The House of the Future designed by  Kuangyi Tao from Texas A&M University,  College of Architecture is a project reacting to the problems emerging during modern times: overpopulation, resource shortage and virtual world development.

Inspired by images of “body cells” depicted in the Matrix, the house is based on a similar system of energy and information exchange. The major difference is that people will be in control.  Memory alloy tubes of infrastructure system can be stretched apart to create the basic skeleton of the house. The overlaying skin acts like a heart. The material, which is electro-responsive, is able to expand or contract under different electrical stimulation, just like cardiac muscles. It is responsive to changes in program and daylight. For example, higher occupancy in a room will result in higher voltage, causing the skin to expand and allow more space. STEM algae, embedded in the skin, react to different amounts of sunlight, allowing the skin to become either more opaque or translucent. In addition, they also generate oxygen to purify the atmosphere. Overgrown algae can be composted as bio-fuel, and extra fuel is feed back to the city. Other tubes buried in the skin distribute water and energy throughout the house. Space pattern of the house is much like a klein bottle, twisting the traditional space sequence.

via suckerPUNCH