        Hesse, Brent : AssignmentsEdit Hesse, Brent : Assignments here.September 16, 2007 Lecture One- Stephen Springle Part One- This lecture seemed to be directed towards those interested in Industrial Design. Springle’s designs were on a much smaller scale and involved things that would help those with disabilities. It seemed very much like Biomedical Engineering which is why Springle declared he was not an architect. His focus was to make every task easier to perform. Part Two- Assistive technology- anything that improves a person’s function. At first I thought that assistive technology could also just make annoying jobs easier, but it’s specific to a person’s function. Universal Design Appeal- technology or modifications that are made for those with disabilities but also increase the function of those without disabilities. Similar to above, I thought this just meant it made things easier for everyone such as a power wheelchair, but since a power wheelchair takes away from function, it doesn’t have universal design appeal. Instrumentation- the science of developing, manufacturing, and utilizing instruments, esp. those used in science and industry I had no idea what this word meant. Part Three- Is there ever going to be a day when we will be using assistive technology with non-disabled people to make us stronger/have better senses? Does insurance cover the cost of these assistive technologies? How does somebody qualify to get a wheel chair with six legs, or do they just have to buy one? Will there ever be a “six-million dollar” man? Lecture Two- Construction Industry Part One- This lecture was on the role of construction in the economy. The speaker brought up issues of whether or not construction was an industry or if it was rather just its own separate section of the economy. He brought up issues that are present in the construction industry and talked about how pioneers in the field are trying to combat these issues. Part Two- Ephemeral- anything short lived or for a short period of time Fragmentation- the disintegration, collapse, or breakdown of norms of thought, behavior, or social relationship. Professor of Practice- someone who is established in the field who wants to give back to their field Part Three- Why wouldn’t construction be considered an industry when medicine is considered the pharmaceutical industry? Is the construction industry ever not going to be slow paced on their delivery? How is residential construction so dominant in comparison to government projects? Shouldn’t the government be spending more in comparison to houses? Are builders ever going to shake the stereotype that they are stupid? Lecture Three- Stephen French Part One- This Lecture had to do with data bases and the availability on gathered information. He talked about how we can use data from different locations to draw practical conclusions before we make decisions. This is valuable for having ideas on where to build things by looking at trends of area and things like that. Part Two- Ubiquitous- Data availability I had no idea what this word meant. Impervious- a surface that cannot be penetrated. Same. GIS- Geographic Information System- a system of hardware and software that links mapped objects. Part Three- How can technologies be used in urban planning? How can geographic trends be used to decide where to build things? What is the best way to collect practical data? How can we know whether or not the data we receive is accurate or not? Part One: This Lecture was given by seven different architects with all different levels of experience. All of them were talking about their work and how classical design methods were used. Although each of them were talking about the same idea, every one of their views of classical design was different and they all applied classical techniques differently. Part Two: Green: using the materials available in the area that are not harmful to the environment. Part Three: Are classical design methods going to be around in the future? Is classical design only for the wealthy? Lecture Two: Solar Decathlon Part One: The goal of this lecture was to educate us on the Solar Decathlon, but also to show us some practical uses of the knowledge and skill sets we will gaining. The Solar Decathlon is a competition sponsored by the Department of Energy that has teams comprised of architects, engineers and biologists from twenty universities from all over the world. The goal of the competition is for each team to build a house that requires no outside energy but relies solely on solar energy to provide power and is also water proof. The purpose of these houses is to provide a low cost housing while effective uses of solar energy are still being developed. Part Two: Transparency- as used in the humanities, implies openness, communication, and accountability. It is a metaphorical extension of the meaning used in the physical sciences: a "transparent" object is one that can be seen through. Duo-guard- translucent wall; thermal protection with nano-gel Part Three: How can we get involved with similar competitions while we are still young in our college careers? Are these competitions put to practical use, and if not, are there any competitions that are? Lecture Three: Cad cam Part One: This lecture’s purpose was to show how computers are changing the designing process. The presenter began by explaining the old fashioned way of using a linear design process going from designer to architect to draftsman to fabrication to contractor. He compared this to how computers and digital design makes a cycle by giving constant feedback throughout the process. Part Two: Parametric modulations- making typical cubes and being able to mess around with and change the dimension of them through the easy use of computers. Computer aided design- allows for receiving feedback throughout the process of designing and building so that changes can be made in the middle of the creation process. Part Three: Is the gap between builder/designer getting bigger or smaller? Is the role for builders still going to around in twenty or more years? Installation 1 (Outside artifact)
The installation outside starts of with a compact, layered area that looks very think and strong. The installation looks like it is made up primarily of plastic using metal only to connect the many plastic pieces and to provide support for the installation. The installation seems to travel away from the thick, grounded region and wraps around a pillar to then leave the ground and attach to the second story for more support. The layers separate as they travel to their final destination and they sort of swirl toward and then away from the building. This swirling causes gaps in the plastic that give a translucent object a transparent feel. The layers travel away from each other but also come back and are bolted together to provide more support and close off the gaps.
The installation to me looks like seaweed that travels from the ground and is caught on some coral a few feet above. The installation is obviously on a much bigger scale, but the way the installation travels gives it sort of a fluid feeling. The plastic is translucent but not entirely transparent, but when the light passes through it sort of just gives a warped view of the image behind it. It looks like the whole piece could have been constructed from only one large piece of plastic cut strategically to make the installation seen now. Installation 2 (Atrium artifact)
The big wooden installation inside is made of very compact, smooth plywood and reaches three stories high. The installation is grounded on the first floor by a long bench made of many vertical strips of the plywood. The strips are close enough to provide comfortable support to any person sitting down on it. From a frontal view the object is semi-transparent, and from the side the installation looks like a solid bench that travels upward. The installation is also grounded on the second and third floors by similar benches fashioned to the back side of the tall strips of plywood. Both of these benches are secured to the concrete flooring by metal screws and grips. The strips seem to be separated by floor, but are connected to the strips above/below them. At the top of the installation the strips are directly in front of a strip of large windows. These windows allow for much more light to pass through the installation and make the installation seem even more transparent.
The installation seems looks like a waterfall coming down from the third floor to the first. The bows in between the first and second floors show the appearance of water hitting rocks in the waterfall and separating to each side. This installation also has a fluid feel even though the material is very hard and sturdy. The installation looks even more like a waterfall when some of the strips bend out further on one side than the other side. The benches almost disappear in when my eye follows the waterfall. Link to this Page
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