Architecture Commons^™

Across The Boundary: Addressing Segregation Along Transportation Infrastructure, Ruochen Wang

Masters Theses

Across the United States, we can see examples of cities where highways and railways pass between two ethnic communities or through communities of color and are used to further divide and segregate cities. Increasingly we are seeing a new typology of landscape architecture projects to transform, redesign, or remove transportation infrastructure to help ameliorate the negative impact of transportation infrastructure on neighboring communities and support public uses. However, these projects often lead to gentrification, whereby surrounding housing prices rise, and the original residents are displaced or lose their sense of belonging. The goal of my research is to understand how …

Expanding Housing Typology, Increasing Affordability: A Flexible Density Program For The City Of San Luis Obispo, Graham J. Bultema

Master's Theses

The City of San Luis Obispo faces an ongoing housing production shortage and housing affordability crisis that has been afflicting jurisdictions across State of California for a prolonged period of time. The City faces many of the same housing availability and affordability challenges as the rest of the State, but also has distinct characteristics that necessitate unique policies and strategies, such as the concurrent presence of both a large student and young professional population as well as a wealthy retirement community, which drastically drives up housing prices and demand.

The Flexible Density Program is proposed by the City of San …

Examining The Ecological And Social Implications Of Parklets And Plazas Across Multiple Urban Scales, Joshua L. Muller

Master's Theses

Faced with population increases but stagnant capital improvements and impacts from global warming, cities around the world are experimenting with smaller-scale and cheaper strategies in order to accommodate the new influx of residents. New York City has led the way in converting low-efficiency intersection space into public plazas with a limited range of permanently installed elements and San Francisco has pioneered the concept of the parklet, which converts two to four street parking spaces into a modular and flexible pedestrian space. I seek to answer two questions about these spaces: What are common factors influencing the viability and successful implementation …

Reimagining The Role Of Physical Space In Future Human Thriving, Adrian Young

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

As a positive psychology practitioner and residential planner, I divide energy and effort into two distinct fields; one focused on human welfare and the other on optimal aesthetics and functionality of our physical surroundings. This text explores a philosophical shift in motivation for space design prompted by the experience and new potential that result from COVID-19. Rather than space as a means to epitomize style and serve utility, I urge considering the full complexity of the human experience and what would be most conducive to general well-being as a new leading priority. What influence can environmental design bring to generalized …

Open Spaces As Vibrant Places To Reduce Social And Physical Fragmentation. Case Of Beirut Cornish, Lebanon, Nehmat K. Karim, Ayman Afify

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

According to UN Habitat, as had been mentioned in The Journal of Public Spaces 2018 Under title “Lebanon Cities’ Public Spaces”, and based on the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations regarding the minimum required area of Public spaces in the cities, the following had been noticed: Beirut city has few public spaces that are always rapist from the local government without having the ability to face. At the present time, the capital suffers from distinct lack of public spaces where the various population groups can meet and come along. Despite the fact that an open public space in Beirut would …

Establishing A New Restoration Strategy To Use Nanomaterials In Reviving Damaged Buildings Post-Disaster, Khouloud Walid Darwiche

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

Nanotechnologies are a new solution of many problems of contemporary society, by creating products and processes for more specific uses with less environmental impact throughout their life cycle. The use of new technology such Nanotechnology in the restoration of damaged buildings post-disaster will be a contemporary solution to achieve sustainable development. After the explosion of Port of Beirut in August 4, 2020, it is necessary to search a new technology that restore and retrofit damaged buildings and in the other hand, to achieve the architectural quality, comfort and energy saving, in addition to its impact on energy consumption rates, its …

Creating A Healthy Sustainable Environment To Maintain Bahraini Women' Rights, Islam Hamdy Elghonaimy, Shatha Najeeb Gharbal

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

The idea of having a Healthy, Sustainable Environment is a challenge for designers while they think about creating such an urban complex. Designing a resort that gathers, supports, entertains, treats, educates and empowers women mainly adds more challenging. The performance of women in life gives them dual responsibility and efforts in both fields. As well know that women are an essential figure in Arab societies due to their power and potentiality to improve the quality in all fields around the world. Nevertheless, some women were suffering from harsh environments and violence in which they need a place for consultant and …

Effect Of The Covid-19 Pandemic In The Urban Public Space: A Socio-Spatial Study In The City Of Tripoli To Respond To The Human Behavior Needs, Amanda Ahmad Chami

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

Pandemics have always shaped cities and covid-19 is one of them. It has had a direct effect on the foundation of urban planning and the participation of people in public spaces. This study is aiming to analyze the effects of covid-19 on cities and urban public spaces. Also, to respond to human behavior and their needs. During the pandemic, observations and an online survey questionnaire were conducted from 1 to 10 January 2021. With the information collected from 130 Residents of Tripoli during the pandemic, the results indicated that there were changes in human behavior in the urban public space. …

Revisiting Prehistoric Archeological Sites: Envisioning First Built Environments To Repossess Geographically Specific Approaches In Architecture, Alisa Mohammad Kheir Abdulghany, Marwan Halabi, Maged Youssef, Bahaa El Dine Abou El Khoudoud

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

Since Prehistoric times, architecture had been a human response to an occurring natural setting. Starting from places of dwelling to buildings that no longer only serve physical requirements for survival. Architectural languages were approached initially as an expression of culture, evolution, and growth of a community within a natural setting. This response resulted in the creation of built environments, humanity’s decision to become sedentary. This decision took place in the Late Stone age, a key phase in our timeline. First built environments were born in a time known as the Neolithic revolution, which shown itself as humans transitioned from hunter-gatherer …

Use Of Biomimicry Design Approach In Constructing Sustainable Resilient Structures (Case Study: Port Of Beirut), Farouk Bader, Marwan Halabi, Hiba Mohsen, Maged Youssef

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

Resiliency is not the same as sustainability, nor its substitute, but definitely the two concepts complement each other’s. Sustainability is the avoidance of depletion of natural resources to maintain ecological balance whereas resiliency is to recover, adapt and keep going in the face of setbacks. While designing with green approach is important but what will happen to leed points if the building becomes uninhabitable due to disasters, that’s where resiliency comes into play. The 2019 statistics showed that natural disasters accounted for 133 billion dollars losses and manmade ones accounted for other 7 billion in addition to 11,755 people worldwide …

Optimised Retrofit Strategies For Energy Reduction And Comfort In Dwellings For Future Climate Scenario In Southeast England, Bahaa El Dine Abou El Khoudoud

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

This paper aims to find an optimum retrofit scheme utilising adaptation and mitigation techniques to a Sub-urban English old house, for an inevitable future climate change. It seeks its aims by investigating the energy performance, as well as the summertime comfort of old dwellings in current and future weather predictions. Studies shows that pre-1990 building stock represents one of the least energy-efficient, as these houses were built before the introduction of building envelope directives in building regulation. Specifically, uninsulated semi-detached houses of the inter-war period can potentially be an essential target for retrofits to reach the 2030 carbon emission goal. …

Rock Memorial And Ministry Opportunities And Christian Foundations Grant Dedication (2021), Taylor University

Buildings and Grounds of Taylor University

The program for the 2021 Rock Memorial and Ministry Opportunities and Christian Foundations Grant dedication.

Artist’S Tools: Reverse-Engineering Of Prototypes, Mi Tsung Chang

Open Educational Resources

Outputting the digital blueprint into a final fast prototype is important, but inputting a hand-made sculpture into the computer is as important in the creative process. There are many high-tech electronic devices that can help the artist generate form from his/her sculpture quickly. This process is called “reverse engineering of prototypes.” Touch Probes (Contact Method) The concept of the touch probe involves a measuring tip attached by several limbs with rotational joints. The design of the joints and limbs determines the reach of the touch probe. The measuring tip of the touch probe is used to measure the exact coordinates …

Modding Suburbia: Guided Principles To Challenge The Established Social And Political Norms Of The American Midwestern Suburbs, Brenton Rahn

Masters in Architecture Program: Theses

Responding to the unchallenged sprawl of suburban cities in the Midwest, the proposed principles seek to densify and further diversify the established social and political norms which currently still stagnate progress toward more autonomous neighborhoods. Through application of a specific set of principles that serve as guidelines, Modding Suburbia seeks to create dense, usable space from previously unused and forgotten interstitial areas hiding in the suburban landscape surrounding the socially and politically protected single-family home.

This project focuses on the transformation of the immediate context surrounding the single family home to promote density and diversification of housing and community. Through …

Digital Modeling: Theories And Techniques, Mi Tsung Chang

Publications and Research

In the process of architectural design, modeling is an important process in achieving design perfection. In the world of computers, it is very easy and productive to produce 3d model. As a matter of facts, modeling is the easiest way to produce rendering. Designers shouldn't limit themselves to their modeling skills, but should acquire enough sills to achieve whatever shapes and forms they can possible imagine. This is an article about methods and techniques to achieve the process of form makings.

An Intelligent Virtual Design Studio (Vds) For Integrative Design Of Green Buildings, Zhaozhou Meng

Dissertations - ALL

The overall goal of the study was to develop a "Virtual Design Studio (VDS)": a software platform for integrated, coordinated and optimized design of green building systems with low energy consumption, high indoor environmental quality (IEQ), and high level of sustainability. My dissertation research was focused on the development of a key VDS component -- an integrated design process and a near-real time performance simulation approach for fast feedbacks at the early stage of the integrated design process.

A design process module "Magic Cube" (MC) was developed for the VDS as the core for the design integration and coordination. It …

An Intelligent Virtual Design Studio (Vds) For Integrative Design Of Green Buildings, Zhaozhou Meng

Dissertations - ALL

The overall goal of the study was to develop a “Virtual Design Studio (VDS)”: a software platform for integrated, coordinated and optimized design of green building systems with low energy consumption, high indoor environmental quality (IEQ), and high level of sustainability. My dissertation research was focused on the development of a key VDS component -- an integrated design process and a near-real time performance simulation approach for fast feedbacks at the early stage of the integrated design process.

A design process module “Magic Cube” (MC) was developed for the VDS as the core for the design integration and coordination. It …

The Effect Of Straw Bale On Thermal Performance Of Buildings In Hot And Arid Regions, Riyadh City As A Case Study, Waleed M. Abanomi

Emirates Journal for Engineering Research

A huge amount of energy is consumed by buildings in Saudi Arabia to cool indoor spaces particularly during summer season. In this regard, attention should be given to the environmental design strategies in the design of buildings during the early stages in order to minimize the cooling load inside buildings. This research considered using straw bale as one of the passive solar design methods that could protect buildings envelope from the harsh outdoor environment. This research assesses the effectiveness of using straw bale as an insulator by conducting field experiments. Two experimental chambers were built to achieve the experiments. The …

Mapping Grounds For Reparations In Jaraguá Peak, Laura Pappalardo

Masters of Environmental Design Theses

For the Guarani Mbya, ka’aguy (Atlantic Forest) is sacred. Yet, only 12 percent of the Atlantic Forest original coverage remains. A portion of that is in Jaraguá Peak. The Peak is also the highest point within São Paulo, located in the northwest region of the city. Anyone who lives in São Paulo knows Jaraguá Peak as a point of visual reference—the only forested area rising above dense urbanism. Two hundred years ago, São Paulo was ka’aguy. Now, the city occupies part of Guarani territory, which spans across the borders of what is now known as Paraguay, Argentina, Uruguay, and …

Continuous Extremes: Architecture Of Uncertainty In Poland, 1945—, Cayce Davis

Masters of Environmental Design Theses

In this thesis, architecture situates between extremes. The dichotomies of destruction and construction, mobility and fixity, performance and reality, inside and outside, and form and time frame architecture and the processes through which it is made. The context is Poland in the fallout of the year 1945, when Warsaw’s unique, nearly total destruction and the ascendance of a new communist regime raised the political stakes of architecture. The thesis focuses on a cast of characters in architecture and related artistic disciplines—individuals haunted by the traumas of their own pasts, negotiating a Polish state that created oppressive limitations through artistic mandates …