A compelling, science-based argument for the wisdom of intelligent design.' -David A. Anthes astutely distinguishes between design’s anticipated potential and demonstrated benefit.

'An engaging survey of the science of buildings and a reported account of the quest to improve life by deliberate design.

It's an argument for thoughtful interventions into the built environment and a story about how to build a better world-one room at a time. The Great Indoors provides a fresh perspective on our most familiar surroundings and a new understanding of the power of architecture and design. And she previews the homes of the future, from the high-tech houses that could monitor our health to the 3D-printed structures that might allow us to live on the Moon. She investigates how room temperature regulates our cognitive performance, how the microbes hiding in our homes influence our immune systems, and how cafeteria design affects what-and how much-we eat.Īlong the way, Anthes takes readers into an operating room designed to minimize medical errors, a school designed to boost students’ physical fitness, and a prison designed to support inmates’ psychological needs. Drawing on cutting-edge research, she probes the pain-killing power of a well-placed window and examines how the right office layout can expand our social networks. In this wide-ranging, character-driven book, science journalist Emily Anthes takes us on an adventure into the buildings in which we spend our days, exploring the profound, and sometimes unexpected, ways that they shape our lives. For all the time we spend inside buildings, we rarely stop to consider: How do these spaces affect our mental and physical well-being? Our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors? Our productivity, performance, and relationships? And yet, in many ways, the indoor world remains unexplored territory. We spend 90 percent of our time inside, shuttling between homes and offices, schools and stores, restaurants and gyms. A fascinating, thought-provoking journey into our built environment

Emily anthes the great indoors