Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture. Thesis. 1966. M.Arch. / Accompanying drawings held by MIT Museum. / M.Arch.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1993. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 99-103). / Much of the recent architectural discourse in the Gulf States is permeated by a passionate preoccupation with narratives of identity and self-definition. During the last two decades, these states invited an overwhelming number of western architects to participate in development projects. The work of these architects appears to involve a multitude of interpretations. At one end is the architect's own theoretical position and autonomous architectural discourse, while at the other end is the cultural and ideological circumstances by which the architect's work and ideas are received and understood. This study is focused on two institutional buildings designed by two western architects: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Riyadh by Henning Larsen, and the National Assembly in Kuwait by Jam Utzon. A critical reading of texts and representations of these buildings provides a vehicle to expose the explicit and implicit theoretical positions of the two architects and to offer a critique of the cultural politics of identity by which the architect's work and ideas are received. This study argues that the "discursive practice" and the cultural politics underlying the work of architecture serve to place identity as the centerpiece of discussion which in tum reduces architecture to a set of prevalent characterizations and obscures any meaningful analysis of work and ideas. / by Tarek Beshir. / M.S.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 83-85). / The thesis looks at Conservation in Singapore: how it started, what were its initial goals, how these changed over years, and the impacts of the same. These questions are dealt with by studying the three conservation districts of Chinatown, Little India and Kampong Clam, which were the original settlements for the three main populations namely, the Chinese, Indian and Malay respectively. The one thing common to all these different populations is the history of Singapore and the built fabric which represent this history. The three areas represent the unique cultures, lifestyles and traditions of the different populations that give these areas the character they possessed until conservation came about. The built fabric has been saved, but does it represent the true essence of Place? The three districts have undergone rapid changes in the last two decades and the process is questionable. It has resulted in sociocultural and economic imbalances largely due to a strong hand by the State. The thesis along with these issues, also addresses the question of whether the conservation effort is catering to the right people. Finally, based on the analysis of these impacts, current guidelines and policies, the thesis proposes strategies for making these conservation districts culturally more significant & at the same time economically feasible. / bu Sunitha Kondur Raju. / S.M.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 141-145). / The Partition of British India into the two dominions of India and Pakistan on August 15th 1947 left In its wake the largest human migration of the twentieth century with the transfer of twelve million people across two newly formed borders. The boundary line, demarcating Indian and Pakistani territory, was created 17 miles to the west of Amritsar awarding the city to India. Amritsar, a flourishing commercial and cultural center, thus, became a border city overnight on the Indian side. Mass religious emigration ensued clearing the city 's Muslim population of over 184,000 people coupled with the immigration of a huge Hindu -Sikh population from Pakistan over a period of a few months. This thesis explores how Partition affected the city of Amritsar. Its metamorphosis from a viable commercial and cultural center to a city that shows a decline in population post-partition for the first time since its inception is partially explained by its proximity to the International Border, its vocational and demographic shifts and its official label as a transit city . The thesis documents communal migration, both inter- and intra-city, from March 1947 to the mid 1950s with the arrival of Hindu and Sikh refugees from West Punjab. This thesis then cross-references Amritsar with Lahore, a border city in Pakistan to explore how and why Partition affected that city differently. Amritsar is finally then seen through the lens of rising Sikh nationalism in the 1980s and its effect on the urban fabric. This thesis concludes with general inferences that can be drawn from th e experiences in Amritsar as a case study of a city transformed by an unplanned and immediate forced resettlement. / by Pitamber P. Sahni. / S.M.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1989. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 61-63). / by Cordell A. Lietz. / M.S.

Thesis: S.M. in Art, Culture and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Architecture, 2017. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis. Page 96 blank. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 93-95). / Organized primarily as an essayistic method of investigation to accompany and supplement my thirty-minute short film AT THE TOP OF GRASSHOPPER'S HILL, this thesis traces minor encounters or discrepant engagements¹ between myself and and images of the 1968 state-sponsored student massacre in Mexico City. I adopt these engagements, most of which exist as encounters within state-sponsored institutions, to take 1968 and the Tlatelolco Massacre as a point of departure with which to navigate the density of such questions and problems as the production of collective memory, cultural heritage, disappearance, the archive, history and authority, and above all how power and knowledge function within a hegemonic terrain. Through an analysis of the many manifestations of images surrounding the 1968 student massacre, including Hollywood-esqe adaptations and 16mm documentation of the event by the military themselves, I explore the role representation plays in political struggles as well as its potential co-optation by the state. Such co-optation I argue, perpetuates cycles of oppression that maintain the status quo; and within Mexico specifically, the nearly ninety-year rule of the PRI party. At its essence, this thesis pries open the inconsistencies of such representations within Mexico, 1968 and its aftermath. These questions are sparked by my long term considerations of theorists such as Walter Benjamin, Paul Virilio, and Michel Foucault. I have found my investigations within Mexico indicative of their writings among a range of others that appear in this text. As such, this essayistic exploration stretches and drifts across many different disciplines, geographies, and figures. Thus, I develop a "constellatory framework" to expand an analysis of technologies of reproduction themselves towards their facility to impact national memory through circulation. / by James Suneil Sanzgiri. / S.M. in Art, Culture and Technology

Thesis (M.Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1960. / Accompanying drawings held by MIT Museum. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 26). / by Maurice F. Childs, Jr. / M.Arch.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1986. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AN ROTCH. / Bibliography: leaf 60. / by Latham Lloyd Williams. / M.S.

Thesis (M.C.P.) Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture, 1951. / Bibliography: leaves 140-147. / by Hugh Conant Faville. / M.C.P.

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 95). / In 1959 professor of archeology Beno Rothenberg began investigating the production of copper in the Sinai desert and Aravah region of southern Israel. He discovered over 650 previously unknown ancient copper mining and smelting sites. The Timna Valley is one of the most significant sites discovered and is believed to be the first site of copper production, beginning six-thousand years ago. Within this rich historical context, I propose to build an international center for desert studies and copper production in ancient societies. Faculty, students, and researchers will examine desert climate, vegetation, and wildlife. Equally important, they will study the process of mining and smelting copper. The center will also be open to individual tourists and larger groups. Following an introductory lecture, tourists will produce their own small samples of copper. The architecture of the building is driven from the nature of the smelting process. In this process, copper is chemically separated from impurities in a smelting furnace. Heavy metallic copper sinks to the bottom of the furnace. Slag forms above the copper and gas evaporates. The layers of the building mimic this process and are made from copper, slag, and glass. The overall design theme of the building also seeks to demonstrate a clear interaction between building, landscape, and environment. / by Mark J. Steinberg. / M.Arch.