The Ordinary Phenomenon: From Natural Disasters to Natural Occurrences

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THE ORDINARY PHENOMENON

FROM N AT U R A L D I S A S T E R S TO N AT U R A L O C C U R R E N C E S

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THE ORDINARY PHENOMENON

FROM N AT U R A L D I S A S T E R S TO N AT U R A L O C C U R R E N C E S

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PART 01: THESIS POSITION

PART 02: THESIS PROPOSAL abstract.................................................09 theoretical foundation...............................10 design speculation...................................12 terms of criticism.....................................13 methodologies........................................14

_ vernacular symbiosis

_ adaptive construction methods

project parameters...................................19

_ site as condition: NAPA drought

fluctuating sea levels seismic activity program................................................27 _drought program objectives

water as a precious resource landscape remediation

use of technology

_ fluctuating sea levels program objectives vernacular symbiosis

adaptive construction methods

the function of community

_ seismic activity program objectives

design as prevention users....................................................33 conclusion.............................................35 work plan + schedule..............................36

CONT

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PART 03: DESIGN

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PART 04: CREDITS drought..................................................41

_ preliminary

_ community

_ individual fluctuating sea levels................................53

_ preliminary

_ community

_ individual seismic activity........................................65

_ preliminary

_ community

_ individual reflection upon final review........................77

end notes..............................................81 bibliography............................................83 image references.....................................85

TENTS

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THESIS POSITION

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THE ORDINARY PHENOMENON: F R O M T O

N AT U R A L

N AT U R A L

DISASTERS

OCCURRENCES

We are a responsive collective who can learn from the past, but occasionally forget to.

There are physical, material, as well as cultural implications of not adapting architecture to an adapting planet.

Whether some believe that the number of natural disasters are steady, increasing, or decreasing, the fact remains that it is not uncommon for modern construction to stray from a sensitivity to context (physical and intangible, permanent and temporal), resulting in an architecture that is unprepared and incompetent against nature.

Additionally, a notion persists that man and nature relate as contradicting figures, that this is a ‘versus’ interaction.

There is a developing logic that seeks not for a cureall technological fix, but rather for a more collaborative, symbiotic approach to how modern construction can be designed smarter, more cost-efficient and aware.

For example, a series of inhabitable structures can become snow fences to prevent avalanches, they can be designed for maximal implementation of passive systems in environments, however mundane or extreme, and they can certainly provide for optimal survival circumstances.

Combining innovative tactics with an existing knowledge base (modern and vernacular) concerning the relationship between humans and extreme weather, architecture can serve as a collaboration between the two, in order to prevent a scenario in which people ultimately lose resources, homes and lives, and work towards changing

the phrase ‘natural disasters’ to ‘natural occurrences.’

The idea of home can be reconstructed in this context as a widely common small construction, one that is an inherent necessity of daily life.

This is a serious proposal with a sense of optimism, a communicated lightness that does not subtract from its pragmatic intention. Not to be viewed as a mission to save the world from itself, or as a proposal heralding on the shoulders of sustainability, this design proposal acts as an elevated peace of mind for house and home, and an enhancement to its surroundings.

The land no longer is something that should be filled, or have something placed on it, in it, but rather becomes a part of the architecture becomes a part of the land; a revised context, improved even. This built contribution anticipates an elongated lifespan, and the changes that come along with the aging of the earth, through a structure that allows for alteration in its physicality and its program.

The objective is to design a series of single-family homes, each designed for a particular site, natural event and culture. Factors such as the form, orientation, material, height, depth, construction method and program, all call to be modified accordingly per the specified occurrence.

The homes call for an evolution in traditional construction methods, that not only withstands existing weather conditions, but also enhances them through temporary, reactive or preventative structures.

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THEORETICAL FOUNDATION “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.”

Charles Robert Darwin, Naturalist. 1

It seems as if we are at war with nature sometimes.

Yearly, hurricane conditions produce scrawled messages on flooded buildings proclaiming man’s perseverance against this commonly personified phenomenon, enough to implement human nomenclature as fitting. When things don’t quite go our way, ‘nature’ becomes a personified villain of sorts. A notion persists that man and nature relate as contradicting figures, and in turn, we have learned to rely on construction methods that haven’t adapted in decades, insurance policies that are retracted when companies realize that there is money to be lost, and insufficient and ineffective disaster relief.2 There is a detectable increase in the frequency and strength of extreme weather conditions, in correlation with rising temperatures, indicating the messages won’t stop making their appearances. 3 As an ecosystem with a lot of elements in balance, the interrelated combination of increased carbon dioxide gases, an eroding ozone and rising temperatures support a more volatile weather system that call to be responded to accordingly.4 Weather’s constant is that it will always be changing, unpredictable to an extent and unforgiving at times. The John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture has deemed there to be six nonlinear categories concerning the relationship between weather and man, such as mythology, theory, measurement, understanding, forecasting, and controlling. 5 As communities continue to receive a battering from harsh weather, putting resources, home, and lives at considerable risk, a balanced ideology of ‘understanding’ and ‘forecasting’ is encouraged, as it

benefits no one to see nature as an opponent, but rather an opportunity of inhabitable symbiosis, if sought out.

Faced with whatever debatable environmental effect man has had on planet earth to alter conditions like so, the practical response is to flow with the changes.

Complete reliance on technological cure-alls demonstrate a resistance and unwillingness to utilise what we already know from previous vernacular architecture about how to respond to context and conditions, and simply do not take advantage of the potential innovation and advancement of architecture within these challenging circumstances.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2007 commented on the preparedness of North America in relation to intensifying weather conditions: “Population growth and the rising value of infrastructure in coastal areas increase vulnerability to climate variability and future climate change, with losses projected to increase if the intensity of tropical storms increases.

Current adaptation is uneven and readiness for increased exposure is low.” 6 This does not have to be an invariable truth. The objective is to draw from available knowledge of weather (past, present and future) and context-aware vernacular design to propose an evolution of the construction process that could contribute changing the phrase ‘natural disasters’ to ‘natural occurrences’. We could take something considered a formidable phenomenon, and make it an ordinary part of our lives.

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The question remains as to why we continue to build in high risk areas, whether located in temperature extremes (deserts), areas with frequent earthquake activity, coastal areas reliably destroyed every hurricane season, among other dire challenges provided by mother nature.

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| A Message to the Storm, San Diego Humane Society and SPCA,

2008. flickr.

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| “May 2011.” Teens Read and Write. Web. 19 Sept. 2011.

In the days after Hurricane Katrina departed New Orleans, flawed levy systems failed to serve their purpose and led to a disastrous amplification of the ramifications. Eighty percent of the city was flooded, and neighborhoods like the Lower Ninth Ward were hit especially hard. 7 The extent of the damage led to some speculation whether the area should be rehabilitated or abandoned, as similar events were anticipated in the future as well. The idea alone is ridiculous, but as Brad Pitt articulated, ‘…in actuality this argument was simply a response to the price tag of fixing it — fifty billion dollars in damages, eleven billion dollars to correct the levees, the need to re-establish the wetlands… the question was not should we rebuild, but how do we rebuild.’ 8 The answer is that despite a monetary aversion to saving the city, there was a cultural value at stake along with the fact that New Orleans was home and history for generations of inhabitants. Relocation of an entire city was not a viable, or even practical option.

San Francisco’s citizens will continue to cope with earthquakes. Japan will continue to survive tsunamis.

Hawaii will continue to keep an eye on its volcanoes. Venice will respond to rising sea levels sooner than most. And New Orleans will certainly face more hurricanes. However, a more optimistic take on the damage that occurred already and still affects the city, is that New Orleans can start anew and more prepared this round. Brad Pitt’s Make It Right foundation proposes ‘innovative houses that support the local economy, reduce dependency on foreign oil, and minimize impacts on Greenhouse Gas emissions…[Additionally] the Make It Right houses cost less in utilities and are more disaster-resistant than preKatrina structures. They are healthier to live in and leave minimal ecological footprints.’ 9 The Make It Right homes exemplify a ‘pragmatic utopianism’ that functions not as an abandonment of the previous constructions, but an advancement or revision

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| Make It Right Proposal, Kieran Timberlake.

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that moves to create homesteads for healthier, safer families. 10 Taking this example as an initial model, the proposal is to reconstruct the idea of home in a fashion that responds to extreme weather conditions (along with ordinary conditions) in thoughtful ways, utilizing the advantages of context, program, available technology, while keeping in mind affordability and accessibility for the very audience it was meant for.

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DESIGN

S P E C U L AT I O N Our current dependency on infrastructure and technology has enabled us to omit natural conditions from architecture as a vital consideration for design, though not without its repercussions. This refusal to acknowledge a natural limit has lead to scenarios in which communities have developed an excess in ecological debt and are failing to adjust to newer climatic conditions, when in fact the response to such limits can yield healthier, safer and more sustainable homes. 11 The intention is to cultivate a symbiosis between what we know about existing weather conditions and how the construct of home can be transformed in a way that accepts the fact that erratic weather conditions are increasing in frequency, intensity, and impact. 12 In pursuance of a range of methods of achieving the security of home within volatility, six ecological conditions were initially proposed and then narrowed down to three conditions as an achievable set of elements to examine.

Drought, fluctuating sea levels and seismic activity conditions are considered within the frame of adaptive construction methods, vernacular knowledge, development through time, and geological data. The three concepts of home, each sited to their particular condition, will be designed as a universal type that allows the architecture to focus on its efficacy within the conditions.

They should be prepared to develop as conditions change and allow for duplication, modification, customization and adaptation. Essentially, each home should be malleable in function, in opposition to inflexible, rigid construction.

Challenges include the integration of lifestyles associated with certain conditions, along with the idea of development within an individual unit and how it begins to relate as a community of units. Additionally, the premise of the new construction in these scenarios implies that the proposals need to be easy to construct, implement, activate, and modify, as well as be viable financially for the individual in afflicted areas.

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| Beauty of Dubai, Christopher Wilson.

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| Landform Building, Stan Allen.

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TERMS

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CRITICISM

How does the built form exist within a landscape and function as a truly symbiotic proposal, as opposed to parasitic?

The design of the three proposal function at various scales: the detail, the inhabited space, the context, and development through time. It is absolutely impossible to build a home in a place without any relation to its context, whether intentional or unintentional. So why not build with purpose and awareness? The land no longer is something that is built upon and the home is no longer something that is embedded or supported. It is essential that the function of the home is integrated into its context and that the symbiotic relationship is not just an aesthetic one. 13

How does the geological information inform the appearance and function of new construction in a way that is program-efficient and cost-efficient?

After forming a collection of analysis concerning geological data that is relevant to the three conditions of focus, this information can begin to shape the structure aerodynamically, hydrodynamically, and structurally, in order to best handle conditions of ground, wind, and water.

‘Landform building is less interested in the imitation of natural form and more interested in new programmatic possibilities that are opened up by the creation of artificial terrains. Landform building favors program, process, and affect over formal similarity.’ 14

What is the extent of practicality concerning cost, building methods, building life, etc.?

Ultimately, the purpose of this particular design is to provide optimal living conditions and peace of mind for

not miss the innovative solutions that may not come so easily and so straightforward, but can be evermore exciting and reliable.

‘At a time when questions of environment and sustainability dominate public discussion of the field, landform building can suggest a productive new approach to sustainability and enhanced environmental performance in which architectural form - rather than technological fixes - can play an active role...Landform building takes full advantage of the opportunities afforded by emerging fabrication, building, and envelope technologies to construct new, man-made environments. Although drawing on a diverse range of expertise, landform building is conceived as a technical problem within architecture.’ 15

This thesis aims to explore the following questions:

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| Extreme Scenario Water Level, Chris Bodle, 2009.

the individual that resides within a high-risk area. The idea is to balance design advancement, ease of construction and attainability. In order to achieve this, new and older, reliable technologies will be considered, along with modular/pre-fabricated options, and locally available materials. Building life depends on the circumstance, as in some scenarios, a mobile architecture with frequently replaceable natural elements may make sense, while in other circumstances, a rooted system with more durable elements may be more appropriate.

How much of a role does technology play before it becomes a crutch in the design?

Referring to the previous inquiry, it becomes pretty clear that there is an extent to which technology should be used. If we’re talking about attainability, but a structure requires a fabric that costs $200 per square foot, it is not a viable option for the proposal. If a vernacularly-inspired structure located in the middle of the desert requires a specially designed metal joint from the United Kingdom, the time, transportation and cost involved makes it a ridiculous choice. Utilizing the advantages of technology is not a negative thing, however, one must take care to

What are future projections for currently hazardous sites?

This inquiry is concerned with the development of the proposals over time and what ‘development’ means to each of them. Do they connect to other units, do they change function as their context changes, do they become more solid, do they grow upwards, outwards, how do they change from day to night, season to season, year to year, era to era? Conditions may be extreme now, but if they get worse, how can the proposal be modified to handle it?

The image presents an installation done through the WATERMARKS Collective, that aims to bring awareness to what the future conditions very well may be. They project water levels that are based on scientific data provided in 2005 by UK Climate Projections of possible extreme water levels that vary depending on the topography of each area. The WATERMARKS Collective takes care to mention that the projections are ‘only as accurate as the data on which they are based - and this data is in a constant state of flux and highly contested.’

The installations were displayed throughout the UK in 2005 and suggested flooding conditions due to warmer climates and in the likelihood that the Western Antarctic Ice Sheet would disperse into the ocean, possibly raising sea levels by about 16 feet. 16

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M E T H O D O L O G I E S | VERNACULAR SYMBIOSIS

Structure that exhibits symbiotic/vernacular methods of ‘place’.

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| Designs on a Delta, KHOJ.

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| The Living Building, KHOJ.

KHOJ’s project Designs on a Delta are placed within the context of deltaic islands in West Bengal. The site is vulnerable to cyclones and tidal inundations. Continuing to utilize locally available materials, KHOJ develops an updated vernacular that continues to respond to the daily climatic conditions of a hot and humid area, but additionally shapes how one enters and inhabits home.

KHOJ is also responsible for the development of a smallscale construction, originally located in Bangalor, India, which now has been relocated to another neighborhood within the same city and expanded upon. Seen as a social, environmental and technical endeavor among a group of individuals with varying backgrounds, the Living Building is exemplary of the Jaaga (translated as “space” in English) collaboration. The structure consists of palette rack shelving, a vertical garden, and a roof terrace. The vertical garden serves as acoustic insulation between the interior and the busy road nearby, while solar cells sustain approximately 80% of the building’s energy requirements.

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| Happisburgh, Norfolk England. Pruned.

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| The Retreating Village. Smout Allen.

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| ADAPTIVE CONSTRUCTION METHODS

How new construction can integrate with existing conditions and how architecture can flex as opposed to exist as an inflexible, rigid construction.

Mobility appears to be an option in case of a predictably disastrous natural occurrence as a historically low-cost alternative in housing, vernacular functionality, and the ability to escape harsh conditions entirely. 18 THE RETREATING VILLAGE Smout and Allen utilize this strategy in response to coastal erosion in the town of Happisburgh in North Norfolk.

Rather than thinking of mobility as a ‘fleeing’ tactic, the Retreating Village project demonstrates an ability to adjust, latch on and flex, in accordance with the changing landscape. Here a series of homes exist on concrete skids that allow for mobilization of the homes through a system of anchors, ground beams, rails, pulleys and wenches. The element of time plays an important role in the overall design.

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‘…[W]e see the temporal nature of occupation as an additional tactic in our firm’s multivalent strategy of sustainability, which includes modernist architectural interventions and upgrading of outdated systems, thereby reducing the embodied energy necessary in new construction.’

Six main elements were designed for the Loblolly house, which may consider itself to a universal type construction.

It consists of structural scaffolding, smart cartridges, dumb cartridges, blocks, fixtures and equipment, all of which can be selected in terms of number, quality, and veneer, allowing this system to be cost-efficient, construction efficient, and program-efficient. The system also allows for disassembly and reassembly elsewhere if necessary, omitting the need for a new home when one must relocate. 20

‘Settlements are organic and constantly changing. Villages have prospered, declined and migrated to new sites for a wide variety of social, cultural and economic reasons as they have responded to changing conditions.’ T. Rowley and J. Wood in their publication Deserted Villages. 19 LOBLOLLY HOUSE Designed by Kieran Timberlake Architects with what they call ‘eventual emigration in mind’, the Loblolly House utilizes an aluminum frame construction that allows for prefabricated envelope elements that are easily customizable. The firm’s view of how new construction should be designed fits easily alongside the aims of this thesis.

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| Loblolly House in Construction. Kieran Timberlake.

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THESIS PROPOSAL

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| Site Condition Studies_(clockwise from top right) Drought, Avalanche, Alluvial Plains, Rising Sea Levels, Island Tsunami, Urban Coastline conditions.

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PA R A M E T E R S

| SITE AS CONDITION Site is undeclared, undiscovered. The proposals are sited to a set of conditions, maintaining a universal type that allows the architecture to focus on its function within the conditions. The three sets of conditions aforementioned are a drought condition, a fluctuating sea levels condition, and a seismic activity condition. The proposals may be driven by flexibility or by scarcity or by mobility, among other things, and ultimately seek to create a space in which home and context are integral in their relationship.

In addition to a design sited within condition, the proposals should be sited within need and circumstance. In order to develop a sensibility concerning what sites may need attention, it was necessary to look at what infrastructures are currently implemented as a reaction to a rapidly changing condition, and how built form can be borne of it.

LDC Expert Group is primarily responsible for the organization and implementation of the National Adaptation Programmes of Action (NAPA), which formed to support least developed countries to generate a plan to help organize and maintain sustainable interventions within the country. The forty-six countries that have agreed to participate in NAPA are eligible to receive funding from the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) in order to implement their specific plan.

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NAPA defines their approach to adaptation as the following:

‘Adaptation to climate change is defined as human-driven adjustments in ecological, social or economic systems in response to actual or expected climate stimuli and their effects or impacts.

Each of these systems has multiple levels and components that cascade multiple temporal and spatial scales, often interacting with each other in complex ways. The adjustments and interventions can thus be at any appropriate entry point in these interacting multi-disciplinary and multi-scaled systems.

Further, adaptive capacity then refers to the potential or ability of a system (social, ecological, economic, or an integrated system such as a region or community) to minimise the effects or impacts of climate change, or to maximise the benefit from positive effects of climate change.

Adaptation can take the form of activities designed to enhance the adaptive capacity of the respective system, or actions that modify socioeconomic and environmental systems to avoid or minimize the damage caused by climate change. Methods for achieving these include implementing new activities that are exclusively in response to climate change, or the modification of existing activities to make them more resilient to future climate change risks (climate-proofing).’ 21

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| NAPA Implementation Strategy, LDC Expert Group.

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Weather conditions that NAPA vulnerabilities for countries are:

considers

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_Drought and unpredictable rainfall _Floods

_Spread of wate`r-borne and vector-borne

diseases

_Loss of forest and wetland ecosystems

_Land degradation and desertification

_Scarcity of potable water

_Decentralised adaptation efforts

_Coastal erosion

_Saltwater intrusion

_Natural disasters (storms, cyclones, hurricanes)

_Loss of marine fish stocks

_Loss of marine ecosystems 22

Also included within the Step-by-step Guide for Implementing National Adaptation Programmes of Action, are explicitly stated adaptation goals:

_Agriculture and Food Security: Achieve and safeguard food security _Water Resources: Achieve and safeguard water security and sanitation _Physical Safety: Protecting life and property against climatic extremes and disasters including along low-lying and coastal areas _Protecting livelihoods and enhancing adaptive capacity _Climate Proofing major components of national economies and Sustainable Development

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[Climate proofing the socioeconomic growth engine] _Supporting and enhancing Human Health and Safety _Protecting and enhancing ecosystem structure and function for sustainable provision of Ecosystem Goods and Services including land use _Climate proofing Renewable Energy Sources and Supplies _Protecting and preserving Cultural Values and Cultural Systems _Protecting and improving the design of Critical Infrastructure and Land Use Planning 23

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DROUGHT CONDITION This is the day-to-day architecture driven by scarcity and by the anticipation of a deluge. This condition exhibits arid and extreme diurnal temperature characteristics, with bouts of precipitation that result in flash flooding (that can also serve as a source of potable water), the possibility of dust storms, inconsistent water sources, lack of vegetation, and is an exposed flat land that provides little shade. The architecture is part of a migratory settlement in search of better food sources, water sources, and communal sources. The proposal does not actively encourage cultural change, but perhaps may lead to encouragement of long-term settlement with the readily available option of relocation. It accepts the water and the sun and allows for an oasis.

Drought conditions can bear a variety of soils such as sand, gravel, silt and clay, though there are two primary soil makeups that are commonly found, named calcic horizons and clay-rich horizons.

Calcic horizons are whitish layers of calcium carbonate that can appear either on the surface of the soil or as a thick deposit 25 centimeters or more below the soil surface. When the calcic horizon reaches a density in which little to no water infiltration can occur, it is called caliche. This is one scenario in which flash floods become a possibility due to the impermeability of the soil.

Clay-rich horizons are also called argillic horizons, and they can be up to 1 1/2 feet thick when moist. During dry spells, these horizons become brick-like. This also creates a scenario in which flash floods become a possibility. 24 The areas highlighted in white and grey on the map (opposite page), are desert conditions and are at a higher risk for flash floods with the exception of some of the northern regions. 25

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| Soil Layer Diagrams.

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FLUCTUATING SEA LEVELS CONDITION Fluctuating sea levels presents itself as another area of concern, particularly in humid climates, in which populated coastlines must worry about flooding due to tides, surges, and rising sea levels, along with subsidence of soil, lack of freshwater, contamination of stagnant waters, and the encroachment of wild life and insect-borne diseases.

This condition is not necessarily an exposed oceanic coastline, but considers many of the same qualities.

Communities located upriver, or in a delta also must deal with winds, flooding, stagnant water in the weeks after, theft, water sanitation, wildlife (snakes, crocodiles, etc.), and lack of a freshwater source.

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| Total Annual Rainfall, World Climate Maps.

SEISMIC ACTIVITY CONDITION The scenario for the seismic activity condition occurs within a temperate climate and suffers from structural damage. Proposed to be designed within an existing building fabric, this condition takes into consideration the effected dangers of urbanity when infrastructure, pipe connections and community are disturbed. The site entails a response to the primary earthquake and the secondary reactions (flooding, leaks, fires, etc.).

Design considerations for building on a fault line have to deal with the quality of the ground of the foundation. A soft soil foundation will experience up to twice as much reverberation as the same home built on a more solid soil foundation. The three main categories of rock are sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous.

Sedimentary rocks are formed by the deposition of material at the Earth’s surface and within bodies of water. Before being deposited, sediment was formed by weathering and erosion in a source area, and then transported to the place of deposition by water, wind, mass movement, or glaciers which are called agents of

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denudation. Sedimentary rocks are only a thin veneer over a crust consisting mainly of igneous and metamorphic rocks.

Metamorphic rocks experience the transformation of an existing rock type when it is subjected to heat and pressure which causes significant physical and chemical change within the rock. This type can form from tectonic processes such as continental collisions, which cause horizontal pressure, friction and distortion.

Igneous rocks are formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or lava. 26 Another consideration for designing a structure that can withstand seismic activity, is to determine exactly what type of seismic activity it will be able to withstand. Here we have four types of behavior demonstrated between tectonic plates creating a divergent margin, a convergent margin (collision), convergent margin (subduction), and a transform fault margin.

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| Four Types of Plate Boundaries, NASA.

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The selected program is the reassessment of home, maintaining the efficiency of daily use and improving life quality, while addressing the inevitability of extreme geological conditions that endanger the occupants, their items and their lifestyle. The contemporary home requires innovation in order to maintain relevance in the natural context. Otherwise, nature moves quickly to render it obsolete through damage, destruction, or loss of site, rendering the structure unlivable. Innovation in this case implies that the built environment reacts to its conditional context, and optimizes this relationship.

In correlation with designing a relationship between the built and natural environment, the opportunity arises to shape the home in a way that is sensibly conducive to the occupant’s lifestyle, whether that lifestyle requires mobility, cover, or durability. Ideally, the updated home primarily sustains regular living conditions, and momentarily acts as a refuge in the divergence from the calm state.

The home experiences three stages of existence: implementation, development, and activation.

Implementation of the structure is essentially the construction/installation period, followed by development of the home through customization and allowing for any necessary adjustments. This ‘activation’ factor should be silently present at all times and serve its function without requiring a mechanical adjustment.

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| Coastal Condition Study.

| Above: Drought Condition Study. Below: Earthquake Condition Study.

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DROUGHT_PROGRAM OBJECTIVES _ concerned with water collection and storage _ accepts flash flooding and dust storm conditions _ provides shade for the occupant _ cultivates oasis conditions _ allows for mobility as a cultural factor _ a repeatable, modifiable unit that works with the culture of a nomadic collective community

DROUGHT_WATER AS A PRECIOUS RESOURCE | WATER, ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHALLENGES FACING THE U.S. WEST Dr. Stephanie Pinceti of UCLA’s Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, discusses California’s unique water infrastructure, unfound in other arid areas around the world. Her method of approach is that we are the ones who created these systems therefore we are responsible for advancing them in a manner that understands the difference between indoor and outdoor water use, increases opportunities for reinfiltration of water in the region to maintain and restore ground water resources, and effects climate appropriate landscaping to reduce water use outside. Her way of looking at water is that it is not simply a granted commodity, but rather a scarce resource. One example she gave was that gold gets reused and reappropriated over and over again because of its value, and we can take this mind set and apply it similarly to the way water is used in our communities. 27

DROUGHT_LANDSCAPE REMEDIATION | THE DIXON MACHINE As part of the Out of Water Project Collective (OWPC), the Dixon Machine was designed as a land-sensitive approach of the treatment of water in varying levels of aridity. Also, intended as a siteless project, the boundaries are simply arid / semi-arid / sub-humid climate conditions with varying annual precipitation. The strategy here is to texturize the landscape in a way that allows for redirection of rainwater, the collection of ‘windblown plant litter’, and the infiltration of pools into the soil. The anticipated effect is to prevent or lessen flash-floods through cultivating a healthy soil condition.28

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DROUGHT_USE OF TECHNOLOGY | POROUS SKIN

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| The Dixon Machine, Out of Water Project Collective.

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| Porous Skin, Out of Water Project Collective.

Another study developed by the OWPC is sited within Huambo, Angola and utilizes a thermally adaptive textile to mediate the relationship between structure and arid / semi-arid / sub-humid conditions. The annual precipitation is stated as 800-1600 mm. The program of the structure was viewed as a clinic for Doctors Without Borders. The smart skin was a membrane that self-adjusted in order to regulate air temperature, air moisture, and simultaneously collect water for potable use.29 Here, we begin to see the use of technology that isn’t necessarily common or available. Technology should definitely be taken advantage of, as it is a blight to ignore advancements, however it should not function as the crutch for a design, and ideally, construction of these proposals should be easy to construct and with local materials.

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FLUCTUATING SEA LEVELS_PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

FLUCTUATING SEA LEVELS_ THE FUNCTION OF COMMUNITY | BANGKOK, THAILAND

_ expects rising sea levels _ concerned with flooding and tsunami conditions _ provides safe conditions concerning wildlife and insectborne diseases _ integrates a freshwater collection system _ provides a dry community setting until the floodwaters recede. _ a repeatable, modifiable unit that may work within the context of a relocated, weather-resultant community of homes, that develop into permanent structures.

A news clip featured by CNN.com shed some light on the current conditions in Bangkok, Thailand after the recent massive flooding. An unanticipated use of large prefabricated cement forms have been reappropriated as temporary shelters by a community, which chose to move there as a collective. Members have relocated their televisions, pets, and personal belongings there to wait out the receding floods. Some of their major concerns as they wait, are food supply, water sanitation, wild predators (locals mentioned sightings of snakes and a crocodile), and theft. However, the move as a community lessens the fear of theft, and comforts individuals until they can return to their homes. 30

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FLUCTUATING SEA LEVELS_VERNACULAR SYMBIOSIS | A POST-DILUVIAN FUTURE Designed by the architects of Thai firm, S+PBA, this proposal addresses rising sea levels in Bangkok, by taking into consideration the methods utilized by the vernacular architecture of Koh Pan Yi, Thailand. All buildings there are supported on stilts approximately five feet above sea level and this proposal for Bangkok also equips new construction with stilted buildings perched above the growing sea level. The project has been nicknamed the “Wetropolis”, is constructed entirely from renewable materials, and exists as a city based on the premise of “flooding as a constant and not as a crisis.” 31 FLUCTUATING SEA LEVELS_ADAPTIVE CONSTRUCTION METHODS: LAB ZERO’S CARAPACE HOUSE

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| A Post-Diluvian Future. S+PBA.

23

| The Carapace House. Lab Zero.

Conceptualized to inhabit the shores of France’s coastline, the Carapace House rests lightly on three legs in order to minimize its footprint so as to avoid significant disturbance of the site. The structure features adaptable mechanisms such as mechanical cranes legs that adjust to the topography and a reactive glass that increases in opacity when exposed to direct sunlight for a certain period of time in order to control solar gain. The spaces can be expanded or compacted depending on desired capacity or program. 32 FLUCTUATING SEA LEVELS_ADAPTIVE CONSTRUCTION METHODS: WATERSTUDIO’S FLOATING HOUSES and FLOATING MOSQUE The Dutch firm, Waterstudio NL focuses on developing architecture that is not bound by the confines of foundations embedded in earth. One study of Waterstudio NL presents a scenario in which floating houses can rise along mooring poles up to eighteen feet above the resting position. Utilizing a system of flexible piping, it allows the home to remain connected as per usual while moving along with the tides. 33 The firm also showcased their work at the Water - Curse or Blessing!?

Encouraging Architectural Projects in Asia-Pacific Exhibition in 2007 through a proposal for a Floating Mosque in the United Arab Emirates. The design utilizes seawater, pumped through the walls, in order to cool the structure on the open seas, and attempts to combine the traditional function of the mosque with an unusual form and location. 34 24

| Floating House. Waterstudio NL.

25

| Floating Mosque. Waterstudio NL.

1.

32

SEISMIC ACTIVITY_PROGRAM OBJECTIVES + lessens/minimizes the impact of the earthquake + provides a ‘safezone’ within the home + considers secondary conditions such as flooding, soil adjustment, gas leaks, fires, etc. + a repeatable, modifiable unit that is placed within an existing fabric of built construction

SEISMIC ACTIVITY_DESIGN AS PREVENTION | WHOLE BUILDING DESIGN GUIDE The National Institute of Building Sciences developed a program named the Whole Building Design Guide as a venue through which homeowners, business owners, and others interested in safe construction methods, can be informed thoroughly.

Some of the topics they focus on are the effects of earthquakes on a building, seismic design strategies and devices, and appropriate structural systems. A few factors that must be designed for are condition of soil (soft soils may amplify the effects of an earthquake on a building two to six times in comparison to the same building with rock as its foundation. Additionally, lightweight construction is recommended as it has less mass and therefore less internal inertial forces generated.

Seismic design strategies may include diaphragms, shear walls, braced frames, moment-resistant frames, energydissipating devices and base-isolation. These methods may deal with the torsion, damping, ductility, strength and stiffness, and configuration of the building. Regular configurations are preferred over irregular configurations as they tend to display problematic stress concentrations.

Appropriate Structural Systems may include: _ Wood or timber frame (good energy absorption, lightweight, framing connections are critical). _ Reinforced masonry walls (good energy absorption if walls and floors are well integrated; proportion of spandrels and piers are critical to avoid cracking) _ Reinforced concrete walls (good energy absorption if walls and floors are well integrated; proportion of spandrels and piers are critical to avoid cracking) _ Steel frame with masonry fill-in walls (good energy absorption if bay sizes are small and building plan is uniform) _ Steel frame, braced (extensive bracing, detailing, and proportions are important) _ Steel frame, moment-resisting (good energy absorption, connections are critical) _ Steel frame, eccentrically braced (excellent energy absorption, connections are critical) _ Pre-cast concrete frame (poor performer without special energy absorbing connections) 35

1.

33

U S E R S

The user is any human being that owns or desires a home.

The user group is slightly limited by its site considerations, but in reality the working idea of user is in fact global.

The intentions of this thesis are to cater to those who have demonstrated a need for a new home, whether anticipatory or having lost a home already, in the face of extreme weather conditions.

Implementation of the proposals may eventually require a site as a definitive example of how the universal type architecture could be refined, adapted to specific areas.

Analysis of various maps that indicate concentrations of populations that exhibit a deficit in various areas of standard living may lead to a closer investigation of and/ or siting within specific communities.

1.

34

1.

CONCLUDING

The program of home takes on such a humble role in our lives, and it is easy to forget that it too, can experience a radical evolution, and that architecture does in fact have a place in influencing how our living conditions are built, where they are built, and how they can continue to adapt as we do and as our context does. The proposals will be designed through the role of the rational optimist, open to unconventional methods while keeping in mind the ultimate goal is to produce buildable, obtainable homes. There is an acceptance that change is natural and manageable. Taking into consideration geological information, the objective is to mediate the architecture and the condition, while manipulating the context in a beneficial way if possible. The human factor is of great importance as well, and the design should benefit those who need it and/or those who desire an avoidance of loss due to natural processes. The design seeks to achieve that through an evolution in construction methods that is cost-efficient, culturally sensitive, ecologically sensible, and effective in its climate condition.

35

REMARKS

‘Hope coincides with an increasingly critical perception of the concrete conditions of reality. Society reveals itself as something unfinished, not as something inexorably given; it becomes a challenge rather than a hopeless limitation.’ Paulo Freire, Education for Critical Consciousness 36

1.

36

WORK PLAN + SCHEDULE DESIRED ITEMS AT THE FINAL REVIEW :

WK 2 |

STEWARDSON COMPETITION ENTRIES DUE

+ Geological information displayed in easy-to-

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_ACTIVATION

understand diagrams showing soil behavior, water

.DAILY AND DIVERGENT WEATHER

cycles,

processes

RESPONSE CONDITION DIAGRAMS

that can be integrated with an architectural design,

etc. (completed by the beginning of the spring

.WHAT ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS CAN

semester)

BECOME A PART OF THE ‘CORE’ IN ORDER

+ Diagrams indicating weather conditions and how

TO SUSTAIN LONG-TERM INHABITATION

the proposal responds in the day-to-day and the

.HOW DO THE ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS

diversion from the calm (demonstrate how this

REACT TO GEOLOGICAL CONDITIONS AND

structure adapts, transforms in different states of

ENHANCE LIFE QUALITY

seismic

behavior,

natural

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_EVOLUTION

weather)

+

responds in various lengths and cycles of time

Diagrams

demonstrating

(phase

evolution

[through extreme conditions])

+

WK 3 |

REVIEW 1

and

.HOW DOES A ‘CORE’ STRUCTURE OPEN

ITSELF UP FOR DEVELOPMENT AND

sited

ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS THAT ALLOW FOR

variations (based on different soils, foundations,

LONG-TERM INHABITATION [SKETCHES OF

orientations, etc.)

CONNECTIONS, FUNCTIONS]

+ Detailed diagrams displaying the components of

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_EVOLUTION

the sited variations, materials, connections, etc.

.DIAGRAMS OF THE ABUNDANT VARIETIES

+ Models concerned with adaptation, material

OF CUSTOMIZATION OF THE ADDITIONAL

dialogues, construction methods, etc.

ELEMENTS BASED ON PERSONAL

PREFERENCE, THE SEASONS, THE TIME

universal

daily type

of

proposal

WK 4 |

[through

stages

the

implementation,

The

development

how

use],

structure

activation with

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_IMPLEMENTATION

OF DAY, ETC.

WK 1 |

STEWARDSON COMPETITION BEGINS

.DROUGHT_DIAGRAMS OF DEVELOPMENT

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_ACTIVATION

THROUGH MIGRATION

.DAILY AND DIVERGENT WEATHER

.FLUCTUATING SEA LEVELS_DIAGRAMS

RESPONSE CONDITION DIAGRAMS

OF DEVELOPMENT FROM TEMPORAL WET

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_IMPLEMENTATION

CONDITIONS TO MARITIME CONDITIONS

.WHAT ARE THE IMMEDIATE CONCERNS

.SEISMIC ACTIVITY_DIAGRAMS OF

FOR SURVIVAL IN THE AFTERMATH OF A

DEVELOPMENT AND IMPROVEMENTS

NATURAL OCCURRENCE THAT CAN BE

THROUGH MULTIPLE EARTHQUAKES

SERVED BY A ‘CORE’ STRUCTURE

[DRAWINGS OF SCENARIOS, SURVIVAL

WK 5 |

PROGRAMS]

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_EVOLUTION .DROUGHT_DIAGRAMS OF DEVELOPMENT

THROUGH MIGRATION

.FLUCTUATING SEA LEVELS_DIAGRAMS

OF DEVELOPMENT FROM TEMPORAL WET

CONDITIONS TO MARITIME CONDITIONS

.SEISMIC ACTIVITY_DIAGRAMS OF

DEVELOPMENT AND IMPROVEMENTS

THROUGH MULTIPLE EARTHQUAKES

.DIAGRAMS OF THE ABUNDANT VARIETIES

OF CUSTOMIZATION OF THE ADDITIONAL

ELEMENTS BASED ON PERSONAL

PREFERENCE, THE SEASONS, THE TIME

OF DAY, ETC. PHASE DEVELOPMENT_EVOLUTION

.MODELS OF THE ‘CORE’ AND ADDITIONAL

ELEMENTS RELATIONSHIP

WK 6 |

PEER PINUPS

WK 7 |

REVIEW 2

WK 8 |

SPRING BREAK

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_IMPLEMENTATION

.HOW CAN THE ‘CORE’, THE ADDITIONAL

ELEMENTS, AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP

WITH EACHOTHER (AS WELL AS THE

CONTEXT) BE IMPROVED

.DIAGRAMS OF WHAT MATERIALS ARE

APPROPRIATE FOR CORE STRUCTURES PHASE DEVELOPMENT_EVOLUTION

.DIAGRAMS OF WHAT MATERIALS ARE

APPROPRIATE FOR ADDITIONAL

ELEMENTS

WK 9 |

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_IMPLEMENTATION

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_EVOLUTION

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_ADAPTATION

.DEVELOP DIGITAL MODELS OF THE

UNIVERSAL STRUCTURES IN VARIOUS

STAGES

.DIAGRAMS OF THE DESIRED

EXPERIENTIAL QUALITIES OF EACH

STRUCTURE (LIGHT, MOTION, VIEWS,

SPATIAL, ETC.) [Don’t worry, these are design

considerations throughout the entire process!]

1.

.DETAILED DRAWINGS OF CONNECTIONS

WELL AS MATERIAL AND EXPERIENTIAL

QUALITIES.

WK 10 | PHASE DEVELOPMENT_IMPLEMENTATION

.PHOTOGRAPH FINAL MODELS

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_EVOLUTION

.ROOM FOR ANY FINAL ADJUSTMENTS

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_ADAPTATION

.DEVELOP DIGITAL MODELS OF THE

WK 14 | PHASE DEVELOPMENT_IMPLEMENTATION

UNIVERSAL STRUCTURES IN VARIOUS

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_EVOLUTION

STAGES

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_ADAPTATION

.PRODUCE RENDERS OF EACH

.PHOTOGRAPH FINAL MODELS AND

STRUCTURE IN AN ‘OPTIMAL’ STAGE (At

DEVELOP ADDITIONAL RENDERINGS

this point, ‘optimal’ can be redefined or

.ROOM FOR ANY FINAL ADJUSTMENTS

replaced with a better term.)

WK 11 | PHASE DEVELOPMENT_IMPLEMENTATION

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_EVOLUTION

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_ADAPTATION

.DEVELOP DIGITAL MODELS OF THE

UNIVERSAL STRUCTURES IN VARIOUS

STAGES

.PRODUCE RENDERS OF EACH

STRUCTURE IN AN ‘OPTIMAL’ STAGE (At

this point, ‘optimal’ can be redefined or

replaced with a better term.)

.BEGIN FINAL MODELS THAT

DEMONSTRATE EASE OF

IMPLEMENTATION, ADAPTABILITY, AS

WELL AS MATERIAL AND EXPERIENTIAL

QUALITIES.

WK 12 | SILENT PINUP WK 13 | PHASE DEVELOPMENT_IMPLEMENTATION

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_EVOLUTION

PHASE DEVELOPMENT_ADAPTATION

.DEVELOP DIGITAL MODELS OF THE

UNIVERSAL STRUCTURES IN VARIOUS

STAGES

.PRODUCE RENDERS OF EACH

STRUCTURE IN AN ‘OPTIMAL’ STAGE (At

this point, ‘optimal’ can be redefined or

replaced with a better term.)

.DEVELOP FINAL MODELS THAT

DEMONSTRATE EASE OF

IMPLEMENTATION, ADAPTABILITY, AS

WK 15 | FINAL REVIEW WK 16 | THESIS DOCUMENT SUBMISSION DUE WK 14 | ULTIMATE COMMENCEMENT

37

03

DESIGN

1.

41

OBJECTIVES: _ Maximize water supply through multiple strategies of fog condensation, daily condensation, and rainwater runoff. _ Utilize excess water for irrigation of the land for agricultural purposes and to remediate the progress of desertification and create an oasis. _ Lift the home in the event of flash floods to avoid damages.

Drought is not necessarily considered an disaster of impact, however, major infrastructure goes toward sustaining communities in arid areas with a limited supply of water. It is common for communities to rely on water trucked out to locations or have to seek sources far from their origin. Desertification of the region only adds to the declining feasibility of sustenance of a community.

CLIMATE: HOT, ARID CONTEXT: DESERT COMMUNE LATITUDE: 21° SOLAR ELEVATION: MAR 21 69.0° JUN 21 82.5° SEP 21 69.0° DEC 21 45.5° AIR: PREVAILING WINDS AND FOG, DUST STORM WINDS UP TO 30 mph WATER: SCARCE, FLASH FLOODS, CONDENSATION

= 12 in/yr

OBJECTIVES: _ Maximize water supply through multiple strategies of fog condensation, daily condensation, and rainwater runoff. _ Utilize excess water for irrigation of the land for agricultural purposes and to remediate the progress of desertification and create an oasis. _ Lift the home in the event of flash floods to avoid damages.

ry/ni 21 =

Drought is not necessarily considered an disaster of impact, however, major infrastructure goes toward sustaining communities in arid areas with a limited supply of water. It is common for communities to rely on water trucked out to locations or have to seek sources far from their origin. Desertification of the region only adds to the declining feasibility of sustenance of a community.

CLIMATE: HOT, ARID CONTEXT: DESERT COMMUNE LATITUDE: 21° SOLAR ELEVATION: MAR 21 69.0° JUN 21 82.5° SEP 21 69.0° DEC 21 45.5° AIR: PREVAILING WINDS AND FOG, DUST STORM WINDS UP TO 30 mph WATER: SCARCE, FLASH FLOODS, CONDENSATION

1.

45

1.

46

COMMUNITY LAYOUT VARIATION SKETCHES WITH PREVAILING WINDS COMING FROM THE: sand | gravel calcic horizon

S

SW

W

W

NW

caliche horizon low porosity soil

This stage of the thesis was primarily concerned with deducing a universal form for its performative aspects, supplemented by case studies authored by man and nature and defined by the merged parameters of solar orientation and prevailing wind direction.

N

NE

E

E

SE

The form needed to be able to react to strong dust storm winds alone, and anticipate fluctuations in wind patterns when considered as an amassing of homes.

Each of the (8) preliminary forms assume their own strategies for thermal mediation, lighting, and deflection of wind, though popular strategies include a secondary skin, louvers, and extending overhangs.

1.

A

B

A

C

D

E

B

F

G

H

E

47

1.

48

One unit was chosen for further investigation as an individual identity and an aggregation within an extreme natural context.

This proposal serves to remediate the existing conditions.

It is unique in that it is the only condition in which we may have influence. A series of phases, involving a rigorous collection of water from the air and the sky, as well as careful management, eventually lead to a surplus that aims to reverse the effects of desertification. The homes serves to collect water, distribute it individually, contribute to a community cistern, which in turn once full serves to recharge the ground water table.

Once the ground water table is recharged, soil health improves and makes agricultural endeavors achievable.

Other vegetation such as ground cover, shrubs and trees lend themselves to the reduction of erosion and serve to provide shade and cooling.

1.

49

1.

50

rainwater collection core water distribution

roof rainwater catchment area increased surface modulation provides a catchment area for condensation from fog and daily dew formations solar louvers to filter eastern and western sunlight

IN DIVI detached roof system shades the home and allows for breezes to carry the hot wind away extended roof and louvers create shade for outdoor habitation

utilizes cob (clay, sand, straw) for its availability, as well as structural and thermal properties home raised above potential flash flood levels

DUST STORMS

1.

51

DUA L EXTREME HEAT

DELUGE

OBJECTIVES: _ Accepting and anticipating flood conditions allows for implementation of ‘wet city’ infrastructure, when the ‘dry city’ (ground level) is not available. This ‘wet city’ infrastructure eventually serves as a main route of circulation. _ Responsible water management through rainwater collection, distribution and storage. This serves as a main freshwater source regularly and remains an uncontaminated during high levels of water.

_ The proposal is designed with complete loss of land in mind. The three stages are ‘land home’, ‘transition home’, and the ‘water home’. _ Provide strength in numbers while afloat through an expansion and contraction system between the homes.

Frequent flooding contaminates water sources, obstructs healthy community activity, and infiltrates homes causing damage to homes, material items and inhabitants.

CLIMATE: HOT, HUMID CONTEXT: OCEANSIDE COMMUNITY LATITUDE: 1° SOLAR ELEVATION: MAR 21 89.0° JUN 21 112.5° SEP 21 89.0° DEC 21 65.5° AIR: HURRICANE WINDS (74+ mph) WATER: FLOODING, CONTAMINATED WATER SOURCES

= 92 in/yr

OBJECTIVES: _ Accepting and anticipating flood conditions allows for implementation of ‘wet city’ infrastructure, when the ‘dry city’ (ground level) is not available. This ‘wet city’ infrastructure eventually serves as a main route of circulation. _ Responsible water management through rainwater collection, distribution and storage. This serves as a main freshwater source regularly and remains an uncontaminated during high levels of water. ry/ni 29 =

_ The proposal is designed with complete loss of land in mind. The three stages are ‘land home’, ‘transition home’, and the ‘water home’. _ Provide strength in numbers while afloat through an expansion and contraction system between the homes.

Frequent flooding contaminates water sources, obstructs healthy community activity, and infiltrates homes causing damage to homes, material items and inhabitants.

CLIMATE: HOT, HUMID CONTEXT: OCEANSIDE COMMUNITY LATITUDE: 1° SOLAR ELEVATION: MAR 21 89.0° JUN 21 112.5° SEP 21 89.0° DEC 21 65.5° AIR: HURRICANE WINDS (74+ mph) WATER: FLOODING, CONTAMINATED WATER SOURCES

57

FSL

1.

1.

58

leaf litter humus

iron and aluminum oxides

This stage of the thesis was primarily concerned with deducing a universal form for its performative aspects, supplemented by case studies authored by man and nature and defined by the merged parameters of solar orientation and prevailing wind direction.

The form needed to be able to react to strong hurricane winds as a single unit, while functioning as part of network during flooding conditions.

Each of the (8) preliminary forms assume their own strategies for thermal mediation, lighting, and deflection of wind, though popular strategies include a combination of secondary skins, louvers, and wide overhangs.

clay-rich soil

1.

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

FSL

A

59

A

B

C

1.

60

One unit was chosen for further investigation as an individual identity and an aggregation within an extreme natural context.

The scenario is an acceptance of fluctuating sea levels and the community is designed with three phases in mind: the land home, the transition home (tidal, temporal flooding, etc.), and the loss of land home. Therefore parts of the community may be floating while other parts are still securely holstered to the land foundations.

The home essentially has two elements to it, a root that remains in the ground and the floating element, consisting of a dock unit and home, which can rise and fall with the sea levels. The dock unit attaches to posts that guide the walkway up until a certain level in which the home will not return to a land state and can leave its land foundations.

COMM This hexagonal unit is also prepared to take on community infrastructure once there is a loss of land through variations of programs and constructions.

The system of homes are connected by retractable walkways which enable the community to avoid disruption of connectivity between homes during flooding, and allows residents to avoid trudging through contaminated waters.

Once an entire community is aloft at sea, the ‘wet city’ walkways function as paths between the homes and other hexagonal units. These walkways have the ability to expand (for preferred distance and comfort) as well as contract (in the event of inclement weather, for example) thereby providing stability and strength in numbers.

61

FSL

1.

MUNITY

1.

62

CLIMBING NET | POOL AREA

AGRICULTURE | PARK

FISH FARMING AND HARVESTING

MARINE VEGETATION CULTIVATION

COMMUNITY PLATFORM

IN DIVI HOMES IN TRANSITION

EXPANDED WALKWAYS

63

FSL

1.

DUA L CONTRACTED WALKWAYS

OBJECTIVES: _ Minimize transmission of seismic waves to the structure of the home through separating the home from the ground through the medium of water. _ Responsibly manage stormwater runoff, through collection, distribution and storage of rainwater. _ Promote an environment of connectivity with neighbors through an open ground floor to street plan, roof program, and the introduction of a self-sustained ecology within the basin and the riparian buffer zone.

_ In an infill scenario, support existing rowhome party walls through a structural framework that also serves as a shading device and channels water toward the green roof.

Earthquakes are primarily concerned with horizontal seismic waves. Vertical seismic waves are not as much of a concern due to buildings being vertically designed already.

Damage is typically the result of a sudden jolt experienced through the structure. The lighter the structure, the less internal inertia is experienced.

CLIMATE: TEMPERATE, HUMID CONTEXT: URBAN FABRIC, RESIDENTIAL BLOCK LATITUDE: 40° SOLAR ELEVATION: MAR 21 50.0° JUN 21 73.5° SEP 21 50.0° DEC 21 26.5° AIR: GUSTS UP TO 30 mph WATER: STORMWATER RUNOFF, MAIN FLOODING

= 41 in/yr

OBJECTIVES: _ Minimize transmission of seismic waves to the structure of the home through separating the home from the ground through the medium of water. _ Responsibly manage stormwater runoff, through collection, distribution and storage of rainwater. _ Promote an environment of connectivity with neighbors through an open ground floor to street plan, roof program, and the introduction of a self-sustained ecology within the ry/ni 14 = basin and the riparian buffer zone.

_ In an infill scenario, support existing rowhome party walls through a structural framework that also serves as a shading device and channels water toward the green roof.

Earthquakes are primarily concerned with horizontal seismic waves. Vertical seismic waves are not as much of a concern due to buildings being vertically designed already.

Damage is typically the result of a sudden jolt experienced through the structure. The lighter the structure, the less internal inertia is experienced.

CLIMATE: TEMPERATE, HUMID CONTEXT: URBAN FABRIC, RESIDENTIAL BLOCK LATITUDE: 40° SOLAR ELEVATION: MAR 21 50.0° JUN 21 73.5° SEP 21 50.0° DEC 21 26.5° AIR: GUSTS UP TO 30 mph WATER: STORMWATER RUNOFF, MAIN FLOODING

1.

69

1.

70

concrete compacted soil

subsoil

HOW DOES THE BUILDING (NOT) TOUCH THE GROUND?

This stage of the thesis was primarily concerned with deducing a universal form for its performative aspects, supplemented by case studies authored by man and nature and defined by the merged parameters of solar orientation and prevailing wind direction.

The primary concern of this exploration was how the home would or would not touch the ground in order for it to be performative. Additionally, the form needed to be able to redirect bar winds to the benefit of the user (create calm wind conditions while effectively utilizing stronger winds for passive ventilation).

Each of the (8) preliminary forms assume their own strategies for thermal mediation, lighting, and deflection of wind, though popular strategies include a combination metamorphic rock of louvers, translucent apertures and light wells.

1.

A

A

B

C

D

E

C

F

G

H

D

71

1.

72

One unit was developed for further investigation as an individual identity and an aggregation within an extreme natural context. In opposition to utilizing an applied technology, for a singular function, the utilization of water was proposed, to avoid damage to the home entirely by preventing seismic waves from transmitting to the base of the home as well as providing other benefits.

It is shown that bodies of water are known to provide evaporative cooling during the summer as well as keep the winter temperatures above freezing during the winter.

While effectively mediating changes through the seasons at the microclimate scale, the design promotes a fish and algae ecosystem which is protected by a riparian buffer in the backyard. The biomatter in the water ensures the water won’t freeze in the fiberglass basin, and promotes a healthy integration of natural functions into an urban environment.

COMM A structural frame element pays homage to the rowhome as a standard unit and supports the party walls of existing homes, as well as preventing possibly weaker homes from falling in on newer construction. The frame also serves to influence stormwater and solar conditions. The louvers on the roof level provide an outdoor shaded area while sunny, and redirect the rainfall on to a green roof, which drains through the facade of the building into a rainwater cistern, for non-potable use.

Additionally, ground level and roof level connectivity are promoted through flexible openness and visual continuity.

1.

73

MUNITY

1.

74

IN DIVI

1.

75

DUA L SHADED OUTDOOR SPACES

STORMWATER MANAGEMENT

1.

76

1.

77

REFLECTION UPON FINAL REVIEW

This thesis has primarily been an exploration of performative structures at the scale of the community, the individual unit and the experience through time. The investigation of home through a variety of conditions was critical to see how form and function could be molded by its physical context: geological, meterological, and ecological. The proposal is inherently borne of and different from previous approaches to a design challenge, in the sense that it limited the sociological, political and economic interventions within the design, for the sake of furthering exploration of the performative aspects.

However, the original intent of the proposal sought to include incremental building strategies, modular and prefabricated technology, use of local material choices, inhabitant driven development and mobility as valid elements to be integrated into the design. Due to the time constraints of working with three separate conditions, as well as the complex performative forms of the homes, these elements were not developed to the extent that I would consider near to formal completion. This is viewed very much as a positive thing. The most reassuring part of my thesis is that my interest of the research backing the design, as well as the anticipated possibilities, is still peaking and I am very excited to develop it further and take what I have learned from this study and relate it to my future endeavors.

Sarah Beth Rushing, April 2012

04

CREDITS

1.

80

1.

E

N

D

1. Bjarke Ingels. Yes Is More: an Archicomic on Architectural

Evolution (Köln: Evergreen, 2010), 14.

15. Stan Allen and Marc McQuade, Landform

Building, 35.

2. John C. Banta. Extreme Weather Hits Home (Canada:

New Society Publishers, 2007), 6.

16. Chris Bodle, Sea Levels.

3. H Mayer and Neeraj Bhatia. -arium: Weather +

Architecture (Ostfildern: Hatje Cantz, 2010), 16.

N

17. KHOJ’s Designs on a Delta and the Living Building,

Water - Curse or Blessing!? Exhibition.

O

T

E

81

S

29. Out of Water Project, Porous Skin.

30. Water - Curse or Blessing!? Exhibition, S+PBA’s Post

Diluvian Future.

31. World Architecture Community, Carapace House.

32. Five Non Blondes, Floating Houses.

18. Martinson, Markiewicz, and Furján, Via, 33-36.

4. Banta, Extreme Weather Hits Home, 1.

19. Tennent, Scott. Augmented Landscapes, 55.

33. Water - Curse or Blessing!? Exhibition, Waterstudio

NL | Floating Houses and Floating Mosque.

5. Mayer and Bhatia, -arium, 22, 40.

6. Banta, Extreme Weather Hits Home, 61.

20. Morgan Martinson, Tonya Markiewicz, and Helen

Mary Furján, Via: Occupation, 116-118.

7. Kristen Feiress and Brad Pitt. Architecture in Times of

Need: Make It Right Rebuilding New Orleans’

Lower Ninth Ward (Munich: Prestel, 2009), 34.

21. LDC Expert Group, GEF and Its Agencies, Step by-step Guide for Implementing National

Adaptation Programmes of Action, 3.

8. Feiress and Pitt, Architecture in Times of Need, 83.

22. LDC Expert Group, GEF and Its Agencies, Step by-step Guide for Implementing National

Adaptation Programmes of Action, 11-13.

23. LDC Expert Group, GEF and Its Agencies, Step by-step Guide for Implementing National

Adaptation Programmes of Action, 29.

9. Feiress and Pitt, 17.

10. Bjarke Ingels, Yes Is More, 12.

11. Paul Bunje, Water, Energy, and Design of the Built

Environment: UnCoupling the Water-Energy Nexus.

24. Joseph R. McAuliffe, Desert Soils.

25. World Climate, World Climate Maps.

12. Banta, Extreme Weather Hits Home, 1.

26. “Rock (geology).” Wikipedia.

13. Stan Allen and Marc McQuade, Landform

Building, 23.

14. Stan Allen and Marc McQuade, Landform

Building, 34.

27. Stephanie Pinceti, Urban Assets: Myths, Facts, and

Opportunities for Localized Water Management.

28. Out of Water Project, The Dixon Machine.

34. CNN.com, Bangkok’s Cement Refuge.

35. Seismic Design Principles, The Whole Building

Design Guide.

36. Gámez, and Rogers. An Architecture of Change, 12.

1.

82

1.

83

B I B L I O G R A P H Y Allen, Stan, and Marc McQuade. Landform Building:

Architecture’s New Terrain. Baden,

Switzerland: Lars Müller, 2011. Print.

“Bangkok’s Cement Refuge.” CNN.com - Breaking

News, U.S., World, Weather, Entertainment

& Video News. Web. 14 Nov. 2011. <http://

www.cnn.com/ video/?/video/world/2011/11/ 12/neisloss-bankok-refuge.cnn>.

Banta, John C. Extreme Weather Hits Home. Canada:

New Society Publishers, 2007. Print.

Bodle, Chris. “Sea Levels.” WATERMARKS. Web. 14

Nov. 2011.

“Carapace House.” Architecture, World Architecture

Community - Architects, World Architects,

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2 0 1 2 r u s h i n g

: s a r a h

THE ORDINARY PHENOMENON

FROM N AT U R A L D I S A S T E R S TO N AT U R A L O C C U R R E N C E S