Biomimicry

Humans have been viewd by some as the enemy of nature. Well what if their was a way to mimic nature and produce the same results as nature. Well biomimetics is not a new idea. Humans have been looking at nature for answers to both complex and simple problems since our existence. Nature has solved many of today's engineering problems such as hydrophobicity, wind resistance, self-assembly, and harnessing solar energy through the evolutionary mechanics of selective advantages. Take a building for example, what if their was a way to mimic a tree, a living habitat for organisms.

 The result is a structure that is not just kind to nature; it actually imitates nature by making oxygen, distilling water and producing energy. In  effect, a building that is like a tree, standing in a city that is like a forest. From solar panels that produce power to tree-filled terraces that recycle water, the building will work, quite literally, from the inside out. The structure, envelope, and mechanical systems of the building merge into super-thin, smart skins that automatically adjust to the sun and wind like a living, breathing organism. This tower shows the way urban centers can get closer to nature—and in the process keep neighborhoods and cities vibrant and  healthy.

The house uses sunlight to generate energy, cleans water, sequesters carbon, provides natural habitats, and produces oxygen and food. In order to accomplish this, several nanotechnologies are incorporated into the design. While these technologies are conceptual, some are already in early development today. As with a tree, the house accrues positive environmental benefits over time. When the useful life of the house is over, its materials are designed to be easily disassembled to return as safe nutrients for human industry or the biosphere in Cradle to Cradle cycles.

Happiness Revised

This is the response to the "Happiness Revised" article we read in class

1. I feel happy when I am challenging myself and taking the oppurtunity to volunteer and help others. Challenging myself is important because if I do not, I never know what I am capable of doing. And if I do not know what I am capable of then I do not know what to expect from myself. Thus, it is important to challenge youself to extend your boundries because that gives you joy for trying and learning about yourself. I may be most happy after volunteering, even though the work may be hard or boring, at the end I know that I have doing something for more than myself and that makes me happy. Also getting out of my comfort zone and experiencing new boundaries gives me joy because I enjoy trying new things.
2. I thought the article was accurate to the feeling of happiness and how to get to that certain point of happiness. It mentioned that we do not have to be rich, beautiful, and smart to be happy. I think that is true because we see from social media and magazines that the most happy people are the ones with the best characteristics and looks. But, what are the best characteristics? How do we determine that someone looks good? We all have different percepetions on what looks good. The only thing that matters is how individuals view themeselves and what they believe looks good. And if that individual believes they are happy then we should not be telling them to change or how to be happy by looking at another person/celebrity.
3. I feel confident in myself to an extent. Meaning I know what I am and not good at, but that does not mean I am not going to improve on what I believe I am not good at. I do know that I am comfortable with what I want to do in my life and I am confotable with trying new things or improving my abilities because no one is perfect.
4.Throughout, my project I have always felt happy because I get to learn new things and be more dependent on myself to complete my work. I get to interact with people I would not have meant if it was not for this project. I also learned that I get to experince new abilities that I did not have such as drawing and communication. Thus, I feel happy doing this project because I learned that I could get out of my comfort zone and challenge myself to do what I want.
5. You can achieve "flow" by challenging yourslef to new limits and developing new skills, while also improving the quality of life around you. That is my perception of being happy, but who am I to tell you how to be happy their are many paths to do that and everyone has their own.

Green Roof

Imagine going onto google earth and viewing the natural landscape of the earth, where their would not be any black, grey spots, but the natural aesthetic beauty of greenery. Well what if I can tell you it is possible if we made our homes and buildings with flowers and gardens instead of tar, asphalt or gravel. The social benefits of green roofs are improved livability, physical and mental health from exposure to nature, and increased sense of pride and place. Then their are the aesthetic benefits which are, that green roofs are better looking than asphalt, tar, and gravel, natural views create more productive, healthy, happy, creative, relaxed people, and green roofs expand the usefulness of buildings via patios, gardens and vistas. Most importantly green roofs benefit the environment. 
Urban Heat Island MitigationThe temperature differential causes air currents and dust, and even contributes to violent weather events within urban settings. Green roof vegetation helps by cooling the air, slowing air movement and acting as a substrate for pollution to settle out and detoxify.
Noise ReductionPlants, soil, and air trapped in the soil are great acoustic insulators.  Tests indicate that green roofs can reduce indoor sound by as much as 40 decibels, which is of great benefit to occupants of buildings affected by airports, industry, trains and traffic.
Fire PreventionSucculent green roof plants help reduce the risk of fire.
Water Conservation/Reduction of Storm Water RunoffThe soil in green roof systems acts like a sponge and absorbs excess rain water.  Research has shown that extensive green roof systems can reduce runoff by up to 90+% annually.
Green roofs reduce the impact of each new building on the municipal storm drainage system and surrounding watershed. They reduce flooding, erosion and artificial heating of water which helps preserve fisheries and other aquatic life. When combined with an effective rain garden, green roofs can make it possible to have zero discharge of rainwater from the site, therefore saving money by not having to connect to the storm sewer system.
Green roofs filter water prior to returning it to the aquifer. They buffer acid rain and remove nitrate pollution as water slowly percolates through the soil. What runoff remains will usually occur hours after peak flows, providing additional time for sewer systems to handle the runoff burden from impervious surfaces. 
Habitat RecreationPlants and soil help recreate habitat for butterflies, insects, and songbirds.

 

These photos are examples of green roof technology being put into practice. As I stated before I am not concerned about the function of green roofs, but the design and concept. My building will have a green roof and similar designs like these.

Solar Water Heating

As a stated before and will most likely mention again in my future blog post's my structure has to be powered by the most sustainable and clean energy possible, that will do no harm to the environment in releasing green house gases. So I did some research in solar water heating which is really interesting and I found out that their needs to be a storage tank for the water, a solar collector, and a wire that would generate heat to the storage tank. The storage tank should be black because that will absorb the most heat. Then the system should be located on the roof's or places in high altitude so one can get the highest solar efficiency. I'm too concerned with the functionality of the solar water heater because my project is designing a structural model. Even in reality architect focus on the design of buildings and then it is the engineers job to determine how everything will function properly according to the architects design.

The nice think about solar water heating is that their in no pumping is required as the hot water naturally rises into the tank through thermosiphon flow. In a pump circulated system the storage tank is ground or floor mounted and is below the level of the collectors; a circulating pump moves water or heat transfer fluid between the tank and the collectors. Also if the storage is insulated properly that means that water will remain warm for a longer period of time. 

Passive Solar

A major concept I thought about when designing my building was energy efficiency. A renewable energy I took advantage of is solar. However, this solar energy does not require the use of any mechanical or electrical devices. In passive solar building design, windows, walls, and floors are made to collect, store, and distribute solar energy in the form of heat in the winter and reject solar heat in the summer. So in the winter when the sun is low one would want their windows directly facing the sun for heat to be transferred. In the summer when the sun is higher up in altitude one would want to block the sunlight entering through the windows to avoid heating.

This diagram shows the different angle of the sun during the seasons due to earth's rotational axis.

How did I apply this to my building you ask?  Well I made my walls thicker to apply more insulation so  in the summer time the cold air is being condensed to stay cool and blocked from leaving the building. In the winter time the extra thickness gives more protection from the cold air transferring into the building and hot air from coming out. Then on every floor I was able to make a roof above the window so the passive solar concept can be applied. 

Seven Observations on Learning

WISE
Seven Observation on Learning

    1. “No product of the human mind can be legitimately damned, praised, or discarded until it has been allowed a preliminary hearing. There is neither safety nor salvation in ignorance.” This exemplifies that there are going to be different type of people in college with different beliefs. It is your choice on how you want to view the beliefs, but the most important lesson is to listen to their ideas first and learn from. This shows a valuable characteristics in humans is to respect each other and forget about their differences because the most important thing is to learn from one another. Also important in college on how one interacts with people due to diversity.

    2. “The procedures by which one gains knowledge are often unavoidably difficult, frustrating, and tedious... If it were, the world would be full of learned people.” I agree with this statement because learning is a very difficult process and if it was easy one would not have to teach because the world would be full of intelligent people. However, that is not the case, even though a teacher may make it easier, but it is up to the individual to decide what they do with their knowledge. That is why one must find different ways to learn to fit one's satisfaction of getting a complete result.

    3. “What you hear in the classroom can and should provide you with the foundation of knowledge, but the edifice you erect upon those stones is your own responsibility, and that edifice should tower far above its foundations.” The educators will provide you with the knowledge to proceed onto the next step, but it is up to the individual to decide what they do with that knowledge. People learn in differently but the material they receive is the same. Also you should not follow other knowledge and paths instead take the knowledge provided for you and use it in your own way so you can become successful.

Visit to Holt Architecture

    The other day I took the oppurtunity to visit an architecture firm because I was having trouble with my project. I was not able to figure out how to build a physical model nor the material to use for my mixed use building. Soooo here is the story.
I parked my car on some street not knowing whether it was legal, but I put some coins in a metal poll assuming it will be alright. Then I left searching for an aesthetic building that would resemble modern architecture to make it easier for people like me to find an architecture firm. However, walking on North Aurora St. does not provide that instead I saw an inconsistent array of street numbers and buildings without numbers. Finally I found the Holt Architecture building: nothing special it was cold inside, but it looked like a normal grey building. The secretary was curious why I was here and probably wondered "what's this kid doing here, ah s*** he is walking towards me, hopefully he is not trying to sell me something." I told her that I was looking for some assistance and advise on my architecture project, assuming I came to the right place. She told me to sit down and Eric will come down to talk to me. I thought it was interesting that Eric had to come down instead of me coming to Eric, like I had to be approved first before I would be allowed into the lair. Eric is a very nice guy and a craft designer he invited me into their work offices, where I can meet this guy ( can't remember his name but he graduated from Cornell as an architect and looked fairly young ), whom would be able to assist me more. The guy was busy working on a design with his co workers so Eric told me to have a seat and wait for him. During this time Eric and I had a very nice conversation about my wise project and architecture in general. So the "guy" was done with his previous work and took the time to talk to me. I told him that I am having problems with building a physical model and I do not know what material to use. He showed me some of their models that look extremely good and persistent with their design. They were all made out of chip board, foam board, very little plastic if needed, and their business card. The business card is biodegradable and has a 2 inch ruler engraved on the card. Me being an environmental activist was just blown away by the business card; absolutley fascinating. I wish I took some pictures of the models. Furthermore, he told me I can get the material from the CornellStore that has a specfic section for architect majors. Also he told me the scale of my model should be determined by the amount of detail it has and from a perspective of how good it will look by the size. When he was showing a model of a hospital he couldn't remember where it was built so he asked his colegous, but they had no idea, so they got into a little curious arguement wondering what that project was for. They called it an incomplete project ( they laughed ). I was amused because that arguement started because of me. He also showed me this really cool model of a green roof being built on the Cayuga Medical Center. I was greatful for the adventure to Holt because I got to see what real architect's do during the day, successful in solving my problem, and they invited to come back if I would experience any problems.