Architecture Commons^™

Daylighting In Buildings: Investigating The Relationship Between Daylight Levels And Building Compactness In Various Contemporary Architectural Types. [Efficient Typology Classification], Andrew Welch, Ermal Shpuza Phd

Symposium of Student Scholars

One of the key ways of improving the energy efficiency of a building is to enhance the daylight levels and reduce the need for artificial lighting. Good daylight levels are also associated with increased productivity and the well-being of a building's occupants. Daylight levels are often a direct function of the floorplate depth, where locations near the windows receive more daylight, and those deep inside the buildings receive less. As a result, shallow floorplates and elongated buildings are usually related to higher daylight levels. However, shallow buildings that have more natural light are also associated with greater construction costs due …

Architecture Of The Second Sense: Inclusive Educational Spaces For Students Who Are Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing, Lizzy Johnson, Robin Puttock

Symposium of Student Scholars

Educational settings in the United States are primarily geared towards hearing individuals, posing challenges for those with hearing impairments. In 2020, 95% of school-age students with hearing loss attended conventional schools, while only 47 schools nationwide catered specifically to the deaf or hard of hearing. This oversight in design leads to issues such as inadequate spatial acoustics and limited sign language space in classrooms. My thesis proposes "Architecture of the Second Sense," advocating for a holistic approach to educational design, particularly targeting pre-kindergarten through 5th-grade schools. Drawing from phenomenological principles and the five key DeafSpace design elements—Proximity, Sensory Reach, Light, …

Harmony In Nature And Community: The Biophilic Union Of Art, Design, And Well-Being In The Serenbe Art Farm Expansion, Kayla Metts, Denisse Rosa, Steve Cruz Rojas, Robin Puttock

Symposium of Student Scholars

How does the integration of biophilic design principles and the concept of Union contribute to the enhancement of community well-being in the expansion of The Art Farm Campus in the Serenbe Community? Serenbe, located in Georgia, is a renowned biophilic community that fosters connections between individuals, nature, and the community. Within this community, the Art Farm is a unique location that hosts various events, programs, and workshops centered around the celebration and exploration of the arts. This semester, third-year architecture students are collaborating with stakeholders from Serenbe, The Biophilic Institute, and the Art Farm to embark on designing proposals for …

Modernism And National Identity In Architecture, Ahmed Shaker, Ehsan Sheikholharam Mashhadi

Symposium of Student Scholars

This paper discusses a comparative analysis of the architectural views of the Egyptian architect Hassan Fathy and the Swiss French architect Le Corbusier in terms of aesthetics, national identity, and materiality. This analysis will be reviewed from various perspectives regarding politics behind their projects, their architectural visions, and an analysis of their main projects: Fathy’s New Gourna Village and Le Corbusier’s Chandigarh Capitol Complex. In the 20^th century, Fathy, emphasized on sustainability, vernacular architecture, social awareness, and the Egyptian identity. However, Le Corbusier worked on modern urbanism, functionalism, and the usage of industrial materials. In terms of aesthetics, Fathy …

Daylighting In Buildings: Investigating The Relationship Between Daylight Levels And Building Compactness In Various Contemporary Architectural Types., Andrew Welch, Ermal Shpuza Phd

Symposium of Student Scholars

Among the most substantial ways to improve the energy efficiency of a building is to manipulate the floorplate in ways that lets more natural light in while reducing the energy loss or gain through the envelope area. However, creating buildings that have more natural light comes with a greater construction cost due to larger envelope areas. The goal of this research is to determine what aspects of floorplate design maximize the natural light entering a building and minimize the construction costs associated with the building. In the first phase of research last year, we analyzed a sample of floorplates from …

Multisensory Realm: Architecture For The Visually Impaired, Jennifer Perez

Symposium of Student Scholars

According to the World Health Organization, there are approximately 2.2 billion people who have a near or distance vision impairment. Vision has historically been considered the most important of the senses; therefore, when this sense becomes obstructed, an individual’s lifestyle can be harshly impacted. Because their vision becomes obstructed, visually impaired individuals run into various daily life challenges such as having difficulty navigating around independently, stigma in society, leisure, accessibility, and isolation. This can be due to the issue that the built environment has tended to neglect building for all senses. For this reason, an architectural goal has been to …

The Rebuild Project, Maria Del Valle

Symposium of Student Scholars

The Rebuild Island Project is meant to create relief for the islands that experienced hurricane damage. The project will be on the site of a city that has abandoned homes, unfiltered water, spoiled agriculture, and a damaged electrical grid. The city will be a self-sustaining city that focuses on cleaning up uninhabitable properties, building educational institutions, and creating community support for local Puerto Ricans. The project will not only be exclusive to Puerto Ricans, this model will be replicated for islands that go through natural disasters and neglectful government. This urban development will be seen through a 10-year plan or …

Learning From Public Spaces In Historic Cities, Cody Josh Kucharski

Symposium of Student Scholars

Successful public spaces in cities are key for enhancing social cohesion and improving health and safety. Learning from historic cities involves the development of representational and analytical tools aimed at capturing their essence as places of human interaction. The research reports findings of the spatial analysis of twenty Adriatic and Ionian coastal cities, which addresses the question of how the network of public spaces calibrates different degrees of spatial enclosure necessary for creating successful social interactions. Cities in the littoral region include well-preserved historic centers that are renowned for the successful integration of urban squares into the urban fabric. For …

Analyzing The Past Five Years Of Equinox Week* Programs Focused On Sustainable Development Goals Within A Collection Of Local And Global Initiatives To Support A Proposal For The Publication Of A Comprehensive Book, Abdoulaye Idrissa

Symposium of Student Scholars

Many undergraduate students are not familiar with the research process involved in a book publication proposal. Through this multidisciplinary collaborative research, the faculty intends to minimize this gap by engaging the students in such a process from the early phase of proposal preparation. The student will research and review the past five years of EQUINOX Week* programs focused on Sustainable Development Goals within a collection of local and global initiatives to support a proposal for the EQUINOX proceeding publication.

With an extensive set of qualitative and quantitative data gathered over a span of 5 years. The student will be …

History And Technique In Reinforce Concrete Formworks: A Study Of Pier Luigi Nervi Approach, Moritz Meditz

Symposium of Student Scholars

The last hundred years in architecture and civil engineering have been widely dominated by the use of concrete, which became the second most consumed commodity after water. The traditional use of rigid, flat formwork panels has defined reinforced concrete members as a uniform cross-section, prismatic structural elements in both design codes and construction methods. These resultant shapes have become practically an inevitable conclusion for concrete constructions. This presentation focuses on alternative formwork construction looking at the work of engineer, architect and builder, Pier Luigi Nervi (1891–1979). Nervi was an adjunct professor at the University of Rome and a prolific writer, …

Demographic Change In The North Atlanta Metro Area, Zachary Lloyd

Symposium of Student Scholars

The northern Atlanta suburbs are perhaps the premiere destination for migrants, both domestic and international, into the Atlanta Metropolitan Area. Filled with activities, good schools, and endless dining options, these communities are not only relatively safe to raise a family in, but also offer plenty to do for married couples and retirees. The counties of Gwinnett and Cobb, along with the northern portion of Fulton County (known as North Fulton) are the traditional northside suburban destinations, but growth there has slowed because much of the land is now densely developed. Predictably, the suburbs have extended northward through the counties of …

Sustainable Building Materials Of The Future: Architectural Forms And Structural Design, Sean Sadler, Moritz Meditz

Symposium of Student Scholars

This research investigates the use of non-rigid formwork and the techniques aiming to create more efficient concrete forms. During casting, concrete takes the shape of its formwork; traditionally, these formworks are made of rigid materials like steel or wood. The results are prismatic members, which are not optimized for material usage but only for simplicity in construction. Most of the research in the area focuses on improving the constituent materials, while the formworks have remained unchanged throughout the years. By using the approach described in this study, optimized shapes are achieved. These geometries can save up to 30% of the …

From Displaced To Our Place: Using An Educational Narrative To Build Community In A Displaced Community, Morgan Frederick

Symposium of Student Scholars

Thomasville heights is a displacement neighborhood for people pushed out by Atlanta’s Urban Renewal projects. Thomasville Heights remains a casualty of a system of economic segregation. Under this system of segregation these neighborhoods are left in detrimental states. It is in places like Thomasville Heights where the phrase “place matters” becomes a call to action. A town of 6000 residents and only one elementary school, Thomasville heights is bordered by multiple freight yards, a cemetery, landfills, and Atlanta’s US penitentiary, just a 5-minute walk from that one elementary school. There remains a vast difference between that of low-income urban, and …

Restoring History: Mixed-Use Hotel & Retail Center, William Chase Sisk

Symposium of Student Scholars

Monroe, Georgia, is a unique small town, located halfway between Athens and Atlanta. The small-town atmosphere and amenities have become a popular destination for people attracted to the historic buildings, downtown events and UGA football home games. Monroe is popular for its wedding venues, antique malls, and car shows, but there are not enough hotel rooms. Currently within the historic downtown, there are only one bed and breakfast, two AirBNB’s, and no hotels, although every downtown storefront is occupied by restaurants, retail stores, and businesses.

The need for overnight accommodations has raised the possibility of a new mixed-use hotel and …