a study of land and water
j g nguyen
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table of contents 05 : abstract 06 14 22 32
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framing supporting locating referencing
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recorded data 09. 11. 2014 17:15 version_2 art + architecture building studio_4th floor knoxville, tn
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: abstract once upon a time, climate became earth’s architect... The intention of this research is to study the different accomodations possible to address the potential issue of our water becoming Earth’s new “ground” and our sky soon after. Time in cases like this is an illusion and the diminishing of our land is seen almost as an hallucination. Familiarity with water at this force and speed is a foreign concept that needs to become established as a way of living.
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Studies have shown that our sea levels are gradually rising as a result of climate change. The rise in our oceans eventually causes our geography to shift and presumably be submerged in water. All that naturally grows on Earth begin to detiorate and all that the people have built begin to drown. Because of the large time frame given between now and then in correlation with these occurences, humans do not tend to psychologically accept this slow and quiet evolution.
10. 13. 2014 21:41
The current region closest to addressing these issues is that of the coast. Coastal cities remains to be the most vicitimized region of the Earth.
F.02_ USCS Map of the Louisiana, Mississipp Coast, New Orleans, MSLA Coast, Geograhicus
same building same floor same city, state F.01_ mintpressnews.com
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recorded data He spies a house standing isolated in the middle of the sea and he wonders. His mind simultaneously draws a path that was once above water as his boat rocks steady atop the same water. Where did the pillars use to be? How tall was it?
09. 20. 2014 13:02
Where are the people?
same building same floor same city, state
Like our land, we disappear.
F.03_ farm.8.stateflickr.com F.04: exposureguide.com
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recorded data “Climate sculpts the surface of the Earth. Our planet has many naked faces: naked mountains and desert emptiness on the one hand, and an inviting, lush palette of life-supporting vegetation on the other. The ability of early humans to adapt to extreme climate conditions was their key to survival. The rise of civilization accelerated human development opening new bridges through conquest, trade, and culture. Culture supplanted nature. The industrial overprint during the last century raises the question: are we the masters or guests of our planet?� _Ulrich Schotterer
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09. 28. 2014 16:25 same building same floor same city, state F.05_ somerset, england F.06_ delta region, mississippi F.07_ ipswich, massachusetts
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recorded data 08. 24. 2014 18:00 same building same floor same city, state F.08_ new york city F.09_ source unknown
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recorded data For centuries, residents around Can Tho, a city of 1.1m people in southern Vietnam, just 0.8m above sea level, have depended on flood cycles to grow crops. However, experts warn there is a possibility that sea levels will rise in the delta region around Can Tho due to climate change, causing devastating floods that will displace millions and destroy those crops.
10. 13. 2014 18:28 same building same floor same city, state F.12_ dailymail.uk.com F.11_ floodlist.com
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recorded data Rising sea levels are an obvious problem for the canal-laden city of Venice, Italy, which is threatened with increased flooding as climate change pushes the waterline farther and farther up. And now, scientists have found that the flooding problems are being exacerbated by the entire city’s gradual sinking.
10. 13. 2014 18:28 same building same floor same city, state
The city is actually sinking into the water at a rate of about 2 mil F.12_ nationalgeographic.com F.11_ citylab.com/weather
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recorded data Sea level is by no means “level.� Not only are there small changes in the geoid (the gravitational equipotential surface), the sea itself does not conform to the geoid because of winds and currents, tides and storms. These geographical variations are in addition to the constant fluctuations caused by the exchange of water between land, oceans, ice, and atmosphere, and of course the changes wrought by global warming.
10. 13. 2014 18:28 same building same floor same city, state climatecentral.org F.14_ san francisco bay, california F.15_ miami, florida F.16_ new haven, connecticut
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recorded data 09.29. 2014 17:27 same building same floor same city, state F.12_ kinderdijk, netherlands. province of south holland
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recorded data The delta is where the Mekong River divides into nine channels after a 5,000km journey from the Tibetan plateau. It is “particularly susceptible” to sea-level rises, says Alex de Sherbinin, a senior research associate at the Columbia University Center. A 1m sea-level rise is “definitely within the bounds” of happening this century, he told IRIN. A 2m sea-level rise, however, is less likely.
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11.10. 2014 18:26 same building same floor same city, state F.18_ site at Hue, Vietnam
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the procedures F.20 F. 20_ healthy rice field F.21_ damaged rice field Flood the paddy Pull out all the floating paddy weeds and dump them on the dike to dry Empty the paddy with an engine or scoop Dig small channels in the mud to help dry the field Clean the paddy walls of old growth Plow the paddy twice with a pair of water buffalo Smooth out the paddy so that its absolutely flat and therefore evenly moist Dig and fertilize rice seedling beds along one side of the field germinate the rice for 48 hours. Plant rice in seedling beds After rice is 4-6 inches tall, pull it up, bundle it, and carry it out into the main fields. Dry rice in the sun Thresh rice to separate it from the husks Winnow rice to remove the husks Store in a dry place.
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recorded data 11.10. 2014 18:26 same building same floor same city, state F.18_ economic study F.19_ ethnic study F.20_ population study F.21_ vegetation study
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recorded data 09.29. 2014 17:27 same building same floor same city, state F.--
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the beauty of overcoming an obstacle is the ability to first adapt to the uncomfortable.
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recorded data courtenay: It is well suited for such broken and turbulent waters, as the rougher the sea the louder its sound. It is a curious fact that, in proportion as they are useful to the mariner, they are obnoxious to the house dweller within earshot of them. They can at times be heard 15 miles, and emit an inexpressibly mournful and saddening sound. brown: As the buoy rolls on the sea, this ball rolls on the plate, striking some side of the bell at each motion with such force as to cause it to toll. Like the whistling-buoy, the bell-buoy sounds the loudest when the sea is the roughest, but the bell-buoy is adapted to shoal water, where the whistling-buoy could not ride; and, if there is any motion to the sea, the bell-buoy will make some sound..
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11.05. 2014 21:21 golden roast cafe bar area facing southeast drink_ london fog tea knoxville, tn F.23_ courtenay buoy F.24_ brown buoy
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recorded data A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and used as a navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mark dangerous coastlines, hazardous shoals, reefs, safe entries to harbors, and can also assist in aerial navigation. Once widely used, the number of operational lighthouses has declined due to the expense of maintenance and replacement by modern electronic navigational systems such as strobes.
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11.05. 2014 21:36 golden roast cafe bar area facing southeast drink_ london fog tea knoxville, tn F.25_student project, Ole Miss F.26_ lighthouses, google.com
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recorded data The intent of the project is to create an architecture that augments nature: that explores Architecture as Supernature. Through investigating the potentials offered by a changing world, the project strives to embrace climate change as inevitable, and seeks to investigate the positive opportunities created by it. “Lohachara” refers to a small Indian island that disappeared beneath the rising seas a decade ago. The narrative of the project adopts these “first refugees of global warming” as the inhabitants and missionaries of the new city.
11.05. 2014 20:41 laurel hall residence 11th floor dining table knoxville, tn F.27_ kirsty badenoch, aarhus school of architecture, project entitled new lohachara the [super] natural F.28_ http://www.presidentsmedals. com/Entry-32641, elevation
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recorded data The “Coastal Caretakers” project envisions a system of vertical structures—the future remainders of abandoned and flooded elevated highways, bridges, and train trestles—equipped with nets cast to capture the sediment deposits of rivers. Over time, the collected sediment deposits would be layered, treated, planted, and then re-deposited to form barrier islands and initiate the regrowth of the coastal plain as a storm-proofer for the five communities. The infrastructure would remain in place and caretakers would be responsible for maintaining and caring for the shoreline plain.
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11.05. 2014 20:56 same residence same floor same table same city and state F.29_ the coastal caretakers, student project, UCLA
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recorded data deep green fields of rice floating on a reflected sky. measuring time and change. finding ways to live in the daily in-between. scientist-farmers revelling in the wash of earth and water / small hands make marks, time as small as grains of rice, tides as tall as pieces of sky / the constant tide makes me think we’re the ones crashing into the ocean. i hope dr. maynard brings back the samples /
12.09.2014 11:05
the rise and fall. rocking like a cradle in the arms of the sea / fades in: from beneath the water a buoy floats beneath the sun. from a distant window a child watches the bouy sway with the tides / water. the fountain for life? no. water, the reaper of death / isn’t it funny how as kids we build sand castles to withstand the power of the sea even though, inevitably, we know it will succumb to its tides /
different sound: christmas joy
safe from our perch above, we gased at the land that was soon to be sea / a moment. when your ears get clogged in the shower. and you travel to a barn you have seen. and you hear the rain on your head from within / low tide. ice water at the windowsill. people going about their daily routine / do we stop the water or do we stop the cause of the water / rice, machines, memories / with each motion of the waves against the shore, a little less land remains. sometimes it seems like the sea only takes from us-one of the most fearsome forces in the world / the evening tides rushes forth without haste upon higher ground, only to meet the long shadows of the setting sun. and .
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same residence same floor same table same city and state
F.30 a sketch, j.nguyen -different vision: a scientist a farmer a writer an engineer a dreamer one boat one lighthouse one study one library one research lab
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to be continued . . .