Soffeh
Year:2014 | Volume:23 | Issue:63|Papers Count:7

The concept of space in environmental design disciplines has evolved in interaction with philosophical and sociological conceptualization. The dichotomy in philosophical thinking has led to definitions of relative and absolute space. Other dualistic concepts of space in architecture include: perceived vs. conceived space; representation of space vs. representational space; physical vs. geographical space or physical vs. social space; virtual vs. real space; static vs. dynamic space, etc. By review of these dichotomies, it is concluded that they all are the result of assuming the space to be an absolute, abstract and physical entity. It is however, suggested that in fact space is a complex relational entity, which is the result of multifaceted interactions and is thus under constant transformation. It is therefore necessary to continuously review and revise its definition through a holistic, multifactorial and multidisciplinary approach.

The concept of center plays a key role in the theories of art and architecture. This paper is a comparative study of this concept in the work of three distinguished theoreticians of art and architecture: Christian Norberg Shults, Christopher Alexander, Rudolf Arnheim. Although they are fundamentally different in their approach, they all place primary importance in this concept. Nevertheless, their reference to ‘center’ is widely varied in terms of both signification and significance. While at times, ‘center’ is taken to mean a geometrical property or the physical prominence of an architectural element, sometimes it refers to a principal cognitive role an element plays in the symbolic arrangement of an architectural composition. It is therefore essential to recognize the intended meaning of ‘center’ in the semantic hierarchy of each theoretical system.

This paper attempts to investigate the impact of building arrangement on energy efficiency of buildings. To this end, energy consumption of typical buildings has been simulated for heating, cooling and lighting. The location of buildings is assumed to be in a street in central Tehran. Six block arrangements are assumed for two rows of buildings. In a typical arrangement, buildings are located on the north side of each plot and lighting for middle and northern spaces is provided through a patio. In a linear arrangement, two rows of buildings are located on the north and south sides of facing plots and there is no need for patio lighting. Other arrangements include ‘L’, ‘U’ and courtyard arrangement. The simulation results indicate that the courtyard arrangement is most energy-efficient for lighting both in summer and winter months. For heating and cooling purposes the typical arrangement has the highest energy-efficiency, however.

This research attempts to determine those landscapes and landscape properties, which stimulate place attachment. To this end, a series of unstructured interviews were held with some 160 respondents from Shiraz and Tehran. There was an even distribution in terms of gender, age, and education in the sample. In these interviews, open questions were asked on:Type of landscapes in which the respondent feels internal ecstasy;Examples of landscapes the respondent feels them to be sublime;Types of landscape which are fit for certain functions or feelings such as contemplation, privacy, reclusiveness;Example of landscapes favored by the respondent;Degree of predilection for Modern parks and/or Persian gardens;Type of house preferred by the respondent; and Landscape elements that carry symbolic meanings. Answers to these questions were recorded and subsequently coded for statistical analysis. In conclusion, factors which cause the respondents to like or dislike a certain landscape were classified in functional, aesthetic experimental; and environmental categories.

Rapid urbanization in recent years has led to increased energy consumption in diverse urban sectors. Urban transportation is one of key energy-intensive sectors of the city. This paper attempts to assess the impact of urban land use on urban transport patterns and thus the energy-efficiency of the transportation sector in Tehran. The metropolitan area of Tehran is an ideal environment for this research as there is significant diversity in transport patterns across its districts. A literature survey yields five factors, the correlation of which to transport patterns was calculated for different urban conditions. The results indicate that choice of transportation mode and distance-and consequently, the energy-efficiency of urban transportation sector- correlates with the degree of mixed and balanced land use, accessibility to and by public transport, and intersection design.

Located in a seismic zone, Iran has been faced with a number of catastrophic earthquakes and floods, resulting in destruction and many fatalities. Considering the increasing number of post-graduate courses in the country, the importance of conducting comparative disaster related studies is essential. This paper reviews the curricula of disaster management courses in various universities, including online, certificate, diploma, bachelor, master and Ph.D. levels. The main focus is to leverage current programs in order to develop similar courses within Iranian universities. Research methodology is based on web data and information collection. More than 360 disaster management courses have been reviewed from five continents including North America (165), Europe (113), Asia (52), Africa (20) and Australia and Pacific Occasions (10). A comparative study of the curricula for these courses was also undertaken, as regards both their frequency and thematic matter. The results show that despite the diversity of approaches to disaster management in higher education, human settlement crisis management is a relatively new subject in schools of architecture and urban designs. Furthermore, while post-disaster reconstruction is usually taught as part of courses on disaster management, the current master post-disaster reconstruction course that delivered at the Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning, Shahid Beheshti University is probably unique in terms of its focus.

Our knowledge about the history of the historic bazaar in Kermanshah is very limited. It has been said that the bazaar once extended from east gate to west gate in the city. Nevertheless, what is left of the bazaar is its middle part in the city center. This research attempts to identify the formation of the bazaar and determine dates of construction for its key monuments through a review of documents related to key patrons of the city. The results indicate that the construction of the bazaar started from the east gate at the beginning of Qajar rule circa 1780 AD. Under the rule of Nasser-ed-Din Shah during the next fifty years, the bazaar extended westwards. The last phase in formation of the bazaar corresponds to the last years of the Qajar Dynasty, which ends in 1920s. In the subsequent Pahlavi Period, new streets were built through the fabric cutting the bazaar in sections. Many of the monuments were then demolished and/or replaced with modern buildings, plazas, etc.