Quite a view A NASA astronaut may have just taken the best photo from spaceever During his third stay in orbit, Pettit is absolutely killing it. Eric Berger Jan 14, 2025 10:46 am | 18 An image of the Earth, with cities streaking by below, captured earlier this month by NASA Astronaut Don Pettit. Credit: Don Pettit/NASA An image of the Earth, with cities streaking by below, captured earlier this month by NASA Astronaut Don Pettit. Credit: Don Pettit/NASA Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn morePeople who appreciate good astrophotography will no doubt be familiar with the work of Don Pettit, a veteran NASA astronaut who is closing in on having lived 500 days of his life in space.Pettit is now in the midst of his third stint on the International Space Station, and the decade he had to prepare for his current stay in orbit was put to good use. Accordingly, he is well stocked on cameras, lenses, and plans to make the most of six months in space to observe the planets and heavens from an incredible vantage point.Ars has previously written admiringly of Pettit's work, but his latest image deserves additional mention. When I first saw it, I was dazzled by its beauty. But when I looked further into the image, there were just so many amazing details to be found.In this image, one can see the core of the Milky Way galaxy, zodiacal light (sunlight diffused by interplanetary dust), streaks of SpaceX Starlink satellites, individual stars, an edge-on view of the atmosphere that appears in burnt umber due to hydroxide emissions, a near-sunrise just over the horizon, and nighttime cities appearing as streaks.Pettit said he took the image from the port-side window of Crew Dragon Freedom, which brought two astronauts to the International Space Station last year and will bring Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams back to Earth next spring.Putting all of this together, I think Pettit's streaky image may be the best picture ever taken from the International Space Station. Disagree?Eric BergerSenior Space EditorEric BergerSenior Space Editor Eric Berger is the senior space editor at Ars Technica, covering everything from astronomy to private space to NASA policy, and author of two books: Liftoff, about the rise of SpaceX; and Reentry, on the development of the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon. A certified meteorologist, Eric lives in Houston. 18 Comments

Lisa Morgan, Freelance WriterJanuary 14, 20257 Min ReadAleksandr Davydov via Alamy StockIts a tough time for organizations trying to hire and retain tech talent. Big Tech is poaching smaller company IT workers, and a lot of organizations cant compete with the compensation packages. However, what they can do is prioritize employee experience, so candidates are more willing to say, yes, and employees are more likely to stay. Employee experience is particularly important to younger generations.While organizations have long placed varying degrees of importance on employee experience, it is now re-emerging as a differentiator for many, Nikita McClain, founder of management firm for HR and organizational development strategies Hayes Street Consulting, says in an email interview. The pandemic fundamentally shifted workplace expectations with employees increasingly prioritizing flexibility, values alignment, and work-life balance. Additionally, skills gaps and talent shortages in critical sectors have given trained workers more leverage in demanding better experiences.Organizations focused on designing positive employee experiences can follow a 4-step process: commit through strategy, communicate through feedback loops, connect through analysis, and improve continuously.Making employee experience a strategic initiative ensures it can receive ongoing leadership evaluation and support needed to design, adapt, and sustain initiatives that resonate highly with employees, says McClain. Implementing accessible, real-time feedback channels can help proactively identify what matters most to employees. Organizations can promote ongoing feedback by demonstrating responsiveness and transparency in acting upon and communicating changes that result from received feedback.Related:Nikita McClain, Hayes Street ConsultingTo evaluate what does and does not work, organizations should identify KPIs that connect employees sentiments about experience to overall business outcomes. This becomes the business case for employee experience that validates its value amidst competing organizational priorities and budget constraints. Using insights from employee feedback and data analysis can help organizations refine employee experience over time, keeping it relevant.Finally, continuous improvement enables organizations to evolve with the times.One challenge for organizations embarking to improve employee experience is elevating it from a function of HR to a strategic initiative that defines the organizations employee value proposition, says McClain. Efforts to strengthen communication and accountability between HR and executive leadership may be needed to ensure all are working toward the same goal.Related:Middle managers play a vital role in employee perceptions of the workplace. Organizations should engage and educate middle management on how to effectively address matters, such as when employee and operational needs do not align. Notably, not all employees prioritize and value the same things. Among differing work styles, generations, and life stages it can be difficult to identify one-size-fits-all initiatives that work well for everyone.When possible, be flexible and consider how employee experience can be tailored to account for diversity of need among employees, says McClain. Above all, recognize that employee experience is a journey. The most effective initiatives are those that remain flexible and responsive to changing workforce needs while maintaining clear alignment with organizational goals and values.The Talent Shortage Is a Major FactorOne big deal breaker is a return to office (RTO) policy. Organizations that are clinging to pre-pandemic business as usual are finding that some candidates wont compromise and employees will complain, if not quit outright. The talent shortage just exacerbates the problem.Younger generations have many options and choose workplaces that meet their needs for pay, growth and flexibility. The current dissatisfaction with RTO policies is revealing, says Justina Raskauskiene, human resource team lead at omnichannel marketing platform Omnisend, in an email interview. At Omnisend, we see the value of in-person collaboration for creativity and teamwork but also recognize that flexibility is now non-negotiable for many employees. If RTO is implemented, the focus should be on making people want to come to the office by emphasizing the benefits of in-person interaction.Related:Justina Raskauskiene, OmnisendTo ensure a great employee experience, she says her company makes a point of listening to employees and acting on their feedback. The company also holds regular one-on-one meetings, so employees have a mechanism to share concerns.The biggest challenge for organizations, I think, is overcoming resistance to change. Many companies operate on a this is how weve always done it mindset, which makes implementing flexibility look daunting, says Raskauskiene. As flexibility varies for everyone, companies may struggle balancing individual needs and team goals. Equally important, employee experience isnt just about perks, its about ensuring the work itself is meaningful and engaging.Times Have ChangedIn the past, a good employee experience was synonymous with ping pong tables, and free snacks and drinks -- a stark departure from button-down Corporate America of yesteryear. Later, the pandemic reshaped expectations, challenging employees to seek work-life balance, joy and purpose.Katie Roland, chief human resources officer at KCSA Strategic Communications, says her company is trying to enable work-life balance with tailored PTO programs and wealth-building opportunities. However, along the way, it became clear that a one-size-fits-all benefits approach no longer worked.The pandemic brought into hyperfocus, that each employee was faced with different personal challenges at home. To address diverse employee needs, we adopted Overalls LifeConcierge, a service offering expert assistance with time-consuming personal tasks like finding healthcare specialists, navigating Medicare for aging parents, or scheduling home repairs, says Roland in an email interview. Overalls isnt just a perk, its a game-changing solution for helping employees achieve true work-life balance. Organizations should provide meaningful, flexible support that addresses the whole employee.Toward that end, KCSA focuses on initiatives that reduce stress, save time and address individuals needs. They include flexible work schedules, mental health days, a wide choice of benefits through a professional employer organization and partnering with providers.They arent just workers, theyre parents, caregivers, partners and more. Companies that acknowledge this and take steps to help employees succeed in every aspect of their lives will stand out in todays competitive talent market, says Roland. Creating a great employee experience starts with listening through surveys and conversations and responding with meaningful support to build trust. At KCSA, insights from employees led to initiatives like Overalls LifeConcierge and No Zoom Fridays, addressing both personal and professional needs.Apparently, KCSAs approach is working. In 2024, Newsweek ranked the company #34 on its Most Loved Places to Work list.The Tricky PartOne challenge is to balance employer and employee interests in a way that benefits both. For example, most workers view RTO as beneficial for the company and management, but not necessarily the employee.The best benefits are those that directly address employee pain points. Transparency and education also matter. Communicate why youre offering certain programs and how they support your teams overall well-being. When real life issues come up that a benefit you offer can assist with, make sure to help the employee utilize it. Authenticity builds trust, and trust builds loyalty, says Roland. Weve seen how investing in innovative, practical benefits fosters a culture of care and empowerment. When employees feel supported, theyre not only more engaged, theyre also more likely to stay and thrive. In todays workplace, thats not just an advantage, its a necessity.A Job Versus an ExperienceJohn Jackson, founder at click fraud protection platformHitprobe, says todays workers are not just looking for a job to pay the rent, they are looking for an experience.This particularly applies to the younger generations and their way of looking at the world is influencing their older colleagues, says Jackson in an email interview. While this change was already happening, it has been sped up by the Great Resignation and the ongoing debates around hybrid working and organizations changing policies on this post-COVID. I believe that the key to creating a great employee experience centers around authenticity and adaptability. Implementing trendy perks is easy, but to make yourself the employer of choice you [must] genuinely understand what your team needs and respond to it.Hitprobe implements anonymous feedback on a regular basisto find out what employees want. However, what they want often differs from initial assumptions.Also important is a commitment to act on the feedback. If the workforce knows we will listen, they will continue to talk to us and stay with us. Flexibility is key, says Jackson. What works for one team member may not work for another, and diverse teams have varying needs and expectations. Open communication channels, transparency, public acknowledgement and recognition, and providing clear growth opportunities all go a long way towards building a team that is committed and productive.About the AuthorLisa MorganFreelance WriterLisa Morgan is a freelance writer who covers business and IT strategy and emergingtechnology for InformationWeek. She has contributed articles, reports, and other types of content to many technology, business, and mainstream publications and sites including tech pubs, The Washington Post and The Economist Intelligence Unit. Frequent areas of coverage include AI, analytics, cloud, cybersecurity, mobility, software development, and emerging cultural issues affecting the C-suite.See more from Lisa MorganNever Miss a Beat: Get a snapshot of the issues affecting the IT industry straight to your inbox.SIGN-UPYou May Also LikeWebinarsMore WebinarsReportsMore Reports

An artists impression of Blue Ghost landing on the moonFirefly AerospaceTwo private spacecraft aiming to land on the moon are set to blast off onboard a SpaceX rocket, in a sign of increasing commercial activity on the lunar surface.Firefly Aerospaces Blue Ghost lander and ispaces Resilience lander have both got a ride on the same Falcon 9 rocket, which is currently scheduled to liftoff on 15 January at 6.11am GMT (1.11am EST) from NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. AdvertisementThe launch will be ispaces second attempt at landing on the moon. Its first ended in failure when its Hakuto-R spacecraft crashed into the lunar surface in 2023. The Japanese company says it has since upgraded Resiliences hardware and software to avoid the mistakes that led to this crash.Meanwhile, US company Firefly Aerospace will be making its first attempt. The firm has a contract with NASA as part of the agencys Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) programme, which pays private companies to achieve its scientific goals.Resilience will carry six payloads to the lunar surface, including an experiment to produce food on the moon using microalgae, and a micro rover that will roam, analyse and photograph the landing area. Blue Ghost is set to carry a mixture of 10 private and public payloads to the moon, including a radiation-resistant computer, a drill that will measure how heat flows through the moons surface and a satellite receiver that will try to establish a permanent link with Earths GPS network. Voyage across the galaxy and beyond with our space newsletter every month.Sign up to newsletterThe Resilience lunar lander is ready for launchiSpaceBoth missions will reach Earth orbit relatively quickly, within minutes of launch, but it will be much longer before they reach the moon. Blue Ghost will orbit Earth for 25 days, before firing its engines to start a four-day journey to the moon, where it will orbit for 16 days. After this, it will autonomously descend and land, in a plain called Mare Crisium, where it will take two weeks to perform its scientific goals.Resilience will take a more circuitous route on a journey that will see it fly past the moon a month after launch, glide in deeper space for months, before then angling back towards the moon. Once it enters orbit, it is due to land in a plain called Mare Frigoris between four and five months after launch.If the missions succeed, they will become the second and third private spacecraft to land on the moon. The first was Intuitive Machines Odysseus lander, which touched down last year.Blue Ghost and Resilience are the first of around a dozen spacecraft that are hoping to touch lunar soil this year, largely driven by NASAs CLPS, with many designed to test and demonstrate technology required for a future permanent human presence on the moon. These include a second and third mission from Intuitive Machines. IM-2 will look to drill near the southern lunar pole for buried ice that could be used in future missions, as well as deploy two exploratory rovers and a lunar satellite to communicate with Earth.Topics:

Los Angeles wildfires have burned 40,000 acres, killing 24 and destroying 12,000 structures.Goldman Sachs estimates the fires as one of the 20 costliest US natural disasters.The firm took stock of the impact the fires will have on US GDP and the labor market.The devastating wildfires across Los Angeles are sparking concerns about the potential impact on the broader economy.Early estimates of the total damage rank the wildfire as one of the 20 costliest natural disasters as a share of GDP in US history, according to Goldman Sachs.Insured losses are expected to reach as high as $30 billion, and AccuWeather estimates the total economic losses from the fire could be as high as $275 billion.Goldman Sachs took stock of the impact the fires are expected to have on broad readings of the US economy.The bank estimates that first-quarter GDP growth will decline by 0.2 percentage points, which excludes offsetting effects from a rapid rebuild of communities, which has typically followed past wildfires.For the January employment report, Goldman Sachs estimates "a modest drag" of 15,000 to 25,000 jobs due to the wildfires because "only about 0.5% of California's population is currently under evacuation order or warning."For weekly unemployment insurance claims, the bank said it doesn't see a huge uptick driven by the wildfires."Timely alternative data have not shown a noticeable pickup in online searches for unemployment benefits since the start of the first," economists at Goldman Sachs said. "As a result, we expect another low initial claims reading on Thursday."A potential rise in inflation has been a main market concern in recent months, and insurance represents a component of inflation reports.But Goldman Sachs doesn't expect higher insurance costs driven by the wildfires to impact inflation meaningfully."Our insurance equity analysts expect limited spillover to prices outside of California and because the weight of homeowners' insurance in the PCE price index is just 0.1%," Goldman Sachs explained.Additionally, Jeffrey Mezger, the CEO of homebuilder KB Home, said the resulting rebuild efforts in Los Angeles should not lead to an uptick in inflation related to labor and materials."The population is big and the capacity is there to handle a lot. So I don't expect a lot of labor or material pinch," Mezger said in his company's earnings call on Monday.Goldman Sachs cautioned that with the Eaton and Palisades fires at about 33% and 14% containment as of Monday evening, there remains considerable uncertainty about the ultimate property damages, including insured and uninsured losses.

PS5 owners have big expectations for the Extra and Premium PS Plus games for January 2025, with best-seller Hogwarts Legacy and Star Wars: Jedi Survivor among themTech14:52, 14 Jan 2025Updated 14:52, 14 Jan 2025Hogwarts Legacy is tipped, yet again, for PS Plus(Image: Still)PlayStation gamers already have new PS Plus Essentials titles to download (headlined by a game that's well worth a look), but if you have one of the higher subscription tiers you have even more to come.Alongside a varied trio of titles, the new PS Plus games are expected to be revealed on January 15 (that's Wednesday), and fans are hoping to kick the year off with a winner.Some were disappointed in the Essential games on offer, and while the following are only predictions, we'd certainly love to add these to our library here's hoping the community has guessed correctly.Could Hogwarts Legacy come to PS Plus this month?(Image: Avalanche Software / Shiver Entertainment)Over on the PS Plus subreddit, fans are placing their bets. After a whole host of users predicted Suicide Squad, there's every chance they get it right again.Hogwarts Legacy is one of the frontrunners, with players hoping to play the Harry Potter sort-of-prequel. It's one of the best-selling games in years, and has a PS5 Pro patch, so it'd be a great way to show off Sony's new console.Sadly, it's not the first time it's been predicted, so we won't hold our breath.Elsewhere, Star Wars Jedi Survivor gets plenty of votes, while Resident Evil 4 Remake also appears. That's not to say we'd get all of them, or any, but that would certainly be a stacked lineup.Final Fantasy 16 is now old enough to go to PC after being a PS5 exclusive, so some are suggesting that could be included, along with first-party console exclusives like God of War: Ragnarok.Some are predicting Deathloop, too, with Arkane Lyon's first-person adventure getting plenty of plaudits at launch, while others are keen for the Ubisoft trifecta of Assassin's Creed: Mirage, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, and Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown the latter of which deserved much better having launched a year ago.Article continues belowNaturally, we'll have all the PS Plus updates as and when we get them, so be sure to stay tuned.For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters.RECOMMENDED

It was originally rumoured to be a remaster (Bethesda)Further evidence of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion remake seems to have been discovered, but no one quite knows when Bethesda will unveil it.There were already rumours of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion getting a modern remaster floating around in 2023 and, a few months later, Microsoft only emboldened them when it accidentally shared documents covering Bethesdas line-up of upcoming games.By December 2024, though, this supposed remaster had evolved into a full remake, with a few insiders claiming it will launch in 2025, after a formal reveal in January.Now even more information seems to have leaked but despite a new Xbox Developer Direct showcase happening this month, it seems an official announcement may still be a while off.Will The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion remake be in the Xbox Developer Direct?Based on what we know so far, its looking likely that the Oblivion remake wont be featured as part of the Xbox Developer Direct.Microsoft has already said which games will be featured at the showcase and while Bethesda will make an appearance with its new Doom title, Microsoft has made no mention of anything related to The Elder Scrolls.There is one new mystery game Microsoft has teased, but one rumour says its a new entry in a legendary Japanese IP, which obviously rules out the Western-made Elder Scrolls series.Additionally, insider eXtas1stv, who was among those pushing the Oblivion remakes existence and accurately predicted the date for the January Developer Direct, has claimed the remake wont be featured during the showcase, but is still on track for a 2025 launch.Fellow insider Nate The Hate has also claimed a 2025 launch, specifically in June, but couldnt confirm a January reveal. Instead, he posited a potential announcement on March 20, which would mark the 19th anniversary of Oblivions original release.As if all that wasnt enough, a report from MP1st claims to corroborate the remakes existence and even has details about how certain gameplay mechanics have been revamped.More TrendingApparently, the remake is being made in Unreal Engine 5 and will see overhauls to the stamina, sneak, blocking, archery, hit reaction, and HUD systems. For example, blocking will take some inspiration from Soulslike games, since the original was considered boring and frustrating in that regard.MP1st says their information comes from a former Virtuos employee who accidentally shared the details on their website. For the sake of their privacy, MP1st has not named the employee nor linked to their website.For the record, Virtuos was named as the developer on the Oblivion remake in the original 2023 rumour. This would make Oblivion the second high-profile remake Virtuos is putting out in 2025, since its also a co-developer on Konamis Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater.It makes perfect sense for Microsoft and Bethesda to put out an Elder Scrolls remake at the moment. Aside from remakes in general being in vogue, The Elder Scrolls 6 is seemingly still years away, so a remake is a good way to maintain interest in the series in the interim. Those mountains have been taunting fans since 2018 (Bethesda)Emailgamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below,follow us on Twitter, andsign-up to our newsletter.To submit Inbox letters and Readers Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use ourSubmit Stuff page here.For more stories like this,check our Gaming page.GameCentralExclusive analysis, latest releases, and bonus community content.This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Your information will be used in line with our Privacy Policy

By Todd Feathers Published January 14, 2025 | Comments (0) | Allstate is accused of violating Texas's comprehensive state data privacy law. Shutterstock Texas has sued one of the nations largest car insurance providers alleging that it violated the states privacy laws by surreptitiously collecting detailed location data on millions of drivers and using that information to justify raising insurance premiums. The states attorney general, Ken Paxton, said the lawsuit against Allstate and its subsidiary Arity is the first enforcement action ever filed by a state attorney general to enforce a data privacy law. It also follows a deceptive business practice lawsuit he filed against General Motors accusing the car manufacturer of misleading customers by collecting and selling driver data. Our investigation revealed that Allstate and Arity paid mobile apps millions of dollars to install Allstates tracking software, Paxton said in a statement. The personal data of millions of Americans was sold to insurance companies without their knowledge or consent in violation of the law. Texans deserve better and we will hold all these companies accountable. In 2015, Allstate developed the Arity Driving Engine software development kit (SDK), a package of code that the company allegedly paid mobile app developers to install in their products in order to collect a variety of sensitive data from consumers phones. The SDK gathered phone geolocation data, accelerometer, and gyroscopic data, details about where phone owners started and ended their trips, and information about driving behavior, such as whether phone owners appeared to be speeding or driving while distracted, according to the lawsuit.The apps that installed the SDK included GasBuddy, Fuel Rewards, and Life360, a popular family monitoring app, according to the lawsuit.Paxtons complaint said that Allstate and Arity used the data collected by its SDK to develop and sell products to other insurers like Drivesight, an algorithmic model that assigned a driving risk score to individuals, and ArityIQ, which allowed other insurers to [a]ccess actual driving behavior collected from mobile phones and connected vehicles to use at time of quote to more precisely price nearly any driver. Allstate and Arity marketed the products as providing driver behavior data but because the information was collected via mobile phones the companies had no way of determining whether the owner was actually driving, according to the lawsuit. For example, if a person was a passenger in a bus, a taxi, or in a friends car, and that vehicles driver sped, hard braked, or made a sharp turn, Defendants would conclude that the passenger, not the actual driver, engaged in bad driving behavior, the suit states.Neither Allstate and Arity nor the app developers properly informed customers in their privacy policies about what data the SDK was collecting or how it would be used, according to the lawsuit.Texass Data Privacy and Security Act is one of dozens of state privacy laws enacted in recent years. While other states have accused and reached settlements with companies for violating their privacy laws, the Texas complaint against Allstate is significant because the company allegedly passed up the opportunity to change its practices and avoid a lawsuit. Like many other state laws, the Texas DPSA has what is known as a right-to-cure provision, which says that companies who are notified that theyre violating the law have a certain amount of time (30 days, in Texass case) to fix the alleged violations and avoid an enforcement action. Allstate and Arity didnt do that, according to the lawsuit.In its complaint, filed in federal court, Texas requested that Allstate be ordered to pay a penalty of $7,500 per violation of the states data privacy law and $10,000 per violation of the states insurance code, which would likely amount to millions of dollars given the number of consumers allegedly affected. The lawsuit also asks the court to make Allstate delete all the data it obtained through actions that allegedly violated the privacy law and to make full restitution to customers harmed by the companies actions.Daily NewsletterYou May Also Like By Matthew Gault Published January 13, 2025 By Todd Feathers Published December 26, 2024 By Lucas Ropek Published November 17, 2024 By Matthew Gault Published September 10, 2024 By Matt Novak Published September 5, 2024 By Matthew Gault Published August 26, 2024

Rusty House / studio on the ryeSave this picture! French + TyeArchitects: studio on the ryeYearCompletion year of this architecture project Year: 2024 PhotographsPhotographs:French + TyeMore SpecsLess SpecsSave this picture!Text description provided by the architects. Location and Background - Rusty House on the Rye is a 1950s property located in the Holly Grove Conservation Area in Peckham, South London. Situated on the corner of Bellenden Road, leading to Rye Lane, the property's prime position makes it highly visible from two main streets. Purchased 14 years ago by the owner Victoria, she was regularly approached by developers wanting to buy and build on the land. However, she decided to take matters into her own hands, opting to expand her home and make the most of the space herself. Client Vision and Brief - The project got off the ground in early 2023 and Victoria was keen to work with a local, all-female team for the design and engineering. She selected local architect Sarah Borowiecka, director of studio on the rye to oversee the process. For Sarah the brief was clear: the client wanted to add a two-storey extension while maintaining side access from the front garden into the rear. The garden was a standout feature and integral to the project. Additionally, the client sought a larger kitchen, to accommodate working from home, a snug, a utility room, and a new master bedroom. The existing home also needed updates, including resolving damp and ventilation issues and modernizing the rooms to be more energy-efficient.Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!Challenges and Design Approach - Located in a conservation area, the project faced tighter restrictions to preserve the characteristics of the neighborhood. studio on the rye's approach was to design an extension that would fit in with the surrounding area without resorting to pastiche. It opted for a modern idiom that would sit comfortably with both the 1950s house and the more historical buildings nearby. Avoiding the common approach of using brickdifficult to match with the existing housestudio on the rye chose weathered Corten steel for the cladding. This choice not only complemented the tone of the house's red brick but also introduced an unusual and visually striking element to the design. The steel's patina, which develops a rusty, brown color over time, was accelerated to create the desired look upon installation. This weathered appearance harmonized with both the existing structure and the conservation area. The design also focused on simple, monolithic forms. Recessed gutters and a shadow gap in both the walls and roof helped delineate the extension from the original house while maintaining a clean and modern aesthetic.Save this picture!Save this picture!Structural Changes and Key Materials - The design added significant floor space, including a kitchen/dining area, utility room, and snug on the ground floor, and a master bedroom with an ensuite shower room and walk-in wardrobe on the second floor. Inside, the project introduced new windows and doors, a revamped stairwell, and a new staircase. The kitchen was designed by studio on the rye and crafted from ash, with bespoke joinery. The floors were finished with polished concrete tiles in the kitchen/dining space and oak throughout the rest of the house. The corner windows in the kitchen and master bedroom, a standout feature of the design, required bespoke glass. The unusual angle, dictated by the boundary line of the property, meant that several suppliers had to be approached before Fluid Glass was selected to deliver the custom windows. The materials were carefully sourced, with a focus on UK-based suppliers like Havwoods for the timber, Lazenby for the concrete floor tiles, Astro for the lighting, The Rooflight Company for the roof lights, and Fluid Glass for the glazing.Save this picture!Design Challenges and Solutions - The biggest technical challenge was working with Corten Steel. Though durable, its rusting process can cause rainwater runoff to stain surrounding finishes. To avoid this, a sealant was applied to prevent further rusting and protect the concrete floor tiles below. The studio also spent considerable time collaborating with metal suppliers and contractors to develop a fixing method for the steel panels, ensuring a seamless, sleek look. In the master bedroom, the corner windows created an additional challenge for blackout conditions, as no standard off-the-shelf shutters were available. studio on the rye designed bespoke sliding MDF shutters that could be concealed in the walls, offering both aesthetic and functional solutions. Another key design consideration was how to connect the house more effectively with the rear garden, compensating for the loss of some side garden space. Large sliding doors, a glazed corner in the kitchen, and expansive windows were introduced to create a seamless transition between the interior and the garden, allowing the outdoors to feel like an extension of the home. Insulation improvements, triple-glazed windows, and an energy-efficient bioethanol stove were also added to enhance the home's sustainability.Save this picture!Aesthetic Vision - The aesthetic goal was to create a simple, calm atmosphere using natural materials to add warmth and texture. Ash window surrounds bespoke joinery, oak parquet flooring, and concrete tiles were used to create a minimalist, Scandinavian-inspired interior. Natural daylight was a key element, with roof lights over the stairwell, master bedroom, and ensuite shower room, and large windows throughout. Collaboration and Legacy - Sarah's deep local roots facilitated a smooth design and construction process for this project, from collaborating with a local contractor to regularly cycling past the site on her way to the office. Naming her practice after the area and having lived in Peckham her entire life, Rusty House on the Rye represents more than just a design projectit's a meaningful contribution to Sarah's community and a visible, lasting addition to the neighborhood. The project is a gateway into Peckham that reflects Sarah's personal and professional identity.Save this picture!Project gallerySee allShow lessAbout this officeMaterialSteelMaterials and TagsPublished on January 14, 2025Cite: "Rusty House / studio on the rye" 14 Jan 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1025537/rusty-house-studio-on-the-rye&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save!ArchDaily?You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream