Architecture Commons^™

Factors Affecting Students Walking To School: Case Study Of Two Middle Schools In Lincoln, Nebraska, Nivin S. Khalil

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses and Student Projects

Physical activity, including walking, can be a very healthy and sustainable mode of transportation. Children walking to their schools can get a lot of benefits from acquiring good habits that can be carried through their adulthood. Also, walking to school can reverse the trend of increasing obesity rates among children in the United States. This study is trying to identify the effect of urban form, presented in the distances between residences and schools, on the children’s behavior whether they walk to school or not depending on different urban forms around their schools. Two middle schools in Lincoln, Nebraska were selected …

Exploring The Nature Of Space For Human Behavior In Ordinary Structured Environments, Molly Boeka Cannon

Department of Geography: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

What is the nature of the built environment? Built environments are the settings within which people carry out activities and emerge from the specific combining of spatial conditions with specific social content for the setting. The social content and the spatial conditions form a core-defining relationship that serves to distinguish one structured setting from another. A core-defining relationship such as this refers to the essence of the built environment. What are the implications for human behavior that emerge from conceptualizing built environments in this manner? I argue that space, through its essential relationship with the contexts of daily living (i.e. …

Geospatial Virtual Heritage: A Gesture-Based 3d Gis To Engage The Public With Ancient Maya Archaeology, Heather Richards-Rissetto, Jim Robertsson, Jennifer Von Schwerin, Giorgio Agugario, Fabio Remondino, Gabrio Girardi

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

This paper presents our research to develop a gesture-based 3D GIS system to engage the public in cultural heritage. It compares two types of interaction—device-based vs. natural interaction— and summarizes the beta-testing results of a 3D GIS tool for archaeology, called QueryArch3D, in which participants used device-based interaction (i.e. mouse and keyboard). It follows with a description of the gesture-based system—that we developed in response to these beta-tests. The system uses QueryArch3D and Microsoft’s Kinect to enable people use body movements (in lieu of keyboard or mouse) to navigate a virtual reality landscape, query 3D objects, and call up photos, …

From Mounds To Maps To Models: Visualizing Ancient Architecture Across Landscapes, Heather Richards-Rissetto

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

Since the onset of settlement pattern studies in the 1950s, landscape mapping projects have become an archaeological mainstay. Remote sensing technologies such as lidar, photogrammetry, and SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) steadily reveal new archaeological sites. For landscape archaeology, the detection and mapping of small architectural complexes and households offers important data to contextualize larger (often already known) sites and perform regional analyses. However, because the majority of sites remain unexcavated, analysis is limited, and yet Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and 3D Visualization are expanding the possible uses for older and newly-acquired data on unexcavated mounds. This paper describes a GIS …

The Leadership Of Sustainable Cities: A Multiple-Case Study Of Two Oregon Cities, Kenneth L. Weaver

Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Scholarship

In order for cities to become more sustainable it is necessary for the leaders of the efforts to change the organizations and governments so that they understand and embrace what it means to be more sustainable. This study examined the change processes of two Oregon Cities, Corvallis and Eugene, that had made the choice to become more sustainable as a community. The approaches that the participant leaders used demonstrated the use of different ways of thinking about the leadership of change. The ways of thinking of the community leaders were formed by their unique personal backgrounds, knowledge, skills, and abilities. …

Encouraging Creativity In The Workplace Through The Physical Environment: Focusing Of The Office Workstation, Dale R. Landry

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

People can be creative anywhere but how can designers and organizations encourage this process to occur at an office workstation through the physical work environment? This four stage study investigated what Interior Designers, experts in a field that judges creativity, felt they needed to enhance their creativity while occupying a workstation in a commercial or home office.

An exploratory mixed method of social science qualitative and quantitative research was employed that applied methodological triangulation validating the data through cross verification of codes produced through the narrative process that were perceived to influence the creative phenomena in office workers. In stage …

Social Interaction At The Maya Site Of Copan, Honduras: A Least Cost Approach To Configurational Analysis, Heather Richards-Rissetto

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

In this article, I employ least cost paths using GIS to measure the relationship between site configuration and social connectivity at the ancient Maya site of Copan, Honduras. I investigate two questions. First, did people of different social classes experience varying degrees of social connectivity? Second, did people living in different parts of the city experience difference degrees of social connectivity? Ultimately, the goal is modify traditional configurational analysis using least cost analysis (LCA) to identify how social hierarchy was embedded in landscapes and how ancient people may have strategically manipulated landscapes to structure social interaction and community organization.

Experiential Interior Design: Branding Entertainment And Nightlife For The Postmodern Young Urban Professional, Niccole S. Skomal

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

Past study on Interior Design has been primarily looked at through the lenses of aesthetics and functionality. Only recently have scholars begun to see the influence marketing, in the form of branding, can have on the Interior Design process in targeting specific lifestyle groups. The purpose of this research is to understand the fabric of the postmodern Young Urban Professional lifestyle as a marketing tool for branding and designing services in the form of entertainment and nightlife. With an increasing lack of community and social connectedness in today’s postmodern society, Young Urban Professionals tend to consume entertainment and nightlife as …

The Urban Fabric Of The Great Plains, Andrew Becker

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

To most Americans the Great Plains region of North America is mysterious place. There are disagreements when defining its limits, and some people just refer to it as the Midwest. The Great Plains has been a place under an ocean, a place under glaciers, and a place on fire. It was once dubbed “the Great American Desert,” but is now known for its agricultural viability. The Great Plains sparks imagination because it is so massive and was one of the final frontiers for Euro-American settlement. The Great Plains is seen as a rural place but the majority of the region’s …

Preservation Ethics In The Case Of Nebraska’S Nationally Registered Historic Properties, Darren Michael Adams

Department of Geography: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation focuses on the National Register of Historic Places and considers the geographical implications of valuing particular historic sites over others. Certain historical sites will either gain or lose desirability from one era to the next, this dissertation identifies and explains three unique preservation ethical eras, and it maps the sites which were selected during those eras. These eras are the Settlement Era (1966 – 1975), the Commercial Architecture Era (1976 – 1991), and the Progressive Planning Era (1992 – 2010). The findings show that transformations in the program included an early phase when state authorities listed historical resources …

Impediments To And Opportunities For Fulfillment Of The Rational Comprehensive Intent Of The National Environmental Policy Act, Brian P. Mcmullen

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses and Student Projects

The National Environmental Policy Act of 1960 (NEPA) initiated the study and practice of environmental impact analysis. Upon passage, NEPA transformed the process in which the federal government plans, seeks input on, and documents major projects of environmental significance. While NEPA has surely affected project-level incremental actions, its rational comprehensive mandate as expressed in Title II of the statute has remained largely unfulfilled. Neglect of Title II has occurred as a result of broad language in NEPA that is difficult for federal judges to interpret and administrators to implement. Political interference with the President’s Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has …

Stress, Status, And Sociability: Exploring Residential Satisfaction In The Rural Midwest Following Rapid Immigration, James Potter, Rodrigo Cantarero, Amy E. Boren

Architecture Program: Faculty Scholarly and Creative Activity

This investigation examined predictors of residential satisfaction among newly arrived residents (NAR) and long-term residents (LTR) of a rural community following a rapid influx of immigrants into the community. The physical environment, social/cultural aspects of life, and resources and public services were hypothesized to affect perceptions of residential satisfaction. Both LTR and NAR were pleased with environmental attributes, sociocultural attributes, and public services. An inverse relationship was revealed between stress and residential satisfaction. The primary sources of stress for LTR related to economics and social status issues, whereas the primary sources of stress among NAR involved issues concerning family and …

Multifunctional Rural Landscapes: Economic, Environmental, Policy, And Social Impacts Of Land Use Changes In Nebraska, Twyla M. Hansen, Charles A. Francis, J. Dixon Esseks, J. Allen Williams Jr.

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The conversion of farmland near cities to other human uses is a global trend that challenges our long-term capacity to provide food, fiber, and ecosystem services to a growing world population. If current trends continue in the United States, the population will reach 450 million by the year 2050. At the same time, an accelerating change in land use will reduce today’s two acres per person of farmland to less than one acre per person. This is scarcely enough to produce food for our domestic population, without any food available for export – even assuming advances in technology. We need …

Mammalogy At Texas Tech University: A Historical Perspective, Lisa C. Bradley, John R. Suchecki, Brian R. Amman, Joel G. Brant, Hugh H. Genoways, L. Rex Mcaliley, Robert J. Baker, Francisca Mendez-Harclerode, Robert D. Bradley

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The mammalogy program at Texas Tech University officially was established in 1962, when Robert L. Packard joined the faculty of the Department of Biological Sciences. As the institution's first mammalogist, Packard took the initiative to develop a strong program of mammalian research and education. Influenced by the successful program built by his mentor, E. Raymond Hall, at the University of Kansas, Packard modeled similar goals for Texas Tech University. Those goals included a strong emphasis on both undergraduate and graduate education and research, with several mammalogy faculty members, and the establishment and growth of a large and active mammal collection.

Time-Series Analysis Of Clusters In City Size Distributions, Ahjond S. Garmestani, Craig R. Allen, K. Michael Bessey

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Complex systems, such as urban systems, emerge unpredictably without the influence of central control as a result of adaptive behavior by their component, interacting agents. This paper analyses city size distributions, by decade, from the south-western region of the United States for the years 1890–1990. It determines if the distributions were clustered and documents changes in the pattern of clusters over time. Clusters were determined utilizing a kernel density estimator and cluster analysis. The data were clustered as determined by both methods. The analyses identified 4–7 clusters of cities in each of the decades analysed. Cities cluster into size classes, …

Action Education In Land Use Decisions: Student Views On Urbanization And Farmland Loss, Mindi Schneider, Charles A. Francis, Dick Esseks

CARI Extension and Education Materials for Sustainable Agriculture

Loss of prime farmland is a serious concern in the United States and around the globe. With rapid urban population increases, the activities and perceived needs of concentrated groups of people result in the swallowing of some of the most fertile lands in this country. Today we have just under 2 acres of productive farmland per person in the United States. Given the current population growth rate due to births and immigration, plus the present rate of farmland loss, World Watch Institute estimates that we will have about 0.6 acres or one-third as much farmland available per person by 2055--a …

Urbanization Of Rural Landscapes Ii: Second Syllabus And Teaching Materials From A University Course, Spring 2000, Charles A. Francis, David Mortensen

CARI Extension and Education Materials for Sustainable Agriculture

Editors' Introduction and Executive Summary 2

Table of Contents 3

Other Volumes in Series and Ordering Information 4

Syllabus, Spring 2000 5

Principles of Planning for Lincoln and Lancaster County, Student Reports, 2000 9

Recommended Amendments to the 1994 Comprehensive Plan, Student Report, 1999 35

Course Evaluations, Spring 2000, by students and faculty evaluators 45

Resource Materials, some with Student Summaries (with permission of the publishers) 50

Stevens Creek study heralds new era for city, Lincoln Journal-Star 50

Developer, city closer on north Lincoln project, Lincoln Journal-Star 51

Study outlines new vision for Lincoln-Omaha corridor, Lincoln Journal-Star 53

Smart growth …

Facing A Watershed: Managing Profitable And Sustainable Landscapes In The 21st Century, Heidi Carter, Richard Olson, Charles A. Francis

CARI Extension and Education Materials for Sustainable Agriculture

Overview of Freshwater Use, Introduction to Watershed Management, and a Watershed Management Plan

Group Dynamics in Designing and Implementing a Watershed Management Plan

Information Sources for Watershed Management

Conservation Buffers and Riparian Management

Farmland Protection, Green Corridors, and Suburban Sprawl

Information Sources for Sustainable Agriculture and Sustainable Agriculture Education

Control Of Insect Pests In Recent Mammal Collections, S. L. Williams, Hugh H. Genoways, D. A. Schlitter

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

A review is made of numerous insecticides to determine their suitability for use in Recent mammal collections. Factors determining their value were based on human safety, ability to protect specimens without adverse effects, and other considerations. The more favorable insecticides to use in mammal collections include Dowfume 75, sulfuryl fluoride. dimethyldiclorovinyl phosphate, paradichlorobenzene, carbon dioxide, and naphthalene. Insecticides that are considered less favor able because of many limitations included aldrin, dieldrin, arsenic, borax, mitin, ethylene oxide, methoxychlor, methyl bromide, and pyrethrum. There are some insecticides that should never be used because of extreme health and/or fire hazards. These include carbon …

The Existing Space In Nebraska Multistory Square Farm Houses, Jerre Lewis Withrow, Florence Mckinney

Historical Research Bulletins of the Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station

The present study was made by the University of Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station to determine the extent of similarity in the plans of one particular style of house, the square house of more than one story. Patterns of remodeling will be developed if the similarity of existing houses justifies such a project. The two story square house was chosen for study because it is one of the predominant old style houses still in existence throughout the North Central Region.

The Existing Space In Nebraska Multistory Tee Houses, Virginia Y. Trotter

Historical Research Bulletins of the Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station

The objectives of this study: (1) To determine the nature of the occupied tee house of more than one story in terms of placement on the farm, condition of the structure, the floor plan, the existing utilities, work areas and storage space. (2) To determine the adequacy of tee houses of more than one story in terms of recommended minimum health requirements and the stage of the family cycle. (3) To suggest recommendations for remodeling the tee house of more than one story.

The Nebraska State Capitol, Charles Harris Whitaker, John Edward, Harry F. Cunningham A.I.A., Hartley B. Alexander Hon. A.I.A., Oscar H. Murray A.I.A., Meyer, Strong & Jones, Engineers, Emile H. Praeger, Ernest Born

Conservation and Survey Division

A High Peak of Architectural Progress

Some little while ago there appeared on this page a saying to the effect that progress is a blind succession of events fully exposed only through the agency of a capable interpreter. This issue of American Architect is proof of that contention. The Nebraska State Capitol—to which the issue is entirely devoted—is much more than an excellent example of unusual monumental design or even a symbol of democratic government. It marks an important period in the history of building progress. In many ways the architectural genius of Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue dramatized in this design …