Dezeen Magazine

Notre-Dame poor and spire rebuild by Miysis Studio

"This is a very serious proposition for Notre-Dame"

In this week's comments update, readers are seriously considering a proposal from Miysis Studio for the rebuild of Notre-Dame Cathedral.

(In)decent proposal: Miysis Studio's suggestion to combine a reconstruction of Notre-Dame's spire with a modern glazed roof has received mixed reviews.  

"This is a very serious proposition for Notre-Dame," praised Geoffrey Charlier De Winter.

"It maintains the form and spirit of the original," agreed Nancy Vargas. "I love how the glass roof and night lighting would actually improve and update the appearance of the cathedral moving into its future."

"I love this. Out of all the ridiculous designs that have been proposed, this is really on point," said J C Logan. "Incorporating the original spire design is absolutely essential."

Donacio Cejas Acosta wasn't so sure though: "In a 100 years' time, somebody will look back at our era and think, 'all they really wanted was to plant trees on top of everything.'"

This reader was also less than impressed:

What do you think of the design? Join the discussion ›


Mark Zuckerberg

Box clever: readers are mocking Facebook cofounder Mark Zuckerberg's design for a wooden "sleep box" that emits a faint light in the early morning. He created it to alert his wife when it's time to wake up without the need to look at her phone.

"He could just open the curtains a little?" suggested Alan Smith.

Dave went on: "Wow! I didn't know Zuckerberg invented Philips Hue... six and a half years after Philips!"

"Mark just go to the thrift store and get a vintage Sony Led Alarm Clock for $4.99," laughed Entenza Design.

Jim Dunn was equally amused: "Great stuff. I've been using a similar massive shining disc in the sky for a while now, it really helps."

As least one person "liked" the idea though:

Is the sleep box a silly idea? Join the discussion ›


Street Tree Pods by Matthew Chamberlain

Throwing shade: Graduate Matthew Chamberlain has designed a sustainable treehouse in a bid to provide starter homes in London. Commenters can't agree on whether it's a winning concept though.

"As lovely a design as it is, I'm so sick of these urban micro-housing solutions," argued Three Floating Orbs. "They're publishable, but that's where the opportunity ends."

Doug Lough elaborated: "Interesting, cute, but in no way a problem solving solution. Expensive and blocks sun to the tree – how long to grow more trees? Electricity, sewer, water, trash? How is rainwater collected off of such a steep slope?"

"I'm sure this will go over really well in Kensington, Holland Park and Notting Hill," said Bill11103 sarcastically.

Benny had an alternative idea: "Helium filled teabags would be better as a way to float new housing over the existing city."

The Street Tree Pods got a thumbs down from this commenter:

Would you like to live in a Tree Pod? Join the discussion ›


Ford makes self-braking shopping trolley that can't hit anything

Supermarket sweep: readers are baffled over why Ford has used anti-collision technology from its cars to build a supermarket trolley that children can't crash.

"This is an attempt at solving a problem that doesn't exist," said Wilson M K.

Lorenzo was even more critical: "In a world full of plastic and pollution, do we really need a self-breaking trolley? How will this change the world into a better and cleaner place?"

"It's really cool that the engineers and designers at Ford are developing desperately needed technologies instead of focusing on making competitive cars," continued Christopher Gon De Leeuw.

"One of the most stupid time investments of the last few months," replied Marc Sicard. "It's also a horribly bad design. Do Ford's designers ever do their own shopping?"

The trolley reminded this reader of something else:

Is this an unnecessary design? Join the discussion ›