Core77

Your correspondent was lucky enough to live in Japan for a year, and while there were many great things about it, the one thing I could've done without were the frequent, if miniature, earthquakes. It seemed like every other month a little tremor would shudder through Tokyo, and it was terrifying to be in a basement-level-three store (not uncommon in such a space-tight city) during a temblor, wondering if you were going to be buried alive.

There were products you could buy to mitigate the effects of earthquakes, for example, many homes I saw had curtain-rod-like braces wedged between the top of bookshelves and the bottom of the ceiling. But now the Dynamic Designs Challenge is looking for design to take a larger role in dealing with the problem: They're putting out a call for student-designed earthquake-proof buildings.

Of course, design is just one of many moving parts (sorry, poor choice of words) required for this competition:

The competition will require participants to demonstrate many of the core attributes and skills required by employers and universities including teamwork, creative thinking, communication and the ability to solve complex challenges. The students will also apply skills in and knowledge of science and engineering, art and architecture, project management, finance and socio-economics.

Click here for more info.

via dexigner