The ability to move, grow, change, and adapt is pretty essential for most human beings, and yet we haven?t ever required the same of our built environments. With the exception of strictly nomadic cultures, we primarily construct architecture and infrastructure that?s static and permanently set in place, expecting to remain in a single location for an extended period of time and put down roots. But in the 21st century, all of that has been changing. Many people are traveling and moving more often, experiencing one place for a while and then hitting the road for fresh new perspectives. Will more of our structures change to reflect this shift"

A new prefabricated mobile home called the M.A.Di is aiming to do exactly that. Sure, there are plenty of houses in the world designed to fit on the back of a truck for transportation to new locations ? but most of them don?t snap up into place at the tug of a crane like something in a children’s pop-up book or fully assemble in a mere six hours with only three people present. The M.A.Di takes portability to a whole new level, especially considering its size and complexity.
Standing just under five feet high when it?s packed down flat, the M.A.Di unfolds into a two-story, 21-foot-tall A-frame house, with an earthquake-resistant steel outer shell wrapping around its roof and two exterior walls. This shell provides most of the home?s structural integrity, though it also comes fully insulated and finished on the inside with eit...