10 architectural wonders of the modern world
TRANSCRIPT
By Kenny Slaught
10 ARCHITECTURAL
WONDERS OF THE MODERN WORLD
1. Dynamic tower in DubaiThis tower of buildings was built in Dubai and its main attractive is the fact that it can physically turn around completely. It wil l produce its own energy and each apartment wil l be independent to move in relation to the rest of the building. 2. Burj Al Arab In DubaiIt is the second tallest hotel in the world, built on top of an artificial island and it is located about 217 meters away from the beach. It is connected to a road, and if we're talking about islands it includes the renowned artificial islands Palm Island and The World. It also includes the mega project of the Burj Tower in Dubai.
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10 ARCHITECTURAL WONDERS OF THE MODERN WORLD
3. Petronas TowersThe Petronas Towers are located in Kuala Lumpur -the capital of Malaysia- and they were the tallest buildings in the world between 1998 and 2003. They were topped in October 17th 2003 by the Taipei 101 building in Taiwan. It is currently the fifth tallest building in the world (the tallest one being the Burj Khalifa) and they are the world's tallest twin towers. These towers are 452 meters tall. The 88-story towers with concrete floors and a facade of steel and glass have turned into symbols of Kuala Lumpur and Malaysia.
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10 ARCHITECTURAL WONDERS OF THE MODERN WORLD
Even though it was bui lt in 1973, the Sydney Opera House st i l l retains its avant-garde charm and, without a doubt, i t is an emblem of this beautiful Austral ian city. In fact, 90% of the tourists that travel to Sydney visit the place, whether they attend a performance or not. I t is known as one of the architectural wonders of the modern world.
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10 ARCHITECTURAL WONDERS OF THE MODERN WORLD
4. Sydney Opera HouseThis, arguably the most flashy art ist ic center in the world, was designed by Danish architect Jorn Utzon, who had to modify the design of the roof. The 18.000 square meter bui lding cost 102 mil l ion dol lars and i t was bui l t in 14 years. The first performance there took place in 1973. The roofs are made out of 2.194 sections of previously modeled concrete, each one weighing 15 tons, bound together with thousands of cables and covered with 1.056.000 roof t i les.
5. National Stadium in ChinaThe design of the industrial fabric of the Chinese National Stadium captivated the whole world during the 2008 Olympics. Nicknamed “Bird’s Nest”, this great and impressive structure took five years to be built from the beginning to the grand opening. The design’s details were inspired in the intricate style of Chinese ceramics. 6. Taipei buildingThe Taipei building is located in the city of Taipei, in Taiwan. It is considered the third largest skyscraper in the world, with 509 meters of altitude. It is 59 Meters taller than the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur. It’s known as “Taipei 101” because it has 101 storeys and it can withstand earthquakes of up to 7 degrees on the Richter scale. It weighs 700.000 tons. Its construction began in 1997 and it was finished in 2004.
10 ARCHITECTURAL WONDERS OF THE MODERN WORLD
7. 30 st. Mary Axe30 st. Mary Axe is a building in the main financial district of London. It is also widely known as “The Gherkin”. It is 180 meters tall, making it the second tallest building in London City after Tower 42, and the 6th tallest one in the London Metropolitan Area. The building was designed by Norman Foster and erected by Skanska between 2001 and 2004. 8. Central Television Building, ChinaThis is an interesting project because of the composition with which the building was erected, with two slightly tilted towers of two different heights (234 and 210 meters) that meet at the top with two perpendicular cantilevers of 75 and 67 meters respectively. The exterior texture is also quite peculiar because part of the perimetral diagonal structure is visible on its facade. The finished tower is perceived as a modern building in the horizon of the city, showing itself from some perspectives as an imposing arch.
10 ARCHITECTURAL WONDERS OF THE MODERN WORLD
9. Millennium DomeI t is a great building shaped as a dome in the Greenwich Peninsula, southeast of London. It was built to serve as the home of an important exposit ion to celebrate the beginning of the third millennium. This exposit ion was open to the public on January 1st 2000 and it was closed on December 31st the same year. In spite of that, the project and the exposition itself were subject to considerable polit ical controversy and didn't attract the amount of visitors that was expected on its budget planning. 10. CITIC PlazaThe CITIC Plaza is a skyscraper with 80 storeys, built in the district of Tianhe, Guangzhou, in China. I ts structural height is 391 meters including two tall needles resembling an antenna on the top. When it was completed in 1997, it was the tallest building in the world -outside New York and Chicago-, as well as the tallest building in China and Asia. It is currently the third one in China, after the J in Mao Tower in Shanghai and Two International Finance Centre in Hong Kong. Located in this ever-growing district, it is part of a complex with the same name that also consists on two residential buildings that are 38 storeys high.
10 ARCHITECTURAL WONDERS OF THE MODERN WORLD