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The Download: US climate studies are being shut down, and building cities from lava

Rhiannon Williams

created: June 2, 2025, 12:10 p.m. | updated: June 6, 2025, 9:34 a.m.

Many believe the administration’s broader motivation is to undermine the power of the university system and prevent research findings that cut against its politics. —James TempleThis architect wants to build cities out of lavaArnhildur Pálmadóttir is an architect with an extraordinary mission: to harness molten lava and build cities out of it. Pálmadóttir believes the lava that flows from a single eruption could yield enough building material to lay the foundations of an entire city. Together with her son and colleague Arnar Skarphéðinsson, she has identified three potential techniques that could change how future homes are designed and built from repurposed lava. Subscribe now to read it and to receive future print copies once they land.

3 weeks, 3 days ago: MIT Technology Review