Thesis (M.Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 2002. / Some ill. folded. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 75). / In the area of normal language, there is a ground language that makes abstract language possible. Likewise, the hypothesis in this project is that there are two systems of language in architecture. The language that has been employed in architecture most commonly has been abstract and undecipherable. It is one-way communication: information flows from architects to architecture, but not to users. However, if the notion of language is considered as a communicative tool, likewise architectural languages should embody two-way communication. But because in architecture there is no verbal equivalent of a ground language that makes abstract meaning possible, the language of my project must be visual and intuitive. I believe this direct visual language is the ground language in architecture. By visualizing the mechanisms of architecture, users would know what architecture is saying and might have opportunities to talk about it and actively participate in it. In this research, the mechanism of architecture to be communicated is the event taking place within the library itself: namely, it's own transition from the real to the virtual. A series of diagrams were generated at the beginning of project to understand library programs ever-changing along the development of technology. The overall process of this project consists of dominant two stages. The first stage is about hardware of building: structure, and the second stage is about software: SpaceModulator. At the fist stage, several building configurations were examined to maximize the impact of the visualization. The idea of flexibility was introduced to respond to the current issue of the library's "changing medium". At the second stage, SpatialModulators that control the overall architectural quality were generated. These include furniture and adjustable walls. These discreet objects are meant to reflect the over-arching ideas of the thesis: that is, to illustrate the inner condition of the library and describe the events in the "urban book shelf". / by Kim, Myoungkeun. / M.Arch.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1984. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 140). / Architecture educators and students are challenging traditional methods of teaching technical subjects related to buildings, seeking new teaching tools and methods. The case method, developed by business and management educators, holds promises an approach that can improve the teaching of architectural technology. Through the use of prepared case studies, the student makes decisions at critical points of the building process, using quantitative and qualitative analysis techniques. Following individual work on the problem or issues presented in the case, the teacher helps the students in a classroom discussion, consider the consequences of their decisions to the analytical steps and processes they used. This gives the students an opportunity to verbalize their thinking about a shared problem and compare that experience with that of their colleagues. This thesis describes the use of the case method use in architectural education to integrate the teaching of design and technical subjects. It documents the promise as experience in preparing testing, and evaluating a case. Design, energy consumption, and economics were the related topics of the case, given as an assignment to a class of architecture graduate students. Their to response the case was documented and evaluated as the basis for modifications. This study will guide others interested in using the case method. The documentation and discussion of a teaching tool specifically developed for architectural education will incite further discussion and study of the methods of architectural education. / by Jacquelin Spangler McBride. / M.S.

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1989. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 164-165). / This thesis explores an alternate approach to designing affordable housing. Housing is presented not just as physical shelter but as part of a larger socio-economic and cultural context. Implicit in this thesis is the belief that who builds is just as important as what is built. When people are involved in the act of building their homes and their living environment, whether directly or indirectly, a richer and healthier urban environment will result. There are two main parts to this thesis. The first is an exploration into the urban context of Mexico City and an analysis of dwelling transformations in a low-income neighborhood. The attempt is to observe and understand the patterns of dwelling transformation as clues to successful and culturally-appropriate housing. The analysis serves a base of understanding and informs the second part of the thesis. The second part explores and proposes of a physical support framework for a specific site. The framework is meant to allow the· user over time to build incrementally using the design "clues" as a reference. The built framework is a formal manifestation of different levels of control by the designer corresponding to the opportunities and specific circumstances which the site presents. Also proposed are design interventions in which architects can have more control such as the design of a neighborhood church , a commercial-residential complex and a design intervention in the street. / by Yew-Hoe Tan. / M.Arch.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture. Thesis. 1972. M.Arch.A.S. / MICROFICHE COPY ALSO AVAILABLE IN ROTCH LIBRARY. / Accompanied by folder containing slides. / Bibliography: leaves [96-101]. / M.Arch.A.S.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 117-127). / This paper examines Piranesi's use of imagination in the ichnographic reconstruction of the Campo Mania area of Ancient Rome. This plan was issued in 1762, but as the structures in the plan appear non-Roman and without apparent historical evidence, this work is termed non archaeological. Piranesi's polemical activities in the pan-Grecian debate between 1758-1765 appear to confirm such readings. By 1765, Piranesi stated an argument against rigid rules in architecture. The Campo Mania plan is seen as a precursor to these later critiques against rules, and hence the product of a free run of imagination. This study reveals that some of the imaginative forms of the plan was shown by Piranesi in other plans issued before 1756. It is possible that in 1748 Piranesi aimed at an overall plan of Rome, which was later abandoned. The Campo Mania plan evolved from this endeavor. This paper also shows the extensive use of historic and literary sources in the Campo Mania plan. This use, and the continuous development of the plan from before 1756 renders a polemical reading of the plan untenable. In the eighteenth century, the scientific objectivity of archeology was not codified. The Renaissance's objective of urban reconstruction was to provide an 'image' of ancient Rome, and thus imagination had a role in urban reconstruction. Piranesi's aim in Campo Mania was thus to provide an 'image' of ancient Rome. The main sources of imagination in the Campo Mania plan were the images of ancient Rome provoked by the existing ruins. As most of these ruins were incomplete, they gave Piranesi only fragmented images. Piranesi's memory fragments are not unique; Montano, Peruzzi, Ligorio, and even Palladio's study of antiquity shows similar collection of images. Hence there was a similar image of ancient Rome in the historic consciousness of the Renaissance and the Baroque. In the use of these memory fragments, Piranesi employed the inference that innovation within rules was a trait of the ancient Roman architecture. This inference stemmed from Lodoli's critique of Vitruvius and the Baroque use of ancient models considered not confirming to the Vitruvian rules. Thus Piranesi's argument against rules in the pan-Grecian debate stemmed from similar convictions. Hence for Piranesi, the memory fragments became malleable, to be extended and interpreted within the innovative boundaries of the rules of the ancients. The underlay of Campo Marzio's forms is platonic geometry, primarily due to the iconographic format of the plan. The Campo Mania plan is then the ichonographic geometric iterations of the transformation and collaging of memory fragments, similar to other works in other genres. As the culmination of Piranesi's study of the Marble Plan and antiquarian work in Antichita Romane, for an overall plan of Rome, Campo Mania plan can be termed as the palimpsest of Piranesi's interpretive memory. / by Rupinder Singh. / M.S.

Thesis: S.M. in Building Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Architecture, 2016. / 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. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 107-113). / Using computational tools, fast and accurate predictions of building performance are increasingly possible. In parallel, the expectations of a high-performance building have been rising in contemporary architecture, as designers must synthesize many inputs to arrive at a design that fulfills a wide range of requirements. Despite the clear need for assistance in prioritizing and managing different design objectives, advances in performance analysis have not commonly translated into guidance in early stage design, as the limits of the traditional design process and a separation of disciplines have relegated performance feedback to later phases. In order to facilitate better design on a holistic level, researchers in related areas have developed multiobjective optimization (MOO), which is a methodology intended for navigating complex design spaces while managing and prioritizing multiple objectives. However, after reviewing existing design optimization research and considering current usage of optimization in AEC practice, a number of clear research questions arise: How can conceptual, architectural design problems be formulated and solved using MOO in a way that generates diverse, high-performing solutions? What is the best way for the designers of buildings and structures to interact with MOO problems? Finally, how does the use of MOO in the conceptual phase affect design possibilities and outcomes? This thesis addresses these key research questions, along with a number of secondary questions, through a combination of design case studies, tool development, user experience testing, and historical analysis. First, it presents a conceptual framework for implementing MOO within architectural parametric design tools in flexible, interactive way. Next, it shows the outcomes of a conceptual design exercise in which participants are given increasing access to performance feedback. Finally, through the application of MOO to three long span roof case studies, it demonstrates how MOO can lead to diverse, high-performing results that are difficult to generate through other means, before introducing a new way in which multi-objective techniques can be used to analyze historical structures. Together, these contributions encourage more widespread and effective use of multi-objective optimization in conceptual design, leading to better performing buildings and structures without overly constraining creative, innovative designers. Key words: multi-objective optimization, design space exploration, conceptual design, design tradeoffs, interactive design tools, structural design, embodied and operational energy. / by Nathan C. Brown. / S.M. in Building Technology

Thesis: S.M. in Architecture Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Architecture, 2017. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. "June 2017." / Includes bibliographical references (page [4]). / This thesis is a collection of design speculations meant to question the frenzy around capitalist urban development in emerging 'world-class" cities. It particularly studies how post-extraction economies are restructuring the industrial city to promote it as a site of leisure, tourism and real-estate. This transition often uses architecture and urban design that relies on a jargon of superlatives, the signature of starchitects, and the power of mass media image circulation to project a utopic vision. The thesis uses the island as a site for investigation and experimentation. Both a geographical entity and a widely-used metaphor, the island is often defined through dualisms: utopic and dystopic; insular and yet connected. The notion of territoriality is crucial here, where the island with its seemingly defined geographical boundaries is in fact part of a larger geological, socio-economic and political territory. Thus, it often becomes a physical testing ground to realize different social and spatial propositions, such as urban segregation, the development of elite enclaves, exotic tourist attractions, and heightened securitization. Focusing on Azerbaijan's Caspian Seawaters, this thesis studies Baku's offshore urbanization on its natural and artificial islands. Initially significant for their strategic role in protecting the mainland, Azerbaijan's islands have been heavily involved in natural resource extraction and energy production for the past half century. As oil and gas resources deplete and revenues fall, the state is considering alternative ways to diversify its economy. Hence, various post-extraction futures are currently being projected onto these sites: the islands of the Baku archipelago, Pirallahi island as well as Neft Dashlari, the first off-shore drilling facility in the world. The dependence of capital on territory is evident here, whereby investment in Azerbaijan's post fossil-fuel economy is manifested spatially through the proposed redevelopment plans. Two major forces currently shape these islands. First, economic force, which includes both the continued extraction of capital in the form of oil and gas from one field and a transition towards accumulation in the form of real-estate in another. Secondly, ecological force, which encompasses both the manufacturing of artificial landscapes into the Caspian Sea and the destruction of land due to a degraded ecosystem and sea-level rise. In addition to constructing an urban historiography of the islands, this thesis articulates a possible future for each island and presents an urban-spatial, socio-political critique of how the state has been exploiting these forces in the past and will possibly do so in the future. The thesis argues that the most effective medium for engagement in the transformation of Baku is through the circulation of counter-images that challenge the false sense of utopia. / by Garine Boghossian. / S.M. in Architecture Studies

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 272-281). / (cont.) relationship with American Scene painting. His engagement with these themes suggests that the pictorial reorganization of spatial experience that anchored his practice as a socially engaged artist is inextricably bound to the politics of place. / This dissertation examines Stuart Davis's paintings of the 1930s in relation to his conviction that art could transform reality by extending and reordering the spatial dimensions of common experience. While Davis's enthusiastic involvement with Marxism had a significant impact upon the development of his ideas during the thirties, his reception of liberal aesthetic theory, as exemplified in the writings of the philosopher John Dewey, played a more fundamental role in his understanding of the social function of art. By situating Davis's activities within the context of other artists and intellectuals who sought to rebuild public life through the aesthetic organization of common experience, Davis's strong political convictions are brought together with his abstract art within an integrated interpretive framework. He described cubism as an extension of the realist tradition that could express his reactions to the modem environment and in so doing offer a conceptual model to guide future action. Through a complex and not always consistent theoretical rationale, he related the formal structure of his paintings to their ability to communicate his vision of common experience to a broad audience without violating the logic of two-dimensional design. The social and political value of aesthetically reordering common experience was understood by many between the World Wars to reside in art's capacity to facilitate the formation of a shared national identity and cultural discourse. The profound geographic and spatial transformations associated with modernity played a crucial role in this conception of identity. Davis's contributions to these issues is examined in relation to his understanding of the internationalism of his modernist art and his complex / by John X. Christ. / Ph.D.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1997. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 52-54). / Many extraordinary cities are developed along the edges of water into different directions. Yet, the city of Hong Kong has been formed along narrow strips of scarce flat-land around the harbor and from reclamations of land-fills. Urban fabrics are stretched along water edges of the Victoria Harbor with distinct characters. For the rapidly developing cities, these urban fragments are elemental and essential to sustain. The objective of this thesis is to re-examine the water front urban fabrics, and their organizations, within the context of East Kowloon, including the Kai Tak Airport site. This thesis is structured through a parallel urban analysis and design proposal contrasting with the government proposal. The proposal will focus on the issues of urban plan, district characters, block types and, most importantly, utilization of water edges. / by Wai-Kuen Chan. / M.S.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1985. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH. / Includes bibliographical references. / This thesis is a journal which describes the thoughts and decisions leading up to the final design of a comprehensive software environment for passive solar design. The main purpose of this writing is to convey why a comprehensive software environment for this particular field is needed in order to help teach the principles of passive solar design, so that they can be adequately taken into consideration in the architectural design process, and how such a system could be implemented. A case study involving the use of previously available passive solar design tools is used to point out areas where these tools are deficient in their ability to focus a designer's attention on pertinent building performance simulation data, which could be more effectively used to influence design decisions at the various stages of the design process. This leads to a discussion of how these shortcomings could be overcome through a new and different software design strategy which utilizes a systems approach to build a more flexible and powerful passive solar design tool. Through further experiments, practical considerations and real-world constraints are brought to light, and how they affected the conceptual development of such a system which I undertook to develop here at MIT for Project Athena. Next, certain implementation details are given which seek to bridge the gap between conceptual goals and practical software design considerations. How the internal organization of software code affects the external interactions between the user and the system, and how it can promote the qualities needed for software survival in an educational setting is addressed . Finally, the outcome of an experimental prototype for this s y stem is discussed, as well as my concluding thoughts regarding what I have learned through this endeavor about writing architectural design tool software. / by Steven E. Lotz. / M.S.