Architecture and Design - Science topic

Numerous studies by psychologists and sociologists conducted on mass housing construction on the vast territory of the USSR with different socio-cultural and natural climatic features in the period 1970-90 showed a slight influence population's opinions on the design process. However, the revealed variety of forms of spatial life of people and their interpretation into geometric images by professional communities strongly dependent on their social position in the structure of society proved to be decisive.

Hi dear Lauren.

What are the disadvantages of a modular house?

Modular building is not without its drawbacks! Although modules can be innovatively designed and used for a number of applications, the nature of the blockchain system means that some builders do not have good design and aesthetic flexibility.

The investment required for the factory infrastructure required to build the modules is significant, and the transportation of prefabricated members from the factory to the project site is significant. A mistake or an accident can be very costly.

Hi dear Ola.

Nanotechnology also plays an important role in the construction industry, in this regard, steel, glass and concrete industries play the largest role. The use of nanoparticles in the construction industry, the most important of which are carbon nanotubes and titanium dioxide, generally increases the mechanical properties of the samples in the main structures and in the joinery part, the application of nanocoatings in the interior and exterior of buildings is of special importance. The building's nano-coatings, while reducing water repellency and minimizing dirt absorption, make the building's facade UV-resistant. These nanocoatings in surfaces such as; Cement, brick, pottery, ordinary stone, tile, marble, wood, ceramic, glass, steel and concrete are used. Manufacture of reinforced concrete, self-repairing and self-cleaning, self-cleaning glass, fire resistant and energy controlling and thus saving energy consumption, use of nanoscience paints that prevent bacteria from penetrating into office buildings, residential buildings, hospitals Etc., giving them a long life, a bacterium-free environment, and a non-dirty and degradable nature are other important applications of nanotechnology in the construction industry. In this way, it is easy to recognize that we are facing a new world called nanotechnology. Nanoscience experts believe that after the production of steam engines, engines and the development of IT, the technology of this science will open new horizons to the human world. Nanotechnology is capable of shrinking materials to the point where they can be rebuilt to introduce new materials and technologies to the world.

Hi dear Ella.

You have made a very important and interesting discussion. To begin the discussion, I will provide you with an introduction so that we can draw good conclusions with the discussions that you and other researchers will present.

The future belongs to creative and innovative architecture, and the most basic and best architectural designs and ideas will be implemented in traditional museums. These buildings, which are a place to collect and display old objects, are becoming the leaders in creative and up-to-date views. As we move forward in time, the need for museums to preserve the history we are building becomes even greater, especially with advances in technology and science. In the next five to ten years, we will see a revolution in the form of old museums, and space exploration projects will be implemented around the world, from Budapest to Miami. These buildings will define the future of the museum's architecture and culture. Architectural plans planned for the future represent a pervasive movement of modern architecture using advanced technology, integrating the basic structure with technological advances, and modernizing society.

Hi dear Santiago.

Real architecture is called architecture in which human thoughts and feelings are taken into account and this architecture creates a perfect fit that pays attention to structure and function at the same time. We know that our relationship with nature promotes health and well-being, and this relationship can also improve physical function. People who live in a building do not just need to work, play, eat or sleep. They want to be inspired and inspired by their surroundings, to feel comfortable and strong in it. They need a space that makes them more comfortable. The solution to architectural sustainability is to work in harmony with nature. That is, one must understand nature, explore it with sensitivity, and at the same time avoid damaging nature's systems. The architect-planner should pay attention to the concept of biophilia, which causes the continuity of performance and health and emotional states of residents and individuals and leads to positive reactions in the environment, and the general process in the architectural predominance to such things as:

1- Making natural and physical frameworks friendlier

2- Optimal organization of energy consumption

3- Ensuring the effective relationship between human progress and optimal management of natural resources in reducing the negative effects of climate change.

Hi dear Arda.

Outbreaks appear to be exacerbated during urban sprawl, with new coronaviruses causing increased surveillance, overcrowding, and new activities in the community.

In some cities, contaminated neighborhoods were cleared, early quarantine facilities were expanded, and public spaces were enlarged and improved.

As the prevalence of the epidemic increases, the most important need in architecture is the speed of construction of disease control areas such as hospitals, quarantine centers, wards and temporary accommodation.

- Use of buildings for multiple purposes

The results of studies on coronavirus showed that some buildings can be quickly converted into accommodation centers for patients or even a hospital, and this indicates the use of buildings in the most efficient way to create emergency facilities.

- Designing a healthy building

On quarantine days when you are mostly at home, you may pay more attention to the shortcomings of your living environment than ever before.

The Healthy Building Movement can be an effective approach to improving health through strategies such as more natural light, improved ventilation, and greater use of plants and natural materials. The use of large windows, terraces, roofs and courtyards has become more prominent in these cases. Places for exercise and meditation at home should be more standard.

Also, following health tips in some places where social distance is not usually observed, such as prisons, homeless shelters and nursing homes, can be effective in reducing the prevalence of epidemics.

The use of antimicrobial strategies such as antimicrobial polymer surfaces and copper alloy surfaces that naturally kill germs and viruses is very important in these cases.

Many believe that the process of transformation of artificial and natural premises could be understood exclusively by scientific methods, forgetting that this is also art and politics. The long pressure of dominant design cultures on local construction due to the development of the mass media in the last century has increased so much that they seem that the creation of digital technology design will be able to spread them universally. The revolution of the XVth century swept away the medieval methods of design, in the XIXth century the classical ones, and after a while, the mass global mercantile design also will also disappear. You will take one step forward if you find a new consumer who will ensure the development of spatial knowledge and would not allow the profession of an architect to disappear for a thousand years again, as it happened once in Europe.

Dear , Karim Medlej, Ihsan Jasim, Bartek Felski, Suad Mohammed Heil, Hisham Abusaada, Dmitry Sukhin, David Pecháček, Thank you very much for participating in this discussion and providing inspiring and informative answers to the above question: When do certain architectural objects become an element of art?

This discussion confirms the importance of the above-mentioned issues and the legitimacy of developing research on this subject.

Thank you very much and best regards, Have a nice day,

Dariusz Prokopowicz

Have a look at Canadian builing standards and Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) standards- CSA Z8000 for Hospitals and https://ipac-canada.org/. Much of what is being rproposed as new and innovative has already been implemented for 10-15 years due to the Canadian experience with SARS. Temporary facilities were limited as most Provinces have Pandemic plans and new buildings designed to suit. However we do have aging infrastructure so older facilties were definitely challenged leading to the creation of Field Hospitals. Many have not been needed.

In public spaces not related to Healthcare I am seeing them adopt concepts from Acute Care. This looks like HVAC solutions and focusing on surfaces that can be cleaned easily through simple methods. Increased cleaning fequencies and disinfecting. so chemical resistance and durability is important Although with proper cleaning disinfecting is only required in certain spaces and/or during an active outbreak. We Canadians like to plan for the worst so I see us making sure how spaces are able to handle an outbreak or creating outbreak zones so that essential services and work can be performed safely during these times.

It depends on how dangerous the materials are used for health and well-being.

A few themes of ''Postmodern Architecture", according to Charles Jencks: Hybrid expression, Variable space with surprises, Eclectic, Semiotic articulation, Variable mixed aesthetic depending on context; expression of content and semantic appropriateness towards function, Pro-organic and applied ornament (structure/construction as ornement), Pro-representation, Pro-methaphor, Pro-historical reference, Pro-humour, Pro-symbolic, Collage/collision.

To see: Charles Jencks , Late-Modern Architecture (London: Academy Editions, 1980); Charles Jencks (Ed.), Post-Modern Classicism (Architectural Design 5/6, 1980

You should clarify your question. What do you mean by 'does it have a future'? Biophilic design is currently a term with broad meaning. A problem with such terms is that they could be interpreted widely. Everyone can read it differently. One thing that is obvious is biophilic design is very much context- and case-sensitive. One strategy or technique that may function properly in a specific project in a specific climate or site may terribly fail in another project, site, climate or time. It is a key to take into account deeply various layers and factors of local and global sustainability when prescribing a solution for a particular case. Green isn't necessarily sustainable. Search more on the difference between green and sustainable. These are fundamentals. Then you could extend principles and connect with standards and regulations such as LEED. That is a secondary issue.

Architecture - The art of sculpture & civil engineering ! . So developement 3D -printing technology helps to develope AUTOCADD greatly .

Dear Volodymyr Durmanov

Thank you for your contribution.

Using new methods of teaching and discussion

Providing good facilities level of architectural studio

For more information read this please

Climate change is yet another driving force for cities to improve their infrastructure and living standards for urban dweller and business as a whole. Although the improvement of the urban space is important and necessary over time investing in innovative architecture, better technologies and environmental solutions it is equally essential for people and institutions to keep pace with all these changes. Because before climate change turned up on our horizon, poverty and poor development plans in cities were already making living in urban spaces difficult and for business to be not entirely successful, in some cases.

Fortunately, the awareness of "climate change effects and the risks of not acting upon what we know" has increased tremendously lately. This seems to be the right time to bring in new policies in local governments and involve different city actors to be part of the planning and implementation of the policies. So, the idea of 'City Climate Emergency Commission' seem quite appropriate and promising.

Therefore, it might be important to go further when we focus our attention in investment in infrastructure and make buildings, roads and bridges resilient to climate change but in the process involve the society to learn, change and adapt to the new environmental realities.

Though I am not providing a definite answer of YES or NO to this question. But you may refer to two of my researches. These definitely indicate that sense of safety, interaction between people, intent of people has a bearing on architecture and built environment.

Please feel free to cite my papers.

The theoretically motivated response to your question is "of course not!". Why? Because of the so-called "rebound effect". Unless "efficiency" is accompanied with "sobriety", then the augmentation due to increased "lifestyle demands" for artificial comfort, gadgets, conspicuous consumption, prestige etc., say +20%, can easily outrun, on a periodic or exponential basis, the gains of "greater efficiency" (say 10%).

This is a well known consideration, which highlights that meaningful responses to sustainability concerns/challenges cannot be rooted primarily in "efficiency" terms (even if, at thelevel of "means to an end", different facets of efficiency are meaningful performance considerations).

- Martin O'Connor

Hi Bryan,

many thanks for your answer, I will definitely have a look at your references. However, what I am asking for is more architects participants to take up my survey if possible.

What is a form and what is a shape? Well, it can easily be explained by saying that “sphere” is to “form” while “circle” is to “shape.” Yes, this is basically true. But to architects and those who master formal art, there are many other elements and concepts to consider. “Form” and “shape” define objects situated in space. The basic difference, though, between “shape” and “form” is that “form” is in 3D while “shape” is plain 2D. The latter is simply defined by lines. “Shape” is thus described by virtue of how many sides it has and to some degree by its angular relations. There is a clear and well-defined border. Conversely, “form” details further (although vague) the area bordered by the lines created.

For more detail, read the following link: http://www.differencebetween.net/language/difference-between-shape-and-form/

Oday Qusay Abdulqader ,

You may look at these works.

- Panero, Julius, and Martin Zelnik. Human dimension & interior space: a source book of design reference standards. Watson-Guptill, 1979.

- White, John. "The birth and rebirth of pictorial space." Cambridge, MA (1957).

- Ching, Francis DK, and Corky Binggeli. Interior design illustrated. John Wiley & Sons, 2017.

- Dodsworth, Simon, and Stephen Anderson. The fundamentals of interior design. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2015.

Antonio Lopes Correia

Here you go

- Lawson, R. Mark, Ray G. Ogden, and Rory Bergin. "Application of modular construction in high-rise buildings." Journal of architectural engineering 18, no. 2 (2011): 148-154.

- Lawson, Mark, Ray Ogden, and Chris Goodier. Design in modular construction. CRC Press, 2014.

- Kamali, Mohammad, and Kasun Hewage. "Life cycle performance of modular buildings: A critical review." Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 62 (2016): 1171-1183.

yes....of course....why not?!

Tatiana, La cartilla del Espacio publico. Y en La Salle en la Facultad de Ciencias del habitat Hdeberias conversar sobre le tema de la Accesibilidad Universal con Gilda Toro que seguro te puede ofrecer informacion pertinente para que el amobalamiennto urbano sea accesible a todos; incluye el esapcio público. gtoro@unisalle.edu.co de la Alcaldia de Bogota de Lorenzo Castro y la actual; El IDU tiene una muy buena

Poly urethane floor coating, it is better than epoxy coating 

Dear colleague

Living things respond to their environment by adapting to it. Organisms react to different things in their environment, such as light. Other environmental factors include basic things such as heat, food, odors and sound. When these environmental factors affect or change an organism, they are called stimuli. As the organisms learn to adapt to the stimuli around them, they become better suited for living in the specific environment. For example, camels have long, thick eyelashes. The eyelashes work to protect their eyes from sand since they live in sandy environmental conditions.Living things also learn how to obtain energy from the environment, and this energy helps them to reproduce. The ability to reproduce is a characteristic of all living things in the world.

Regards 

My answers are similar to Mr. Schill's. I'm thinking of modularity not in terms of pre-fabrication or of a uniform size, but as a measure of each frame, bay or unit being independently functional or self-supporting. The first three tend to determine the viability of a proposed adaptation and the others influence efficiency/cost:

MEP systems themselves are harder to characterize. Spare breakers or empty pads & conduits are helpful for day-to-day facilities maintenance, upgrades and tenant or user changes. In my experience, major adaptations tend to come with significant changes to or replacement of those systems. Having a spot to add a cooling tower cell may not help much when all of them are being replaced and you need to add two generators and their switchgear because the new use is 24/7.

There are a lot of good books about Russian architecture of the end of 19th and the beginning of 20th centuries in Russian. In English – see:

William C. Brumfield. The Origins of Modernism in Russian Architecture. University of California Press, 1991; Dmitry Shvidkovsky. Russian Architecture and the West. Yale University Press, 2007.

If I am not mistaken, A.J. Toynbee wrote about Russian heritage in Harbin: A.J. Toynbee. A Journey to China, or the Things which Are Seen. London, 1931

what is FABSCALAR please elaborate!

Dear shen,

 A  video in TED named:"Why great architecture should tell a story" introduced some new advances in modern architecture, it is really good, and I guess it is helpful to you.Please refer to the following link:

This is a huge question which I guess I try to answer only in part by writing whole books so it would be hard to summarise here.  However one point in response to Lilliana is worth following up. 

There is no doubt that designers including architects tend to work in a solution focussed manner.  There is no theory as in structural engineering that gets you from problem to answer.  So we use a great deal of knowledge that is episodic rather than semantic, or experiential rather than theoretical.  We often use what we call (not a good term) precedent and the gathering of this is so important as Lilliana says.  To do this today studetns are tempted to use the digital camera, but this requires no mental or cognitive processing to pass from reality to image.  A sketch does involve the brain and hand co-ordination that means cerebral experience is developed.  Even more importantly this also helps to practice sketching and drawing technique.  As Lilliana suggests we must also delay using CAD as today many students come to university to learn architecture having not studied drawing formally but are very conversant with computers.  SO the digital camera and teh computer can delay the learning of drawing and this is fatal in its effects on learning to design.

You can of course find much more detailed discussions of all these ideas and hundreds more in my latest book Design Expertise written with Kees Dorst and listed on my site here.  I am currently working on a new book as a sequel to How Designers Think that is primarily directed at the learning student and is intended to be with them from the beginning learning to design.  Previosu books were more directed at those researching design.  All detailed here and having many references that might help answer your huge question.

By my link you ,can find some of your questioner.

Websites

Other positions and other shapes will (probably) work.  It is possible that another shape in a slightly different position will give the same performance, but this is what the engineer came up with first.  Parameters like slot width and length and x and y position are usually used in optimisation programs in electromagnetic simulation packages (even more so if the design is by hand and uses look-up tables), so for that reason you often end up with rectangular slots and copper, unless, for instance, a genetic algorithm is used to search for a solution, in which case you may end up with a shape similar to the one shown but without right angles and with bent bits that actually do very little.  It is easier and quicker to find an answer by optimisation if the range of shapes you are going to search is limited in some way, provided that it is possible at all within the range you allow.  This design may also have been developed in stages and by experience, using simple easily understood circuit elements to improve the previous performance.

Hello Phebe

The reason for ventilating the façade will be different for different climate zones.

In the Scandinavian, and probably also the British climate, the relatively warm and humid indoor climate in the heating season, results in humidity diffusing into the façade, as the VCL will never be 100% tight. Thus the façade is ventilated to evacuate any moisture in the façade.

I think the previous answers covers buildings in a hot climate, where the ventilation will have other functions.

A ladder of participation might be helpful as a basis for evaluation, as there is a number of so-called participatory methods in architectural design that in fact aim just to inform the participants about upcoming changes in interactive way. 

Here is an example of adjusting the ladder for mapping the participatory projects in cultural heritage: http://themuseumofthefuture.com/tmotf_live_12nu/wp-content/uploads/Participation-framework-500x303.png

Just a word on how to use land use transition matrix.  I cited it, firstly, as a simple key word into relevant literature.  But it has some valuable content of its own.  Land doesn't just change use--it changes from one use to another.  Urban land is very unlikely to change into forest land because of both land values and transition costs.  Cropland can go in and out from grazing with little cost from year to year.  That's one reason why Conservation Reserve Program in US is so popular with farmers. Land can go from crops to trees (either forest or plantation) but return will not be realized for 10-40 years.  It is much less likely to go back.  Naveen wisely brings up climate change.  It can affect profitability of all land uses, but the first thing to look for is whether it pushes any single use below the margin of profitability.  It is also worth looking at regions where lots of land is at one or more margins.  There is little chance that downtown London will go into grazing nor that corn/soybean land in central Illinois will become forest.  I looked at a region at the margin in my 1985 book, COMPETITION FOR LAND IN THE AMERICAN SOUTH.  It has lots of hypotheses on why land changes use, but also many thoughts on the important question of WHERE.

Lena, my speciality is lighting. May I suggest that you look for "Human Centric Lighting" with special emphasis on biorhythm analysis. A great deal of work has been done on this subject and papers should be easy to find. A good place to start would be "Human Factors in Lighting" by Dr Peter Boyce.

If you exercise in a beautiful environment, it stimulates you to continue to do exercises. If you don't like the environment you are inclined to stop: this is the case with ugly dark indoor halls with no windows. Most people in the moderate climate zones like the sun and walking or doing physical exercise outside,  in the sun and in a beautiful landscape is a most rewarding experience. So variables at stake are:light, sun, that means intensity of the colors, beauty of the landscape if outdoor or indoor: beauty of the architectonal surroudings. But besides these variables there is another one: if one feels at ease in these surroundings, so what are the associations with this place, what is the vibe, how do you relate to other people in this environment: are they potentially friends or enemies ?

If you want to do research on this subject, it is not enough to just ask some questions. That is because what people think is not always how they feel. So you should also look to what places are the most visited and what places the least  and for what reasons. Another way is to let respondents score at photo's of some places they do not know.

Henri is quite right.  In fact as you look at the design research field literature you will find that early work in the mid 20th century tended to be prescriptive.  It was more accurately called design methods and much of it went largely unheeded by practitioners.  Gradually we investigated more and began to understand what designers actually did, and now it is quite an empirical field.  So although early on you will find many references to creative thinking they tended to be sometimes gimmicky techniques and might not be so useful in your enquiry

Many Thanks,

it is an interesting reference to a case study regarding the preverdissement.

Best Regards.

There is some reference to haptic perception of build spaces in Hidden Dimesion by Edward T. Hall

Pritzker Architecture Prize

The prize is awarded irrespective of nationality, race, creed, or ideology. Nominations are accepted internationally from persons from diverse fields who have a knowledge of and interest in advancing great architecture.

The Executive Director actively solicits nominations from past laureates, architects, academics, critics, politicians, professionals involved in cultural endeavors, etc. and with expertise and interest in the field of architecture.

Additionally, any licensed architect may submit a nomination to the Executive Director for consideration by the jury for the Pritzker Architecture Prize. Nominations are accepted through November 1 of any given year. It is sufficient to send an e-mail to the Executive Director with the nominee’s name and contact information. Nominations that do not result in the award are automatically carried over to the following year. The Jury normally undertakes deliberations early in the calendar year and the winner is announced in the spring.

Jonathan.  You could look at  y paper jointly with Simon pilling on this.  Look for The Cost and Value of Design on my page here I think you can download it.  It deals with a study of architects and their clients, mostly developers, construction firms and huge serial clients.

You can take benefit from my papers...

Sajjad

i assume you mean trading off performance along one dimension against another.  If the real intractable problem here is that you cannot find a common metric for all the issues in design.  These issues are dealt with extensively in my book. How Designers Think

Very interesting question! I once had a student from another country complain to me how hard it was to fall asleep. And both of us come from countries with similar climates AND we both live in cities.Through a process of elimination I stumbled upon one exception- one of us lives in a country where the business hours extends into the wee hours of the morning. That means that artificial lighting has a greater "polluting effect" in that country, leading to sleeplessness and other related health problems. Perhaps that is why we should not interfere with the daylight cycle to create optimal healing environments? Since otherwise our circardian clocks will be in a mess.

Hi Farzana, Here's a article that has some useful information related to your question:

http://www.iaqscience.lbl.gov/benefits-summary.html 

Dear Ruoshu 

I think for answering this question , we need to know what kind of roles have immigrants architects in new country , beside the designs , legislation and construction methods effects on this issue , if we have a statistic about percent of architects that work in design fields, detail design or legislation we can answer better to this question , or

as case study we may consider famous architects that migrate to other countries , in this case the number of years that they have worked in their home country is a key issue, however we have example of Zaha Hadid who is originally from Iraq but worked so many years in England and the styles of her is not so related with the architecture of her home  country

The logical answer is 'yes'. But practitioners are concerned with the practical and resolution of problems with functional or technical responses. The academic is concerned with the abstract and the theoretical. They are both different ways of looking at the fundamental issue of architectural education. So, while the answer is perhaps yes, it is also worth considering how academic and practitioner knowledge is different and in many ways incompatible but also necessarily linked through questions of purpose and reasoning.

This can be taken together with. Your other question. This is a long standing conundrum. Many people have studied and argued about this and there is a big literature. Be careful to distinguish between education and training. Some practitioners may see what is done in universities as a production line creating skilled employees. Others may thinking it is not a training but an education preparing them for lifelong abilities. To understand this imagine turning the clock back only a couple of decades before cad came into practice. Now imagine if you can what changes will taken place over the next twenty years.

another issue here is that so e skills are simply better learns in practice and other in the university. You could try to analyse them and see if you can draw up lists. Try looking at the book design expertise that I wrote a few years ago with Kees Dorst to help map out the skills involved in design.

There is plenty of evidence that a connection to nature is beneficial and it's effects on patients recovery rates are well known.  More detailed answers can be found in my publications posted here.  Be careful how you try to answer the question, because if you provide natural lighting, there is a high probability that you also provide views out which are certainly important.  These views may alos be of nature which is also shown to be important.  If you specifically and only wanted to know about natural light as an abstract form of illumination you may find it difficult to isolate as a variable in field studies.  Laboratory studies ar unlikely to yield knowledge about real patients etc.  so you have some experimental design problems here.

Buildings are never neutral: they define relationships and organise our lives. In numerous ways hospitals reflect the categories of society, by showing age and gender differentiation, for example, and by articulating wards in accordance with specialisms and diseases. Miasma theory which designated 'bad air' as a cause of disease resulted in great emphasis on cross-ventilation, because it was only in the 1870s that Pasteur established the existence of microbes, and before that what one could smell was self-evidently dangerous. However, in modern hospitals air-conditioning has taken over, and whole buildings are planned for ease of servicing, to the detriment of way-finding. Until the mid 19th century the chapel had a hierarchically dominant role because God was still in the picture and many people died. Today most people die in hospital but we don't acknowledge it because is it supposed to be a healing place. In the 19th century operating theatres were just that, with lots of dirty people in ranks of seats looking on, now it is one of the most tightly defined enclaves of modern life with stringent barriers and ritual cleansing. In the 1920s tuberculosis was a major killer and without antibiotics was difficult to cure, but UV light in sunlight killed the bacillus, so patients were exposed to the open air in buildings like Aalto's Paimio, and this idea was reflected in many other buildings of the period, such as open-air schools. For a good history of the building type see Thompson and Goldin 1975, and on miasma theory and birth Ann-Marie Adams. There will be a chapter in hospitals in my forthcoming book Architecture and Ritual.

My approach is more on the formal genesis and construction and not so much on the symbolic meaning. Anyway thanks a lot

The answers by Tim and Evert are right. You know that Richard Meier was believed to be the first person in the modern era who brought this concept to the architectural design. He mainly aimed for having day light while providing a vertical open space providing access within a building which gives you views to the interior space. Maybe not a bad idea to have a look at his designs in his books and projects.

I absolutely agree with Mario and his perspective on the building envelope. There's a good book on this subject with the title "Intelligent Skins" by Michael Wigginton and Jude Harris. Hope it helps.

Dear Rolando,

I would roughly say: yes you can locate it to buildings also. Important to know is resilience to what? To disaster, societal changes, functional adaptability, mobility...?

Also very important  to focus on the system in detail: Resilience of what? All buildings? Old buildings? office buildings of the 70's? residential buildings? slum dwellings? The definition of your system to be analyzed will determine the relevant questions for your work. Please note the discussion on specified and general resilience in the first link attached.

I found it helpful to look at the discussion in the urban morphology considering resilience as well (2nd link).

For a detailed analysis of the resilience concept attached to building design, I think it would be useful to look back at the research of Anne Vernez-Moudon: "Built for change", 1986, MIT Press, where she uses the term resilience in her research about the typomorphological changes in a quarter in SF.

It might also be helpful to use metaphors from the resilience-discussion and adapt them to the perception of an architect. For this a look at the work of Holling, Gunderson, Carpenter, Cumming and Walker more close would be essential and helpful. They all use vocabulary which is established in architecture as well, like adaptability, variability, flexibility, modularity and so on.

If you can access ebrary, please look up the third link for the edited book of  Pickett, Cadenasso and McGrath about Resilience in Ecology and Urban Design

I would read what master architect Louis Kahn wrote about bringing books to the light, when he designed the library at Exeter. It's an interesting story. For example, the faculty committee that commissioned the library instructed Louis Kahn that "the emphasis should not be on housing books, but on housing readers using books."

Nesma El-Saqqa

Thank-you for your input, a very interesting thought of conducting such survey. I had an idea of surveying architecture students versus working professionals to see if the two groups think differently and could possibly answer such questions:

• Do students only build models for presentation purposes and not to help them through the design process or to overcome design issues?

• Is there a lack of education in architecture schools related to model making?

• Is it common practise for practising architects to constantly build models to aid design?

• Do professionals not build models because they’re too time consuming and costly to produce, and are people neglecting design exploration because of a monetary value?

• Is there a link between limited design exploration and bad architecture, or ‘less resolved architecture?

Kalliopi I. Valsamidou

I just finished watching that documentary on Frank Gehry, amazing! Thanks a lot for that link.

It depends on your view point. At the University of Edinburgh we include substantial practical construction studies related to material namely concrete. Students are encouraged to design and build large scale pieces using fabric as the formwork. They have to develop their design through repeated production and development over a six week period, They learn a good deal about the material itself and the need for precision, care, handling, finishing assembly and fabrication. See book Fabric Formwork and www.fabricformedconcrete.ed.ac.uk

An interesting comparison might be to look at model making in product design. The PhD work of Pei (Loughborough University under supervision of Evans and Campbell) which also resulting in the iPhone app "ID cards" might be inspirational!

journal papers from that work:

Pei, E., Campbell, I., & Evans, M. (2011). A taxonomic classification of visual design representations used by industrial designers and engineering designers. The Design Journal, 14(1), 64-91.

Pei, E., Campbell, I. R., & Evans, M. A. (2010). Development of a tool for building shared representations among industrial designers and engineering designers. CoDesign, 6(3), 139-166.

Carol, I am glad to have been of service. My own research was right on the point of your fine question.

I wrote an article on Casabella that you can download in which I considered how digital technology changed the architectural design in the work of two significative archistar: Peter Eisenman and Frank Gehry

In my opinion there is no direct answer justifying any one of the options mentioned by you. In architecture and also urban design we are dealing with systems which are adaptive. And hence purely relying on any one option for generating design ideas may not prove to be effective and efficient. A comprehensive look suggests that form as well as function co-evolve over varying temporal scales which is triggered by any one of it. As a designer it is important to understand this vital aspect of aspect of architecture and urban design. A designer can only provide opportunity of achieving coherence among form and function at different temporal scales. That is why we may not have total control over it. A designer can only develop spatial structure which offers this, further the form and function co-evolve.

before exporting/importing the file it is better to re-check all the requirement and the procedure of export/import. It is to minimize the mess up. Export/import between Revit (arch, structure, MEP) maybe works (sometime) but to another vendor it is a big question. It is probably need software from a single vendor.