Tag: Dubai

Young Learners, Level 6: Engineering projects

27th April 2021

Warm up – Here are some symbols of Viet Nam:

Can you think of symbols of the UK ?

Question: Why is Britain so big in Sai Gon ?

England Symbols And Icons. Vector Illustration Royalty Free Cliparts, Vectors, And Stock Illustration. Image 137889874.

Answer:

Khám phá The Landmark 81 - Tòa nhà cao nhất tại Việt Nam

Landmark 81 is a super-tall skyscraper in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, that was designed by the British firm (company) Atkins.

Landmark 81 is the tallest building in Vietnam, and the 14th tallest building in the world.

The 461.5 metres (1,514 ft) tall, 81-storey building is built on the western banks of the Saigon River.

The development comprises (has) hotel and conference rooms, luxury apartments, high-end shops, restaurants, bars, and a multi-story observation deck.

Image result for landmark 81

Comprehension review:

What is the building called ? // Where exactly is it ? //

What firm designed it and where are they from ?

How tall is it ? // What does the complex comprise of ?

Landmark 81 Skyview Review: Is it worth? - Mylittleplan.com
How would you feel so high in the sky ?

Can you think of any tall buildings from history ?

Can you think of any amazing engineering works from history ?

Information gathering

Watch the video and collect the following information (answers at end of blog):

1) What year was Philadelphia City Hall built ?

2) Where is the Singer Building ?

3) How tall is the Metlife Tower ?

4) What year was the Chrysler Building built ?

5) How tall is the Empire State Building to the very top ?

6) What is the tallest building in Chicago called ?

7) What is the first building in the video NOT in the USA ? Where is it ?

8) How tall is Taipei 101 ? What plant does it look like ?

9) In 2010, what was the world’s tallest building ? Where is it ?

10) What will be the tallest building in the world ?

11) Work on the Jeddah Tower stopped in 2020. Can you think why ?

Interesting fact: the US architect Adrian Smith designed both the Burj Khalifa and the Jeddah Tower

However, it’s not all plain sailing. Sometimes things go wrong:

(suggest starting at number #48 at 1:20)

Answers

1) 1901 2) NYC 3) 213metres or 700 feet 4) 1930

5) 432 m or 1416 ft 6) Sears Tower (now Willis Tower)

7) Petronus Tower in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

8) 508m or 1667 ft. It resembles a bamboo plant

9) Burj Khalifa in Dubai 1

10) Jeddah Tower in Saudi Arabia 11) Work stopped due to COVID-19

A useful website, from April 4th 2021: https://constructionreviewonline.com/project-timelines/jeddah-tower-project-timeline-and-all-you-need-to-know/

Adult Speaking Class, Level 2: Giving opinions – architecture

9th April 2020

Architecture

What do you think of these styles ? Which do you like and why ?

Use adjectives and opinion expressions

I think / I feel / It seems to me / In my opinion  /

I especially like / I especially dislike / This appeals to me

Some adjectives:

imposing / impressive / incredible / magnificent / symmetrical / dazzling / unique / minimal / functional / decorative /

Expressions:

A sense of space / playful decor / somber facade / elegant lines / spiritually enhancing / an icon of national identity

Gothic 
Renaissance
Baroque
Art Nouveau
Cubist
Modernism

Some contemporary architects and styles

Would you like to or visit any of these buildings ?

How do you react to them ?

What are they trying to say ?

Kazuyo Sejima (Japan b. 1956)

Daniel Libeskind (Poland / USA b. 1946)

The Jewish Museum in Berlin, Germany.

Dubai (UAE)

Which one expresses optimism, growth and confidence ?

Which one challenges conventional structures ?

Which one uses architecture to reflect a destruction or shattering of society ?

Finally:

Here’s a great video charting the advances made in architecture over the last century: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuTqWxuAazI

EVOLUTION of WORLD'S TALLEST BUILDING: Size Comparison (1901-2022 ...

Are we getting close to the Biblical Tower of Babel ?

Bruegel, Tower of Babel (video) | Khan Academy
Tower of Babel by Peter Breughal 1563

For those who are interested in the story, here is the extract from The Bible, Genesis 11

Genesis 11 New International Version (NIV)

The Tower of Babel

11 Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2 As people moved eastward,[a] they found a plain in Shinar[b] and settled there.

3 They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. 4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

5 But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. 6 The Lordsaid, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”

8 So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city.9 That is why it was called Babel[c]—because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world. From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth.