See How Termites Inspired a Building That Can Cool Itself | Decoder

[@NatGeo]

The largest commercial building in Zimbabwe can cool itself thanks to inspiration from termites. What do you think about the building's unique design?

[@CaryKelly11]

I think we should live in giant termite mounds.

[@iLupi]

Passive Ventilation strategies are definitely a way forward. It’s amusing if you think about it that in older times, they build with those sorts of things in mind, but with the invention of Air Conditioning, most moved on to the ‘“cookie cutter” method of slapping big HVAC systems into buildings’ approach. It’s a very tough and fun challenge trying to create buildings that serve in function, form, comfort and sustainability.

[@qodentdent5256]

OMG I LOVE THIS 💘

[@lenso010]

the building is too ugly. The rest is awesome

[@qodentdent5256]

lenso010 that's just matter of taste :))

[@ahmadxrizvi]

When she said 82° I literally cried in Celsius.

[@dolcevita9512]

LMFAO 😂😂🤣🤣☝🏼👏🏼

[@fahadhashmi2889]

Holy LMAO 😆😂

[@tickle296]

C=(F-32)/9. Isn't it the conversion equation from Centigrade to FARENHEIT and vice versa? 🤔🤔

[@kevinchen1763]

82 F is actually freaking hot, is like California hot

[@Phoenix.219]

@@tickle296 5/9...if u will not multiply by 5 it will be temp of winters😁

[@clarencemaseko428]

I worked in the eastgate building everyday 8am-5pm for a year. I would say in hot weather temperatures inside the building (around 25°) were pleasant compared to those outside (around 30°). Hot weather is 9 months in Zimbabwe. However, during 3 months of winter the lower temperatures inside the building were uncomfortable for many. It was better to be outside

[@MalaysianTropikfusion]

I didn't know you could have winter in Zimbabwe.

[@clarencemaseko428]

@@MalaysianTropikfusion we do have winter but our version is mild. I'm 35 and I've never seen snow. In the afternoon you just need a light jersey and then it gets bad in the evening where we stick around fire places

[@MalaysianTropikfusion]

@@clarencemaseko428 Just last year I experienced first-hand a Saudi Arabian winter. It was mind-boggling to feel cold at 12 P.M. noon. Looking at a map, it's no wonder. Saudi Arabia is north of the equator, and Zimbabwe is south of it.

[@lil_weasel219]

@@clarencemaseko428 You can easily put more clothes on if it's slightly cool, what's important is solving the issue of heat because that is much harder to solve

[@showshowtomakefreeenergyge2426]

Termites have long been a problem for homeowners, but one company is using them as inspiration for a new type of building. Termite mounds are found in hot climates and are known for their ability to regulate temperature. The company has developed a way to mimic the termite mound, using concrete and clay to create a structure that can cool itself. The building is designed to take advantage of the lower temperatures during the winter months. The concrete and clay absorb heat during the day and release it at night, keeping the building cooler during the hottest part of the day. The design is still in its early stages, but the company believes it has potential to revolutionize how we build in hot climates.

[@shmorkshmire]

Fahrenheit=1.8(Celsius)+32 Celsius=(Fahrenheit - 32)/1.8 82F = 27.8C 95F = 35C

[@shmorkshmire]

Mauro Molinero it's not that hard, you've probably got a calculator on your phone

[@NeverLooksAtComments]

who uses a calculator for that? just ask your phone or google.

[@balamstudios]

It means nothing when you have to stop the immersion in the video to make a conversion, by which time you will have lost the streak of all other information. So NO.

[@oblark]

balamstudios lol immersion? Lets be real this isnt some groundbreaking visual masterpiece demanding our complete attention, its a short informational video meant to be fact checked by the viewer.

[@AGJ117]

balamstudios You can rewind the video to regain the information. It won't go away and it's less than 4 minutes.

[@dennisdonovan4837]

For those of you are interested in this topic of architectural passive cooling designs I would suggest looking into what was used in Persia (now known as Iran) many centuries ago. “Badgirs” (cooling towers) were an ingenious use of local materials and the dynamism of nature’s thermal homeostasis to provide “air conditioning” that didn’t rely on electricity.

[@Thinks-First]

Cooling towers are interesting but completely impractical. You still can't beat Oil, Electricity generation, and Air Conditioning units. The vilification of modern technology is getting ridiculous. Notice how the larges proponents of going backwards never quite commit to do it themselves. I'd say those Africans were conned.

[@Robopi3.14]

​@@Thinks-Firstit's not vilification. It simply is not sustainable to rely on fossil fuels for all our needs. While we wean ourselves off this dependence, it is helpful to have innovative low power consumption technologies

[@Thinks-First]

@@Robopi3.14 Sure we can. There are plenty of fossil fuels available. There's no shortage. It would be nice to develop new technologies, but none pack the punch calorie for calorie as hydrocarbons do. Cooling towers, evaporation pools, solar, wind, etc... They are mostly toys. Not serious energy sources. And they never will be. Don't worry, there is more than enough fuel in the earth's crust.

[@Sol-ps8ox]

​@@Thinks-FirstThey literally had temperatures between 27°C to 12°C. Thats what people in those regions set the AC temp. at. It is you who is blinded to not be able to see that they got what they wanted.

[@henvdemon]

@@Thinks-First how are those ac units without electricity holding up again? After the power went out due to whatever cause this time. Or if the power grid just you know, went out or got destroyed/rendered unusable.

[@MrQhuin]

Freezing point=0°C Boiling point=100°C We don't need Fahrenheit

[@am-fil]

Imperial is superior and metrics is inferior.

[@enderomega2324]

@@am-fil And now apply logic to the imperial system you can't cos you an ignorant, I can but I don't like waste my time

[@joshg5122]

I’d argue Fahrenheit only makes more sense for weather but nothing else

[@TsunaXZ]

@@am-fil Well I use both but most of the time I prefer Metric.

[@superknightlol]

Am Fil its a science channel. they suppose to use metric. no scientist in the world even in america use imperial.

[@RogerFedRocks]

People are saying that 82 degrees fahrenheit is not comfortable, while not understanding that this is Zimbabwe and for them it probably is.

[@ArgentonRodrigo]

I'm Brazil, the norm here is 22°C for closed buildings, not 27,7°C.

[@tfnoooooo3087]

well i am zimbabwean.......and that is s**t hot

[@thearchitect3497]

Crepuscular its dry heat dummy not humid....unlike USA Africa doesnt have humid heat...just dry heat and if u stay indoors u wont even feel hot.

[@fenty2331]

Pinned Comment it depends on the part of africa your in

[@lilahb.8698]

My house is 80-83, and it's dry heat. What I'd be more worried about is how it's 57 degrees at night! That's waaaay too cold.

[@toshley6192]

"The concrete blocks absorb the cold". Cold isn't a property, heat (thermal energy) is. The cold air transfers heat away from the concrete and vents it out of the building during the night, which lowers the concrete's temperature. Then the concrete acts as a giant heat-sink during the day, absorbing and storing heat from the air. I'm not sure how this relates to termite mounds though, other than the fact that the ground acts as a heat sink in the same way the concrete does, but that can be said of rabbit warrens, ant nests, and even your parent's basement. I was under the impression that termite mounds in particular make use of complex ventilation shafts that make use of wind and thermal expansion to bring fresh air deep into the nest and vent waste gasses. I'm pretty sure they don't have ventilation fans.

[@Pa-1]

Even I was expecting a tech at that level - something like a ram pump which acts based on water pressure & automatic valves... They say that the Pyramid also has fresh air inside despite not having windows...!!!

[@rahulnaik1869]

Actually a termite mound uses Bernoulli's principle for ventilation. The pressure difference between outside and the inside creates forced ventilation even with the slightest of the breeze. They failed to explain any of this here. The chimneys on top probably mimic this to an extent, but since the floors and spaces are stacked mechanical cooling is probably required. Not much biomimicing from the mound.

[@chippysteve4524]

In this case,the majority of the heat transfer is via radiation and not conduction/convection as you suggest although you clearly know more than the chimp who wrote this script for Nat Geo and all the managers and execs who didn't spot the jaw-dropping inaccuracy of the script/'researchers'.

[@snowleopard9463]

Human copies termite cooling system Termites: *issues copystrike*

[@dhupee]

@3am music that sentence is use for someone who pour molten aluminium on the termite's nest

[@katlegokgosibodiba]

Stolen patent.

[@dennisg.8618]

Termites now own the building.

[@nsa3679]

Copyright will be the reason humanity downfall

[@casimirojulianangelo4804]

@@nsa3679 isn't there a game/movie about that?

[@Allinone-321]

Great minds, really these guys are Gem for our world

[@chyu89]

You mean the termites?

[@sslime4649]

It's not minds at play here, it's their instinct alone

[@aschconformity7795]

not that great. they are still using fans..

[@lawrencestanley8989]

As an architect myself, while this structure is interesting, it isn't really the ideal building construction method for a "self-cooling" structure. Built from at least the 3rd century BC, the house style now recognized as a Moroccan riad is by far one of the best designs for a "self-cooling" structure. It is a multiple storied building that surrounds an open courtyard containing a water feature like a fountain or a soaking pool. Riads are inward focused buildings that have few, if any features on the exterior façade; small exterior facing windows let air in along the first floor which cools in the shaded and humid courtyard. All of the rooms are open to the courtyard, letting in this cool air; the courtyard also acting as a chimney of sorts to direct warmer air up and out of the structure. Termites are OK, but the structure still requires heavy use of fans to duct air away, so it isn't really "self-cooling." When a water feature is added into a shaded central courtyard, the difference in temperatures is much more dramatic, and usually, no fans are needed.

[@raydreamer7566]

I could not find anywhere that shows how the Moroccan riad design works for cooling. I would like to learn more about what you are implying how this works for cooling.

[@lawrencestanley8989]

@@raydreamer7566 It is essentially just evaporative cooling.

[@Buurba_Jolof]

@@lawrencestanley8989 Nicely explained. 👍

[@ANTSEMUT1]

The video didn't explain that having a vent on the ground floor and the a connecting chimney on the top creates a air pressure differential, the taller the chimney relative to the ground floor vent the bigger the pressure differential. This also means if they place the vents in a shaded vent the air would be much cooler too.

[@abtking91]

What is a good design to keep residential houses cool in Indian summers, where highest temperature may go upto 46-48 degree Celcius? Is there a good insulation system commercially available that works for cheap?

[@jesse113553]

Please add SI units next to imperial units. While lbs/kg and ft/m conversion are fairly straightforward in a ball park figure kind of way, F to C is very non-intuitive for someone who isn’t familiar with it.

[@Drew-fn6rq]

FANtasy121 just look it up. Dont be lazy. :)

[@jesse113553]

I did. It is inconvenient, esp when they could just put it directly beneath the other units.

[@thisismyshitpostingaccount5991]

Drew or they could put it in the video and not be lazy :)

[@esadlemes8936]

Its f minus 32 then divide by 1.8

[@Drew-fn6rq]

That too lol

[@nicholasreceveur8082]

I had the pleasure of meeting the architect once. A very humble and down-to-earth person. If you liked this building, you might also want to check out the CH2 he designed in Melbourne. Sensible passive design principles augmented by modern technology can yield some amazing results in terms of aesthetics and energy efficiency.

[@rockeygarcia5865]

Kudos to the Termite architects and Engineers. They gave humans a brilliant idea 👏

[@danko5866]

Yeah, nature is most intelligent

[@ballscock9280]

Termites don’t have architects or engineers buddy 💀

[@louisthelemur1238]

@@ballscock9280 😐

[@8909lee]

Why being blind? The one who created termites and us is the most intelligent of all.

[@ihaventshoweredin6weeksbut527]

​@@danko5866 we are nature lol

[@erwinsaputra3645]

American : Make America great again! rest of the world : Make America use the metric system!

[@FestusOmega]

Bah, silly plebs claiming they use the metric system when they're still living as slaves to the 24 hour day. 60 seconds in a minute? 60 minutes in an hour and 24 hrs in a day? 7 days a week, a varying number of days per month, 12 months a year, 365 days a year except it's actually 366 once every 4 years? Such a messy system. People should just adapt to a simple base ten system of time measurement already and stop being posers.

[@CIorox_BIeach]

We're not changing just so people in other countries have to do less math.

[@consideringorthodoxy5495]

It's me Ha, you have to use decimals more. Nerds

[@am-fil]

Imperial is superior. Just like America!

[@카리스마킴-j1n]

yes. please!!!

[@certivicator932]

And what's that in Celsius?

[@AAMIRKHAN7]

27-28

[@Ar0npr0ducti0ns]

27,7 ° = 82 fahrenheit

[@riotmakerzeronine6761]

Hint, R : F : C = 4 : 9 (+32) : 5

[@bugmaster05]

Yeah, this guys really need to consider thay not everyone uses fahrenheit as unit. Btw a comfortable 82 degrees fahrenheit isnt as comfortable if the humidity is high not to mention if you exert yourself.

[@phantomcreamer]

GommentarHD subtract 32, diivide by 9, and times by 5.

[@janofb]

I pulled up the weather there. For all but 3 months the outside temp is less than 86 degrees while the night temp is never above 64 degrees. It's gets up to 90 in Sep-Nov. Seems like the building should be a lot cooler than 82 degrees.

[@thehulk86]

I agree, plus since the global average 'room temperature' is about 72.8 degrees Fahrenheit, a gigantic office building that has no AC at all and averages 82 degrees every single day seems like a colossal failure

[@sanderbenning1182]

@@thehulk86 this is what I was thinking too! When I converted the 82 degrees Fahrenheit to Celsius, I was shocked by how hot it was. Does not seem like a comfortable temperature to spend the whole day working in... Like you said, this seems like a failure instead, I don't get why they're boasting about it.

[@MAZEMIND]

A massive hot, smelly building.

[@icefire5555]

Yeah, how do they spend 66% as much on electricity with massively warmer air? I thought AC was most of the power consumption.

[@tembe2638]

for someone in zimbabwe 82 degrees is actually quite cool because they have adjusted to much hotter temperatures

[@johnmyviews3761]

Termites also orientate their structures to make the best advantage of the suns radiation, something that is still beyond most building designer/architects

[@weneedmoreconsideratepeopl4006]

How do you know this info?

[@ImmortalShiro]

He's a termite...

[@oyaml1211]

He knows because he has lived in a termite mound.

[@esadlemes8936]

I cant find a short way to explain how wrong your argument is. We take extremely great care to optimize buildings in sustainability, from orientation to air leaks in fenestrations. The only thing out of reach right now is a precise method of calculating radiant heat gain because of it’s variable nature

[@nitinkumarvyas]

@Random comment, but- Watch Planet Earth 2. Episode Deserts.

[@scienceandvlogs4279]

I heard about this termites construction and Zimbabwe building 8 years ago and now I'm watching it's construction through video. It's amazing. Thanks for this video

[@Life_is_Awesome_Civil]

Iam proud that iam the engineer of that building

[@chippysteve4524]

Wow a typing termite. Life IS awssome ;-)

[@Life_is_Awesome_Civil]

@@chippysteve4524 😂

[@lucabaldassi6024]

We must also ask ourselves: "why don't you include metric measurements in your videos so people OUTSIDE of the US can understand?" Thank you

[@basavarajs.2149]

....and align with the world gradually.

[@_Everyone__]

Bright people understand both nowadays. Many countries have their own "quirks", a Mile can be up to 10KM depending on where you are in the world.

[@dat_music_dude9718]

At this point, i can roughly do the math in my head. Subtract 32 from the temp. in F to get the temperature in celsius

[@Anderson-cc5jy]

@@dat_music_dude9718 82 - 32, would be 50°c, which is crazy hot. So I googled it The correct equation is (82-32) / 1.8. it can be 1.8 or 9/5 And the temperature would be around 27°c

[@brunocp87]

@@Anderson-cc5jy easier fair enough way: subtract 30 and divide by 2

[@tommynobaka]

The indis valley civilization also had a self cooling architecture. Marble and granite were also used as cooling devices in ancient structures as well

[@transverseuniverse]

Is 82°F really considered comfortable? ...

[@certivicator932]

Katherine Prutz good question especially if you don't know Fahrenheit but only Celsius

[@capoiosct]

I wouldnt know. Most civilizations have adopted the metric system, except some stuborn ones...

[@DrSlayerSeth]

Katherine Prutz i know right i keep it 60 at my house

[@mohammadaladham7721]

Yes it is. I find anything between 25C and 28C comfortable, below 22 is cold and above 30 is hot, but that's just me.

[@AscendantStoic]

If the temprature outside is nearly double that then yeah it's pretty comfortable and mild.

[@carjac820]

The building looks like it was designed in Minecraft.

[@ryy1704]

Ye the outside has a blocky look.

[@pearlnepgen5100]

Ye

[@amalianurlatifah8703]

All high rise building at tropical countries should use this technology 😍

[@YoungSoldier49]

Pls put meters and Celsius too

[@gaberodriguez3732]

Provider Nat geo is an american company, deal with it

[@arjunmohan7313]

Gabe Rodriguez i thought they were a science channel and should use scientific units

[@atrixsauza2068]

They're just lazy to add the Celsius unit just below it, like some other American channels do.

[@father6371]

you're just lazy to convert the numbers

[@atrixsauza2068]

Jason Foulks I did convert the unit, but it's better if they just show it on the video itself.

[@racciacrack7579]

Rest of world: *Make your videos in Metric!* America,Burma,and Liberia: *Laughs in Fahrenheit*

[@bahamachillpill4661]

Bahamas uses Fahrenheit as well

[@orcas101]

Nat geo is American

[@sesetio338]

I learnt a new word. Fahrenheit. You thought I was going to say Biomimicry. lol

[@nearestyoutube]

Fahrenheit? Nah that's an old obsolete word. Just a few stubborn countries still using it :)

[@indevious9659]

Table-Country pinxing THRYM Firearms 27 its not really a relic

[@josevillanueva7601]

What a beautiful way to show that inspiration and ingenuity can be found when we are more aware of what’s going on around us

[@DailyFrankPeter]

0:04 - In 1991 the architect had "a problem", because the client wanted to save on AC bills... Please, National Geographic, in engineering world this is just called "a job".

[@IanSwart]

>95% of the world uses SI units, how doesn't NatGeo know this?

[@norpriest521]

Ian Swart Nah, just show both units. Problem solved

[@sophiejones7727]

production was for American tv. They know :)

[@Frediloc8]

Yeah, since this was made by a US company for a US TV show...kinda makes sense.

[@gaberodriguez3732]

Its an american company so deal with it

[@after1001]

90% of consumers that advertisers care about use Fahrenheit

[@68Tboy]

It’s amazing that the termites employ low power fans to pull in the cool night air!

[@JustWinJets]

They need to build more buildings like this so hopefully the 82 degrees day time temp can be more like 72 degrees

[@alexwaters6007]

Evan Kagan try 68 lmao

[@samsepoil2111]

Evan Kagan 82 is so hot

[@danny.nedelk0]

We're talking Southern Africa. 82 degrees is comfortable to the locals.

[@TechKidShazil]

F right? If it's Celsius I'm basically fried.

[@techblogger8323]

tizio caio good point

[@nicholaswatson2725]

Not only effective but it looks awesome too! This architect is brilliant

[@merohit121]

we have the same Hawa Mahal a wind palace in India around 300 years ago.

[@BHAGWADHARII]

India is great bro . NOone in this world can compete with us....

[@BHAGWADHARII]

@Brian Kabonyo not at all bro

[@AJ-np3rn]

Dude I visited Hawa Mahal , but the concept use a lot of space which seemed impractical I am an Indian too and India is great

[@adhirajchattopadhyay630]

@@BHAGWADHARII the designs are different

[@3nyo146]

@@BHAGWADHARII yeah. You're the greatest street shiter

[@TheBthebabe]

Sorry about the Fahrenheit/Celsius thing but I'm just glad that more people now know African countries have super structures and skyscrapers not just grasslands and desserts.

[@Miquelalalaa]

Bolu Aina What about rainforest

[@manda3dprojects966]

But african people are black and you cannot change that

[@dryb3301]

And nothing wrong with grassland I think

[@dryb3301]

@@manda3dprojects966 who the f cares if they are black you racist? That's their skin colour and they don't want to change that. They are not fond of melanoma like u I imagine.

[@Chigo-nr8jg]

You really don’t have to bring that up here, it’s not a blessing to have skyscrapers.

[@redspin2ify]

2:00 "The concrete blocks absorb the cold" Come on how could you guys call this a science channel? For those of you who don't know, "cold" isn't an entity or a tangible thing, "cold" is the lack of heat or the lower end of a heat gradient. So when people say "open the window let the cold come in" they are scientifically incorrect, it is that the heat is escaping out the window and moving to an area which is cooler, down the temperature gradient. In this case, concrete blocks don't "absorb the cold" but the air in fact absorbs the heat from the concrete blocks, making the blocks cooler. Please national geographic you should be educating people the right way. Small difference but still important nonetheless because it helps understand the physics of hot and cold simply from the explanation. Sorry if I sounded too stressy, just that these guys should know as educators.

[@safi9764]

Yeah but u need to understand that most people who haven't studied science are watching this too.. So its important to communicate in common language

[@Chromwel-A]

Safi Wasif ....are you trying to say that most people doesn't understand the word 'heat'? And that 'heat' is not common word?

[@paradoxpubgm3918]

Either way... the block is cold

[@crashlaga]

@@safi9764 it’s not hard to understand “the heat from the concrete transfers to the cool air”

[@LargestClassifieds]

This is so inspiring and makes sense. Learning from Mother Nature is the best.

[@GravityGamingCo]

Only God Almighty

[@kittisakchooklin874]

The idea is quite similar to those in the middle east with tall chimneys that also release hot air and lower opening underground that draws cool air in. This is genius. I am wondering if that same principle could be used in humid climate regions.

[@ErwinTubeYou]

Many buildings are made by Dutch in early 20th century or even earlier with the same concept and works well. However, when the air becomes more and more polluted, this approach needs to be revisited.

[@ik1997]

Subhan Allah .. everything is around us we just have to open our eyes and see

[@nazranhaziq8061]

Alhamdulillah

[@shimeih2287]

Wow. You learn something new everyday. Everytime I went to Eastgate I've never even realised it.

[@MrShivamgautam1]

I was expecting bricks with holes. It's basically just fan ventilated.

[@armyforlife7162]

Same ,also I thought they made a lot of windows to circulate air like hawa Mahal and other structures 😅😅

[@MrDvfdsv]

brilliant! however, it's the increase of shaded surface that reduces the heat absorption during the day and not the bigger overall surface - and the concrete transfers its heat to the air let in and does not store the cold from the air ... it always moves from hot to cold

[@tapiwachifunde4921]

I'm from Zimbabwe, and I had no idea about that.... Thank you for the documentary

[@acasta403]

Would be cool if you could display both imperial and metric units, so people don't have to use a converter

[@acasta403]

Ken MacDonald Got nothing to do with education, it's a matter of convenience

[@pencileraser101]

Ken MacDonald I have to agree with your argument about the simple Google Search. But I don't think they were "uneducated" they just didn't know the Imperial System, you would feel the same way too if I called you you're "uneducated" because you don't know the metric system..

[@kitsilanocat]

Ken MacDonald tbh your probably more educated if you CAN'T use the imperial system... Just saying

[@tristanferencevic453]

yeah we dont all live in the U.S

[@siriusleigh24]

Or you can just learn how to calculate it like old school.

[@alf3488]

The this building looks beautiful and energy saving at the same time.

[@jaromor8808]

beautiful? lol

[@remiborgen8925]

Few realise how incredible this really is. Get inspiration from nature.

[@mandandi]

I watched a TV program on this way back in 2002 in England. A university building was built to mimic termite mounds and it was kept cool in the summer and warm in the winter, There was water flowing around or under the building. Ingenious.

[@raphaelchigombe1568]

Lol wow! Years of doing business in this building and I didn't even realize the genius that went into its design! I'm shooketh

[@NevrrPresntt]

Nature has the greatest instructions for life.

[@el_chavez]

I think this design concept is not new by any means but I think it is cool. Imagine whole neighborhoods inside a building that has indoor "outdoor" space. With the skylights in the right spot, you could make it feel like you were outside on a warm day. Then each individual living unit and business could choose to condition their air. It would be cheaper to condition those units when you are starting from 82 deg. rather than 100+.

[@pgum123gonowplayread4]

Yeah, that would be amazing and could be the way forward in new city planning. I'm not studying planning but I used to look up the basics on dense city planning and wow. We need to prepare. It would be a great thing to implement in all parts of the world, the at least one city in each certain amount of area capable of holding lots of people. Imagine what kind of effects it would bring to places that are ethnically divided. The way to speed up the ethically divided gap bridge usually requires a new factor into one of the groups that make them mingle but before that requires enough space for each group to grow individually and let the badness cool down in the individual citizens as what taught to me in school after all.

[@BillionairesArentYourFriends]

Sounds like Vivic City to me

[@swaggytoast5242]

I'm proud to say my father was the mechanical engineer of that building

[@thomasmurray4717]

This can change the world. 👍👍

[@andysvikiro157]

I have worked in the Eastgate 5th floor. The building is cool and really cold at times... Thanks for the great design.

[@keybyss98]

Not only is this insanely amazing technically (and almost a huge “duh” moment overall), but I also like how it looks visually, not far from something that could’ve been built around in North America pre-WW2! I’m usually extremely unimpressed with a lot of buildings built in the 90’s, so to see exceptions like this is fascinating! Not sure why architecture with awesome features like this can’t also look as nice as this, even when the technicalities in question don’t impact the design as much.

[@davetv4705]

The greatest inspiration comes from nature indeed. Thanks for sharing.

[@joking2655]

Is everybody just talking about the temperatures and not that the innovative design of a genius Architect???? What a shame

[@prophecyrat2965]

Its because the “genius architect” is termites. Did you watch the video?

[@amansaini169]

Great!! I think it's high time we move from flashy all-glass skyscrapers to such eco-friendly buildings.❄🌱

[@vulture6268]

These ants literally built a skyscraper higher than we did, without technology.. compared to their size and us.

[@Screch]

ours can survive water tho

[@vulture6268]

@@Screch ok :'D

[@theworthysoul]

Not really ants lol, termites are closer to cockroaches. It’s still impressive how such tiny eusocial insects can be so successful though.

[@jeanmichel6159]

Seriously, who is still using -Farte- -Farney- -Falray- -Fornite- Fahrenheit in 2018 ?!

[@UkSapyy]

America?

[@roqui3675]

Loserzz

[@ArgentonRodrigo]

I live in America, and I'm not a idiot, in my country we do not use this system.

[@jeanmichel6159]

NANI ?!

[@13DatsyukDangle13]

Hundreds of millions of people

[@martinholland4952]

Great video. Would love to see it again with the metric system

[@ianboard544]

When I was in Palermo Sicily, I visited La Zisa - a moorish palace. The way the building was cooled was ingenious - they had air shafts on the side that got heated by the sun, causing a chimney effect. The lobby had a stream and fountain that the incoming air passed, cooling it.

[@marrionwilliammubawu2464]

My uncle, Mr. Mubawu was the contractor of this building🙏🙏🙏

[@earthminus10]

Lesson from nature. Mother gives us everything we need to sustain ourselves and her, we just need to open our eyes.

[@525Lines]

Chicago has a system where it collects lake ice during the winter and keeps it underground and circulates the cold water from the runoff throughout the summer to cool buildings.

[@bengriffin4027]

I believe you are getting two different things mixed up. Before the Advent of modern chill water and air conditioning systems a process was in place in Chicago where in the winter large blocks of ice will cut out of the lake stored underground and then doled out to the summer for refrigeration and air conditioning. That practice ended decades ago. Currently there's a company that makes ice when the electricity rates are lower, that is at night. This company then distributes chill water underground two buildings that have contracted with him to ride cooling. It doesn't use Lake ice it just uses cheaper electricity at night.

[@hildegunstvonmythenmetz6619]

This idea was actually stolen from German architect Hans Hübel, who came up with the idea when designing the university clinic in Cairo in the 50s. Sadly the building was never actually constructed.

[@johnalphacentauri]

Nice! The video did not mentioned enough the importance of that "radiator shapes" all over the building to dissipate heat more efficiently. Moreover the high termal mass doesn't mean that materials do not change temperature, it is just that these materials change temperature slowly so that they become hottest 12 hours after the hottest time of the day so they can release the heat during the coolest time outside. Thermal lag. Furthermore, materials such as brick can absorb a certain quantity of water which, by evaporating in dry air situations, contributes to the lowering of the temperature inside. I am an architect.

[@murjoshua]

Over the past months I've been studying about Ants and their intelligent behaviors, and just like this video the findings are just mind blowing! And for my profession as Drone and Artificial Intelligence Engineer, the possibilities are limitless on what systems we can come up with from that perspective.

[@cheeseandhat]

these are termites though

[@mechanomics2649]

Ants are incredibly underrated animals. Some species are master engineers.

[@cameronlane3567]

My question is that if it worked so well why aren't there more of these types of buildings?

[@adamtash2891]

because this was designed and built with more strict economic constraints than other places

[@recallchannel3258]

Who said there are non others

[@rahulnaik1869]

Actually a termite mound uses Bernoulli's principle for ventilation. The pressure difference between outside and the inside creates forced ventilation even with the slightest of the breeze on the outside. The chimneys on top probably mimic this to an extent, but since the floors and spaces are stacked mechanical cooling is probably required. Not much biomimicing from the mound though.

[@weeda221]

it's amazing how much humans have learned and have been inspired from nature and where it got us

[@ndeipishamwari]

This building is actually very cool once you are inside it. I see lots of temperature discussion going on here. It's cool and pleasant and not hot at all people.

[@tylerdavidson9700]

Brilliant! And it's already over 20 years old. Why aren't all buildings made this way?

[@aisukurimukonbini1070]

Oh God. Everyone are talking about the Celsius and Farenheit. How about lets talk about the building itself. Isn't amazing? Its Cool. That architect is Cool. Wow that building still exists today. Wow. Sorry for my english. Im asian.

[@mohammedhussain4198]

Same thinking i was going through

[@LouisCapet1969]

Quickly googles Fahrenheit to Celsius...

[@justicewarrior9187]

This is a science channel Please use Celsius!!

[@Ethan-cc6gy]

It's also an American science channel! If you don't like it, go watch channels, specifically for YOUR country.

[@jameswassink3218]

"About National Geographic: National Geographic is the world's premium destination for science, exploration, and adventure." Not "the United States". "The world".

[@Luckingsworth]

Justice Warrior No real scientist uses Celsius. They use Kelvin. Your point is invalid and shows how little you actually know :)

[@pandaDotDragon]

@Jon M Celsius and Kelvin are the same scales, aren't they? One is simply shifted in regard to the other... And "reals scientist" means nothing. Some sciences use Kelvin degrees, others use Celsius degrees (both are SI units). And never Farenheit :)

[@dputra]

Laughs in lab coat

[@MisterJeffy]

The concept is fascinating, but 82 degrees (F) during the day, and 57 degrees (F) at not is not exactly comfortable for an office interior.

[@barbusie5217]

They used to build like this more than 150 years ago.. Old Antebellum mansions were designed to use convection currents to heat and cool the whole house and with the right amount of shade trees planted around the house and lilac bushes planted next to the first floor windows, Cool air in the summer would be pulled into the house with a lilac sent to it and travel by convection currents up those elaborate staircases all the way to the attic where warmed air would be vented back outside, through smaller windows in the attic.. If done correctly, the ambient temperature throughout the entire house would hover around 70 to 75 degrees during an 80 to 90 degree day ..

[@Aviationgeek21]

I have never seen such a building so uniquely built like this 150 years ago

[@starbrand3726]

82°F is NOT comfortable. Most human beings, in non tropical climates, find 72°F comfortable. But, I do understand that this building is in Africa, so perhaps to them 82°F is better than what they are used to.

[@earthhuman192]

82 sounds good

[@BinuJasim]

I am from India. 27°C (82°F) is just about right.

[@isaacjolin9418]

Id rather have 82 than 92

[@vguyver2]

82 degrees is perfect for a lot of people. Not too warm for both men and women, and you can wear almost anything and stay cool despite any humidity.

[@wavemaker2077]

In Africa, 82 F is a question mark. What is that they said. On a serious note, 27.8 C (or 82 F) is basically the room temperature. So the temperature is perfectly okay. It's the same temperature when they are in their house.

[@hologram94]

Hello Nat Geo! ❤

[@Agyrius]

I REQUIRE A METRIC SYSTEM FOR THE HEAT DARN IT! aka celcious

[@rmtinmh7488]

Congratulations my friend, you just reinvented windcatchers gain.

[@yticivam]

In Harare, Zimbabwe, where this building is in, temperatures can get up to 30 deg C (which accuweather says feels 33) in the mornings on the hottest month of November and as low as 2 deg C at night during their coldest month of June. So 27.7 morning indoor temp and 13.8 nighttime indoor temp, without the cost and greenhouse gasses of air conditioning, is pretty okay.

[@ithedespiser]

To see what real managers can do.... Ask him to design a building without AC.

[@norpriest521]

Celsius and Meter > Fahrenheit and Foot

[@Melthornal]

Nor Priest Im sorry but Fahrenheit is clearly superior to celsius when talking about weather. This is an inarguable point. Celsius less than half the precision. Fahrenheit has 130 degrees dividing normal every temperatures and celsius has like 70. There is no question which is a superior measurement.

[@pandaDotDragon]

@Melthornal: indeed the scales don't have the same amplitude. But... is it really important? I mean do you really need this accuracy in a daily basis or even in scientific context? Most of the time degrees (Celsius, Kelvin) are used with integers. And when it's really needed with a fractional part. And everyone can understand easily the Celsius degrees (0 the water freezes, 100 the water boils. So it's a scale expressed in base 10).

[@beccadream5061]

When is America going to stop feeling like a special snowflake and switch over to the metric system?

[@zamn__]

Ye

[@dhupee]

They did actually, but for engineering, stuff and production/manufacturing stuff....not that I'm American but I chat to some American about it, but they don't use metric on regular basis

[@fangerzstanky]

REEEEE I AUTISM RAGE OVER MEASUREMENTS REEEEEEEE

[@orcas101]

Summer Spring nobody feels special for just using the imperial system lmao and also Nat Geo is American

[@unknown78824]

Recently I have been inspired by a flower which is most perfect design for fountain ⛲ . I had never seen such a beautiful design of a flower which resembles a fountain

[@LearnBiomimicry]

Biomimicry holds huge potential to finding solutions that are sustainable... or better - regenerative by design. This is a great step forward for us (as a young species on this planet).

[@Vibing2Chris]

"Comfortable 82 degrees." Comfortable is 60 degrees for me. I love the cold.

[@mattgmail5349]

82 Fahrenheit=27 Celsius not exactly chilly i would say... I would probably still turn the a.c. on.

[@edwrd1990]

“...at a comfortable 82 degrees during the day” 😅

[@mraghib31]

82°Fahrenheit, not celcius.

[@edwrd1990]

M Raghib Ansari I know. You think 82 degrees Fahrenheit is comfortable?

[@mraghib31]

@@edwrd1990 body temp is 96.6°Farenheit so yes 82°F is comfortable

[@jackgaffney8468]

82 degrees is not a “comfortable temperature” indoors, especially for guys wearing a full suit and tie like the ones on the video.

[@ubroc]

The termite mound is dug into the ground so it's cooled geothermally. The building doesn't do that. The temperature and maybe air pressure differential between the top and the bottom may promote air circulation that moves the cool air up through the structure.

[@davidd6626]

I used to live in a cinder block constructed building in Las Vegas NV. During the summer heat 115°+ my a/c seldom came on. It was comfortable and cool. Winter mornings however, I'd use a floor heater to knock the chill off the air. Maybe i was ground floor that made a difference, other than that everything else was equal.

[@dgr8oneme]

The problem is you never explained how the air filtration system is designed to keep pollution out

[@ShodyT]

Is it tho?

[@JohnSmith-nc9ep]

And how long did it freaking take to get to this point? How long have termites been around? Why until now???

[@Obi_E]

Oi, u got a loicence for that airflow m8?

[@consideringorthodoxy5495]

Is thois an Oistralia nanny stoite joike?

[@espoespo3557]

Eastgate was the place to be on a Saturday afternoon when we were teenagers. All the boys and girls came to hang out there. Good times.

[@MariusRiley]

: I wonder if Mr. Pearce also looked at, say, much North African, Middle Eastern, and Near Eastern architecture of the last nearly thousand years, give or take. There was certainly inspiration, not to mention rather a bit of method there, not just from the termites.

[@random6608]

In philippines Dont touch it, dont go near Dwarfs will be angry 🙂 😂

[@riftwalker4411]

Tabi-tabi po