Can Inflated Concrete Homes Help Solve the World's Housing Woes?

Remember the DIY days of covering balloons with lots of glue, scraps of paper and paint, and then popping said balloons to reveal a masterfully created bowl? Well, imagine doing paper maché on a larger scale — a much larger scale. The Binishell, an idea for inflated concrete domes dreamed up by Dr. Dante Bini in the 60s, is basically that same concept brought to life.

A large, heavy-duty balloon gets covered with flexible steel rods and concrete before the balloon is inflated while the concrete is still wet. Once it hardens, the balloon is removed. Basically, it starts off as a flat shape and then gets inflated to its desired size. The balloon can then be reused to fill another domed building. It’s a super quick way of building structures that can take just a few days and, because of its shape, it’s also much more energy efficient than the traditionally built house.

I swear I've seen this design somewhere before..... http://youtu.be/sAb-fqBrUsY?t=1m

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