Dubai, acknowledged as a leader in transformative real estate, has been selected as one of two locations for yet another marvel: a shape-shifting skyscraper.

Architect David Fisher, the man behind the project, hopes to build his so-called dynamic towers - prefabricated sun- and wind-powered skyscrapers that will keep changing shape as each floor rotates around a central axis - in Moscow and Dubai by the end of 2010.

The buildings are designated for residential purposes. Along with swimming pools and gardens, they will also be fitted with car elevators so that residents can park right outside their homes.

The Dubai building is to be an 80-foot edifice, still to be approved; the one in Moscow, which reportedly already has planning approval, is to be 70 feet tall.

great partnership

Fisher has partnered with Russian real-estate developer Mirax Group on the Moscow tower, while the architect's company, Fisher's Rotating Tower Technology Co, is handling the Dubai project.

"I call this building a machine for living," Fisher told a news conference in New York two weeks ago.

The towers are expected to generate enough electricity for themselves and other nearby buildings from solar panels and wind turbines fitted horizontally between each floor.

People who own an entire floor, Reuters reported, will be able to simply speak to control the rotation, with speeds varying from an hour to three hours for each full rotation.

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