Researchers at Denmark's Innovation Lab and collaborators have created the first computer screen fashioned from transparent concrete. Heavy. The display was constructed with students Christoffer Dupont and Lene Langballe along with concrete manufacturing company Dalton Beton. Check out the video or see the screen live at the I-Lab's Next 2006 event in December. From the Innovation Lab project page:
The screen consists of concrete with embedded optical fibres, arranged as pixels, capable of transmitting natural as well as artificial light. The light-admission points are on the back of the screen where the fibres are positioned. The light, or the picture, will then be displayed in pixels on the front. The light source can be a projector emitting either pictures or film footage. In principle, the screen is capable of acting as a window since – owing to the combination of the screen concept's light-absorption and optical cables – it has a capacity for transmitting natural light.
UPDATE: Alberto Gaitán reminded me of the translucent concrete featured in an exhibit about new trends in concrete that I blogged about in 2004.
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