The purpose of building material is to make safe and comfortable the place where we live.

They satisfy our desire of beauty and the technical needs, but also influence our health and feelings. These materials should be eco-friendly and sustainable and have to be chosen according to the negative effects produced on the environment, like toxic gases, water pollution or soil pollution. These materials have to cause the least possible damage to the environmental ecosystem, from production to use. According to the purpose that used for, they can be divided into three groups: 1) Materials employed on structure of the building, like foundations, wall, roof, etc.) 2) Materials used to improve the performance of the building, like fixtures, insulations & protections; 3) materials which complete the structure, then finishing materials like paints, glues, floor, etc). Natural materials cannot be selected for their quality only, but they have to be chosen according to the features of each materials, also the way that we used them, because we have to understand how a material can interact with another one. So eco-materials can:- be biodegradable and recyclable, -minimize the effects of toxic and dangerous substances on health, - contribute to the creation of a more sustainable environmental future. This can be possible if we: minimize the use impact on habitat, avoiding and reducing the dependence on non-renewable energy sources, increasing indoor air quality and efficiency of resources, and reducing or avoiding the use of materials connected to allergies too. Some of these materials which can be employed on bio-architecture there are timber, brick stone and clay for the building of the structures, also cork, jute, cellulose fibre, and pearlstone used for insulations and natural paints, varnishes and waxes for finishing materials.

At the beginning of the 20th, New York and Chicago became the centers of the competition for the tallest building in the world. Each city's skyline is composed of several skyscrapers, many of which are icons of 20th century architecture.- The Chrysler Building (1930): Designed by William Van Alen, and is an Art Deco masterpiece with an exterior crafted of brick and it continues to be one of the favorites of New Yorkers to today. It scrapes the sky at height of 319 m.- The Empire State Building (1931): This was the first Building to have more than 100 floors (it has 102). It was designed by Shreve, Lamb and Harmon in the contemporary Art Deco style. It takes its name from the nickname of New York State (the empire State). With its 448 m to the top of the antenna, it was the tallest building in the world until 1973.- The World Trade Center (1973): consisted of two tall towers and seven smaller buildings. For a short time, the North Tower was the tallest building of the world. The towers has been the highest for twentyeight years, until September 11th, 2011, when a terrorist attack destroyed them. It was the home of various governmental entities and financial firms. The site is currently being rebuilt. The original World Trade Center was designed by Minoru Yamasaki in the early 1960s.- The Sears Tower in Chicago was completed in 1974, one year after the World Trade Center, and Surpassed it as the world's tallest building. It was the first building to employ the bundled tube structural system, designed by Fazlur Khan. Bundled tube is a structural system which consist of a group of narrow steel cylinders which are grouped together to form a thicker column.Since the 1990s, skyscraper design has included traditional architectural features associated with the part of the world where they stand. All this buildings reflect the cultural influences of their environment:- The Petronas Twin Towers (509 m): were built in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, as the headquarters of the main Malaysian oil firm and they were designed by the Argentinean architect Cesar Pelli. The design of Petronas Twin Towers is based on the transformation of simple but elegant Islamic geometric

- Taipei 101 (509 m): in Taipei, Taiwan, in 2004 designed by C.Y. Lee and Partners. Taipei 101 recalls the traditions of Asian Pagoda architecture. - The Burj Dubai (818 m): built in Dubai in 2009, holds the record of being the highest building in the world. It was designed by Adrian Smith with Skidmore, Owing and Merrill. The Burj Dubai incorporates patterns from traditional Arabic art. The following skyscrapers have received planning permission and will be completed in the near future: - The Shangai Tower: will be 632 m high and have 127 floors. The building will have nine indoor gardens that will be completed in 2014. - The Chicago Spire, with 150 floors, will be the second tallest residential building in the world. It will be terminated in 2012. It was designed by Santiago Calatrava. - One World Trade Center: also known by its former name of Freedom Tower, is the main building of the new World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan in New York City. Its antenna will reach a height of 541 m. - Tour Generali (308 m): in Paris La Dfense, is an entirely green office skyscraper. The building will have 400 m of photovoltaic cells, 800 m of solar panels and eighteen wind turbines to produce energy. It will be completed in 2013 and be the tallest building in Paris. - The London Bridge Tower (310 m): also known as the Shard of Glass, is scheduled to be completed in May 2012, in time for the London Olympic Games. Designed by Renzo Piano, the structure will be on the site of an existing 1970s office building adjacent to London Bridge Station. It will be the tallest building in London, in United Kingdom and European Union.

The UK is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy. But there is no a written constitution, the laws have been passed down orally. The Monarchy: Queen Elizabeth II is head of state and a symbol of national unity, but she has a very small power. Parliament: Parliament makes the laws and debates important issues. The government can only stay in power with the support of Parliament. There are two Houses in Parliament. the house of commons has 646 members of parliament chosen by the people in a general election that are held at least every five years,the house of lords has about 750 members known as "peers". they are not elected. in the past they were "hereditary peers". the house of lords has limited power in fact it can propose new laws or suggest amendments, but the final decision rests with the House of Commons. The Prime minister and the cabinet: the prime minister the leader of the political party in power, it the head of the government with an official home at 10 downing street. the PM appoints about 20 senior MPs to become ministers in change of departments. These ministers form the cabinet a committee which meets regularly and decides government policy. Regional and local government there are regional parliaments in scotland, wales and northern ireland. they can make decision in areas such as education, agricolture ecc. cities and countries have local government called councils. in local election people choose councillors.