Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1994. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 84-86). / Initiated by the Greek architect Doxiades in the early fifties, the term "Ekistics" designated "the science for human settlements" which promoted a scientific method for architectural design and planning. It had an immense impact on many fields of architecture and planning worldwide, especially during the sixties. With the theoretical shifts in subsequent decades, Ekistics was displaced as obsolete and its aspirations remained unexplored, while scientifIc methods in architecture are often dismissed in their entirety. This thesis explores the epistemological premises of Ekistics through a critical overview of its origins and features. It discusses the limitations of the method that Ekistics promoted (which sometimes searched for formulaic solutions and a stable field of conclusions) while exposing the complexities of its inquiry--which resist the rejection of the method's premises in their entirety. This thesis discusses in particular, the influence of Ekistics in the Middle East, and the method's contributions to architectural thinking in the region. The juxtaposition between the contributions of Ekistics on the one hand, and later architectural positions in the Middle East which entirely rejected scientific thought on the other, offers a basis to reflect on the positive contributions of scientific epistemology in general. This thesis neither reformulates yet another scientific method nor does it attempt to displace scientific epistemology with a revisionist critique. Rather, it argues that while radical criticisms of Doxiades's method (whether these criticisms are based on social critique, or whether they come from the domain of the philosophy of science, or operate within the disciplinary terrain of architecture) have hanged our perception of it (as well as of other scientific methods of the fifties and sixties) they cannot subsume scientific epistemology, and they should not warrant its abandonment. This thesis examines scientific epistemology as an active critical attitude and reevaluates its usefulness as an orientation in architectural thought. / by Panayiota Ioanni Pyla. / M.S.

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1992. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 69). / This design project explores the principles of "urban legibility" and "shared space". The readability, or imageability (in Kevin Lynch's term) of a city results from the recognition of larger urban patterns, organizations, and elements. One such pattern, the "city edge", is identified and explored through the design. A "shared space" is one which can be experienced (to some degree) from both inside and outside of the enclosure of a building. The site is on the Boston waterfront. The program is a 70 room hotel with commercial space on ground level. / by Andrew J. Russin. / M.Arch.

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1984. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 115-117). / This thesis is essentially a study of how to organize public space vertically in a tall building. In most cases, high rise buildings tend to be organized in one of two ways, either centrally, with the core elements in the center of the building footprint, or linearly, with core elements at the ends of the building footprint,(usually, with a corridor connecting the two ends). In both cases, the public space created in these kinds of organizations tends to be neutral, devoid of life, dark, and alienating. This thesis explores how the necessary service core elements, of a tall building, can be used as spatial elements to develop public space that is conducive to social/communal gathering and interaction on a variety of levels, through the use of communicating floors; and develop public space that has the capacity to accommodate a variety of amenities that contribute to a better sense of urbanity in the air. The thesis is divided into three major sections - the first section, vertical organization, is an examination of the nature and organization of service core elements and public space, with a design illustration presented to illustrate an alternative core organization in terms of its proto-typical implications. The second section, a design proposal, uses the alternative service core organization, for a high rise multi-use building on a specific site in downtown Boston. Finally, the third section is a conclusion and summary to discuss findings about the nature of this alternative organizational concept. An appendix is included to illustrate similar organizational attitudes explored in a past studio experience, at M.I.T., for a residential high rise building. / by David Jay Weiner. / M.Arch.

Thesis (S.M. in Architecture Studies)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 2013. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. Vita. Page 118 blank. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 109-117). / Collaborative production is a process in which people coordinate with one another to accomplish specific goals. Widely recognized as an effective model in aggregating meaningful outcomes, it greatly extends the effects of simple sharing. However, two major obstacles to a successful outcome are the complexity and unpredictability of the collaborative production process itself. Social enterprise, as the rising force in advancing economic development, presents a wide range of challenges and unmet needs. It is especially critical for social enterprise grassroots startups to harness useful and meaningful contributions in the process of collaborative production. Through promoting nonfinancial motivation and collecting contributions at all different levels, the new online collaborative platforms, such as Wikipedia, have established a positive impact in allowing large groups to collaborate. However, platforms with a clear financial motivation suffer a great deal in obtaining multiple levels of constructive contribution and participation. Investigation of the methods aggregating individual (and often tiny) contributions for social enterprise grassroots startups may offer new frameworks from which a great range of applications can be extracted. Prior work on collaboration through digital platforms has mainly focused on a centralized collaboration model through highly managed and fixed Internet portals. This research will look into the alternative model, such as the wiki (a distributed collaboration), to find solutions for the emergence of an evolving collaboration model. / by Yu Gao. / S.M.in Architecture Studies

Thesis: Ph. D. in Design and Computation, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Architecture, 2016. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 185-188). / In current practices of digital design fabrication, model making is bifurcated into screen based visualization (CAD) and machine based production (CAM), which limits the body's capability of generating creative thought through material interaction. If theories from the field of cognitive science about embodied cognition are true, then there is opportunity to rethink how CAD-CAM technologies can better harness the bodily based thinking involved in physical model making. To study how designers explore ideas when making models an experiment was run in which experienced architects and novice students were asked to construct their dream house out of blocks. The hypothesis was that experienced architects would exhibit physical interactions with the blocks that distinguish them from the novices, thus helping define what may be called physical design cognition. To test this their behaviors were coded in terms of simple robotic actions: adding, subtracting, modifying, and relocating blocks. Architects differed from students along three dimensions. Architects were more controlled using fewer blocks overall and fewer variations; they reported more thoughts about spatial relationships and material constraints; and lastly, they more frequently experimented with multiple block positions within the model. Together these findings suggest that architects physically explore the design space more effectively than students by exploiting body-material interactions. This designerly embodied intelligence is something that robotic technology can support and enhance. As roboticist Rodney Brooks famously said, "The world is its own best model." In other words, designers should not be limited to visualizing a model on a screen before making it physical. Implications for material-based robotic interaction are discussed and a pilot program is presented in which designers interact in real-time with a robotic manipulator arm to make physical models. / by Daniel J. Smithwick. / Ph. D. in Design and Computation

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 2004. / Page 201 blank. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 192-197). / The rise of the skyscraper was not driven by programmatic needs or artistic desires, but rather economic conditions coupled with turn-of-the-century technological innovations. As it evolved, systems matured to provide comfort and safety while economic efficiency was always prioritized. The skyscraper and its systems reached its evolutionary plateau in the 1950s when mechanized systems transformed the building type into air-tight homogenous structures, maximizing efficiency and economy. This was based on an office culture that today, due to innovations in communications technology, is growing ever more obsolete. However, as cities continue to grow, skyscrapers are increasingly residential. In fact, residential skyscrapers can have population and land areas similar to city neighborhoods, yet lack any character or identities that give neighborhoods diversity. Despite vast functional differences, residential towers are only slight modifications of their office tower ancestors - some superficially domesticated via the use of brick and gable roofs. Appearance does not account for the lack of diversity and opportunities for social interaction. The concept of a "residential skyscraper" is currently an oxymoron: the neighborhood which requires diversity is housed in a building type that is notoriously homogenous. This thesis reconceived the skyscraper as a vertical neighborhood - a dynamic network of communities in the sky. The inverted design process prioritized the community by focusing upon the internal social and spatial systems of the skyscraper - two systems that are essential to fostering a community yet do not currently exist as design considerations. Therefore, they are not included within the conventional catalogue of systems, and the problems / (cont.) associated with them, that traditionally define the building type. The influence of this prioritization also redefined the currently parasitic relationship of the skyscraper to the city into a symbiotic one: the living skyscraper becomes part of an urban food chain, dependent on the environment to insure its own survival, and on the city to provide identity and culture. The design exploration thoughtfully integrates systems as a result of a social agenda, creating a dialogue that raises questions and aspirations about the social validity and potential of the skyscraper as it exists today. / by Tom Lee. / M.Arch.

Thesis (M.S.V.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1991. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 161-162). / by Alan Ruttenberg. / M.S.V.S.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 70). / by Sermsin Samalapa. / M.S.

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1952. / Accompanying drawings held by MIT Museum. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [41]-[43]). / by Vernon F. Shogren and Donald E. Jarvis. / M.Arch.

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