This thesis is mainly about how we read city as whole. City is a simple word with extremely complex information that interacts to each other. City is where we live. Though this thesis will not be in touch with some deeper topics about city, we can still read city in an unusual way. And this is the purpose for this thesis. / published_or_final_version / Architecture / Master / Master of Landscape Architecture

published_or_final_version / Architecture / Master / Master of Landscape Architecture

Dwyka tillite quarries in the Province of KwaZulu-Natal have shown remarkable stable slopes faces even though some of them were quarried over 30 years ago. This can be attributed to their resistance to weathering, the high degree of joint surface roughness, the general lack of any joint infill and the limonitic staining found on most weathered joint surfaces. The latter appears to increase joint roughness. The high percentages of joints terminating within the rock mass or against other discontinuities as well as their low persistence results in a high degree of joint interlocking. These are shown to be very important factors contributing to the overall slope stability. Detailed discontinuity surveys were carried out at five different quarries located throughout the KwaZulu-Natal region. Only three of these quarries are presently being quarried. This allowed the study and comparison of joint and slope stability characteristics for both the older, more weathered rock faces and those of the recently quarried, and thus fairly unweathered rock faces. Joint orientation data from the various sites show that two to three sets of high angle joints and one low angle joint set are common. The potential of wedge and planar failure is therefore very high. The steeply dipping discontinuities also promote the potential for flexural toppling failure and this was noted in several of the quarry faces. Recognised geotechnical techniques and computer models were used to establish potential modes of failure and to estimate factors of safety. Wedge failure, at partially saturated and saturated conditions, was identified as being the main source of potential slope instability on the quarry rock faces. The quality of the rock mass of each slope was also classified according to various rock mass classification systems. The rock mass quality generally was rated as being 'fair' to 'good', meaning that slopes are partially stable to stable. The results of each rating system were also compared. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2002.

The purpose of this creative project was to derive and communicate the design process for the reclamation of an active quarry site to a residential community. An examination of existing land reclamation and housing design knowledge was conducted to form the basis for original design theories. The communication and presentation of study recommendations was applied to a case study site: an active sand, gravel, and limestone quarry located near Muncie, Indiana. A methodology was developed to analyze the site for its mining, housing and visual potential. Environmentally responsive strategies to determine rural community structure, lake form design, and housing character were developed. An integration of analyses and design strategies yielded the final land use concept and the associated site development concept. The final product of the study was a reclamation concept plan directing mineral extraction and reclamation efforts toward optimal mining and housing potential. It was the intention of this study to discuss and present its design theories, recommendations, and process in map form capable of explaining the study in its entirety without additional verbal or written communication. / Department of Landscape Architecture

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Texas A & M University, 1997. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 855-881).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Washington State University, December 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 314-334).

Thesis (M.A.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2004. / Bibliography: leaves 122-133.

This thesis will investigate the spatial location of stone houses and the areal differentiation of several characteristics of stone houses in selected communities. Some differences in cultural and historical factors and in types of building stone, quarries and quarrying techniques will be studied. The thesis will also investigate why stone houses are still in existence and things that owners, residents, and others like and dislike about them.

Historically, the decision on whether to mine by underground or surface methods has been based on mining and economic considerations. This is rapidly changing since the environmental imperatives that have evolved over the past two decades are now a critical part of the decision process. As a result, quarry operations are increasingly considering the option of going underground. This research was carried out to identify the factors which would cause a surface quarry operator to consider the transition to underground mining. To identify the major incentives for going underground, primary factors influencing the decision for selecting underground mining over continued quarrying were investigated. Analysis of the literature and data gathered from site visits showed that significant benefits could be gained from mining underground, with respect to selected economic factors, environmental permitting and legal compliance, and post-production site usage for continued income. To determine mining characteristics of the typical surface quarry, data on the production phase (mining sequence) and environmental problems was collected from 18 quarries at various stages of their operating life spans. The data was obtained from sites in the Appalachian region of four states: Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland and Tennessee. Corresponding data was also gathered from successful underground operations to determine the values for a typical underground mine. Comparisons of this information indicated that the biggest differences between surface and underground operations existed in: the drilling and blasting phase, and in the haulage phase of the mining sequence; the size of the equipment; the extent of environmental concerns; and the potential for post-production income from the site. The process of environmental risk assessment was reviewed as a supporting tool to aid in the selection of underground over surface mining. By assigning probabilities of failure to specific, independent, environmental hazards, an operator can evaluate and compare the likelihood of success or failure operating as a quarry or underground mine. A case study from the data collected was used as an example to show how the procedure can be practically implemented. / Master of Science

Limestone and dolomite quarries were mapped to determine specific slope failure mechanisms for the various geological and structural conditions. Wedge failure and plane failure were determined to be the most influential mechanisms. Algorithms for analyzing these mechanisms were incorporated into the software package PSLOPE. The program is designed to facilitate progressive stability evaluation of quarry high walls as mining continues and permits calculation of safety factors and probabilistic reliability. Safety factor evaluations with the potential for back-analysis and sensitivity studies are included to investigate alternative high wall designs. Reliability analysis using Monte Carlo sampling minimizes uncertainty and allows the use of all available data in a stability evaluation. E~tensive "help" menus are incorporated into the program. The "help" menus include ranges of physical properties such as cohesion and friction angle for specific lithologic units determined from published research. This package includes an optimum design protocol that can be followed to avoid massive failure. The program was developed in conjunction with the quarry industry and is demonstrated through technical problem solving and a detailed case study. A large carbonate quarry in the eastern U.S. was studied in detail to demonstrate the utility of PSLOPE. / Master of Science