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STRESS RELIEF
FUNGUS-MADE FURNITURE
Terreform One, Brooklyn, N.Y., produced a suite of complex, curving
furniture out of a biopolymer called Mycoform, made of fungus-digested
biomatter. The furniture is designed and cut digitally, with segments grown
into specific 3D geometries from strains of the fungus Ganoderma lucid-
um. The project occupies “the intersection of parametric CAD design and
synthetic biology,” according to the firm. To create the Mycoform, a mix of
wood chips, gypsum, and oat bran is fed to the fungus, which then receives
an external skin of bacterial cellulose. The resulting tough, natural plastic
is suitable for numerous architectural applications. The low-tech produc-
tion process is pollution free, requires little energy, and is easily transferable
to the developing world. In addition, Mycoform is naturally biodegradable.
.
A D V A N C E D M A T E R I A L S & P R O C E S S E S | F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 6
QUIETEST ROOM ON EARTH
Microsoft established a new world record for the quietest room on Earth
with their Redmond, Wash., audio lab, designed by Eckel Noise Control Technol-
ogies, Cambridge, Mass. At -20.6 dB, this chamber shatters the previous record
of -13dB and far surpasses the engineers’ prediction of -16 dB. To put this peace
in context, the theoretical noise produced by Brownian motion—the random
movement of particles in air—is the quietest known sound outside the vacuum
of space, and is measured at -23 dB. Decibel levels for calm breathing register
at 10, rustling leaves at 20, and a jet plane takeoff at 150 dB. The record-setting
room is an anechoic chamber, an echo-free environment with sound absorption
levels of 99-100%. The chamber is isolated from the rest of the building’s foun-
dation with anti-vibration mounts, and its walls, ceilings, and door are fitted
with Eckel’s sound-absorbing anechoic wedges. “This chamber gives us the opportunity to look for those really small signals that
can have an impact on the end user,” says LeSalle Munroe, senior engineer of surface devices at Microsoft. .
AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY DOES IT WHITE
Axalta Coating Systems, Philadelphia, recently released its 63rd annual
“Global Automotive 2015 Color Popularity Report.” According to the study,
white remains the worldwide leader in automotive colors since overtaking
silver in 2011. Regional preferences are also highlighted: North America likes
red (11%), while Europe enjoys black (21%) and blue (9%) more than other
regions. South America and Asia are loving white—the color’s popularity rose
by 19% percent in China alone.
According to Nancy Lockhart, color marketing manager, insights into
how consumer color preferences change over time allow the industry to look
ahead. “Since 1953, Axalta’s color popularity data has been an important
tool in partnering with vehicle manufacturers to forecast the designs and
color preferences that will engage customers in the years to come,” she says.
Down the road, Lockhart predicts “highly chromatic” reds, blues, and vio-
lets. On small cars, she expects “niche colors” like unique blues, greens, and
golds. And while warm, earthy tones are gaining popularity, cool neutrals like
white, gray, and black will have staying power. .
Microsoft sets Guinness World Record for quietest
place on Earth with Eckel Anechoic Chamber.
Courtesy of Business Wire.
Bench produced fromMycoform, a natural plastic grown
by mushrooms. Courtesy of TerreformOne.