World's Tallest Tower to be Completed by 2017‎

Sketches show dramatic views from a planned record-breaking 3,281-foot-tall tower. Kingdom Holding s HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal said that the 1,050m high skyscraper in the Red Sea port city would be finished in 63 months.Burj Khalifa, the 2,717-ft high tower, will continue to hold the title for the tallest building in the world, at least, till 2017.

The Kingdom Tower Waterfront District encompasses a high-end shopping mall and additional development parcels that accommodate commercial and high-density residential uses, offices, two luxury hotels and high-quality open spaces, including the central Tower Plaza.

A serene waterfront promenade connects Kingdom Tower, the various development parcels, the open space areas and the mall together. The result is an exciting mixed-use area that offers a concentrated and comprehensive experience including vibrant shopping, entertainment and open-space amenities. The Waterfront District also provides an array of connections to other areas within Kingdom City s overall master plan, designed by HOK Architects.

Architects Gordon Gill and Adrian Smith.

Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal speaks at a news conference in Riyadh August 2, 2011. Prince Alwaleed unveiled plans to build the world s tallest tower in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, signing a 4.6 billion riyal ($1.23 billion) contract with Bin Laden Group.

Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal speaks near a model of the world s tallest tower during a news conference in Riyadh August 2, 2011. Prince Alwaleed unveiled plans to build the world s tallest tower in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, signing a 4.6 billion riyal ($1.23 billion) contract with Bin Laden Group.

Expected to cost $1.2 billion to construct, Kingdom Tower will be a mixed-use building featuring a luxury hotel, office space, serviced apartments, luxury condominiums and the world s highest observatory. Kingdom Tower s height will be at least 173 meters (568 feet) taller than Burj Khalifa, which was designed by Adrian Smith while at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill.

AS GG s design for Kingdom Tower is both highly technological and distinctly organic. With its slender, subtly asymmetrical massing, the tower evokes a bundle of leaves shooting up from the ground—a burst of new life that heralds more growth all around it. This symbolizes the tower as a catalyst for increased development around it.

The sleek, streamlined form of the tower was inspired by the folded fronds of young desert plant growth. The way the fronds sprout upward from the ground as a single form, then start separating from each other at the top, is an analogy of new growth fused with technology. While the design is contextual to Saudi Arabia, it also represents an evolution and a refinement of an architectural continuum of skyscraper design.

The three-petal footprint is ideal for residential units, and the tapering wings produce an aerodynamic shape that helps reduce structural loading due to wind vortex shedding. The Kingdom Tower design embraces its architectural pedigree, taking full advantage of the proven design strategies and technological strategies of its lineage, refining and advancing them to achieve new heights.

The result is an elegant, cost-efficient and highly constructible design that is at once grounded in built tradition and aggressively forward-looking, taking advantage of new and innovative thinking about technology, building materials, life-cycle considerations and energy conservation.

For example, the project will feature a high-performance exterior wall system that will minimize energy consumption by reducing thermal loads. In addition, each of Kingdom Tower s three sides features a series of notches that create pockets of shadow that shield areas of the building from the sun and provide outdoor terraces with stunning views of Jeddah and the Red Sea.

The great height of Kingdom Tower necessitates one of the world s most sophisticated elevator systems. The Kingdom Tower complex will contain 59 elevators, including 54 single-deck and fi ve double-deck elevators, along with 12 escalators. Elevators serving the observatory will travel at a rate of 10 meters per second in both directions. Another unique feature of the design is a sky terrace, roughly 30 meters (98 feet) in diameter, at level 157.

It is an outdoor amenity space intended for use by the penthouse floor. The area surrounding Kingdom Tower is known as the Kingdom Tower Waterfront District. Designed by AS GG, the 23-hectare Waterfront District provides a cohesive and pedestrian-friendly setting for the magnificent Kingdom Tower while creating a pleasant neighborhood experience nestled along the Kingdom City lakefront.

The World's Tallest Tower Opened To The Public On

Tokyo Skytree, the world s tallest tower opened to the public on Tuesday. We look at some of the world s other tallest free-standing towers. 1. Tokyo Skytree. Height: 634 m (2,080 ft), Country: Japan

10. Kiev TV Tower. Height: 385 m (1,263 ft), Country: Ukraine

2. Canton Tower. 600 m (2,000 ft), Country: China

3. CN Tower. Height: 553.3 m (1,815 ft), Country: Canada

4. Ostankino Tower. Height: 540.1 m (1,772 ft), Country: Moscow

5. Oriental Pearl Tower. Height: 468 m (1,535 ft), Country: China

6. Milad Tower. Height: 435 m (1,427 ft), Country: Iran

7. KL Tower. Height: 421 m (1,381 ft), Country: Malaysia

8. Tianjin Radio and Television Tower. Height: 415.2 m (1,362 ft), Country: China

9. Central Radio and TV Tower. Height: 405 m (1,329 ft), Country: China

Audi E-bike: A Bicycle That Runs At 80 Kmph

The prototype cycle combining an electric drive and muscle power along with tech used on Audi cars was showcased at the Worthersee Tour in Austria. Audi unveiled an extremely emotion-inspiring sports machine, the Audi e-bike Wörthersee at Wörthersee in Carinthia, Austria. The prototype cycle combines an electric drive and muscle power. Head of Design Wolfgang Egger comments: As a high-performance e-bike for sports and trick cycling, it features the Audi core competences of design, ultra, e-tron and connect. The Audi e-bike Wörthersee puts in its first major appearance at this year s Wörthersee Tour, the 31st meet for Audi, VW, Seat and Skoda fans; trial biker Julien Dupont and downhill specialist Petra Bernhard will demonstrate their stunts and street bike skills.

When performing wheelies, an electronic control system supports the rider when performing tricks and back-wheel biking. Different modes can be set using a smartphone or directly on the e-bike – either Power Wheelie mode, with adjustable wheelie angle for less skilled bikers or Balanced Wheelie mode for sporting challenges.

In "Balanced Wheelie" mode, the electronic control system maintains the rider s balance, by compensating the biker s movements forwards or backwards via the electric motor.

This means the rider can influence the bike s speed by shifting weight: if you lean forwards the bike picks up speed, and if you lean back it slows. You select Training mode if you 

The electric motor is located at the lowest point on the frame and drives the bottom bracket shaft directly. The maximum torque delivered to the rear wheel is 250 Nm (184.39 lb-ft).

The Audi e-bike Worthersee

The Audi e-bike Worthersee

The Audi e-bike Worthersee

The Audi e-bike Worthersee

The Audi e-bike Worthersee

The uncompromising dynamism of the bike prototype is fully visible at first sight. When developing the Audi e-bike Worthersee we drew on motor racing design principles for inspiration, explains Hendrik Schaefers, one of the designers at Concept Design Studio Munich. The e-bike appears incredibly precise, highly emotional and strictly functional. Indeed, the design effort focused on its function as a sports machine. All design elements are thus firmly aligned to the technical features.

The airy frame boasts a low center of gravity and a compact overall volume. In this way, the e- bike is superbly agile at the sporty handling limits. The lithium-ion battery is incorporated into the frame and needs 2.5 hours to freuteully charge. On long trial tours, only a few simple steps are required to remove the battery and replace it with a charged one.

The frame and the swinging arm that holds the back wheel are made of carbon fiber- reinforced polymer (CFRP). The same material is used for the 26 wheels, which feature an innovative Audi ultra blade design with broad flat spokes for an optimized transmission of pedal power. We were able to demonstrate with the choice of materials just how closely design goes hand in hand with expertise in ultra lightweight construction, Hendrik Schaefers comments.

Homogeneous LED light strips round out the frame and create the immediately recognizable Audi light signature. For extreme tricks and stunts the seat can be lowered to run flush with the frame itself. At the press of a button, the seat then rises up and the biker can adopt a comfortable position.

Cycling modes and countless other functions can be set using the touchscreen on-bike computer. The cyclist s smartphone hooks up by WLAN to the computer – when you start cycling, for example, the immobilizer is deactivated. Video images of the trial drive or of a trick, as recorded via the in-helmet camera, are uploaded to the Internet in real time via your smartphone.

Each trick performed successfully is then awarded success points, and as the number of points awarded grows, the cyclist receives awards and the challenge level rises, too. The rankings table in the Internet means you can measure yourself against other bikers and your friends. And where they happen to be comes to you via Facebook status reports that pop up on the Audi e-bike Wörthersee display.

The cyclist can choose between a total of five cycling modes – pure muscle power, the electric motor alone, or pedaling supported by the electric motor. In the Pure mode, the drive power is purely the product of the cyclist s legs, while in Pedelec mode you are supported by the electric motor that then makes speeds of up to 80 km/h (50 mph) possible and gives you a range of 50-70 kilometers (31-44 miles).

If you select eGrip, the Audi e-bike Worthersee runs solely on the electric motor and can reach a top speed of 50 km/h (31 mph). The cyclist then controls forward momentum using a gripshift and can configure the power as desired using the computer.

World's Largest Outdoor Swimming Pool

The Crystal Lagoon, located at the San Alfonso del Mar resort in Algarrobo, Chile, is the world s largest outdoor pool, stretching more than half of a mile and filled with 66 million gallons of water.