricultural opportunities in and on the peripheries of cities.

The 2014 RIBA Norman Foster Travelling Scholarship has launched and is inviting applications from schools of architecture around the world. A £6,000 grant will be awarded to one student by a panel of judges which includes Lord Foster and the President of the RIBA.

TEX-FAB extends its reach to Austin, this year adding the University of Texas School of Architecture as a member organization. In doing so, the UT SOA is supporting the largest and most complete event to date with Michel Rojkind as our Keynote lecture with 6 speakers and 4 moderators. Moderators will delve into techniques to highlight the differences between working methods, while within the workshops, session leaders will further develop those topics as functional methods for the production of design solutions.

The Apple Store's iconic 5th Avenue Store, designed by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, came into unfortunate contact with a snowblower yesterday, reports Buzzfeed. The incident has left one panel of glass shattered; it's estimated that fixing it will cost about $445,000. More images, after the break...

Architecture for Humanity New York (AfHny) is accepting submissions for construction, interior design, landscape, and other design-related projects for the AfHny Community Design Competition 2014. AfHny will select one winning project that will be judged based on its alignment with AfHny’s mission, its perceived impact on the New York community, the submitting organization’s ability to fund the project, and proof of the organization’s ability to impact New York City’s neighborhoods based on past results. The winning project will receive a design competition hosted by AfHny that will result in several schematic design solutions developed by our membership base, which represents some of the top talent in the New York City design community. At the end of the design competition process, the winning organization will select their favored schematic design.

d3 has unveiled the 2013 winners of Unbuilt Visions, a competition designed to “promote critical debate about architecture and design by acknowledging excellence in unbuilt projects.” Get a glimpse of the four grand prize projects, which were awarded $750 each for their winning contributions, and the eleven special mentions after the break.

In this article on the Atlantic Cities, Richard Florida delves into recent research by Edward Glaeser, the author of Triumph of the City, which investigates the emergence in recent decades of mega-cities in developing nations. Though cities have long been connected to prosperity he points out that in these new cities, residents remain poor. The answer it seems is linked to our globalized economy, as well as the under prepared governments in these countries. However Glaeser and Florida don't see this as a reason for panic, or to abandon urbanization, but rather to ensure that urbanization is supported more effectively by government. You can read the full article here.

The British Government will showcase Britain’s distinctive qualities of creativity and enterprise to millions of international visitors through the UK Pavilion at Milan Expo 2015.

UPDATE: This year's jury for the Wheelwright Prize will be: Mohsen Mostafavi, Iñaki Ábalos, Sílvia Benedito, Pedro Gadanho, K. Michael Hays, Linda Pollak, Shohei Shigematsu, and Jorge Silvetti.

Shenzhen is located in the south of Guangdong, China, facing Hong Kong across the river. In 2012, it had a permanent population of 10.54 million and its GDP, standing at RMB 1,295 billion, ranked the fourth amongst cities in Mainland China for years. After more than thirty years of reform and opening up, it has developed from a small town in the southern coast of China to a modern metropolis, becoming a miniature of China’s reform, opening-up and modern construction.

According to the latest comprehensive urban planning of Shenzhen, areas surrounding the Shenzhen Bay will become the most important section in the broader area of Shenzhen and Hong Kong. Shenzhen Bay will be the power house for Shenzhen, inspiring the city to be one of the best in the world. From the west to the east, it will have a Shenzhen-Hong Kong cooperation section for the modern service industry at the front, a business district at the back and the Shenzhen Bay Super Headquarters Base.

The main content for the competition is urban and architectural design plans for the central area of the Super Headquarters. The scope of the design covers all land plots encircled by the red line and the surrounding roads and the park (see attached graphs for details). It is planned that 35.2 hectares of land will be used with a building area of 1.5-1.7 million square meters.

“A New Online Marketplace for Mobility,” an innovative proposal by city planner Philip Parsons and mobility expert Federico Parolotto that aims to optimize mobility in megacities, has been named the first participant in the Audi Urban Future Award 2014. Selected from a shortlist of three, the winners will now assemble a team of urban designers in order to pursue their visionary idea. Read more about their winning proposal, here.

“Mobility in cities is THE issue. We can try regulation like London or driverless cars. But what we really need is an open online marketplace, where the best alternatives win – for internationals or small entrepreneurs and of course for us,” stated Parsons and Parolotto.