Den ærgjerrig arkitekt.

A Relation?? Oh Wait... I See it Now :)

Mon, 04 Dec 2006 07:41:44 +0000

Neil Gershenfeld started a program at MIT entitled “How to Make (almost) Anything�?. The main focus of this class was for the students to develop and fabricate things on a personal level of need (or possibly want). The point of this creator personalization is because the use of a portable personal space for screaming is not on high demand. The drive behind the students work for to make things they had always fanaticized about, but don’t fully exist.

Louis Kan on the other hand writes on a scholarly level as to the importance of light and silence and how they interact with an environment. Attempting then to relate these differing concepts has possibly resulted in a far-fetched conclusion. Products are often the result of a necessity of a group of people. Kahn felt that when a identified need is addresses, no satisfaction could come out of the solving process. It is only when you are solving for an unknown necessity that a person can feel fulfilled at the end of the process.
Kahn also stated that the personalization of a thing is important because it takes on a type of form that is understood through nature. The forms these ideas begin to take shape as are represented in different manners. Because of the fact that the idea of a form is very unique to the person who originated the design, no two people could come up with the same finalized product. This is because the influences incorporated in an individual’s life are not the same from person to person. Through these ideas of form and design, Kahn believes that if we were all able to make our imagined thoughts into tangible products our environments may never develop and evolve. This is where Gershenfeld’s ideas come into play and how he feels that the production of imagined items is something we have to embrace as happening

Technopoly of Automated Transit

Mon, 04 Dec 2006 07:40:16 +0000

The concept behind technopolies is complex on many levels. It seems to me that the main goal behind Technology is to evolve the workings of a process so that it is more efficient than what existed before. A washer, dyer, microwave, dishwasher, and car are all examples of such a progression from manual labor to aided completion. Technology has been moving along at a rapid rate of reproduction. This advanced thinking and development of new technology has begun to move in a direction that now requires little to no aid from humans. This is seen through the example of automated transit.

The automated transit system, for example, found at the many large airports carry people from stop to stop without a driver or conductor involved in this process. It is all automated from some type of computer system. The simplicity of this concept is clear; no drivers are needed so in the long-run less money is spent on paying someone to actively operate the machine.

However, this process does have its flaws (as seen from personal experience). While traveling over Thanksgiving vacation I had the opportunity to ride on the AirTrain at San Francisco International Airport. At one particular stop, a large group of people awaited to board the train. They began to file into the cars but seemingly not at a quick enough pace because less than two minutes later, the doors abruptly began to close, trapping an elderly woman between the doors. At this time, the automated voice of the AirTrain sternly reported “Please clear the doorway. You are delaying the departure of this train�?.

There is no other way to draw a conclusion here but to say this… If an actual person was operating the train, I doubt this would have happened. The flaw with automated machines like this is that they are programmed to only execute a particular set of situations. They do not know that instead of giving an elderly woman a stern lecture about making people late, it should hold the doors a few moments longer for her to comfortably enter the train safely.

As another student in discussion mentioned, a similar avenue is being explored in the area of automated surgery. What if the body happened to move slightly from the configuration the machine was set to respond to? This could cause serious damage and personally isn’t worth the risk. Concepts like these make me wonder how far our advancements with technopolies will go and if they will also evolve a better way to respond to the natural unknowns in life.

Mathematics and Design

Mon, 04 Dec 2006 07:26:25 +0000

The idea of mathematics and its relation to design is a rather interesting topic to have explored. Through the process of designing a house, let’s say, the presence of mathematical factors are rather predominate and clear to point out. For example, the formula behind the proper rise and run of a stair case, the use of triangles to better strengthen a structure as well as the use of 90 degree angles to make walls stay erect.

Mathematics can often defy all norms and odds to create some rather interesting and inconceivable designs. This can be seen through the craftsmanship of the weaver bird, the cliff swallow and the crested cassiques. These birds have developed a mystifying system to build their nests on the edge of all limitations and near points of destruction. There is evidently a formula of some sort that keeps these nests from collapse or crumble. I believe that this mathematical system is achieved through the use of the proper ratios of numerous light weight materials and adhesives. It must also be noted that the mass of the birds themselves is an important factor. This is because though a bird may seem larger in size; their over-all weight is not too significant due to the fact that their feathers have hollow stems.

Answers to Chaotic and Complex Questions

Mon, 23 Oct 2006 03:24:10 +0000

Oppositions and their resolutions seem to be answers to the world’s often chaotic and complex questions.

Have you ever found yourself gazing up to a clearing in the trees that lies on a seemingly unreachable hilltop, cliff, or even mountain and asked yourself “I wonder what the view is like from up there�?? This question is opposition at play. Man verse gravity.
The only solution to this question however, is to climb. Humans weren’t exactly built to climb freely up a mountain. This is how I believe the resolution of mountain climbing was created. Someone, at some time, saw some inaccessible location and began to climb.

How should one get from point A to point B? Walking is an option, so is running, biking, or even hitching up that horse and buggy. What would be the best option if the distance between point A and point be was measured in thousands of miles? Still, walking, running, biking or even the carriage is an option, but not ideally the best idea. This is how I believe the resolution of the automobile was created. Someone, at some time, decided that walking, running, biking or ridding that buggy was not the best solution to the needs of transportation.

In the last lecture, Ozayr also talked about his seven resolutions to oppositions. The last of these was stated as ‘Redundancies as Responses’, creating a backup to a preexisting system. All I wanted to say about this is… brilliance.

HoT sPrInG

Mon, 23 Oct 2006 03:19:08 +0000

A hot spring is a phenomenon.

A hot spring is classifiable as a phenomenon because it consists of complex qualities such as being a thing, having a framework as well as clockwork.

A thing is simple enough to argue because a hot spring is located within a particular space (Yellowstone National Park), is always of unique size and/or shape (measurable perimeter, surface area, volume) and it can also be compared to similar things (a ocean, a lake, a pond).

A framework requires a means to record measurable data. A hot spring is measurable in temperature of the water (a nearly consistent temperature of 104 degrees Fahrenheit).

Clockwork requires a means to show an interaction with surrounding things. A hot spring interacts greatly with its environment. The heating of the water is caused naturally by geothermic heat deep below the Earth’s crust. The deeper these depths are below the crust, the higher the water temperatures can get.

A hot spring has also been classified as possessing therapeutic abilities. Due to the fact that heated water can naturally hold more dissolved solids and cooler water, hot springs often have a very high mineral content, containing a variety of minerals from simple calcium to lithium or radium.

A First Created

Mon, 02 Oct 2006 05:56:16 +0000

Distinctive ambiance = genius loci.
The evening consisted of elegant dinning, dancing, socializing and entertainment. Excitement fluttered through each exchanging glance or accidental touch. Anticipation of the unknown quickened each heartbeat. Evening turned to night accompanied with a crisp air. Comfortable. The stars shown brighter than most any night remembered. Sitting at first, talking in an attempt to create a distraction from what each wanted, but couldn’t reach deep enough for the nerves. Moving to stand in the intense light created such a contrast of light to dark, that nothing could be seen besides each other. Eyes fixated, hearts beat in tune with one another. The love that had blossomed was without intention or much knowledge. This was the night a first had been created, and this first would be remembered till the end of eternity.

Childhood = Mud Pies

Mon, 02 Oct 2006 05:26:45 +0000

Verse:

I would go so far as to say that I am an advocate for this issue. I will also go so far as to say that I carry a bit of a bias but I am willing to take on any debate about the subject.

Children need SPACE to grow! Space is that of the equivalent to a yard, grass, fresh air, fresh anything. They just need space. This is where I believe that creativity is spawn from. Children don’t learn how to become amazing chefs, serving mud pies to the neighborhood, in the confinement of a four walled living space. They don’t learn how to construct architectural masterpieces without first building a sound sandcastle.

If not obvious, I grew up in an environment large enough to spread my wings, swing from the tree branches, and to be able to hide from my sister and not be found for hours if wanted.

I will admit my experience is limited, but it seems to me that children who grow up in larger cities don’t get to experience a fair childhood. They have no room to run and explore without the risk of getting hit by buses or, sadly, kidnapped by strangers. These are not unheard of in smaller towns, but they seemingly happen less often.

I am not oblivious to the facts, and do take serious consideration that not all family and living situations allow for such child rearing to occur. This is why I would encourage the development of better and more available park systems. These should be environments for children. A place for them to learn about life and its beauty, not about how to steal and cause potential trouble, is incalculable in the life of a child.

Let them explore the un-built environment for a change. They have the remainder of their lives to be enclosed.

Thank you for considering.

Prompt One: Midtown Market

Mon, 18 Sep 2006 02:26:56 +0000

I have recently realized that to date, I have lived in Minneapolis for two years, two months, twenty four days, ten hours and forty-two seconds (just estimation). During this time, I have ventured from here to there, and happened to discover new and exciting environments along the way. However, environments like the Midtown Market have somehow gone under my radar during the time that I have occupied this city.
I have heard whispers of this location from various people, but never really knew where it was or what it was about. As it turns out, it is truly a hard structure to miss. On my comings and goings I have passed this building without even knowing that within lies an environment with the liveliness unlike most anything else in this city.
As I First entered the doors, my senses were ambushed by such an array of aromas that I felt removed from the environment I am most familiar with and placed into a completely different world. The colors began to stimulate my mind. I noticed the sound of music from a soloist playing a guitar that drew people near as they sat down for something to suffice their appetites. The traditional provisions and hand-crafted art brought in from all reaches of the globe made me feel as though I could literally travel from China to Africa in all but a few steps.
Having such an environment occupied by this array of culture is what I realized creates the very present glow of energy within the space. The assortment of unique shopping places inhabiting the Midtown Market offers a different experience to each who enters. I felt that just being in this space made me feel more lively and energized.
For someone looking to become influenced by this energy I would recommend simply immersing oneself into the world of Midtown Market. By this I mean take the time to look, really look, at all the materials that occupy the setting, try a new type of food that makes you think, or dive into conversation with shop owners or someone you bump into. There is just so much to look at and absorb. I have experienced similar places before, but usually in environments traditionally considered more exotic than Minneapolis, Minnesota. This is what I feel makes this place matchless among others.