In Kaunas, Lithuania an unusual Christmas tree was installed. As reported RBK, this tree constructed from recycled plastic bottles symbolizes ecological approach to the arrangement of the human environment. More than 32 thousand plastic emerald bottles where used to create 13 meter high beautiful Christmas tree. Due to manual work, bottles completely changed their shape. Kaunas Christmas tree has repeatedly recognized as the best in the country, surpassing even the capital. It should be noted, that the title of the most unusual Christmas tree for several years claimed the Australian capital, Sydney. Once the Christmas tree in Sydney was created of chairs, then of plastic bottles, and last year it was made from hundreds of recycled bicycle parts. "Bicycle" Christmas tree was recognized as one of the most original structures and the whole year was a local landmark for tourists.

One of the world's largest Apple store is opening at the landmark Grand Central Terminal. The 2136 square meters personal electronics business will start selling to the public on December 9, reported The Huffington Post. The construction of store began on August. The Grand Central Terminal Apple store, the fifth to open in New York City, is about the size of two that are in London. Now this is the largest store of company. The second largest Apple store in the world is located in Convent Garden in London, England. That location covers 2320 square meters, but only 1520 square meters of that property is open to the public. Apple, behind Macintosh computers and such iconic products as the iPod, the iPad and the iPhone, signed a 10-year lease with the MTA for the space once occupied by Charlie Palmer's Metrazur restaurant, which got US$ 5 million from Apple to clear out early. The lease for Apple cost US$ 800 thousand annually for the first ten years and would bump up to US$ 1.1 million a year after the first decade. According to the transit agency the draw of the Apple name promises to increase foot traffic to other businesses at the terminal, which is visited by about 750 thousand people daily and is home to the Metro-North commuter railroad.

After a 34-year hiatus following the Three Mile Island incident, the USA is restarting construction of nuclear power facilities, reported constructiondigital. Despite growing public worry over the safety and long-term consequences of nuclear power, the United States is set to resume construction of reactors after more than three decades of a building freeze that followed the incident at Three Mile Island in March of 1979. The Three Mile Island accident involved a core meltdown in Unit 2 of the nuclear generating station in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. Nearly 40 thousand gallons of radioactive material was released into the nearby Susquehanna River, resulting in a nearly US$ 1 billion cleanup effort. Though the incident failed to derail the nuclear power industry in the United States, a moratorium was issued on construction of new nuclear facilities. The four reactors currently slated for building - two in Georgia and two in South Carolina - will be the first since the accident. The AP1000 1,100 megawatt reactors are expected to be operational by 2016, using turbine equipment provided by the Toshiba Corporation. When completed, the reactors will bring the United States' total number to 108. More than 26 reactors are under review by the USA Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The recent problems at Japan's Fukushima plant have again thrust the issue of nuclear power into the public spotlight. With the end of the moratorium on USA facilities, though, plans to expand the nation's capacity will break ground all over the country. While a possible boon to a contracting construction industry, the expansion of American reactors has many concerned about the long-term tradeoffs of nuclear energy. The Three Mile Island accident was a core meltdown in Unit 2 of the Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania near Harrisburg, United States in 1979. Before the Chernobyl accident, which happened seven years later, the Three Mile Island accident was considered the largest in the history of world nuclear power and is still considered the worst nuclear accident in the USA, in its course was severely damaged reactor core, part of the fuel melted.

Venice is slowly sinking into the sea - but smart engineering, and a healthy dose of technology, will keep this would-be modern Atlantis above the waves. According to constructiondigital, in a joint effort by the Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, the Venice Water Authority, and local engineering firms, construction has begun on 78 large gates in temporarily drained portions of the city's three inlets. Named the MOSE project, the effort was first inspired by the city wide flooding of 1966, and gained momentum as water levels continue rising and soil erosion becomes more of a problem. MOSE is an acronym for Experimental Electromechanical Module, but some say it is also in connection with the figure of Moses, famous for his fabled parting of the Red Sea. During low tides, the gates would lay flat beneath the surface of the lagoon. The barriers will be full of water and rest on the sea bed. When flooding is forecast, compressed air will be pumped into the gates, emptying them of water and causing them to rise up and emerge, blocking the tide as it enters the lagoon. When the tide drops, the gates will be filled with water again and return to their housing. The Consorzio Venezia Nuova, leading Italian construction companies group is responsible for the project. Additional aspects of the project include reinforcing coastal areas and raising the quaysides. The project is estimated at US$ 6.7 billion, and plans to be operational by 2014. City planners hope the gates will put a stop to the onslaught of flood waters that submerge portions of the city up to five times a year. A more controversial benefit purported by the project is the preservation of coastal habitats, while some conservancy groups claim the barriers will disrupt the delicate ecosystems of the lagoon. For the human occupants, though, the MOSE project promises to keep the Adriatic where it belongs - out of the city streets.

On November 24 the exhibition On Antonio Gaudi and Sagrada Familia inaugurated in the Charlemange Wing of Bernini's colonnade around St. Peter's Square, reported The Vatican Today. The exhibition will remain open until 15 January 2012. The exhibition will occupy 800 square metres place. Visitors will be able to understand the history of the Basilica, get to know the next stages of its construction and have a vision of how the Sagrada Familia will look once it is completed. The exhibition presents photographs, models, audiovisual material, and examples of Gaudi's original work. Materials exposed come from the Temple of the Sagrada Familia Museum. In addition to the Sagrada Familia, the exhibition presented exhibits of other buildings of the great architect. The construction of cathedral began in 1882, but its completion date isn't known yet. Gaudi worked on template's construction for 43 years, but during his life it was built only a little part of cathedral. After Gaudi's death, the construction of Sagrada familia continued by differnet architects. Each of them claimed that seeks to build a church "in spirit of Gaudi". Today the area of cathedral is in three times higher than originally conceived. Only 8 of estimated 18 towers are ready. According to experts the construction of holy temple will take another 20 years to complete.