WHAT? The interconnectedness of acoustics and architecture is one that is too often overlooked. Many architects tend to focus solely on visual aesthetics, when in reality, it is the architect's job to create a space that is pleasing to all of the senses. Although all senses are important to the experience of a space, in most instances architects only have control over sight, sound, and touch. While architects usually make calculated decisions to improve the visual and touch experience, it seems that acoustics are an afterthought and rarely brought to attention unless there are special requests from the client or complaints from the user. WHY? The issues caused by poor acoustic considerations range from a space that is simply annoying to occupy, such as a desk fixed under the constant hum of an air vent, to rooms that are unusable for their intended purpose, such as a lecture hall with a long reverberation time making it impossible to distinguish syllables and understand the speaker. In the case of musical performances, the acoustical considerations of a design can completely alter the way sound travels from the performers to the audience. For example, a rock concert in a small room finished in marble would be unbearable, while a high school orchestra would be inaudible from the back of a large amphitheater. Therefore, it is important to design a space in which the architecture strengthens the performances that it was intended for. HOW? In this thesis I examine the balance of visual aesthetics and acoustical performance into a single building, the Shrine Hill Music Center. Located in Roanoke, Virginia, the Shrine Hill Music Center is imagined as a supplement to the surrounding educational buildings by housing a small performance hall, several practice rooms, and a recording studio to be enjoyed by students and members of the community. During my research I found myself asking questions such as; what architectural choices can be made that are both visually and audibly pleasing? What acoustical factors should be considered when designing a performance hall and how do these differ from those of a practice room or a recording studio? Is there an opportunity to tune a space just as one is able to tune an instrument? By the end I was not only left with a building that utilizes the architecture to enhance the acoustics, but also an abundance of acoustical knowledge that will benefit me in my future endeavors as a designer. / Master of Architecture / The interconnectedness of acoustics and architecture is one that is too often overlooked. Potential issues caused by poor acoustic considerations range from a space that is simply annoying to occupy, such as a desk fixed under the constant hum of an air vent, to rooms that are unusable for their intended purpose, such as a poorly treated lecture hall where it impossible to distinguish syllables and understand the speaker. In the case of musical performances, the acoustical considerations of a design can completely alter the way sound travels from the performers to the audience. Therefore, it is important to design a space in which the architecture strengthens the performances that it was intended for. In this thesis I examine the balance of visual aesthetics and acoustical performance into a single building, the Shrine Hill Music Center. I found myself asking questions such as; what architectural choices can be made that are both visually and audibly pleasing? What acoustical factors should be considered when designing a performance hall and how do these differ from those of a practice room or a recording studio? Is there an opportunity to tune a space just as one is able to tune an instrument? By the end I was not only left with a building that utilizes the architecture to enhance the acoustics, but also an abundance of acoustical knowledge that will benefit me in my future endeavors as a designer.

This thesis explores the relationship between the "constructed" (built) environment and the natural environment. What defines such a relationship and can the relationship be formulated? Surely a successful union is much like a marriage whereby one part is better than either of the individual parts. This thesis is an exploration into that relationship. It explores the nature of the built environment through the construction in the natural environment. In addition, it explores the possibility of utilizing a set of guidelines to assist the designer in the creation of such a relationship. The project type (Retreat Center) itself opens the door to possibilities by carving out the natural environment. It proposes that through careful design considerations a harmony can exist between man's built environs and the earth's natural environment. / Master of Architecture

Every place on earth has a voice. This voice resonates from the shaping events that have long passed and the current conditions that continue to give each place its individual character. The voice continually evolves as the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth leaves its trace. This voice in its endless variety of forms expresses the beauty that is inherent within each and every location on earth. The potential of architecture is the translation of this voice into human terms and the formal declaration that we as humans play a meaningful part in the cycle. The guiding forms, surfaces, substances of architecture allow the human body to move in grace, unhindered, and inspires the mind to sense the essential connection between matter spirit; between the individual and the whole. The role of the architect is to become sensitive to this voice; to silence the mind enough to hear, and to respond to it in material form. The resulting dialogue between the edifice and the encompassing site reaches a certain completeness that enriches the living experience of the end user, bringing the wandering mind to the present long enough to inspire the thought that "I belong here, among all of this." The technical training required in order to gain an inherent understanding of structure and materials takes years of experience in the field of architecture. However, it has been the focus of my graduate career to further develop this sensitivity to the site and make my first attempts at formulating an architectural response, suggesting structures that could achieve this engagement with the end user and the site itself. / Master of Architecture

This thesis addresses various aspects related to site-specific propagation prediction using ray tracing techniques. Propagation prediction based on ray tracing techniques requires that all the different physical objects, which affect the propagation of radio waves, be modeled. The first part of the thesis concentrates on modeling the buildings and the terrain for the above-mentioned application. A survey of the various geographic products that are available to model the environment is presented. The different methods used to model the terrain are analyzed and the most suitable method for a ray based application is suggested. A method to model the buildings in an environment from commercially available data is described. A novel method to combine the building information with the terrain information is presented. An in depth discussion of deterministic propagation prediction using ray tracing is presented in the latter half of the thesis. An overview of the various ray based algorithms that exists in the literature are presented and the limitations and the computational complexity of ray based methods are discussed. All ray based algorithms model the receivers as point objects and predict the propagation characteristics at a particular point in space. However, to optimize the design of a wireless broadcast or a point to multi point system such as a Wireless LAN (WLAN) or a cellular system, propagation characteristics at multiple points in space need to be known. The standard ray tracing algorithms can be notoriously time consuming when used to predict the characteristics of multiple receivers. A new, computationally less intensive algorithm to predict the propagation characteristics of multiple receivers is described. This algorithm significantly reduces the computation time by using "grid mode" predictions for broadcast channels. / Master of Science

Undertaking a work of architecture utilizing modular construction is, in most cases, a design project dominated, or at least driven by, the most technical aspects of architecture. Technical aspects which haven't been completely figured out yet. Rather than making the decision to use a pre-determined structural system in the project before going through the design process, my thesis offers an example of how a more traditional and balanced approach can improve resulting buildings. In addition, rather than allowing the technology of the module to create the form of the building, show how a thorough study of program and form can influence the structure, even in an endeavor which usually requires such hard-nosed engineering. / Master of Architecture

Seismic hazard analyses require an estimate of earthquake ground motions from future events. These predictions are achieved through Ground Motion Prediction Equations, which include a prediction of the median and the standard deviation of ground motion parameters. The differences between observed and predicted ground motions, when normalized by the standard deviation, are referred to as epsilon (𝜖). For spectral accelerations, the correlation structure of normalized residuals across oscillator periods is important for guiding ground motion selection. Correlation structures for large global datasets have been studied extensively. These correlation structures reflect effects that are averaged over the entire dataset underlying the analyses. This paper considers the effects of site response, at given sites, on the correlation structure of normalized residuals. This is achieved by performing site response analyses for two hypothetical soil profiles using a set of 85 rock input motions. Results show that there is no significant difference between correlation coefficients for rock ground motions and correlation coefficients after considering the effects of site response for the chosen sites. / Master of Science

If a landowner‘s main objective is to maximize his/her profits from planted forest investments, questions such as when and where exactly they should fertilize, thin and clearcut must be answered. We take advantage of an experiment established in 5 different states in the US South. Forest inventory data was collected for different combinations of thinning densities where some of them received fertilization. We use the Land Expectation Value methodology where our assumptions are the infinite amount of Pine rotations while costs and stumpage prices are known and constant, and markets are perfect. One of the main results we found is that fertilization has a decreasing marginal benefit on site index quality. / M.S. / If the landowner‘s main objective is to maximize profit from forest investments, questions such as when and where they should fertilize, thin and clearcut must be answered. Fertilization‘s main objective is to provide essential nutrients for tree growth. Thinnings have two main objectives: a source of revenue in the middle of the forest rotation by selling the thinned trees and secondly to open space to the residual trees so they grown in diameter and gain value. We analyze how thinning and fertilization impact forest management from an economic perspective by checking their benefits and costs to landowners. We found that for low site index, fertilization has a positive impact in the sense its benefit is greater than the fertilization application cost. For better site indices, the opposite is true. For those who want to maximize economic benefits from planted forests. we end up with recommendations of which type of thinning and fertilization should be done according to the landowner site quality.

My Thesis addresses one of the staples of suburban American development for the past half century, the ubiquitous Big Box store in the strip mall shopping centers and the acres of surface parking lots built around them. With thousands of these stores built, many are being abandoned by their tenants who are relocating to new locations, following market demand and other factors. While current methods of re-using these buildings exist, they're inefficient and require huge amounts of time and money to redevelop effectively. This leads many to simply be demolished and create thousands of tons of debris for our landfills and wastes the embedded energy they have. Looking closely at a local shopping center going through a massive redevelopment process that will take years if not decades to complete, I propose an alternative method of developing the site in a shorter time frame. This method applies new construction techniques in modular building to facilitate a fundamental shift in what the site provides to the public. Transitioning from a retail only destination that requires a car to access and use into a fully walkable and engaging neighborhood with retail, residential, and commercial uses all contributing to the balance for its residents and visitors. All of this development acknowledges the fact that the success of this community will spur more development, and allows for that future growth. The dis-assembly of the modular constructs allows them to move and develop another shopping center else ware to continue improving our communities. / Master of Architecture / This Thesis looks at the thousands of abandoned retail “Big Box” stores across our country, and proposes a method of using these existing structures for new and better uses. By employing ideas about interior space usage, property life cycle development, and constructability from off-site manufacturing I propose a development that quickly delivers a walkable and engaging community that can build on its success in the future.

No

Tomträtten är en speciell form av nyttjanderätt som ger innehavaren rätt att använda en fastighet under obegränsad tid mot en årlig avgift, medan marken ägs av staten, kommunen eller annan allmän ägo. Vid införandet i svensk lagstiftning 1907 var syftet att motverka bostadsbrist i storstäderna och att samhället skulle kunna dra nytta av värdestegringar från investeringar i infrastruktur. Tomträttshavaren har nästan samma rättigheter som en fastighetsägare, vilket ökar kreditvärde och trygghet.Syftet med denna uppsats är att identifiera brister och problem med tomträtt som upplåtelseform samt att undersöka dess styrkor och framtida möjligheter. Uppsatsen undersöker om dessa utmaningar och fördelar skiljer sig mellan tomträtter för småhus, flerbostadshus och kommersiella fastigheter. För att undersöka detta har intervjuer genomförts med representanter från olika kommuner i Stockholmsområdet.Resultaten visar att de långvariga avtalen och de komplexa omvärderingsprocesserna är stora utmaningar för kommunerna. Trots detta uppskattar kommunerna tomträtten som en stabil intäktskälla och ett verktyg för att styra markanvändning och främja byggandet av viktiga samhällsfunktioner. Utmaningarna och styrkorna varierar dock mellan småhus, flerbostadshus och kommersiella fastigheter. Småhus kräver mer administrativt arbete, medan flerbostadshus och kommersiella fastigheter generellt innebär högre intäkter och mindre administrativt arbete, men där det istället finns risker för långdragna domstolsprocesser.För att förbättra tomträttssystemet föreslår kommunerna flera förändringar, bland annat tydligare lagstiftning för beräkning av avgälder, möjligheten att indexera avgälder och bättre informationsöverföring från mäklare till köpare. Dessa förändringar syftar till att skapa större tydlighet och förutsägbarhet, minska rättsliga tvister och administrativ börda samt öka den ekonomiska säkerheten för både kommuner och tomträttshavare. / Site leasehold is a special form of usufruct that grants the holder the right to use a property for an indefinite period in exchange for an annual fee, while the land is owned by the state, municipality, or other public entity. When it was introduced into Swedish legislation in 1907, the aim was to alleviate housing shortages in major cities and enable society to benefit from land value increases resulting from infrastructure investments. The site leaseholder has almost the same rights as a property owner, which enhances credit value and security. The purpose of this thesis is to identify deficiencies and problems with site leasehold as a form of tenure, as well as to examine its strengths and future opportunities. The thesis investigates whether these challenges and benefits differ between site leaseholds for single-family homes, multi-family housing, and commercial properties. To explore this, interviews were conducted with representatives from various municipalities in the Stockholm area.The findings reveal that long-term contracts and complex revaluation processes are significant challenges for municipalities. Despite these challenges, municipalities appreciate site leasehold as a stable source of income and a tool for controlling land use and promoting the construction of essential public services. The challenges and strengths, however, vary between single-family homes, multi-family dwellings, and commercial properties. Single-family homes require more administrative work, whereas multi-family dwellings and commercial properties generally generate higher revenues and involve less administrative work, though they carry the risk of prolonged court proceedings.To improve the site leasehold system, municipalities propose several changes, including clearer legislation for calculating ground rents, the possibility of indexing ground rents, and better information transfer from real estate agents to buyers. These changes aim to create greater clarity and predictability, reduce legal disputes and administrative burdens, and increase economic security for both municipalities and site leaseholders.