Design for the Future: Educational Institutions in the Gulf

Despite a distinguished heritage of learning in the Middle East, the expansion of provision for higher education is currently at an unprecedented scale. The Gulf States, in particular, are seeking to keep up with accelerated population growth and a demographic ‘youth bulge’. Guest-Editor Kevin Mitchell describes the architectural approaches employed in the design of institutions in the region from the first universities in Saudi Arabia to Foster + Partners's ground-breaking sustainable design for the Masdar Institute in Abu Dhabi and future projects.     

Fabrication Agency: Landesgartenschau Exhibition Hall

Advances in computation challenge established design approaches in architecture through a much deeper integration of form generation and materialisation. Tobias Schwinn , Research Associate at the Institute for Computational Design (ICD), University of Stuttgart, and Guest-Editor Achim Menges , Director of the ICD, introduce how the potentials and constraints of robotic fabrication can now be explored as generative drivers in agent-based design. This enables architectural innovation in unison with fabricability, structural capacity and spatial performance, as demonstrated by the Landesgartenschau Exhibition Hall in Schwäbisch Gmu"nd, Germany, the world's first building with a robotically fabricated segmented timber shell as its primary structure.     

To a Curator of Beautiful and Healthy Lives: A Note to Myself

How might architectural thinking and processes shift over the next 35 years? How might the architect's role be redefined with shifting ethical values? Could the architect be viewed as less of a design professional and more of a curator engaged in the development of healthy holistic environments, catering for all of society's needs? DaeWha Kang , an architect from 2050, writes to his earlier self, critiquing the work that he undertook in independent practice and as a design director at Zaha Hadid Architects in the mid-2010s. He describes how his design methodologies have evolved in the intervening years.     

多维策略实现城市更新——广州市白云区棠景组团发展策略研究解析

本文以广州市白云区棠景组团为研究对象．分析以城中村、旧厂及旧城用地连片存在的城市待更新区的发展策略问题。其中,城中村是我国快速城市化与国有、集体二元土地所有制共同作用的结果,城中村问题归根到底就是由城市自上而下发展与村集体自下而上发展的矛盾所产生的。对于广州而言,城中村早已不是新鲜的社会形态了,而且多被作为贬义词看待,也被看作是城市的“毒瘤”。虽然表面上看城中村是一块“难啃的骨头”,但其也存在一定的合理性．合理的改造更新能使“骨头”变“诱人的奶酪”。本文将透视棠景组团的发展状态,分析实施改造与规划发展的策略。     

观察法在英国医疗建筑设计研究与教学中的应用

在推动英国医疗建筑设计理性发展的诸多研究方法中,观察法因其简单有效而被广泛采用。为此,英国医疗建筑研究所(MARU)在研究生课程中特别设置了针对性的观察法练习。本文介绍观察法在英国医疗建筑设计研究与教学中的应用,希望对中国医疗建筑实践的理性发展有所助益。     

How do biologists respond to low-intensity armed conflicts? The case of Bangladesh (1961–2011)

Armed conflict affects the biological diversity and biological research regime of a country. This paper takes a low-intensity armed conflict in the biologically and ethnically diverse Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of Bangladesh, as an example, and assesses the response of biologists to this conflict. The study spans the last 50 years dividing it into three periods: pre-conflict (1961?1974), conflict (1975–1997) and post-conflict (1998–2011). Interactions with selected researchers and a literature survey showed that sporadic, intermittent biological research was conducted in this region even during the conflict. The number of research initiatives substantially increased and became more diverse over the last decade. Research opportunity has increased mainly because of improved security and accessibility. Nevertheless, despite the research capacity and a positive attitude among the researchers, some fundamental issues still limit long-term research in this area. The continuing volatile situation due to slow implementation of the 1997 Peace Accord and the tension between rebel factions and indigenous and settler communities in some areas continue to be serious concerns for studying and conserving the biodiversity of this region. Innovative research approaches and the full implementation of the peace agreement are vital to improving the situation for biological research in the CHT. The paper underlines the importance of a biologist’s self-motivation to respond to low-intensity armed conflicts.     

Practices,barriers and benefits of risk management process in building services costs estimation: comment

This note is a comment on Mok, C.K., Rao Tummala, V.M. and Leung, H.M. (1997) Practices, barriers and benefits of risk management process in building services cost estimation, Construction Management and Economics, 15 (2), 161–75, which describes research into the risk perceptions and risk management practices of building services engineers in Hong Kong. The note questions statements made in the paper and parts of the research design and data analyses.     

“中国建筑研究室”初创及研究成果探究

本文以"中国建筑研究室"从1953年4月正式成立到1964年研究室被迫撤销,隶属关系数度变更的历史始末为线索,结合档案文献与人物访谈,特别记述了"中国建筑研究室"初创时期的历史史实。及在刘敦桢的领导下"中国建筑研究室"的调研发现和重要学术研究成果。真实再现了"中国建筑研究室"的历史,阐释其对中国建筑历史理论研究的影响和贡献。     

聚羧酸型减水剂近期研究进展

本文对聚羧酸减水剂的发展研究现状进行阐述,继而根据聚羧酸减水剂的分子结构、合成原理及相关的性能关系给出其发展状况,并加以探讨,然后进一步提出聚羧酸型减水剂所要面临的问题和研究趋势。