Representatives from the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology unveiled a working model of a house with computerized temperature controls and other automations that promises to cut electricity bills by as much as 40 percent.
The “MEGA House” is a model of the most environmentally friendly building techniques at the nation’s disposal.
They added that the house contains computers that open and close windows, shutters and skylights according to preset temperatures inside and outside the building.
PHOTO COURTESY OF NATIONAL TAIWAN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECH
Cheng Min-yuan (鄭明淵), a professor at the university who was part of the design team, said the two-and-a-half-story building could resist earthquakes of up to magnitude seven on the Richter scale.
He said seven patents were filed by the research team during the design process.
Temperature is maintained using natural heating and cooling processes as opposed to air conditioning, researchers added. Cool air, which is pumped into the building using a pipe placed 4m below ground, interacts with hot air from a specially designed “solar chimney.”
The hot or cool air is maintained through an elaborate set of 18 specially layered windows that are not only self-cleaning, but also include panels for creating energy.
Another 48 solar panels are spread throughout the house to lessen its dependence on outside energy sources.
Both these designs are expected to result in a 20 percent to 40 percent overall energy saving.
To popularize the design, researchers also embedded radio-frequency identification technology into the building materials to cut construction time to four months and save about 40 percent in labor costs.
Using the technology, which allows workers to locate the correct placement of materials, base construction should only take three days.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
Taiwan successfully defended its women’s 540 kilogram title and won its first-ever men’s 640 kg title at the 2026 World Indoor Tug of War Championships in Taipei yesterday. In the women’s event, Taiwan’s eight-person squad reached the final following a round-robin preliminary round and semifinals featuring teams from Ukraine, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, the Basque Country and South Korea. In the finals, they swept the Basque team 2-0, giving the team composed mainly of National Taiwan Normal University students and graduates its second championship in a row, and its fourth in five years. Team captain
When Paraguayan opposition lawmaker Leidy Galeano returned from an all-expenses-paid tour of six Chinese cities late last year, she was convinced Paraguay risked missing out on major economic gains by sticking with longtime ally Taipei over Beijing — a message that participants on the trip heard repeatedly from Chinese officials. “Everything I saw there, I wanted for my country,” said Galeano, a member of the newly-formed Yo Creo party whose senior figures have spoken favorably about China. This trip and others like it — which people familiar with the visits said were at the invitation of the Chinese consulate in Sao Paulo
RSS