About this item
The global boom in skyscrapers -- why it's happening now, how they're made, and what they do to cities and people.We are living in a new urban age and its most tangible expression is the "supertall": megastructures that are dramatically bigger, higher, and more ambitious than any in history. In Supertall, TED Resident Stefan Al -- himself an experienced architect who has worked on some of the largest buildings in the world -- reveals the advancements in engineering, design, and data science that have led to this worldwide boom.Using examples from the past (the Empire State Building, St. Paul's Cathedral, the Eiffel Tower) and present (Dubai's Burj Khalifa, London's Shard, Shanghai Tower) , he describes how the most remarkable skyscrapers have been designed and built.
About the Author
Stefan Al, is an architect, urban designer, professor and the author of SUPERTALL. As a designer he has worked on masterplans and mixed-use buildings across the globe, including the 2000-feet tall Canton Tower, briefly the world's tallest tower. In addition, he served as an advisor to various city governments and expert to the United Nations High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. SUPERTALL is about the new generation of skyscrapers - why they're here, how they're made, and what they do to cities and people. Stefan's work has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and TED Talks. Over the years, he has published eight books on subjects related to architecture and urban design, which have been widely praised. He is committed to train the next generation of designers, having served as a professor at Virginia Tech, Columbia University, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Hong Kong. A native of The Netherlands, he is a licensed architect in New York. He holds a PhD in urban planning from the University of California, Berkeley.
