Last year architect Adam Kushner announced plans to build the newest 3D-printed estate in Gardiner, New York. Recently, the architect and CEO of D-Shape, James Wolff, presented new renderings of Kushner's project at 3D Print Week NY that show an even more over-the-top plan than we even imagined. According to the project details, the entire structure will be built using a modified version of Enrico Dini's oversized D-Shape printer. And we're not just talking one basic house here. No, Kushner is determined to build a massive swimming pool, pool house and car port to go along with the four-bedroom, 223 square meters home, and eventually creating one enormous 3D-printed estate. Although still in the planning stages, the residence is slated to be built about 137 kilometers from New York City on a 20 thousand square meters parcel of land that Kushner and his wife purchased three years ago. Kushner explained that it was the plot's naturally rocky landscape that inspired the ambitious 3D design. "The materials on the site will be used to form the pieces of the site, which reflect the very characteristics of the site, which stems from the materials found on the site," explained Kushner. "I think it's a perfect circle." The 3D design scheme stems from the geomorphology of the rocks found in the area, inspiring Kushner to print the entire estate using the rocks for aggregates in the building process. According to 3D Print, using Enrico Dini's D-Shape printers, which differ from the common fused deposition-based models, will allow Kushner to print the necessary materials using on-site resources such as sand, which will be combined with a magnesium-based binding agent. Kushner is still waiting for the delivery of the large-scale 3D printer from Italy. However, if all goes well with US customs and NATO approval, the machine should be on-site in May and the team hopes to begin the first trials and test prints using the new machine by June. Once all of the kinks have been worked out, the team expects to begin 3D printing the pool, followed by the pool house and car port. The last piece of the 3D puzzle will be the most challenging - printing and building the 223 square meters house itself. As far as why this project is so important to Kushner, he explains that by starting on such an ambitiously-sized estate, the 3D home building process can later be used for far more important and diverse tasks, such as producing affordable housing or emergency shelters. "If we can build a pool, then we can begin building reefs, and repair bridges, bulkheads and other underwater structures which there is a huge worldwide need," said Kushner. "The thought is that if we can build a pool house and modest enclosed structure, then it is a short step to building emergency shelters and low cost housing units." Recently a Chinese company WinSun has successfully 3D printed a five-story apartment building and a 110 square meters villa from special print material. China's newest mansion is not only made from recycled materials, but the sprawling 110 square meters home was made with 3D printing. The luxury mansion was 3D printed in layers, using recycled stone and construction waste. Last year the Dutch company DUS Architects developed 3D-printed house using bioplastic.

Plans to rebuild one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the Pharos Lighthouse, have been approved by Egyptian authorities. The feat of ancient engineering, which is also known as the Lighthouse of Alexandria, was completed around 280BC, and is estimated to have been 130 meters high. The plan is to rebuild the lighthouse a few meters away from where it once stood in the coastal city of Alexandria, as the original location is now occupied by the Qaitbay Citadel, the Cairo Post reports. Egypt's permanent committee on antiquities has approved the proposal and now it's just down to the Alexandria's regional government to sign-off on it, according to Dr. Mostafa Amin, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities. The Pharos Lighthouse was one of the most famous structures of the ancient world. "The original building comprised three stages: a lower square section with a central core, a middle octagonal section and a circular section at its top," archaeology professor Fathy Khourshid tells the Cairo Post. It guided ships using a mirror during the daytime, and a fire at night. The lighthouse suffered damage during a series of earthquakes and is believed to have been destroyed by one in the early 14th Century.

For several years now, tech companies have been at work to develop clear solar panels that can double as windows, but the Current Window provides a gorgeous stained glass twist on that idea. Created by Dutch designer Marjan van Aubel, the window generates an electrical current by harvesting the energy created when sunlight hits a colored pigment-much like photosynthesis in a plant-and sends that power to a USB port in the window ledge. According to van Aubel, "The glass pieces are made of 'Dye Sensitised Solar Cells', which use the properties of colour to create an electrical current-just like photosynthesis in plants. Similarly to the various shades of green chlorophyll absorbing light, the coloured window panes harness energy." That energy can then be used to power small appliances; a USB port in the window ledge can charge a standard smart phone in about seven hours. But that's just with one relatively small window-the designer hopes that if replicated on a larger scale, say over the vast colorful facades of churches, or in schools, the Current Window could provide clean energy in a uniquely beautiful form on a much larger scale.

The mayor of a small village in Normandy is offering plots of land for just 1 euro a square meter - but only to those who promise to build a house and live there full time. In total the village has put 4 civil owned plots of between 900 to 1,000 square meters up for sale. The mayor, Patrick Madeleine, is struggling to raise money to renovate the community hall and hopes the arrival of new families will raise municipal revenue. "We're in a period where money is short, with state grants being cut back," Mr Madeleine said. "The only way to bring a bit more wealth into the community is to bring in new residents." Faced with a declining population, the village of Champ-du-Boult, in the Calvados region, has been offering cut-price plots at 12 euro a square meter since 2007, but has been unable to attract any takers. According to publications, the cost of building a modest house would be about 1,300 euros per square meter of living space. Since the lower price was announced last week, hundreds of prospective buyers, including four or five Britons, have contacted the council. It will choose successful applicants in the next three to four weeks. Champ-du-Boult, a community of only 388 people, a quarter of who is British, s conveniently situated for the Normandy coast. The nearest railway station is in Vire, about 11 kilometers away. The closest airport is at Dinard about 100 kilometers away. It is also 45 minutes' drive from Mont-Saint-Michel.

As the death toll in Nepal continues to rise, impacting roughly eight million people according to the UN, one can't help but wonder how the country will ever achieve its former splendor after this devastating earthquake. Arch Daily pulled together a series of news reports detailing how the earthquake leveled several historic buildings, many of them UNESCO heritage sites, with absolute impunity. The iconic Bhimsen Tower reduced to rubble, Kathmandu Durbar Square, unrecognizable. And the site of the beautiful Boudhanath Stupa, forever changed. Talk of architecture may seem trivial in this context, but Nepalese architecture comprises an integral part of a rich cultural tradition that has evolved over many centuries. And it is culture; ultimately, that unites a population after tragedy. Earthquakes disproportionately affect people in developing countries, where building codes are less rigorous, so the same buildings that we all know and love are ultimately responsible for greater death and destruction than an earthquake of a similar magnitude (7.8) would exactly in a developed country. Kathmandu's iconic Bhimsen Tower, for example, killed at least 200 people. This is not the first time earthquakes have destroyed this particular tower, but it may well be the last. Rebuilding it seems like such a daunting prospect. Kathmandu Durbar Square and Patan Durbar Square are hardly recognizable in the ruins. These royal palace squares are all UNESCO heritage sites. They are considered priceless to all of humanity. And now they are gone. The Boudhanath Stupa, which is considered the holiest Tibetan Buddhist temple outside of Tibet, has also been damaged. While the dome appears to have survived, this site too is largely unrecognizable. Drone footage published by the National Post illustrates the extent of destruction.