Design Justice: Community-Led Practices to Build the Worlds We Need


Sasha Costanza-Chock - 2020
    It has emerged from a growing community of designers in various fields who work closely with social movements and community-based organizations around the world.This book explores the theory and practice of design justice, demonstrates how universalist design principles and practices erase certain groups of people—specifically, those who are intersectionally disadvantaged or multiply burdened under the matrix of domination (white supremacist heteropatriarchy, ableism, capitalism, and settler colonialism)—and invites readers to “build a better world, a world where many worlds fit; linked worlds of collective liberation and ecological sustainability.” Along the way, the book documents a multitude of real-world community-led design practices, each grounded in a particular social movement. Design Justice goes beyond recent calls for design for good, user-centered design, and employment diversity in the technology and design professions; it connects design to larger struggles for collective liberation and ecological survival.

How Buildings Learn: What Happens After They're Built


Stewart Brand - 1994
    How Buildings Learn is a masterful new synthesis that proposes that buildings adapt best when constantly refined and reshaped by their occupants, and that architects can mature from being artists of space to becoming artists of time. From the connected farmhouses of New England to I.M. Pei's Media Lab, from "satisficing" to "form follows funding," from the evolution of bungalows to the invention of Santa Fe Style, from Low Road military surplus buildings to a High Road English classic like Chatsworth—this is a far-ranging survey of unexplored essential territory.More than any other human artifacts, buildings improve with time—if they're allowed to. How Buildings Learn shows how to work with time rather than against it.

Building Design and Construction


Vicente A. Tagayun - 2010
    It also contains the easy to follow instructions on how to analyze and compute the structural design of critical building parts such as: reinforced concrete slabs, beams, columns and footings. There are also simple designs and floor plans for a variety of building types to be found in this book.BUILDING DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION should be of interest to architects, engineers, contractors, developers and allied professionals who are engaged in building design, planning and construction. Students and graduates reviewing for the board examinations for architects and engineers would find in this book valuable practical knowledge to supplement the theories learned in their classrooms.Project owners studying this book would appreciate and get a clear understanding of how their envisioned pet project, which sprang only from a mere idea - is transformed slowly step-by-step - into concrete form.Explanations and instructions in BUILDING DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION are conveyed in direct and simple language for easy understanding even by the layman. Plans and drawings are clearly presented, to be easily interpreted by construction workers.

The Architecture of Happiness


Alain de Botton - 2006
    The Architecture of Happiness starts from the idea that where we are heavily influences who we can be, and it argues that it is architecture's task to stand as an eloquent reminder of our full potential.Whereas many architects are wary of openly discussing the word beauty, this book has at its center the large and naïve question: What is a beautiful building? It is a tour through the philosophy and psychology of architecture that aims to change the way we think about our homes, our streets and ourselves.

Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time


Jeff Speck - 2012
    And he has boiled it down to one key factor: walkability. The very idea of a modern metropolis evokes visions of bustling sidewalks, vital mass transit, and a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly urban core. But in the typical American city, the car is still king, and downtown is a place that's easy to drive to but often not worth arriving at. Making walkability happen is relatively easy and cheap; seeing exactly what needs to be done is the trick. In this essential new book, Speck reveals the invisible workings of the city, how simple decisions have cascading effects, and how we can all make the right choices for our communities. Bursting with sharp observations and real-world examples, giving key insight into what urban planners actually do and how places can and do change, Walkable City lays out a practical, necessary, and eminently achievable vision of how to make our normal American cities great again.

Between Silence and Light: Spirit in the Architecture of Louis I. Kahn


John Lobell - 1979
    Kahn, whose many buildings include the Salk Institute, the Yale Study Center, and the Exeter Library. He is remembered, however, not only as a master builder, but also as one of the most important and creative thinkers of the twentieth century. For Kahn, the study of architecture was the study of human beings, their highest aspirations and most profound truths. He searched for forms and materials to express the subtlety and grandeur of life. In his buildings we see the realization of his vision: luminous surfaces that evoke a fundamental awe, silent courtyards that speak of the expansiveness and the sanctity of the spirit, monumental columns and graceful arches that embody dignity and strength. Updated with a new preface, this classic work is a major statement on human creativity, showing us Louis Kahn as architect, visionary, and poet.

How Architecture Works: A Humanist's Toolkit


Witold Rybczynski - 2013
    Buildings often overawe us with their beauty. Architecture is both setting for our everyday lives and public art form—but it remains mysterious to most of us. In How Architecture Works, Witold Rybczynski, one of our best, most stylish critics and winner of the Vincent Scully Prize for his architectural writing, answers our most fundamental questions about how good—and not-so-good—buildings are designed and constructed. Introducing the reader to the rich and varied world of modern architecture, he takes us behind the scenes, revealing how architects as different as Frank Gehry, Renzo Piano, and Robert A. M. Stern envision and create their designs. He teaches us how to "read" plans, how buildings respond to their settings, and how the smallest detail—of a stair balustrade, for instance—can convey an architect's vision. Ranging widely from a war memorial in London to an opera house in St. Petersburg, from the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., to a famous architect's private retreat in downtown Princeton, How Architecture Works, explains the central elements that make up good building design. It is an enlightening humanist's toolkit for thinking about the built environment and seeing it afresh. "Architecture, if it is any good, speaks to all of us," Rybczynski writes. This revelatory book is his grand tour of architecture today.

Atlas of Novel Tectonics


Jesse Reiser - 2006
    With Atlas of Novel Tectonics, Reiser+Umemoto hone in on the many facets of architecture and illuminate their theories with great thought and simplicity. The Atlas is organized as an accumulation of short chapters that address the workings of matter and force, material science, the lessons of art and architectural history, and the influence of architecture on culture (and vice versa). Reiser+Umemoto see architectural design as a series of problem situations, and each chapter is an argument devoted to a specific condition or case. Influenced by a wide range of fields and phenomenaBrillat-Savarin's classic The Physiology of Taste is one of their primary modelsthe authors provide a cross-section of thinking and inspiration. The result is both an elucidation of the concepts that guide Reiser+Umemoto through their own design process and a series of meditations on topics that have formed their own sense as architects. Atlas of Novel Tectonics offers an entirely fresh perspective on subjects that are generally taken for granted, and does so with a welcome punch and energy.

Shattered Gods: A Kickass Epic Progression Fantasy Series


Chris Fox - 2021
    

Vagrant Sword


Darren Hultberg Jr. - 2020
    Built by the greater god Helion, each floor is like a vast and ever changing realm equipped with its own challenges, its own dangers, and its own rewards for those willing to risk it all. And for any strong enough to reach the tower’s peak comes the right to fight for the ultimate prize...Valin Frost was a common thief from earth with little desire to risk his life in the tower. However, a twist of fate plunged him through its large, onyx doors. Now, Valin must join the ranks of the mana wielders, master his abilities, and learn how to fight if he plans on surviving the trials of Helion’s tower... and perhaps, one day carving his name into the book of legends.This is a tower ascension novel with litrpg and cultivation elements.

Sages Of The Underpass


Aaron Michael Ritchey - 2019
    Thanks to his damaged core and crazy family, he never stood a chance anyway. With money, fame, and untold power on the line, the corporations decide who wins. End of story.But when a mysterious group, calling themselves the Sages of the Underpass, threaten to upend the entire system with their unorthodox training and cultivation methods, Niko soon learns that what was once a handicap might be his greatest asset. The only thing standing in his way is a bitter, hard-hearted veteran, who would like nothing more than to see Niko stay in his place. Right at the bottom.Rocky meets Dragon Ball Z in this underdog redemption story from Dragon Award Finalist Aaron Michael Ritchey. Sages of the Underpass is an epic blend of Urban Fantasy, Cultivation, and Magical MMA that captures the passion, the power, and the perseverance it takes to follow your dreams—no matter what kind of artist you are.

Textbook of Machine Design


R.S. Khurmi - 1996
    It is also recommended for students studying btech, be, and other professional courses related to machine design. The book is systematic and is presented in clear and simple language. The syllabus of the book is in line with the course at nmims. It is good reference book for students of other colleges too. The book explains the life cycle of engineering design, with respect to machines beginning from identifying a problem, defining it in relatively simpler terms, considering the environment in which it operates, and finding a solution to solve problems or improvise methods. It includes more than 30 chapters like shafts, levers, chain drives, power screws, flywheel, springs, clutches, brakes, welding joints, pressure vessels, spur gears, internal combustion engine parts, bevel gears, pipes and pipe joints, worms gears, columns and struts, riveted joints, keys and coupling, and more. S chand publishing is the publisher of a textbook of machine design, and it was published in 2005. This 25th revised edition book is available in paperback. Key features: this is a multi-coloured edition with pictures, illustrations, diagrams, and graphics to support the concepts explained. About the authorsj k gupta and r s khurmi have authored the book. Dr r s khurmi worked as a professor in delhi university, and now he writes books on engineering. J k gupta is also a technical writer, and writes mostly in collaboration with r s khurmi. They have their individual authored books as well like strength of material, life and work of ramesh chunder dutta c. I. E, and history of sirsa town. Some of the books that have been authored by both of them are refrigeration tables with chart, textbook of refrigeration and airconditioning (m. E.

The Landscape Urbanism Reader


Charles Waldheim - 2006
    Hence a new architectural discourse has emerged: landscape urbanism.In The Landscape Urbanism Reader Charles Waldheimwho is at the forefront of this new movementhas assembled the definitive collection of essays by many of the field's top practitioners. Fourteen essays written by leading figures across a range of disciplines and from around the worldincluding James Corner, Linda Pollak, Alan Berger, Pierre Blanger, Julia Czerniak, and morecapture the origins, the contemporary milieu, and the aspirations of this relatively new field. The Landscape Urbanism Reader is an inspiring signal to the future of city making as well as an indispensablereference for students, teachers, architects, and urban planners.

The Art of Building Cities: City Building According to Its Artistic Fundamentals


Camillo Sitte - 1889
    Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. Camillo Sitte (1843-1903) was a noted Austrian architect, painter and theoretician who exercised great influence on the development of urban planning in Europe and the United States. The publication at Vienna in May 1889 of "Der Stadtebau nach seinen k�nstlerischen Grundsatzen" ("The Art of Building Cities") began a new era in Germanic city planning. Sitte strongly criticized the current emphasis on broad, straight boulevards, public squares arranged primarily for the convenience of traffic, and efforts to strip major public or religious landmarks of adjoining smaller structures regarded as encumbering such monuments of the past. Sitte proposed instead to follow what he believed to be the design objectives of those whose streets and buildings shaped medieval cities. He advocated curving or irregular street alignments to provide ever-changing vistas. He called for T-intersections to reduce the number of possible conflicts among streams of moving traffic. He pointed out the advantages of what came to be know as "turbine squares"--civic spaces served by streets entering in such a way as to resemble a pin-wheel in plan. His teachings became widely accepted in Austria, Germany, and Scandinavia, and in less than a decade his style of urban design came to be accepted as the norm in those countries.

Good Services: Decoding the Mystery of What Makes a Good Service


Lou Downe - 2019
    There are a lot of books on how to get started, but this is the first book that describes what a ‘good’ service is, what makes a good service and why.This book lays out the essential principles for building services that work well for users. Demystifying what we mean by a ‘good’ and ‘bad’ service and describing the common elements within all services that mean that it either works for users or doesn’t. A practical book for non-practitioners interested in better service delivery, a book to guide their decision making without the need to first learn how to design a service themselves.