Tag: neuroscience | ArchDaily

Safe by Design: How Architects and Forensics Rethink Security across Scales

Ankitha Gattupalli — Mon, 29 Sep 2025 07:30:00 +0000

"The public square and civic infrastructure are the front lines against this kind of attack", proclaimed then-President of the American Institute of Architects, Thomas Vonier. The decades since 9/11 and mass violence have pressured cities, in the United States and globally, to reconsider what "safety" means. Is it about barriers, bollards, surveillance? Or is it about trust, visibility, evidence, resilience? Several projects confront these questions at various scales to demonstrate how architecture and forensic thinking can collectively protect communities and civic life.

How Can Public Space Be Designed for the Neurodiverse Community?

Enrique Tovar — Tue, 09 Sep 2025 07:30:00 +0000

The noise of overlapping conversations, the flashing lights of a billboard, hurried footsteps on the sidewalk, and the constant hammering of a nearby construction site: public spaces are sometimes experienced as environments where stimuli accumulate and often overwhelm us. Each person perceives and responds to these sensory inputs differently, and recognizing neurodiversity means understanding that some individuals require more time to adapt, slower-paced journeys, or more gradual interactions with their surroundings. These encounters raise fundamental questions about contemporary public space: how can it accommodate the diversity of ways people perceive and inhabit it? How can we envision it as a space that embraces all ways of experiencing it?

Inclusive and Regenerative Design: Creating Spaces for Older Adults and Neurodiverse Individuals

Lorí Crízel — Mon, 09 Jun 2025 05:00:00 +0000

The intersection of neuroscience and architecture/design has brought innovations to the way spaces are conceived.Recently, the relevance of inclusive and regenerative design has come to the fore, addressing the need to create environments that welcome human diversity, including older adults and neurodiverse individuals. This approach not only broadens accessibility but also promotes environmental regeneration and user well-being.

The Power of Scale: How Proportions Shape Human Experience

Camilla Ghisleni — Wed, 26 Mar 2025 07:30:00 +0000

The way we perceive and experience spaces extends beyond aesthetics—they directly influence our emotions, thoughts, and even creativity. Spacious environments with high ceilings often evoke a sense of freedom and inspiration, while smaller, enclosed spaces encourage focus and introspection. This is not merely a subjective impression but a scientifically studied phenomenon. In the 1960s, anthropologist Edward T. Hall introduced the term "Cathedral Effect" to describe how ceiling height impacts cognition and behavior. More recent research has expanded on this idea, demonstrating how architecture shapes decision-making and emotional states in various contexts.

The Science of Design: How Neuroscience can Help Architects Shape the Built Environment

Moises Carrasco — Thu, 05 Dec 2024 04:00:00 +0000

In recent years, the integration of neuroscience and architecture has revolutionized our understanding of how built environments influence human well-being, behavior, and cognition. This interdisciplinary field, known as neuroarchitecture, explores the connections between spatial design, brain function, and psychology, offering insights into creating environments that promote health, creativity, and emotional resilience.

Neuroscience and Architecture: Designing for the Human Experience

Ankitha Gattupalli — Sun, 14 Jul 2024 07:30:00 +0000

Designing for the human experience has been at the forefront of architect's intentions and motivations behind their work. While traditional processes prove beneficial, the industry is peering over boundaries to find opportunities for collaboration with other design and non-design fields. New approaches have emerged with collaborations between architects and service designers, or even psychologists, to create more human-centric spaces. A new intersection captures the attention of practitioners, especially with a recent installation at Salone de Mobile neuroarchitecture. ArchDaily breaks down the scope and potential for this new field with Federica Sanchez, architect and neuroscience researcher at Italian firm Lombardini22, responsible for revamping the Salone.

Lombardini22 and Salone del Mobile's People-Centric Approach to Fair Design

Christele Harrouk — Thu, 25 Apr 2024 07:30:00 +0000

The 62nd edition of the Salone del Mobile at Rho Fiera brought together designers, architects, producers, and prominent figures from the design realm. With more than 1950 exhibitors, the six-day event, running from April 16 to 21, 2024, emphasized conviviality, well-being, and sustainability. Designed with a human-centric approach, incorporating neuroscience principles to enrich visitor interaction, Salone del Mobile is revolutionizing the future of fairs.

Salone del Mobile 2024 Announces Program, Including Interventions by David Lynch

Maria-Cristina Florian — Wed, 14 Feb 2024 06:30:00 +0000

Salone del Mobile.Milano has announced the opening dates and events program, expanding the trade fair event to encompass more narratives and projects relevant to the design community. The 62nd edition will take place at Rho Fiera Ilano from April 16 to 21, 2024. It is expected to include over 1900 exhibitors from around the world, with contributions from emerging designers and several design schools under the recurring SaloneSatellite, now in its 25th-anniversary edition. The cultural program also includes immersive installations, like David Lynch’s “Thinking Rooms.”

How Environmental Neuroscience is Shaping Architecture and Urban Planning

Andreea Cutieru — Sat, 30 Sep 2023 07:30:00 +0000

Environmental neuroscience is an emerging field devoted to studying the impact of social and physical environments on brain processes and behaviour. From the various opportunities for social interaction to noise levels and access to green spaces, the characteristics of the urban environment have important implications for neural mechanisms and brain functioning, thus influencing our physical state. The field paints a different image of how cities impact our health and well-being, thus providing a new, scientific layer of understanding that could help architects, urban planners, and decision-makers create more equitable urban environments.

Architecture for Preventing Cognitive Decline: Contributions from Neuroscience to Healthy Aging

Andréa de Paiva — Wed, 27 Sep 2023 03:30:00 +0000

Cognitive decline is a growing public health concern that affects millions of people around the world. Amid an aging population, strategies that help prevent or mitigate cognitive deterioration become increasingly relevant to support healthy aging and maintaining independence for longer. Studies in the field of neuroscience applied to architecture (neuroarchitecture) have shown that the physical environment, both internal and external, public and private, plays a fundamental role in this aspect [1]. In this sense, architects and urban planners can direct their projects to create solutions that significantly contribute to this objective.

What Neuroscience Says About Modern Architecture Approach

Ann Sussman & Katie Chen — Fri, 18 Sep 2020 03:30:00 +0000

This article was originally published on Common Edge as "The Mental Disorders that Gave Us Modern Architecture".

Neuroarchitecture Applied in Children's Design

Audrey Migliani — Wed, 08 Jul 2020 01:30:00 +0000

It is unquestionable that environments directly influence the behavior and emotions of their users. Human beings spend approximately 90% of their lives indoors, making it imperative that the spaces we inhabit stimulate positive behavior and emotions, or at least don't influence us negatively. There exists a specific term describing the stimuli that the brain receives from its environment: neuroarchitecture. Several studies have been published on this topic, most focusing on its impact on work environments. This article approaches this concept through a different, yet essential lens: emphasizing its importance in the design of spaces for children in early childhood.

Open Call: Conscious Cities Anthology 2018: Official Publication of the 2018 Conscious Cities Festival

Rene Submissions — Tue, 24 Jul 2018 18:04:00 +0000

In anticipation of the 2018 Conscious Cities Festival this October, we are delighted to announce an open call for submissions to its official publication - showcasing the diverse and impactful thinking by Conscious Cities practitioners.

For this issue, we are soliciting submissions related to the Conscious Cities manifesto from both festival participants and the general public. Festival participants have the freedom to submit any piece of work, regardless of what they plan to present. Casting this wide net will not only further demonstrate the vital and diverse work being done within the Conscious Cities movement, but also serve as a way

Here's What You Can Learn About Architecture from Tracking People's Eye Movements

Ann Sussman & Janice M. Ward — Wed, 06 Dec 2017 10:30:00 +0000

This article was originally published by Common Edge as "Game-Changing Eye-Tracking Studies Reveal How We Actually See Architecture."

From Smartphones to Smart Cities: What Happens When We Try to Solve Every Problem With Technology?

Lindsey Leardi — Thu, 30 Nov 2017 09:30:00 +0000

In order to be successful in any field, professionals must stay ahead of the curve—though in architecture nowadays, technology progresses so quickly that it’s difficult to be on the front lines. Virtual Reality can transport architects and their clients into unbuilt designs and foreign lands. Smart Cities implement a network of information and communication technologies to conserve resources and simplify everyday life. Responsive Design will give buildings the ability to be an extension of the human body by sensing occupants' needs and responding to them.

This World-Leading Building Researcher Believes That Architecture Is Afraid of Science

Martin Pedersen — Thu, 05 Oct 2017 09:30:00 +0000

This article was originally published by Common Edge as "A Top Building Researcher Asks: Why is Architecture Afraid of Science?"

Event: Conscious Cities Conference

Rene Submissions — Thu, 04 Feb 2016 13:00:00 +0000

Conscious Cities is a one-day conference organised by MoA and THECUBE that aims to explore the relationship between neuroscience and architecture. By bringing together neuroscientists, architects, engineers, planners and developers, the conference aims to offer necessary tools for understanding how the built environment impacts our cognitive functions, while also showing how professionals can use research in neuroscience to design better spaces and cities for the future.

Can Good Architecture Be as Calming as Meditation?

Rory Stott — Wed, 12 Nov 2014 00:00:00 +0000

If ever architects needed a little vindication in their work, this might just be it: a team of neuroscientists have found evidence that good architecture can positively affect the human brain. Testing a highly susceptible group of subjects (i.e. architects), the team demonstrated that so-called "contemplative architecture" can have similar effects to meditation - except with much less effort on the part of the person experiencing it. This article in the Atlantic discusses the team's work at length, delving into the science behind the discovery, but also uncovering an interesting oddity in the world of architectural neuroscience: it seems not much is being done because "it’s difficult to suggest that people are dying from it." In the case of the current study, the team "totally loaded the deck" by only selecting architects as their subjects, apparently not aiming to prove anything but simply to secure further funding. Read the full article here for more on the latest in architectural neuroscience.