Multimedia Gallery - Human cells will be the models for building skins that will adapt to changes in the environment.

how eSkin may operate at the building scale.

October 19, 2010

Human cells will be the models for building skins that will adapt to changes in the environment.

Engineers, design architects, and cell biologists from the University of Pennsylvania will use the flexibility and sensitivity of human cells as the models for next-generation building "skins," designated "eSkin," that will adapt to changes in the environment, produce beautiful effects such as color change, and, most importantly, increase building energy efficiency. The image above suggests how eSkin may operate at the building scale with new construction featuring complex geometries.

Credit: Jenny E. Sabin, Sabin+Jones LabStudio (image); Shu Yang, Nader Engheta, Jan Van der Spiegel, Peter Lloyd Jones, Andrew Lucia, University of Pennsylvania

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