Video

When construction chaos becomes social media entertainment

Renovation has always been a technical process, filled with adjustments, conflicts, and complex decisions. That is nothing new. What has changed is how this process is now exposed.

Recently, high-end projects such as the renovation of Maíra Cardi have shifted from being private construction efforts to becoming public narratives. The focus is no longer on the completed design, but on documenting the mistake. A cabinet installed too high, the “wrong” stone selection, a contractor replaced, a detail that failed to meet expectations. Each flaw becomes an episode, and each conflict drives engagement.

This format works because social media logic rewards tension. Calculated vulnerability brings influencers closer to their audiences, and conflict sustains attention. If everything were resolved smoothly, there would be no story. In this context, chaos stops being a problem and becomes content capital.

The implications go beyond entertainment. When technical errors become spectacle, professional work becomes exposure. Contractors and designers often appear only at the moment of failure, with no control over the narrative, while the complexity of the process disappears behind a simplified and viral image of outrage.

What we are witnessing is not just a problematic renovation. It reflects a broader shift in how consumption, labor, and image intersect. The house stops being shelter and becomes narrative product, and error itself gains economic value.

Want to explore this further?

Watch the full video to understand how this “industry of chaos” operates and what its social, professional, and even environmental implications may be.

Disclaimer: The video is in Brazilian Portuguese, but simultaneous translation and subtitles are available in multiple languages.

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News

New York tests living buildings that cool themselves with mycelium

New York City has become the stage for one of the most radical experiments in recent architecture: a building in Brooklyn that uses living mycelium within its walls to help regulate indoor temperature without relying solely on air conditioning.

Recent studies from institutions such as Johns Hopkins University and Westerdijk Fungal Biodiversity Institute show that fungi maintain their surface temperature on average 2.9°C cooler than the surrounding air, reaching nearly 6°C under certain conditions. The mechanism is physical. Mycelium releases moisture, and evaporation absorbs heat in a process similar to human perspiration, but passive and continuous.

In the experimental Brooklyn building, “mycocrete” panels, a composite made from mycelium and agricultural waste, form porous walls that effectively breathe. On hot days, measurements indicate differences of nearly 3°C between the wall surface and the outdoor air. This reduces internal heat gain and can lower cooling energy demand by up to 40 percent in low-density buildings.

The material also stands out technically. Mycocrete has a much lower density than conventional concrete, strong thermal insulation properties with conductivity ranging from 0.04 to 0.08 W/mK, and a positive carbon balance because the fungus sequesters CO₂ during growth. In compression tests, it has reached between 6 and 26 MPa, making it suitable for lightweight structural elements and enclosure panels.

Beyond temperature control, the building alters the sensory experience. After rainfall, the walls release natural compounds such as terpenes and 1-octen-3-ol, producing a subtle “wet forest” scent. These compounds are associated with improved air quality and stress reduction, while replacing the chemical odors common in synthetic materials.

The project also addresses a real urban challenge. New York faces an intense urban heat island effect. Dark surfaces absorb heat during the day and release it at night, while air conditioning units expel additional heat into the streets. Mycelium walls function as passive thermal dissipators, helping disrupt this cycle.

Recent research has raised concerns about fungal thermal adaptation in a warming planet. For this reason, the project uses only non-pathogenic species such as Pleurotus ostreatus and maintains continuous genetic monitoring to mitigate biological risks.

The Brooklyn building is more than a curiosity. It signals a shift in architectural logic, moving away from inert materials toward systems that participate in climate regulation, filter air, and balance humidity. Architecture stops being merely shelter and begins to operate as an active component of the urban metabolism.