DIALOGUE
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As an architect, a sculptor, a car buff, and
a product of Buckminster Fuller’s Inventory
of World Resources/World Game seminars
in the late 1960s and early ’70s, I heartily
applaud Norman Foster’s heroic efforts to get
a Dymaxion on the road (“One for the Road,”
by Martin C. Pedersen, March 2011, p. 74). This
is truly a lost classic of industrial design and,
despite its early mishaps, highly worthy of
reintroduction in the 21st century, where it
probably belonged all along! I am sure Bucky
would be pleased and would talk nonstop for
12 hours about the new car. “You can’t learn less.”
Three-Wheeling
FROM WILLIAM TURVILLE:
Bravo to all involved with MASS Design Group
(“Straight Out of School,” by Ken Shulman,
January 2011, p. 62)! Idealism coupled with
knowledge can power the world to better things.
Certainly, the humanitarian beliefs at the core
of their objectives speak well of this generation. What better way to defeat the subversive
cynicism that seems to pervade many parts
of daily life, even in those areas of the world
that are justified in feeling so. This is what
leadership and vision are all about.
Idealism in a Cynical Age
FROM NICK D’INNOCENZO:
CORRECTIONS
The article “Aging by Design” (February 2011) incorrectly
stated that Superfocus eyeglasses allow wearers to adjust
their prescription via a sliding mechanism on the bridge.
In fact, the focus can be adjusted, not the prescription.
In “Higher Dining” (February 2011), EDG was mistakenly
credited as the architects of a cafeteria renovation at Case
Western Reserve University, in Cleveland. EDG did the
interiors of the project. The architecture was by Burt Hill,
a Stantec company.
The Steel Yard is a terrific model for neighborhood renewal and industrial revitalization
(“Rising from the Ashes,” by Kristi Cameron,
January 2011, p. 70). Too bad the writer is
looking with the wrong lens when assessing
the investment model. Must we persist in
thinking that an investment that recoups in
ten years is, as the writer implies, a bad investment? Community development and renewal
is a long-term effort, as Clay Rockefeller and
his partners have learned. We need to reframe
our expectations of social investments.
With successes like the Steel Yard and other
enlightened investors, more such projects
could flourish.
Social Investing for the Long Term
FROM BETSY IMERSHEIN:
The Future of the American Factory
FROM KATHY SULLIVAN:
