Gestalt

2011-03-29T15:09:00.003-07:00

ای کسانیکه ایمان آوردید، شما را به مقدساتتون عکس چاقاله بادوم را شرنکنید، این شهر را ما از سر تا ته گشته یم و پیدا نکرده یم. بترسید از روزی که به حال ما دچار شوید. :(

2011-03-29T15:09:00.001-07:00

چگونه تمرین کنیم دست از نگرانی برداریم و فیزیک و متافیزیک را کم‌محل کنیم
درس اول: لباس منجوق دوزی شده بپوشید
:)..... این لیست به مرور کامل میشود
آیین های فردی

2011-03-29T15:07:00.002-07:00

اخیرا دیده ام توی بعضی از این سایت ها به نقل از بنده گفته اند که آقای میکائیل کار خاصی نمی کند. اصلا این طور نیست. اتفاقا ایشان فرشته ی بسیار زحمت کشی هستند. بنده از آنها که در سایت ها اخبار دروغ می نویسند می پرسم، سیصد سال مداوم عمه ی شما بود که هر هشت ساعت یک بار قرص خواب آور می داد به اصحاب کهف؟"
مصاحبه ی مطبوعاتی جبرئیل، پشت پرده...ی ملکوت

2011-03-29T15:07:00.001-07:00

میره واسه کرگدن و میمون کشتی میسازه، اون وقت میگم یک دوچرخه واسه من بخر نمیخره :(
از دفترچه خاطرات پسر نوح

2011-03-29T15:06:00.002-07:00

ببخشید داشتم امتحان می کردم، بخوابید!!!
(اسرافیل خطاب به مرده ها که در اثر صدای ساکسیفون بیدار شده اند)

2011-03-29T15:06:00.001-07:00

خدا وکیلی، شماها واقعا فکر میکنید فرشته بودن کار آسونیه؟؟؟ من سر این پروژه یونس پیر شدم به پیغمبر. ۶ ماه کلاس غواصی رفتم باز هم میگفتن چرا سر وقت کار نمیکنی :(
(درد ودل های جبرئیل)

2010-12-29T20:34:00.000-08:00

... دل تنگم

The Situationist concept of the “détournement”

2010-12-14T10:05:00.000-08:00

The détournement is a way to show the disagreement with some concepts in the society and its goal is to bring up a new message to the audience sight. On the détournement practice, artists are making a transformation on a previous work and create a new work which has an aggressive or opposite meaning compare to the original work. The original media work that is détourned must be somehow familiar to the aim of the audience so that it can value the opposition of the new message from the artist.

It started by the International Situationist movement in post-war France and northern Europe and it developed truly fast into a powerful and subversive critique of modern commodity society in the 60s. Since there is no limit to creativity in the artwork and no boundary for correcting or transforming the piece of art the détournement practice developed fast. It basically started to be a main core in the contemporary capitalism. The détourned fundamentals are categorized into two types. First, it is a minor détournements which are about elements that are not truly important by themselves and they gain their meaning from being placed in a new context. for example: everyday objects. Second, it is a deceptive détournement which already are major essentials in the contexts like famous painting or philosophical text that obtain the new sense by being placed in the new context.

In 60s the concept of détournement has had a popular influence amongst contemporary radicals, and the technique can be seen in action in the present day when looking at the work of Culture Jammers including the Cacophony Society, Billboard Liberation Front, and Adbusters. Some of the good examples are Nike, Pepsi and Diesel.

Détournement position in the urban realm today is truly involved with all different issues of the modern civilization but since media pay a special attention to conflicts and politics consequently détournement started to track that path. Based on the numerous wars and harshness in the modern world artists started to focus on these particular subjects and put the light on the failure of the modern humanity and the influence of the modernism in the world. The Neue Slowenische Kunst work is an example of détournement with extremely political vision. It is a controversial political art collectives that publicizes itself in 1984 and it has a long history of aggressive détournement of intense political ideologies. Also in music world they are several industrial music groups who recognize as a political détournement such as Die Krupps, Nitzer Ebb, KMFDM, and Front 242.

In the modern urbanism the détournement picks the original work faithfully, apply the acrimonious fact or idea, mimic the role of the original work and come up with the result which is much stronger and identifiable than the original work. I personally think one of the goals of the détournement is capture the public attention and show the dreadful side of the society and alarm them by their work. Below are some example of the détournement work that they can identify as a good illustration of political and conflict détournement. Also, during our trip to Portugal I was looking around the town to discover détournement work and amazingly I found some good examples in the suburb area.

Works Cited
1.Debord, Guy and Wolman. Gil. J. Methods of Détournement
2.A User’s Guide to Détournement, http://www.bopsecrets.org
3.Politics of Play: Situationism, Détournement, and Anti-Art, http://forum.llc.ed.ac.uk
4.Vaneigem, Raoul. "The Revolution in Everyday Life". The Situationist, International Text Library at Nothingness.org. (9 March 2008)
5.Wikipedia, Détournement
6.ww.generation-online.org/detournement.htm

The Situationist concept of the “dérive”

2010-12-14T10:01:00.000-08:00

To understanding the position of the dérive in capitalism and its effect on the city the best approach is to get more familiar with the meaning of the theory of derive and its position in the city. Essentially one of the basic Situationist practices is Dérive(drifting).

It is a creative experiment and constructive behavior. It is a quick way to go through mix atmosphere and find the inspiring result at the end. Derive is engaging people in the certain time in particular places with the new point of view of the experiment. Dérive shows an innovative psychogeographical achievement during and after the experience. The practice of derive is truly different from the traditional philosophy of walking or collecting information.

Dérive is about the city which gets discover by one or a group of people during the certain time. They essentially leave their regular activities, work and all other responsibilities and start fallowing the attraction of the city. They basically let the city to guide them and show them the hidden spaces and secrets. In the dérive the main point to get to the successful result is, one not count on the chance and second follow the buried path and get lost in the city.

In fact from the derive sight cities have psychogeographical outlines and undisclosed spot which never can notice from certain zone. To obtain that moment and observe the information people need to follow the pure form of the city and dérive.
Now the question is how dérive and dérivers can relate to the capitalism and the society. Capitalism is a social system based on the respect of individual rights and also property rights. Under capitalism the state is separated from economics (production and trade) and the state is separated from religion. Also capitalism is the system of laissez fairs and the political freedom.

Some critics of the capitalism is related to unfair distribution of wealth and power, a tendency toward market monopoly or oligopoly, imperialism, counter-revolutionary wars and various forms of economic and cultural exploitation, repression of workers and trade unionists, social alienation, economic inequality, unemployment, and economic instability. Since the dérive doesn’t follow the pure boundaries of the city and the duration of the experiment and also doesn’t have any relation to the solar time it will be an insurgent way to discover. In addition, dérivers can see the other side of the urban area which is not usually clear on the regular trip.

Based on Debord argument in 1967 some special features like mass media and advertising play a main character in a capitalist society. In fact they show a fake reality in order to mask the real capitalist degradation of human life. One of the approaches of Situationists to the life experiences in capitalism is critical thinking and since the dérivers doesn’t have a limit to follow certain scheme they would have a chance to get closer to the reality and see the problems or complexity in the city under capitalism and criticize the system.

dérives allows people to draw up the surveys of the psychogeographical articulations of a modern city. City can transform physically and structured around relations, freedom, knowledge and experience. If people be free emotionally they would develop their experience of their surrounding and can simply fight to change the city view in certain way. They can point out the failure of the system in the city and let others recognize them as well. Moreover, they can help the system to correct itself and get rid of the marked off point. Dérive is not just a behavior or trial; it is an imaginative way to collect information and it can unveil all hidden layers of the city.

Works Cited
1.Ernest Debord, Guy, Theory of the Dérive, Essay 1958
2.Friedman, Milton. Friedman, Rose D, Capitalism and freedom (Theory of the Derive)
3.Hill, Enid, First World Capitalism. Arab Studies Quarterly (ASQ), summer, 1999
4.Urban Dictionary, Capitalism
5.Wikipedia, Capitalism and Situationist International

شخصیت های داستانم

2010-11-27T22:59:00.000-08:00

غمگینم، خیلی زیاد. شخصیت های داستانم هم غمگینند. ملیحه با اون چشمهای درشتش زل زده به در و منتظر شوهرشه. دلش شور میزنه که چرا این بارون لعنتی قطع نمیشه. سارا هم زانوی غم بغل گرفته که چرا بچه اش را پارسال از دست داده و حالا هر کار میکنه دوباره بچه دار نمیشه. من هم اینجا نشستم و فقط غصه میخورم که چطوری به ملیحه بگم که شوهرش تصادف کرده زیر بارون. اصلا انصاف است که تصادف کرده باشه؟

2010-11-25T17:41:00.000-08:00

اخلاقم ان دماغی است. لطفآ نزدیک نشوید :(

2010-10-20T00:03:00.001-07:00

من باور دارم که برای این نمی نویسم که خوانده بشم، واقعا برای دلم می نویسم، ولی خدایی یعنی هیچ کسی اینجا را نمی خونه که من کامنت نمی گیرم . ؟؟؟

2010-10-08T13:41:00.001-07:00

کودک درونم نشسته ته دلم با کف صابون حباب درست کرده. حالا اون قسمتش که بازی میکنه و از ته دل قهقهه میزنه خیلی بد نیست چون باعٽ میشه من هم لبخند بزنم، ولی هر بار که با کف دستش حبابها را ترق ترق میترکونه من نیم متر از جام میپرم :(

2010-10-08T13:40:00.001-07:00

درد من تنهايي نيست ؛ بلكه مرگ ملتي است كه گدايي را قناعت ، بي عرضگي را صبر می دانند ، و با تبسمي بر لب اين حماقت را حكمت خداوند مي نامند

گاندي

2010-09-26T23:28:00.001-07:00

Ok, you won. I quit.

2010-08-31T12:29:00.000-07:00

If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude. Don't complain. Maya Angelou

2010-08-30T18:35:00.001-07:00

هرگز تعبیر خواب یاد نگرفتم . خواب‌هام قصه‌های من اند. دوست ندارم کسی تعبیرشان کند. حالا ماندم با این خواب واضح دیشبم چه کنم؟

Guest Lecture 01- Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation

2010-02-23T14:57:00.000-08:00

The Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) is a method to sterilize which uses ultraviolet light at suitably short wavelength to fracture the microorganisms. It is mostly used in a different range of purpose like cooking, water purification and air. UV is a famous method since 120 years ago. But the fact is UVGI is dangerous to use and it can damage the structure of the existence in the micro organic level. For example using the UVGI machine in some location like circulating air or water systems makes a poisonous effect on micro-organisms.

Indoor microorganisms are in two different categories. First, Pathogens or more commonly germ which is a biological mediator that causes illness to its mass. It includes bacteria and virus. In fact, our body develops numerous natural orders of defense against some of the common pathogens but cannot cover all of them. Pathogenic viruses cause different types of illness like chickenpox, measles, smallpox and rubella. The range of the virus is between 20-300 nanometers in length and it is really small compare to the range of bacteria which is between 1-5 micrometers in length. Second category is Fungi which is includes a eukaryotic territory of microbes that are generally saprophytes but mostly can develop infection in people, animals and plants. Fungi are usually making a yeast infection in the body like in skin and nail. It is usually grow in presence of food like organic material and water. In HVAC system mostly found in cooling coil and damp filter media.

The big discussion in indoor microorganisms is how to control it. As we know HVAC system (Heating, ventilation and air-conditioning) can participate in distribution and control of transmittable microorganisms. For example, for Pathogens the best way to control is remove it from air, remove from surface and limit person to person transmittal with geo hygiene. In addition, for fungi the best answer is control the surface moisture. HVAC ducts are treating as a pipe in the building and the transmittable microorganisms can travel room to room when people socialize in the room, for instance when they talk, laugh, cough and sneeze. It is important because it can be suspended in the air for several hours.

Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) is a good option with high efficiency filtration system to organize the airborne microorganisms. UVGI system is typically low pressure mercury vapor lamps which use 254 nm UVC radiations produced to interrupt the DNA or RNA of microbes and cause impairing their capability of replication. The microbial response to UVGI is as this formula: S=exp(-KIT). S is the survival fraction of a microbial population. Factor K (cm2/μW-s) is represents the resistance of the species of interest. I germicidal radiation at a flounce rate (W/cm2) and T is the time on the formula. Remember that Air temperature and velocity may vary over a wide range in an HVAC system and make considerable change in, Also I and t factor which are infrequently measure for a design and analyses in an accurate way.

One of the good examples of the system type for UVGI is UV above occupied. It is a zone irradiance circulation air. Which the first cost was $2.5 ft2 and operation cost was $0.13 ft2/ year. More models are self contained, decontamination and coil filter bank disinfection.

Small Is Beautiful

2010-02-23T14:56:00.000-08:00

Small Is Beautiful (a study of Economics As If People Mattered) written by economist from England whose name is E. F. Schumacher. The expression of the name of the book was basically in contrast with phrases bigger is better which is more popular between people. Since human is small (in size) comparing to its environment can we claim that small is more beautiful?

Basically this essay is divided into different divisions including the modern world, resources, the third world and organization and ownership. On the Problem of Production which we were studying he disagrees with the idea of the sustainable modern economy. He argues that in our modern world natural resources are used as replaceable material which is totally wrong and they are not renewable and should get more attention from government and community. Also we should consider the pollution, environmental issues and ecology problems in our surrounding. Essentially he argues about the responsibility of government who expected to be concerned about sustainable development. The government is not only accountable in developed county but in the third world countries as well. On the second part which is Peace and Permanence (chapter two) writer declare a relationship between war and richness. Our historical evidence shows that the rich people usually more peaceful compare to poor people. Basically they don’t need to fight and gain anything since they are rich enough. But is it an only reason to fight? Or culture and environment are involved as well? In my personal idea it is not the only reason and most of the war started base on lack of education more than money. In part of the essay he claimed that we have science and technology to help us along the road to peace and I believe most of the problem for gaining the peace started from here. In fact, wisdom demands a new direction of science and technology to get the right way to the organic, non-violent and beautiful life.

In the part of role of economics the question is how much we should consider economist. Are they trying to draw a future as a despondent view? Who is economic and how much they know about the economic future? Are they making an exaggeration about our life? If they start to talk about the problems on the future they need to have a solution for it. Some of the fact is, it is not really exaggeration in our situation like natural resources, public disease and population growth. We all know they are in the dangers point and no disagree about the face but how much time we have to get to that miserable point.

Other subject is about the Buddhist Economist which basically means right “livelihood”. It is clear that Buddhist economist have to be extremely different from the economics of modern world. The Buddhist sees the spirit of civilization in the strength of the human character not in a development and production. Character of the human is essentially formed primarily by a man's work. And work, properly conducted in conditions of human dignity and freedom, blesses those who do it and equally their products.

2010-02-15T13:41:00.001-08:00

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to test the accuracy of visual observations and analog inclinometer readings. A solar angle calculator was constructed by inputting the trigonometric solar equations into Excel to act as the control to which readings were compared. Data for measurement of solar angles collected from a morning and afternoon of the same day, showed a reasonable level of accuracy with nearly all data falling within a range of 5-15 percent error. The level of error was attributed mostly to user error and the level of graduation of the instrumentation.

Table of Contents

S.No	Description	Page Number
	Abstract	02
1.0	Introduction	04
2.0	Experimental Design and Instrumentation	04
3.0	Experimental Procedure	05
4.0	Theory	06
5.0	Analysis: Data Validation/ Analysis & Error Analysis	08
6.0	Conclusion	09
7.0	References	10

1.0 Introduction:

Using two separate measurement methods [visual observation, inclinometer with magnetic compass] the solar altitude and azimuth were calculated for Phoenix both in the morning and evening. Error analysis was then done by comparing the manual measurements with the calculated angles for altitude and azimuth at those times. Finally, the Excel spread sheet prepared for calculations was used to determine the hours of sunrise and sunset for that day.

2.0 Experimental Design and Instrumentation:

The two instruments used for conducting the experiment were the Magnetic Compass and the Inclinometer. The basic working principle and functioning of the two is as follows:

Magnetic Compass: A compass is a navigational instrument for determining direction relative to the Earth's magnetic poles. It consists of a magnetized pointer (usually marked on the North end) free to align itself with Earth's magnetic field. The magnet is generally called a needle. One end of the needle is often marked "N," for north, or colored in some way to indicate that it points toward north.

A compass works by detecting and orienting itself in a magnetic field. Since the Earth is magnetized, on its surface exists a very weak magnetic field. This magnetic field is a result of the rotational forces of liquid iron in the Earth’s core. Earth can be imagined as a gigantic bar magnet with a North-South orientation that causes other magnetized objects to take on the same orientation. However, Earth’s magnetic North is not the same as its geographic North located at the North Pole, but is slightly to one side. This deviation from true North means compensation must be made when calculating actual directions. These compensation factors vary depending on location on the Earth and can be read from navigational charts.

Inclinometer: An inclinometer is an instrument for measuring angles of slope (or tilt), elevation or inclination of an object with respect to gravity by creating an artificial horizon. It is also known as a tilt meter or tilt indicator. Inclinometers measure both inclines (positive slopes, as seen by an observer looking upwards) and declines (negative slopes, as seen by an observer looking downward).

The inclinometer used for the experiment was essentially a radial protractor with a weighted needle in the centre. If the base of the inclinometer is level, its indicating needle or dial points straight up (i.e.90 degrees). The shadow of the needle on the base gives the reading of the altitude angle of the sun. Aligning the shadow on the dial in an accurate manner with the magnetic compass allows us to take the readings for the azimuth angle of the sun. The readings on the magnetic compass are for magnetic north.

Appropriate corrections need to be made for true north in order to get the final result for solar azimuth angle. In case of Tempe, the correction is 12 degrees from magnetic north/south (sign convention used: negative for morning & positive for afternoon or negative when east of south and positive when West of south).

3.0 Experimental Procedure

a. The experiment was conducted for two different times of the same day on February 1st at 10:15 am and 3:00 pm. The solar azimuth and altitude were first estimated using bare eye and the same were recorded.

b. In the next step, the inclinometer was used to record the solar altitude. This device (which consists of a needle in the centre of concentric circles giving the degree measure for altitude angle calculated based on complex solar geometry), was placed in the sun. The length of the shadow of the nail pointed to the solar altitude (measured in degree) on the base.

d. Next, the magnetic compass (aligned to magnetic north) was placed on the base of the inclinometer in such a way that the shadow of the needle now fell on the compass. Since the solar azimuth angle is the measure of the angle between the line from the observer to the sun projected on the ground and the line from the observer due south, the angle between magnetic south on the compass and the line of the shadow was noted.

d. For Phoenix, the correction required to compensate between true and magnetic north is approx 12 degrees. This correction was applied to the reading taken in step c above to get the reading corresponding to true north. By convention, for mornings we subtract 12 degrees and for afternoons add 12 degrees to get values for true north.

e. An excel spreadsheet was prepared to calculate the solar angles using trigonometric solar formulae. The sheet was used to compare and verify the results recorded from above experiment. Spreadsheet data was used as a baseline to analyze the error associated with observations made by bare eyes and experimental tools.

f. The Sunrise and Sunset time for the day was calculated using the spreadsheets generated.

4.0 Theory

The experiment essentially aimed at understanding the solar geometry and developing the skill to measure solar angles using various methods i.e. using formulae, Inclinometer & Magnetic Compass and through visual analysis. The basic theory behind the solar angles measured is as given below.

Solar Geometry: The tilt of the earth on its axis and our location north of the equator result in sun path which changes throughout the year. The position of the Sun with respect to earth’s surface can be described by two different angles, the solar azimuth and the solar altitude or elevation. Together, the two angles provide useful information about the orientation of incoming sunlight on an object or structure. This information is extremely important while installing solar collector devices and designing building fenestrations and shading devices.

Solar Zenith Angle (θs): Angle between a line pointing to the Sun and the vertical. The solar Zenith angle can be calculated using the formula:

Cosθs=Cosλ * Cosδ * Cosω + Sinλ * Sinδ

Where; λ = Latitude; δ = Declination; ω=hour angle

Solar Azimuth Angle (ϕs): The angle between the line from the observer to the sun projected on the ground and the line from the observer due south. A positive azimuth angle generally indicates the sun is east of south, and a negative azimuth angle generally indicates the sun is west of south. Others define solar azimuth as the angle from due north in a clockwise direction as well. The solar Azimuth angle can be calculated as follows:

Sinϕs= (Cosδ*Sinω)/Sinθs

Where; ϕs = Solar Azimuth Angle; δ = Declination; ω=hour angle; θs = Solar Zenith Angle

Solar Altitude Angle (αs): The angle between a line from a point on the Earth's surface to the center of the solar disk, and a line extending horizontally from the point.

αs= 90 – θs

Where; θs= Solar Zenith Angle

5.0 Data Analysis

Location: Tempe, Arizona Date: 01 February 2010


Inputs	Value	Units	Inputs	Value	Units
Solar Time	9.57	Hours	Solar Time	14.32	Hours
Day of Year	32	Day	Day of Year	32	Day
Latitude	33.43	Degrees	Latitude	33.43	Degrees
Longitude	112.02	Degrees	Longitude	112.02	Degrees
Equation of Time	-13	Minutes	Equation of Time	-13	Minutes
Tilt of Surface	0	Degrees	Tilt of Surface	0	Degrees
Surface Azimuth	0	Degrees	Surface Azimuth	0	Degrees

Outputs			Outputs
Declination	-17.37	Degrees	Declination	-17.37	Degrees
Hour Angle	-36.52	Degrees	Hour Angle	34.73	Degrees
Solar Zenith	61.60	Degrees	Solar Zenith	60.65	Degrees
Solar Altitude	28.40	Degrees	Solar Altitude	29.35	Degrees
Standard Time	10.25	Hours	Standard Time	15.00	Hours
Solar Azimuth	-40.22	Degrees	Solar Azimuth	38.59	Degrees
Angle of Incidence	61.60	Degrees	Angle of Incidence	60.65	Degrees

10:15am Standard Time			3:00pm Standard Time

Results	Altitude	Azimuth	Results	Altitude	Azimuth
Visual Estimate	30	-30	Visual Estimate	25	45
	5.33%	-34.07%		11.44%	-9.09%	error

Inclinometer	27	-43	Inclinometer	20	44
	-5.19%	6.47%		-10.70%	-11.57%	error

Calculation	28.4	-40.22	Calculation	22.14	49.09

Sunrise	6:53 AM	Solar time		7:29 AM	Standard Time
Sunset	5:13 PM	Solar time		5:53 PM	Standard Time

Error Analysis

In addition to a diminished level of accuracy due to imperfection in its making, some level of error can be contributed to the surface which the inclinometer was placed. When placed on a non-level surface the readings of the instrument can be distorted by either the shadow of the nail increasing in length with the instrument tilted away from the sun, or decreased with a tilt toward the sun. Another source of error would be the level of graduation of the inclinometer. With increments of only every ten degrees all measurements which fell between the markings had to be inferred, which carries with it an inherent level of error. The accuracy of the magnetic compass also suffered from its level of graduation as verifying increments proved to be difficult. Both instruments would likely yield a more accurate result with increased scale.

6.0 Conclusions

1. The lab experiment helped in understanding and strengthening the concepts of solar angles. It helped in developing the skill set to use instruments such as the Inclinometer and magnetic compass. The measurements taken using these instruments were cross-checked using the trigonometric equations for solar angles. The two were compared for errors and analysis made to determine possible reasoning for the difference.

2. Data collected from a morning and afternoon reading of the same day, showed a reasonable level of accuracy with nearly all data falling within a range of 5-15 percent error. The level of error was attributed mostly to user error and the level of graduation of the instrumentation.

3. It was concluded that with more accurate and sophisticated instruments, the readings would have been very close to the values obtained using trigonometric functions.

7.0 Reference

1. http://monsterguide.net

2. www.wikipedia.com

3. http://www.teachengineering.org

Lab Report #1

2010-02-15T13:33:00.000-08:00

The particles and molecules in the objects never travel at the similar speed. Indeed there is a variety of energy in the middle of the molecules which cause the movement. Like in glass of liquid like water molecules are moving in the accidental way with different range of speed and the pace of the molecules depend on the temperature on the liquid. It means with higher temperature molecules move faster and with lower they move slower.

Temperature needs to get measure in different circumstances and there are plenty of equipments and sensors outside for measuring it. First common and practical device to measure temperature is thermometer. Thermometer work really simple and has two main elements, the temperature sensor and some numbers to converting the material change into a value.

Most frequently used temperature sensor is thermocouple. The thermocouple made from two different metals which are attached jointly at the end of one side. They touch each other and the contact point produces a small exclusive voltage as a function of temperature. This voltage is measured and read by a thermocouple thermometer. Thermocouples are accessible in diverse “metals combinations or calibrations. The four important calibrations of the thermocouples are J, K, T and E. Each calibration has a special temperature variety and environment.” Although the thermocouples are sort of temperature sensor which generally use for measurement and control they be capable to use to convert heat into electric forces. In the direction of choosing the right thermocouples for our project we need to consider different aspect of it. Since thermocouples measure in large temperature ranges and can be quite rough they are usually getting used in manufacturing. So we need to consider the temperature range, think about the chemical resistance of the thermocouple or covered material, consider abrasion and vibration resistance and at the end check our installation supplies.

One of the disadvantages of thermocouple is life time of the machine. Since in thermocouples, thermo elements are usually worked in the high temperatures the lifetime of the system will decrease. One of the electronic devices which can convert thermal energy to electrical energy is thermopile. Thermopile is a collected of thermocouples most regularly in series connection but in some special cases in parallel.

In solar radiation measurement there are different types of instruments. Such as:

Total Diffuse

Pyranometer with thermal detector- Eppley

Pyranometer with shading ring- Kipp

Total Beam or Direct

Pyranometer with PV detector- LiCor

Pyrheliometer

Bibliography
http://en.wikipedia.org
http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu
http://www.omega.com
SOS 494- Renewable Energy Class, Professor Reddy

2010-02-15T13:32:00.000-08:00

The life-cycle cost (LCC) analysis takes into account all expenses that incur over a time span for a system. When different design scenarios are considered, this tool enables the designer to compare the net savings of different alternatives and choose the most cost-effective option. However, the simple payback analysis considers the short term return of investment for a system during the first year. Two methods i.e., manual calculation and Excel Spreadsheet, are used to determine the net savings and simple payback of a baseline system and nine other design options (glazing) and results are discussed below.
Manual Calculation:

Based on the net saving, ALT 9 (PPG - SolarBan 2000) offers the most saving over 25 years ($714,380) followed ALT 7 (Viracon -VE7-55 -Low-E Azurlite) which results in $707,770 saving. Although both designs require an initial one time investment it pays off in the long run by reducing the utility costs.

From Figure 1, it is clear that alternatives 7 and 9 offer the largest savings compared to a big others options.

Figure 1 – Net savings using manual calculation

The simple payback is the ratio of the incremental first cost over first year annual savings. Hence, it focuses on the short term returns. Figure 2 shows the simple payback results for the 9 different alternatives.

Figure 2 – Simple Payback using manual calculation

It is obvious that this method yields different results from the net saving (see Figure 1). This plot indicates the best design recommendation based on this approach is ALT 1 (Single Pane Azurlite) with a simple payback ratio of 0.8 which pays for its investment during the first year. ALT5 (Viracon -VE1-55 -Low-E Clear) comes second with a 2.9 payback value.
Excel Spreadsheet Calculation:

Figure 3: Net savings using Excel Spreadsheet

Figure 3 shows the net savings obtained from Excel Spreadsheet. As this figure indicates, the most cost-effective option over is ALT 9. This offers the largest cost saving over 25 years of service. This is inline with the conclusion from manually calculated data.

Figure 4 - Simple Payback using Excel Spreadsheet

Figure 4 shows the simple payback values calculated with the spreadsheet for nine different design alternatives. Similar to Figure 2 this graph also indicates that ALT1 offers the best return for investment during the first year.

Summary:

The simple pay back is easy to estimate and indicates the return of an investment during the first year. However, its focus is on the short term fails to capture all future costs and benefits, capital replacement, life-cycle utility costs, operations cast, maintenance costs, and the time value of money. On the other hand, net saving parameter could provide the value of an investment over a time period and the savings in the long run.

Both manual and spreadsheet methods yielded comparable results. Although there were some insignificant deviations in the results of these two methods it did not alter the final recommendation.

The Built Environment and the Ecosphere: A Global Perspective

2010-02-15T13:27:00.000-08:00

Read the copy of chapter “The Built Environment and the Ecosphere” and write about your observation:

It is a strong relationship between the growth of the urban population and development of the Countries. In the history the human population has had a rural lifestyle and the world’s population was becoming more urbanized as people move to the cities and search for urban lifestyle. By look at the chart and graphs the big jump on the population growth in the last decade sometimes between 1950 and 2010 appears. In 1950 just 25% of the world’s population used to live in cities and by the end of 2009 this number was raised to 52% and it is estimated to grow to 65% by the end of year 2030. For example, in the United States just 5% of the population lived in cities in 1850 then 70 year later in 1920 about 50% of the population lived in cities. In fact, it was a time for US to start the urbanization. This numbers grows faster than imagination which in 2009 around 85% of the US population lived in cities and suburbs. While just 100% of a population probably can be urbanized so the development of the urbanization is will finished. Historically, Urbanization has directly connected with industrialization. “When more and more inanimate sources of energy were used to enhance human productivity (industrialization), surpluses increased in both agriculture and industry.”
But what are the most important concerns related to speedy Urban Growth? The processes of the urbanization is really bigger than simple population growth, it will change the economy in the society and revolutionize the social and political arrangement of the county. Numerous environmental issues and social changes in the urban environment are the cause of urban growth and its consequence has a strong connection to global change issues. The urban growth also decreases the ability of the cities to offer well to services to residences of the city including energy, health care, transportation, physical security, trash pickup services and education. On the other hand, since administration of the city is not earning enough profit to use on the basic needs of the place, the cities will become the crowded area with severe environmental issues.

On the early 20th centuries the urbanization has a motivation for suburb people to travel to establish the developed cities. Some opportunities like new job and better life style deceived people to look for a new way of life in big cities. Simultaneously, amount of factories got opened in large cities and attract large numbers of migrants looking for employment. In addition, it was a big attraction for investment corporations from developed countries to start businesses in those cities. The major problem of the opening new factories was pollution and urban sprawl. In addition, the change in the physical surroundings and in the form and spatial society of cities is under the Urban sprawl’s responsibility.

Developed and undeveloped countries are different on the percentage of the living in cities. For instance, in some undeveloped countries like India the population of the cities is extremely high and it causes the urban sprawl. It shows that practically 60% of city residents live in the urban margin in poverty and environmental dreadful conditions. High mass arrangements are highly make pollution. Also be short of metropolitan services, including clean water, electricity, natural gas, special service for trash pickup are some problems which those poor people deal with in the daily life.

The problem in developed countries such as United State and Canada has a different shape. In those countries urban sprawl Consequences is even more. It includes the raised traffic on the center of the city as well as suburb, pollution on the water and air, damaged agricultural land and parks, large amount of cost for sewer lines and new water lines, highly cost to make more houses for more people, fire protection places, hospital and universities and finally crowded city with less space and more people on the area.

Some of the serious environmental problems which seem temporarily but would change to be permanent are atmospheric change, unsteady climate and ozone depletion. Those problems are not just affect people on the cities; they would involve people from around the world.

Another important subject related to urban growth is ecological footprint. The Ecological Footprint is the area of earth and ocean required to sustain our consumption of food, goods, services, housing, and energy and assimilate our wastes. “Our ecological footprint is expressed in "global hectares" (gha) or "global acres" (ga), which are standardized units that take into account the differences in biological productivity of various ecosystems impacted by our consumption activities. Our footprint is broken down into four consumption categories: carbon (home energy use and transportation), food, housing, and goods and services.” Our footprint is categorized into four ecosystem forms such as cropland, pastureland, forestland, and marine fisheries.

There are numerous systems to decrease our footprint in the world. By learning those systems we can be more responsible for our generation and by sharing this information with our colleges, friends and community we can make a social change to have a greener environmental in our planet. What we can do is, first use the cleaner transportation services which basically mean walk, bike, or take public transit more than before and try to avid personal car. If we have to use our car it is better to service it regularly. Instead of using airplane take bus or train if it is possible. Second, include energy-saving features to our home. For example put in compact fluorescent bulbs in our home light fixtures, check our walls and ceilings to confirm that they are insulated and if it is possible, consider double-pane windows and also choose energy efficient electrical device for the house. Third, try to track good habits for saving energy. For instance, change our thermostat to the low number in winter and same thing with air conditioning in the summer, also remember to replace dirty air conditioner filters to keep the air conditioning system operate at peak efficiency, turn off the light when we are not in the room and unplug electricity devices when is not in used.

Furthermore, there are different ways to reduce our footprint in the nature. For example buy more local, organic, in-season foods. Enjoy planting and try to plant our own herbs and vegetable. Pay attention to packaging when we shop in super market which means foods with less packaging will reduce waste on the world. Eat less meat because “globally, it has been estimated that 18% of all greenhouse gas emissions are associated with meat consumption.”

Finally what is our responsibility as a designer and how we can help as a designer or architect? The most important thing that we can do is prefer sustainable building materials, furnishings, and cleaning products. Think about using the green design features for design, same as passive solar heating, water recycling system and recycled materials. Use efficient appliances, including low flow shower heads and toilets in the building. And finally use biodegradable, non-toxic cleaning products.

2010-02-15T13:26:00.000-08:00

In this chart shows that total surface irradiance start from 5 AM and finish at 7 PM in summer and in winter start from 7AM until 6 PM . The shape of the line illustrate that total surface irradiance in the summer time is lower and that the incidence angle on the summer is closer to the normal angle of the vertical surface.

Summer (June)

Winter (December)

The Recurring Silent Spring

2010-02-05T14:55:00.003-08:00

Silent Spring is written by Rachel Carson and published in September 1962. The book is more about the disadvantageous effects of modern pesticides on our surroundings especially on fish and birds. It will give us some ideas about helping to start the environmental movement and green politics.

In the small city in the middle of America everything was fine and elegant and seemed to be perfect with its surrounding. Then an unexpected blight started in this beautiful area and changed everything. Chickens, Sheep, cows and other animals stared to getting sick and die. There had been several quick and unexplained deaths on the city. The farmer s talked to doctors to find the problem but this mysterious sickness made doctors confused as well as farmers. Also there was another extraordinary problem. All birds were gone and people couldn’t find the reason. Where they go and why they move. The answer to this disaster was chemical poisoning.

The industry started to grow after World War II and using the chemical suddenly rise. For example The DDT in environment can cause thinner on egg shells and make a reproductive problems and death. Also the chemical industry of spreading disinformation and public officials of accepting industry claims uncritically.

Almost three decade later the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) find a solution to unsolved problems of sickness and death of wildlife, flowers, vegetable, animals, children and adults . EPA evaluates harmful waste sites by the same standard which Silent Spring book was used to present “fable for tomorrow “. Hazardous ranking system was a methodology to identifying the most dangerous hazardous waste sites. It included the category and amount of the hazardous of the chemical which is used on the site, drinking water wells or supplies, verification of the stressed vegetation and ground water, surface water and air. EPA got $1.6 billion fund from congress to rank, investigate and clean up some super dangerous waste sites in the United State on five years.

The super fund program worked very well and got more funds with more number of serious hazardous waste sites to clean up. But one of the criticisms is “so much toxic waste buried, so few sites cleaned up”.

During the time that EPA was focused on its project - hazardous waste program - environment movement was dealing with different problems. There are two main concern (one urban and one rural) on chemical usages in environment. First problem is agricultural pollution. For example farmers pollute their own wells and local water supplies with agricultural chemicals. Unfortunately there are not enough budgets to replace or restore the groundwater or clean up the surface water. The public agency answer to this problem is “do nothing philosophy” and ignore the fact. Second problem is, employing the high level of lead in urban earth in different areas. Scientists on Boston City Hospital on their studies found high level - as high as 1-of lead poisoning on children’s blood. The fact is rate of the blood lead poisoning was different in each neighborhood. Some children which live in the poor region have more exposed to lead from gasoline, leaded paint from housing and the dirt which they use to play with. EPA started a project to remove lead contaminated soil in those properties. They called it Emergency Lead Poisoning Area because of the high amount of lead-poisoned kids.

Two large factions of chemicals are making the majority of pesticides. The chlorinated hydrocarbons (including: DDT, chlordane, heptachlor, dieldrin, aldrin, and endrin) and phosphorus insecticides which are directly linked to the poisonous nerve gases used in World War II. They affect the nervous system of their subject such as insect, birds, animals and humans.

One of the important subject that Carson is concern about is the risk of the pesticides water especially ground water. In fact, ground water can count as an underground sea which is getting recharged by rain and snow. Rain will pass the poisoned soil to get underground and take the poison to the water.

The Nature of Exponential Growth

2010-02-05T14:55:00.001-08:00

In our decade five main elements such as population, food manufactured industrialization, pollution- especially green house gases- and consumption of non renewable natural resources are increasing annually. Exponential growth is the name of the pattern which shows the amount of increasing every year. In general, there are two different types of graph to show the increasing, linear and exponential. When graphs show the rate (positive or negative) base on the fixed rate we name it linear graph and when the elements which are involved on the graph doesn’t move with fixed speed we name it exponential. For instance the process of the birth is exponential. Each cell divide to two cells and these two cells again divide to another two cells and finally after the specified period of time amount get doubled or tripled. From two to four, four to sixteen, sixteen to thirty two and… In exponential increasing the object rise much faster than linear. Indeed, exponential growth is an ordinary progression in nature and many other systems in the planet.

In the exponential growth when one option gets changed over time like financial matters the result would be predictable and easy to understand. But in complicated cases like nature topics with diverse alternatives analyses the outcome of the growth and predict the future behavior would be really hard. Some serious questions get involved with the complicated cases. For example, population causes the pollution or manufacturing? Is either one individually in charge for population or both? Is population affects more food production or lack of non renewable energy is involved with the issue? How much location and social behavior can change the result on the long term? For finding the answers to all questions above it is better to understand and analyses the whole complex system. System Dynamic is a straightforward method to understanding the dynamic behavior of complicated systems. Firs t of all we need to recognize the basic structure of the system that we are working on. Then get familiar with positive feedback loop or “vicious circle”. Feedback loop is a series of cause and effects that all exponential growing quantity is involved with. It means when any elements in the loop get changed by any other relative purposes (toward positive) feedback loop will start a chain of increasing changes and final result even increased more like exponential and when any elements goes in the direction of the negative feedback loop the result will decrease.

In general positive feedback loop is a good option when we want to begin our dynamic analyses of the long -term world condition. In the dynamic behavior of population growth, positive feedback loop that accounts for the observed exponential growth. In larger population -with steady standard fertility- because more people are involved, more babies will be born annually and more babies will show more population on each year graph. After some times to allow those babies to become adult and have their babies as a result more babies will born again and population will grow more and more. Steady growth will keep going as long as standard fertility stays stable with same condition. But some alternative like location, diet habits, and exercises can change the result.

In different areas, average genders of the babies are dissimilar. For example, if each woman has two or more female children in their households and each of them become adult and have more than two female children in the period of time the population will be double or more in the following generation. On the other hand the negative feedback loop is controlling the population. Negative feedback loop is based on the number of death each year and the mortality in each year depends on the several alternatives such as health of the community, natural disaster like earthquake, tornado, flood and war between countries.

There is an unbreakable chain between the positive and negative feedback loop. More birth in the community results rising the average population and because of more people in the world we have more death on the community. Also, more death leaves fewer people and less birth for the next generation. If there is no death which is impossible cause positive feedback loop of birth rise exponentially. If this case is an impossible case so what is the reason that the world population grows exponential? Is it because of the industrial revolution that changed the balance of the birth and death?

Three decade ago the life time average was just 30 years old. 30% of the children under five couldn’t survive from the child diseases. 40% of pregnant women delivered a death baby or they were died in the process of delivery. But now because of the modern medicine, public health methods and cleaner water and distribute food death rates especially in modern countries decreasing around the world.

Although the food, resources, clean water and healthy neighboring are the big factor for growth the social problems, culture in different areas and location play a big role in controlling the birth and death. For instance, in some countries like India, Zambia, Pakistan and Colombia the death of the small children is still on the board. Clean water and natural food is a problem that they are dealing week every day.

Another problem is faster than human population world economic is growing exponential. The regular growth range was 7 percent around forty years ago and the reason is the increasing amount of industrial capital including factories, trucks, machines and different tools. By calculation and consider that 7 percent economic is growing and 2 percent population growing that main positive feedback loop are increasing terrifying.

The big question is what we need to sustain world economic rate and population growth. We can list our answer into two categories. First, the physical requirements that maintains all physiological and manufacturing activities like, water, food, fossil fuel, unprocessed material, nuclear fuel and ecological system which absorb waste and recycle materials. The second category is social requirements. Social requirements factor includes education, social life, employment and technological process.

Temperature, Radiation Measurement Devices & Methods

2010-02-05T14:50:00.000-08:00

The first question is what the definition of temperature is. Temperature is a feeling of warmth or coldness of an item which can recognize by touching that item. In fact, “temperature is a measure of the average kinetic energy of the particles in a sample of matter, expressed in units of degrees on a standard scale.” Temperature units are in Fahrenheit or centigrade degrees. Since temperature is a standard measurement, the amount of particles in an object does not change the temperature range and also temperature does not depend on the size of the object. For instance, the temperature in a glass of boiling water is exactly same as the temperature of the huge tank of boiling water and it doesn’t matter that big tank carry more water molecules inside.

The particles and molecules in the objects never travel at the similar speed. Indeed there is a variety of energy in the middle of the molecules which cause the movement. Like in glass of liquid like water molecules are moving in the accidental way with different range of speed and the pace of the molecules depend on the temperature on the liquid. It means with higher temperature molecules move faster and with lower they move slower.

Temperature needs to get measure in different circumstances and there are plenty of equipments and sensors outside for measuring it. First common and practical device to measure temperature is thermometer. Thermometer work really simple and has two main elements, the temperature sensor and some numbers to converting the material change into a value.

Most frequently used temperature sensor is thermocouple. The thermocouple made from two different metals which are attached jointly at the end of one side. They touch each other and the contact point produces a small exclusive voltage as a function of temperature. This voltage is measured and read by a thermocouple thermometer. Thermocouples are accessible in diverse “metals combinations or calibrations. The four important calibrations of the thermocouples are J, K, T and E. Each calibration has a special temperature variety and environment.” Although the thermocouples are sort of temperature sensor which generally use for measurement and control they be capable to use to convert heat into electric forces. In the direction of choosing the right thermocouples for our project we need to consider different aspect of it. Since thermocouples measure in large temperature ranges and can be quite rough they are usually getting used in manufacturing. So we need to consider the temperature range, think about the chemical resistance of the thermocouple or covered material, consider abrasion and vibration resistance and at the end check our installation supplies.

One of the disadvantages of thermocouple is life time of the machine. Since in thermocouples, thermo elements are usually worked in the high temperatures the lifetime of the system will decrease. One of the electronic devices which can convert thermal energy to electrical energy is thermopile. Thermopile is a collected of thermocouples most regularly in series connection but in some special cases in parallel.

My Baby...

2010-01-16T09:40:00.000-08:00

My baby already has a soul and spirit and although he wasn't ready to join us just then, he would join us when he is ready.

2009-12-13T11:11:00.000-08:00

«اجازه نده احساسات تو را دیگران متوجه شوند»، «اجازه نده هیجان‌ها بر تو مسلط شوند»، «خودت را مانند یک کتاب باز نگذار» و مخصوصا «اجازه نده کسی گریه‌ات را ببیند».

Guest Lecture - Ronald Roedel

2009-10-29T11:05:00.000-07:00

The important part of the lecture was about structure of the solar cells and its operation. The main thing was about optical radiation which got absorb by the solar cells and the result creates active charged particle then particles will transferred by the solar.

Basically photons get collected by sunlight which we can call it "packets" of the sun energy. When solar cells were hit by photons the huge mass are get absorbed or reflected the quantity of high-energy photons will blow right away but most of the time they are get absorbed or reflected. While absorbing happened to a photon its energy is transported to a semiconductor. When an adequate amount of energy is transported the atom can run away from its regular position to the different position. Meanwhile the electron makes a hole to shape. Each photon with sufficient energy will usually give a way one electron plus one hole.

Each solar cell has three different and energetic layers. First “a top junction layer (made of the N-type semiconductor) second an absorber layer (which called the P-N junction) and third a back junction layer (made of the P-type semiconductor)”. But what is the P-N junction? In the P-N junction the cell includes its individual built-in electric field. This electric field offers the voltage which is necessarily to power electrons and holes by light absorption to run in their own instructions. In fact, it will direct the electrons to the N-type area, and the holes to the P-type area. Whether we offer an outer current path, electrons will run from side to side this pathway to their original area to join with holes the electric field send there. The electron surge offers the current and the electric field make a voltage. With both current path and voltage we can produce power.

Part of the lecture was about The Doping Model, The Fermi level (the chemical potential) and power and efficiency in the solar cell. About efficiency based on my research on the internet triple-junction compound solar cell can gain more efficiency than other product-around 35.8%. It is not similar to other silicon-based solar cells which normally used in solar panels for the home or office buildings. This product made from compounds “including indium and gallium”. Compound solar cells usually used on space satellites and they are costly to make.

Solar cells have three different generations. First Generation is “Silicon, second generation is Thin Film Structures which included Amorphous Silicon, III-V Solar Cells, II-VI Solar Cells, I-III-VI2 Solar Cells and organic Solar Cells and the third generation is Structures that exceed the single PN-junction thermodynamic conversion limit”.

The conclusion of the lecture was more concentrated on the Silicon. It is clear that the Silicon is the best and it will be the best for ever. Also second generation of solar cells provide a miniature competition to Silicon however this is momentary and third Generation of the solar cells are hardly challenging to make itself to the better position but technologically it is not possible.

Different Types of Solar Thermal Power Production

2009-10-29T11:03:00.000-07:00

- Parabolic troughs systems
Parabolic trough system use a bended trough which reflects the direct solar radiation onto a pipe containing a fluid which is called a receiver, absorber or collector running the length of the trough above the reflectors. The trough is parabolic in one direction and straight in the other direction. For change of position of the sun perpendicular to the receiver the trough tilts so that the direct radiation remains focused on the receiver. One advantage of parabolic trough systems is their potential for storing solar thermal energy to use during non-solar periods and to dispatch when it's needed most.

- Paraboloid or dish systems
The advantage of a dish system is that it can achieve much higher temperatures due to the higher concentration of light. Higher temperatures lead to better conversion to electricity and the dish system is very efficient on this point. However, there are also some disadvantages. Heat to electricity conversion requires moving parts and those results in maintenance. In general, a centralized approach for this conversion is better than the decentralized concept in the dish design. Second the heavy engine is part of the moving structure which requires a rigid frame and strong tracking system. Furthermore, parabolic mirrors are used instead of flat mirrors and tracking must be dual-axis.

- Power tower systems
The advantage of this design above the parabolic trough design is the higher temperature as well. Thermal energy at higher temperatures can be converted to electricity more efficiently and can be more cheaply stored for later use. in addition, there is less need to flatten the ground area. In principle a power tower can be built on a hillside. Mirrors can be flat and plumbing is concentrated in the tower. The disadvantage is that each mirror must have its own dual-axis control while in the parabolic trough design one axis can be shared for a large array of mirrors.

- Solar chimneys
Solar chimney often referred to as a thermal chimney. It is a new method of improving the natural ventilation of buildings by using convection of air heated by passive solar energy. A simple description of a solar chimney is that of a vertical shaft utilizing solar energy to enhance the natural stack ventilation through a building. The solar chimney can work better by adding a tremble wall. The advantage of this design is that the system may be reversed during the cold season, providing solar heating instead. Another advantage is the collector can use all solar radiation, both direct and diffused. Also Due to the heat storage system the solar chimney will operate 24h on pure solar energy. Consider that the building materials needed for solar chimneys, mainly concrete and glass and they are available everywhere.

Different Types of Solar Thermal Collectors

2009-10-29T11:00:00.000-07:00

Flat plate collectors
Flat-plate solar collector is one type of the solar collectors. The other major types are evacuated tube collectors and batch solar heaters. It is the most familiar solar collectors to use in solar water-heating systems and mostly use for homes and small office buildings for solar space heating. It is basically included of “an insulated metal box with a glass or plastic cover (the glazing) and a dark-colored absorber plate.”

- Tubular collectors
Different principals of evacuated tubular calculator are heat pipe evacuated tubular calculator and all glass evacuated tubular calculator. The simplest modules are made of two connected tube. The selective surface on the outer side of the inner tube is vacuumed incased. The fluid to extract heat must be passed in and out at the same end of the inner tube. One major of disadvantage of this collector compare to others is the necessity of using cylindrical shape.

- Compound parabolic collectors
If we want to stay away from the need of keeping the collector aperture pointed to the sun we are able to simply use compound parabolic collector. We can collect and concentrate solar energy from multiple directions to the one point. By using this technique when the sun moves across the sky we can accept and concentrate the solar thermal energy all day.

- Parabolic concentrators
Increasing solar energy capture can be reached by employing longer curved reflectors to take larger areas for sunshine and redirect that solar energy to a smaller center. The parabolic collectors can produce more solar energies at the focal plane or focal line. Because of the geometry and aperture of the collector it must directly face the sun to avoid loss of collection efficiency and maintain the location so the collector need complex and expensive mechanical tracking devices to keep it pointed to the sun all the time.

- Dish concentrators
Dish concentrators using parabolic dish formed mirrors to focus the received solar radiation onto a receiver that is situated at the focal point of the dish. The fluid in the receiver is heated to very high temperatures and then used to generate electricity in a small sterling engine which is attached to the receiver. Parabolic dish systems are the most efficient of all solar technologies “at approximately 25% efficient compare to around 20% for other solar thermal technologies.”

- Heliostat fields
The middle receiver solar power plant is composed to the lots of independently stirred mirrors which is called heliostat. They are focusing the solar radiation onto a tower mounted receiver. The amount of the energy which is received all depends on three different things. “First the characteristic angles of individual heliostats, second the incidence angle of the sun rays striking individual heliostats and the third the blocking and shading effect of each heliostat.”

Subsidizing Corn‐Based Ethanol

2009-10-29T10:58:00.000-07:00

It is clear that scientists think the corn based ethanol is a very unfortunate policy because first, it offers a small amount of net energy after we consider the amount of the energy for production. As a fact, more energy we loss to make ethanol from grain than the combustion of ethanol produces. Second, using corn for fuel will raise food costs in the community. Third, ethanol has a negative balance power. “Ethanol from corn and wood biomass requires 29%, 50%, and 57% more energy” to create the ethanol than the energy restricted within the fuel. “Adding up the energy costs of corn production and its conversion to ethanol, 131,000 Btu are needed to make one gallon of ethanol. One gallon of ethanol has an energy value of only 77,000 Btu”

Unfortunately federal and state are disagreed and claimed that in Brazil people productively use sugar cane based ethanol. But the fact is sugar cane ethanol is more efficient -produces more net energy- and it made of waste left over after the extraction of sugar and also would not affect the food prices in society. The whole discussion about corn based ethanol brings two questions in the public minds. How federal and state public policies are -regarding to the issue- connected to the farming sector? And then how farmers assisted state and federal election campaigns to gain this?

Since the ethanol production requires a big quantity of energy and the majority energy in the country is created from coal the small reduction in CO2 and other polluting emissions from burning ethanol versus gasoline will be more than standard by the power needed to produce the ethanol. Also “ethanol produced has a small energy yield per hectare”. Therefore, it needs a large quantity of land to produce a significant amount of ethanol. Consider that the “20% of the whole corn crop was used to create ethanol, and it offset only 1% of US oil use” in 2008.

The majority of economic studies show that the manufacture of the corn to ethanol- if we believe the costs of environmental- it will damages our environment more than we can visualize. For example, soiling in the corn farming is a very difficult work to achieve. It is involved with “nitrogen fertilizer and petroleum-based pesticides”. Another consideration for ethanol is necessitating the farm to water. Water is limited in the country specially places close to the corn farm. As we mentioned before since corn can count as a food, ethanol production is increasing food prices like meat, milk, eggs and other grocery product because is about “70 percent of corn grain is fed to livestock and poultry in the United States”. For sure this change will attack the economy in the Unites States other parts of the world. Finally, although we want to be optimistic and wish that the all transportation services in the United States get the service with hundred percent of ethanol in the reality we will need to grow the corn feedstock all over on our land area and corn will cover nearly the total places in the United States.

But it is a big difference between the algae and corn based ethanol. For example since the country require the enormous oil needs the algae farms would take only about 15,000 square miles to produce sufficient biodiesel to meet our transportation requirements and it is possible in actuality. In fact each algae farm can be just 120 miles by 120 miles with less than 50 algae farms with only 300 square miles each to get the goal reach. Also algae is more economical and renewable as well as it will not going to displace food crop. In addition, algae are truly easier to handle than other resources since it does not require the level of filtering or titrating. In conclusion it is a desire that users learn how to make algae bio diesel for themselves at home or other places. Then they can to be more responsible for their own energy requirements and stop waiting for big energy corporations to deliver energy to them.

Guest Lecture Christopher Davey

2009-10-13T00:22:00.000-07:00

The lecture started with two important points. First what are the renewable energy resources and what is the Enviro Mission in the 21 century. Renewable energy is energy produced from natural resources like sunlight, wind, rain, soil. “In 2006 around 18% of global final energy consumption came from renewable energy resources plus 13% from traditional biomass (wood-burning). The next largest renewable source is hydroelectricity which presents 3% of global energy consumption and 15% of global electricity generation. The Enviro Mission Global Solar is a tower developer who is established network of global partners and doing projects underway in the southwest. One of their big projects is a solar updraft tower power generating station recognized as “Solar Tower Buronga” in Buronga, New South Wales which started in 2001.” The height of the tower will be approximately twice as the world’s tallest structure.

The renewable energy resources have different benefits included 100% green resources with zero water, zero emission, zero fossil fuel, more reliable cost, more flexibility on hours to operate and site flexibility. Some of the technologies in renewable energy are nuclear, wind, photovoltaic and solar power. But need to consider that on top of the advantage they have disadvantage. Although nuclear power has a very high capital costs it has long development lifecycle and politically sensitive. Wind power doesn’t have a storage capability and really unreliable but the caption cost is moderate on that. Photovoltaic also has an extremely high caption cost with very expensive to install, expensive to storage and it just can operate 4 to 6 hours per day. Finally solar power is not economical in storage with high caption cost and can just operate 6 to 8 hours per day.

The attractive part in the lecture was solar tower section. Solar tower is a projected type of renewable-energy power plant. In fact it is a combination of three old and established technologies like chimney outcome, greenhouse outcome, and wind turbines. The producing skill of the solar tower mainly depends on two different factors. First the size of the tower such as collector size and chimney height and second the volume of air which needs to get warmed to run up to the chimney.

The solar tower has a big advantage over wind powers and other solar producer. The solar tower is based on no wind program and can work 24 hours and 7 days a week. They are also low costs with sustainable energy (zero water and fossil fuel use), it has more than 75 life expectation, integrates with variety of heat forms storage (hot air can be stored inside the collector region to be used to warm the air later on.) and being eco-energy for the 21st century. In addition, in our era solar tower can be a major motivated option in energy projects since it has lots of advantages compare to other developments.

Why do people hate wind energy so much?

2009-10-07T11:24:00.000-07:00

Public perception to any new product is very important to shape people reaction to that product. Wind power was one of the subjects that bring lots of discussions and arguments to the public. As we know wind turbines are local issues and people have not experience them before so when wind farms started to develop in some areas the residence are affected by other peoples who doesn’t have any knowledge of wind power in action and other resources such as public media.

Some surveys exposed that 85% of the community support the use of general renewable energy and 80% are support of the use of wind power and even 70% would be have a problem to live within 5 miles of a wind power farms. Although it proves that the majority of the public report about wind turbines is positive considering the negative view of the wind power is necessarily.

There are couple reasons that people disgust the wind power. First people think wind turbines are not natural looking. This seems to come from the people who believe nature should be perfect and not spoiled by signs of human activity. Second people think wind turbines are not truly very effective and they are more a public relations trick. This is usually come from engineers who have done the numbers critical in the field. In fact those engineers are not disagreed with the wind generation as much as they are disappointed of the public reaction to the wind power. They try to argue that wind power will not solve all energy problems in the world. The third is wind turbines kill more birds than it should be but by checking the charts and graphs the numbers of the birds killed by glass tower is much bigger than wind turbines. Also in reality the number of the birds who killed by wind turbine is less than 1%. Fourth they are nice to look at but work as a noise factor. In fact wind farms are not really close to the resident area and the noise will not make any problems for dweller. As a result all these people think the wind generation is a dangerous distraction and it will make more problems instead of solving any.

People with negative approach should accept that the wind energy is one of the world's fastest growing sources of energy. Factually hundreds of new wind turbines are developing from fields across the world every year. With such explosive growth the questions about what they should look like or where they must and must not be installed is meaningless. The more important thing is be concerned about our usages in the world and try to conserve our natural resources.

2009-10-07T11:22:00.000-07:00

Internal heat gain = electrical equipment and residents of the house give off the heat in the building. Heat gain from electricity is almost equal to the electricity usage in a building or zone. The average use of the electricity in American house is 11,000 kWh/yr. Some examples are microwave, computer laptop, coffee maker, TV and refrigerator. The best ways to manage or reduce internal heat are first change our equipments to more efficient product (energy star product), second reduce the use when it is not necessarily and the third use ceiling fans or indoor air motion in hit days of summer instead of air conditioning.

Conventional heating = since the conventional heating truly can save amount of energy and money for people the best way to reduce the energy consumption is check the existing heating system and ensure that the system works accurate. If not, consider purchasing a high efficiency model since they would help to reduce energy costs as well as conserve our natural resources. As the software recommended us for some area like Los Angeles, design a garage or storage space on the side of the building facing the coldest wind could help insulate.

Passive solar direct gain low mass and high mass = for passive solar gain main thing is help the building to gain more solar power and keep the heat inside. Material of the building would make a big difference in keeping heat. Accurate insulation for the floor and wall can keep the heat inside during the winter. As it is recommended on the program it is better to face most of the glass area south to maximize winter sun contacts but design some overhangs or sun shade to completely shade glass area in the summer time. Also it is better to not be planted trees in front of passive solar windows.

Sun shading = Sun shading is really important for Los Angeles area since they need maximum sun shading for winter and minimum sun shading for summer. So each season has a different approach to it. As mentioned on the top create some overhangs to completely shade glass area in the summer time help the house to keep the energy inside the building. In some windy climate sun shading can protect the house from the wind as well as sun.

Comfort = Comfort in the building deign need to consider as well. By design the Sunny wind-protected outdoor spaces we can reduce the energy waste in colder area. In addition, in some climate area like LA square footage of the building is important. When floor area is smaller the amount of the waste by heating and cooling energy is less as well.

2009-10-05T19:26:00.000-07:00

I didn’t know it would be that hard. Well, I wrote about the baby in my notes during my classes when I was pregnant and it turned to be a problem now. Whenever I go through my notes to study I see my writing and the story start again. Tears, tears and tears.

2009-10-03T00:29:00.000-07:00

اینجا نشستم و با خودم حرف میزنم، از متیو میپرسم یعنی فکر میکنی من آخر داستان خوب میشم؟؟؟ میگه جسمی آره ولی مغزی مطمئن نیستم

2009-10-01T15:15:00.000-07:00

من سالها بود كه خدا را باور نداشتم چون همیشه فکر میکردم خدای كه نتونه جهانه بی نقص خلق کنه خدا نیست. خدای كه جنگ را برای لذت خلق کنه خدا نیست. خدای كه از درد کشیدن دیگران اخم نکنه خدا نیست. روزی كه این کوچولو ته دلم جوونه زد، داشتم شک میکردم به اعتقادم. كه شاید واقعا خدایی هم باشه كه بتونه شادی بیاره. حالا کاملا گم شدم

2009-10-01T14:42:00.000-07:00

دلم قرص فراموشی میخواد. باید یادم بره. میخوام كه یادم بره. درد از روح ام آغاز شده و تمام جسمم را در از بین میبره. روز دوشنبه کوچولوی ۲ ماهه و نیمه ام را از دست دادم. دردش تمام بدنم را داره داغون میکنه

از چهارشنبه پیش شروع شد. صبح چهارشنبه وقتی كه رفتیم مطب دکتر ازم خواست كه برم برای اولترا سند. خیلی درد داشتم. چند روزی میشد كه از درد نتونسته بودم راحت بخوابم. ولی توی اتاق اولترا سند همه چی از یادم رفت. وقتی كه عکسش روی صفحه مانیتور ظاهر شد مثل اینکه همه دنیا دوره سرم میچرخید. داشت دست و پا میزد مثل ماهی قرمزی كه توی تنگ آب شنا میکنه. صدای ضربان قلبش آرامم کرد. اونجا بود. خیالم راحت شده بود از اینکه جاش راحته. تنها چیزی كه نگرانم میکرد این بود كه درد داشتم. دکتر باهام حرف زد و گفت كه همه چی خوبه ولی اگر بچه حس کنه كه نمیتونه کامل رشد کنه خودش جلوی رشد خودش را میگیره

جمعه درد بیشتر شد و بدن ام شروع کرد به خونریزی. وقتی كه زنگ زدم به بیمارستان گفتند كه اگه مقدار خونریزی کم است هیچ خطری نیست و بیخود نگران نباشم. این داستان تا یکشنبه شب ادامه پیدا کرد تا اینکه وقتی ساعت ۲ نیمه شب دیدم كه دیگه فاصله درد و خون را از هم تشخیص نمیدم فهمیدم كه دارم از دستش میدم. صبح روز دوشنبه توی مطب دکتر تا قبل از اینکه دستگاه اولترا سند را روشن کنه هنوز ته دلم امید داشتم كه حالش خوبه. وقتی دستگاه را روشن کرد خشک ام زد. بچه مثل ماهی قرمز های شب عید كه چند روز بعد از عید میمیرن مرده بود
I am so sorry sweetie هیچی نمیشنیدم. فقط صدای دکتر از ۱۰۰۰ کیلومتر اونطرف تر آمد كه گفت

و بعد دستی كه بغلم کرد و سعی کرد جلوی هق هق گریه ام را بگیره. بعدش را یادم نیست. فکر کنم چند ساعت را توی اتاق بودم تا حالم جا بیاد. دکتر میخواست بدونه كه تصمیم دارم چه کنم؟ میخوام برم برای جراحی یا اینکه صبر کنم كه بدن ام خودش بچه را پس بده. گیج بودم و نمیتونستم تصمیم بگیرم

سعی کرد جای هر دوتامون تصمیم بگیره Med

گفت كه جراحی میکنیم و قرار جراحی را گذاشت برای چهارشنبه صبح. ولی همون شب خونریزی بدتر شد و قبل از اینکه بفهمم زیر سرم مرفین بدن ام بچه را پس داد. بعد از آن فقط درد دارم و درد و درد. روحی بیشتر از جسمی

Computer Modeling Simulation

2009-09-21T19:40:00.000-07:00

Although computer simulation in building is a main key for the study of energy efficiency in buildings first thing to consider is understand the definition of the computer simulation. Computer simulation is create a model of a theoretical physical system, complete this model on a digital computer program, analyze the output, compare the result and finally choose the best option which can give the most efficient result.

Inside the overall task of simulation there are three main sub-fields such as “model design, model execution and model analysis.” Simulation has a principle of leaning by practicing. To learn about the system is better to first build a model then operate this model. The use of simulation is an activity that is as natural as a child who role plays. Children understand the world around them by simulating. The majority of their connections with other people, animals, objects and their environment are based on learn by practice as well as make a mistake and gain experience. For instance they don’t know by pouring the sugar on the table they can build a sugar cone until they experience it. It is an opportunity that nature gave them to use their natural ability to learn during process. As an adult some of these childlike manners are lost during the time but it brings back to us through computer simulation design. In fact computer simulation is the electronic equivalent of role playing and it serves to drive synthetic environments and virtual worlds.

Simulation and modeling can be directly use as a design tool for any type of building and it has become essential part of many designs. It is a powerful and significant tool because offers a way to understand and explore different alternatives in design, plans and/or policies. Also it is less expensive, time-consuming and more practical to work with. Main advantage of simulation is before a building constructed it will allow the designers to optimize the energy use and efficiency of the building. During the design process designers have a chance to ask different question about the project like What if? Or how about this instead of that? These questions give them the opportunity to make changes as much as they want instead of changing the actual system.

In addition, for the exciting structures simulation could become a very helpful tool with the urge to improve efficiency of the buildings. Designers can model exciting building and try to optimize the energy use by varying different parameters in the structure such as window location, insulation materials, materials used for shading, lighting system, HVAC and air conditioning. Designers can monitor or measurer the impact of these changes on the overall energy efficiency and recommend changes to be implemented in the structure. With the recent development in the analysis and design tools modelers are able to correlate the simulation results with data collected from the actual structure. This has filled the gap between analyses and experiment.

Modeling process is a connection between designer, computer model, input data, and output result. Since many aspects of models need a fair conclusion designer and the model should be strongly connected to each other. As an example in the design process designer make an individual decision about which data is essential to use, how much detail need to be involved during the process and how to make the model more efficient and useful for public. In each particular project designer take time and effort to understand and recognize the limitation inherent in the model formulation, identify the errors, make a correction in details, calculation their response and obtain the best result.

Each model is generally designed for the specific project because in each project designer build the model based on the information and data on that specific situation and condition which is not similar to other circumstance. Sometimes the final result is not what a designer expected and it is fixable by comparison between simulation results. Also designer can check the result in different programs to get the most reasonable answer. After comparing the result in the simulation process designer need to replaced the exciting program to the better program if “better data is existing, more precise or more revealing analysis is performed on the data and an alternative formulation data provides as much insight with as much precision and more efficiently (lower data requirement or faster computational speed)”.

In the simulation programs the level of details of a model is a subject to concern. The model is worked based on variety detail and existing data which is really important in the modeling. Different programs give an opportunity to designers to add different type of detail during modeling but they should consider how much and what sort of detail they need to put in. Adding up the incorrect details to the process will change the numbers in the report and the result will not be practical at the end. The inclusion of extra detail can mislead the people because in some cases it shows that model is too expensive to use or need too much data requirement. Another duty of designer is collect all available data for the project because model can not create an outstanding result if data information does not exist or it is not completed. Also need to remember that if data were updated during the time of the design process it is a designer responsibility to replace or update the old information with new data.

Design process in meaning is similar to the meaning of investigation during design. If two designers attack a same challenge although they would naturally start from different points and process by dissimilar way they reach the same conclusion at the end. But during the design process both designers need to consider the all options such as R values, insulation, and door and window area and building construction.

Model should not be similar to a container that we just add information into it. The value of the model is dependent on the quality of the data, the way of designer using it and the amount of the details. It is good to remember that in design process first requirement for modelers is patient because sometimes the result of the work is disappointing and designers need to redo the all process of the design, add additional data to the program or compare data’s to get a better result. In general designers have three source of difficulty during their design process including:” experimental error (or noise), confusion of correlation with causation and complexity of the effects studies.”

If modelers consider some basic principles in modeling they make the design process simpler. “Model simple, think complicated” which means model doesn’t need to be as complicated as actuality and designers can think complex during process and have a simple final model. It seems little bit confusing because knowing how much simple or complicated the model needs to be is not an easy option to manage and some experience would be helpful. “Start small and add” is a second principle. The third principle is “dividing and conquers, avoid super large models”. As Pidd – professor of management science in the management school of Lancaster University- recommended in his paper, this is a common advice given to all modeler who is trying to understand how a complicated system operates. Designer should be stay away from falling in love with data and try to be realistic about them is another principle. The last principle for designers is “model building may feel like modeling through. “

Simulation system design in each project is developed by different alternative. In passive solar system simulations are developed by conduction, convection, and radiation relationship which describe the heat flow rate occurring in a building. In simulation some loads are more complicated to estimate than others. For instance, cooling load in passive solar system is more difficult loads to estimate compare to heating loads on both small (hourly) and large (annually) scale. The reason is “first, the difference between indoor and outdoor air temperature is typically smaller in cooling application so that the effect of solar radiation absorption on building surfaces is significant. Second, the ambient temperature may oscillate around the desired indoor temperature causing building thermal capacitance effects to be important. Third, the significant portion of the cooling load may result from the removal of water vapor from the air.”

In computer simulation it is really difficult to control the all parts of the design process and no matter how sophisticated a computer model becomes many limitation remains and they arise from the numbers of aspects. The mathematical imperfection that exits in the solution process, the difficulty of accurately modeling impacts and the rough calculation of complex modeling structure are some example of these limitation computers modeling in the building design process.

Design tool for building generally is classified as simulation or correlations. Simulations provide information on system performance over short (hourly) intervals of time. Correlations offer estimate of long term (monthly or annual). One of the best ways to establish a most excellent building design is to use simulation directly as a design tool. With a correct formulated simulation program and sufficient meteorological data every thing can be estimated and predicted. Simulation programs have a big variety in design field and they are available to community to use. However architect, engineers, designers and others who need to use the modeling program are more comfortable to use some programs that give them more options to play around during the design process, simpler to use, user friendly with more economical price.

Simulation programmers provide several suggestions to new designers to help them to accomplish a better design in the less period of the time. Planning a high-quality of process is as important as a planning a computer design. The model produced should be documented and maintained and be available to all designers to compare the result with each other and use the best available option. Superior contact with other designer is required because understanding and communication would develop across design group boundaries. Be cautious about each small detail which is involved in the design process since wrong number can lead the result to the wrong direction. The design should be carefully "partitioned" in the design process since it is easier to manage for later design groups. Even if it is possible for a small group of people to design and build out the entire project at the architectural level it is not possible at later levels of design.

HVAC

2009-09-15T00:51:00.001-07:00

The question is what HVAC is and why as an architect we need to be familiar with this system. Basically HVAC stands for Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning and it is essentially heating and cooling systems in the building.

Choose the HVAC is the first priority in building system and use the right one which is size-appropriate to the building type is really important because achieve the high level of efficiency and human comfort is a main key in buildings. In addition, maintenance service and set up the accurate system, volume of the system not simple task for designers and architect. For example use the heating system which is too large or too small for the residential project will give an inefficient system that cost more money in long term of period. Also big air conditioner will make an uncomfortable climate inside the building plus extra cost to run. It is even more important for commercial building such as museum, aquarium, office building and skyscrapers because base on the size of the users of the building HVAC system have to be energy efficient and functional and it is also has to offer a healthy and safe place to consumers.

The main job of HVAC system is to control room humidity and temperature. Since the uncomfortable place can influence people’s abilities successful control of those factors will minimize health related problems. High humidity reduces strength in human body which typically causes tiredness as well as “hypothermia, heat stroke, and hyperpyrexia”.

HVAC system has different jobs. Heating job is important in maintaining room temperature especially during colder climate. There are two different type of heating system such as local and central. Central more frequently used because it is economical and safe. Ventilation job is the process of changing air in public or private spaces. It manages temperature and eliminates humidity, smoke, dust, extra heat and bacteria. It let carbon dioxide to go out and oxygen to get inside and make sure the air is circulating and people are getting fresh and clean air. The air-conditioning system and refrigeration job is managed the both heat and ventilation. It works base on the proccess of radiation, convection, and conduction. It means by removing the heat from the area make the place more pleasant for indoor user.

LEED

2009-09-15T00:50:00.001-07:00

LEED or The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design is a global standard green building certification system which offers a new standard for environment friendly and sustainable design. It developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) in United States at 1994 and provides a service to architects, engineers, developers, building owners and other industry leaders. It is also covers the building design, construction, operations and maintenance solutions. LEED has a different certification standard such as new construction and major renovation projects, existing building operations, commercial interiors projects, core and shell projects, homes and neighborhood development.

Comparing LEED certified building to other building which built base on building code; LEED regularly use resources more efficiently than others and frequently offers more eco friendly option to environment. Building types in LEED are includes offices, retail and service establishments, institutional buildings such as libraries, schools, museums and religious institutions and also hotels and residential buildings. LEED system provides the service to all 50 states of the United States and 91 countries and more than 40.000 projects are contributing.

LEED service works base on points. In face, “there are 100 possible base points plus 6 points for innovation in design and 4 points for regional priority”. Some of the categories are sustainable site 26 possible points, water efficiency 5 points, materials and resources 14 points, indoor environmental quality 15 points. Also each section divided by smaller option. For instance sustainable site has some option such as construction activity pollution prevention plan which is required, site selection 1 point, storm water manegment 2 points, reduse heat island 2 points, light pollution reduction 1 point and etc… By adding points building can be qualify for four special level of certification including Certified - 40-49 points, Silver - 50-59 points, Gold - 60-79 points, Platinum - 80 points and above. It is really user friendly service and after submitting an application online with documents and requirements consumer pay registration and certification fees and certification is going to process and decided by the Green Building Council.

Buildings including residential and commercial are account for 40% of energy usage and CO2 emissions and designing an eco friendly building is necessarily in our decade. Thus it brings a big responsibility to architects and other people who are involved in building industry. By having a good standard certification system architects could achieve their goals which is using less energy, water efficiency, greenhouse gas emissions reduction, CO2 emissions reduction and gaining healthier environment for all community.

ENERGY STAR

2009-09-15T00:49:00.000-07:00

It is a worldwide standard program which created by United State Department of Energy and United State Environmental Protection Agency. This program is planned to recognize and promote energy efficiency of products, reduce greenhouse gas emission, reduce global warming gases, protect the environment, save money and energy for consumers around the world. This standard start working at 1992 in the United State by labeled computer and monitor and then they extended their service by labeling the additional office products, residential and commercial heating equipment, residential air conditioning, home electronics, and lighting products. Since the success of this program in United State was more than community expected, numerous European countries decided to adopt it as well. Due to the research any equipment which meets the standard and gain Energy Star Logo can save 20% to 30% on energy usages on average.

The Energy Star designed to use for residential, industrial and commercial. In fact using the service for residential can save at least a third on families’ energy bill and also for business can create twice the saving. For example last year Americans saved $19 billion on their utility bills plus improved home comfort. In addition they gained even more benefits such as tax credit from state and federal, avoid greenhouse gas emissions and protect the environment. ENERGY STAR could effectively delivered energy to businesses, owners, designers and organization and saved money for them. Also influenced companies to use more efficient product such as fluorescent lighting, LED lighting (Light Emitting Diode) and low standby energy use. Fluorescent lighting uses 70% less energy than other lights and lasts up to more than ten times longer than normal incandescent lights.

One of the popular services of Energy Star is for entertainment sector. Probably we never imagine that saving energy will be a possibility when we go to museums, theater, stadium or convention center. ES has online tools and resources for entertainment industry and guides them to greener environment. Quick Reference Guide to Benchmarking, Webinars, and news articles about managing energy and being green are some of their tools. St. Louis Cardinals’ Busch Stadium and Virginia Beach Convention Center are two good examples of this service.

In the last decade energy prices turn to be a hot topic and a main alarm for community and also finding a trustable standard was not easy. Energy building by labeling equipment with better performance for each business and organization could open a new chapter in energy efficiency and cost savings. It brought a better product for better world.

Sustinable design...

2009-09-15T00:47:00.000-07:00

01. The First Law of Thermodynamics is energy into the system = useful energy which is delivered + wasted energy. Energy efficiency is useful energy out divided by energy input. By achieve a bigger number from this calculation we increase our efficiency. For example by using a compacts fluorescents bulb in the house we can increase the efficiency

02. Buildings consume over 40% of the total energy and it is growing fast than we can imagine, this number by 2030 will enlarge to 55%. Current model for home use 190 thousand joules per square meter and the best prototype is 11 thousand joules per square meter which can make a big deference in saving energy. Most primary energy uses in US are lighting (for commercial sector 25.2% and residential sector 6.8%) and space heating and water heating (for residential sector 39.8%, 16.9% and commercial sector 32.4%).But climate make a big difference. For example in Phoenix area air conditioning has a bigger number compare to space heating. Data from US department of energy and Hunn Chapter 01.

03. ENERGY STAR Program is a program which “voluntary labeling program designed to identify and promote energy-efficient products in order to achieve long-lasting market transformation.” It is cover the entire building sector like office equipment, residential, new homes, commercial buildings, major appliances, home electronics, windows and also residential and commercial lighting.

04. LEED Green Building Rating System which is a national standard for sustainable buildings. It is Some LEED certification standards are New construction and major renovation projects (NC), Existing building operations (EB), Commercial interiors projects (CI), Core and shell projects (CS), Homes (H) and Neighborhood development (ND)

05. Simulation Programs is a building thermal simulation which allows us to model a building before or after renovations. Also give a chance to architects and designers to try different energy alternatives, compare them and use the best option. It is more economical and less time consuming.

06. HVAC = Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning. HVAC systems help to control the climate and humidity and keep dwellers comfortable by regulating the temperature and air flow.

Climate change motivation...

2009-09-15T00:46:00.001-07:00

Climate change bring different question to peoples mind. What is the definition of the climate change? Is it the certain countries inaccuracy? What is the responcibility of the public? And how individuals can help? Although climate change is not a short term change and it happened over periods of time that range from decades to millions of years in current decade is become a huge intricate for the world. Some people even believe that climate change like global warming is out of control and no one has power to change the fact.

The climate-change motivation is have a discussion in three things. First “human fossil fuel burning causes carbon dioxide concentrations to rise, Second carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas and third increasing the greenhouse effect increases average global temperatures (and has many other effects).”

Carbon dioxide was rising during the time (1000AD to the present) but after the Industrial Revolution from (1800AD to 2000AD) the increase rate has been exponential. It started increasing when James Watt introduced his steam engine to the society. At the same time British coal production started to go up as well. Coal production was used to create iron, to build and power transportation system like ships and locomotive and to heat up houses. The usage of the coal production was growing extraordinarily. For example in the 30 years from 1769 to 1800, yearly use of coal production doubled and then in 1830 it had doubled again and then in 20 years later doubled again and still continues. It was not just happening in England, in other countries same thing was starting after industrial revolution. In producing CO2 emissions oil production is slightly less effective than the coal.

Since people were successful by doubling or tripling CO2 concentration lot of things will be changed in the future. First increasing the intensity of the sun by 2%, second global temperature goes up almost 3 ◦C. third “the Greenland icecap would gradually melt, and, over a period of few 100 years, sea-level would rise by about 7 meters.” The last and not least is changing the ecosystem for humans, animals and plants.

Why it is important to use numbers in planning and policy debate?

2009-09-15T00:44:00.000-07:00

Planning and policy debate is basically attached to the numbers and often questions can make a better explanation by numbers. When people are not aware of the amount of energy they use in a day the influence of using extra energy in the community will be harder to recognize for them. In addition by numbers they will have a better view of the amount of the each energy source in surrounding and the cost of it. One of our goals is decrease energy consumption in the world and to achieve this target it is better to use simple and acceptable numbers.

Simple numbers are more understandable, memorable and easier to compare information together. Apply the adjective instead of numbers will confuse public about reality. For example use “huge” as an alternative of actual amount. Using the acceptable number is as important as using simple numbers. Employ a huge number especially when it is not necessarily can be meaningless to the public. For example “American buys 2.6 billion napkin boxes per year” is not inform people but “Switching your gas and electricity supplier could save you up to $340 a year” is more real and practical.

Since sometimes numbers are selected to impress, change the fact, arguments or scare people instead of educating them using number when it is not a need can bring distrust to community. For instance in a climate when public don’t pay attention to numbers mass communication media such as news papers, radio and companies can provide wrong information.

Different questions about renewable energy, climate change, dioxide pollution and energy crisis are easier to explain with numbers. Some questions are: can people make a difference in the energy crisis by biking or walking instead of driving a car? How much energy efficiency will increase by using fluorescent lighting and LED lighting (Light Emitting Diode) instead of regular lighting? How much carbon dioxide pollution will reduce by changing our life style to advanced technology like hybrid car?

Stephen Ehrlich

2009-04-08T23:07:00.000-07:00

Tonight’s lecture was one of the best spring lecture series. I really enjoyed Stephen Ehrlich’s projects. Creative, clean and programmatic design was some of the main features of his designs. Culture and community needs were two different elements that helped him develop his experience through design. Inspiration was another important key for him that he utilized in his projects. In most of his work the footprints of the inspiration was noticeable. In one of his projects he got his inspiration from the color of the tree in the site which was amazing. His design process to me was similar to this: He got the plain idea, mixed it with culture, formed it with architectural scheme, added modern look to it, added inspiration, some more material and then design is ready.
The only thing that raised question in my mind was the budgeting. He didn’t talk about the budget and to me in most of his work budget was not an issue. In this economy I really want to see how he can apply his unique ideas to low income housing or tight budget projects?

White vs Gray Debate …

2009-04-07T23:05:00.000-07:00

The establishment of the society can be seen as the establishment of order through conventions, or more specifically, the establishment of a language through symbolic codes.
The roots of the modern architecture lie on the functionalism that have driven architects to design buildings based on their purpose. The functionalism talks much about the origin of signs but little about their nature. It proposed new words but no rules for their combination and no grammatical frame work for their use. The greatest achievement of the artistic movements of late 20th century was to understand the limitation of functionalism.

There were two strong reactions against modern architecture and its aspirations toward an architectural language. Both movements stand in opposition to the ordered rationality of modernism. The first and most extreme form was characterized by The Grays which were known for their postmodernism way of thought. The Grays ideology began with the theory and practice of Robert Venturi. His publication “Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture” (1966) argues against the purity, simplicity and clarity of modernism.

The second reaction is most clearly represented by the work of Peter Eisenman and four other architects who were known as The Whites. Peter Eisenman attempted to address the more basic questions of language, the grammatical questions. “What are the limits, qualitatively and quantitatively to the lexicon of architectural signs? What makes certain configuration architectural? Which shapes can or can not be used? And more important is how should they be articulated?”

There is a noticeable difference between the two reactions. By comparing the house X built in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and Vanna Venturi House which Venturi designed for his mother in Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania we can recognize that Eisenman is mostly concerned with the systematization of an architectural formal language. “The process of design becomes an exploration of the syntactic combination of elements (beam, column, and frame)” . In House X the process of design is a process of research into formal structures and shapes which comes to life through the design.

Eisenman challenges the incoherent definition and languages of modernism. However, Venturi opposes the idea of a unique nature for architectural sign (classical or modernist), sees it as a more complex entity and detaches it from the underlying structure of language. Eisenman’s work is a reaction against the architectural signs itself and in particular the idea of the meaning of the sign. In the process of establishing this structure “Eisenman sacrifices not only functionalism but humanism itself”. Eisenman contributed in the development of a new inspiration to architecture and merged them with contemporary theories of linguistics and information theory.

These two architects have dissimilar approach to users. Eseinman named his buildings by numbers and designed houses that are more sculptural than livable. But Venturi and the other Gray architects designed not only with pure symbolism and historical example, but with the user in mind.

In Venturi’s design structure is more than just roof and walls. It is an organized space for a specific use and specific user. In his design space and user are part of the design process. The most famous picture of the Vanna Venturi House is the picture of the house with his mother sitting in a chair in front of her house. Also, Venturi considered history, context, social and cultural aspects in his design while Eisenman struggled with architectural form and language of modernism.

By comparing the works of these two architects side by side the similarities in their designs can be observed. “Concern for aesthetics of the single family house” and “lack of human scale in their design” are main similarities in House X and Vanna Venturi House. The material of the structure, building’s program and location of the houses obviously did not change their architectural agenda. In fact, they both considered the development of their ideology than any other aspect of their design.

Aside from the philosophy behind these two buildings, each house has its own uniqueness. They both have their own extraordinary features and manifest the ideology that is hidden in these buildings. It also depicts that thoughtful ideas by architects often result in outstanding designs. Both Eisenman and Venturi contributed significantly to architecture. They influenced and formed the future of the modern architecture although there were many differences in their design philosophy.

Eddie and Neal Jones

2009-03-18T22:04:00.001-07:00

The lecture by Eddie and Neal Jones was incredible especially after a long day in studio and struggling with my project. I have a difficulty to solve the circulation in my studio project and at the end of the day I was almost losing my confidence and my patience. He started his lecture by telling a true story. The story was about his life and how he was working on his projects as a student with passion and creativity. During the lecture I was taking notes of his life lessons. In each project that he described you could see the philosophy behind each building design. “What does each building want to be?” Where landscape begins and ends and does it even have a beginning and ending or not?
Eddie Jones mentioned the beauty of a literal garden and in his projects landscaping was combined with buildings and one could not make a border between them. Everything that he did was followed by his final comment. “Never stop caring.” The passion and consideration for architecture in their designs were truly noticeable. He gave me plenty of positive energy and forced me to look at my project as a new opportunity to show my interest in architecture and to believe in my creativity.

Usman Haque and Omar Khan’s lecture

2009-02-25T21:52:00.001-08:00

Although the Usman Haque and Omar Khan’s lecture was really interesting I had a hard time understanding the motivation behind their projects. For example “Open Burble” design by Usman Haque included of many white helium balloons attached together with a cell phone receiver inside each balloon. These cell phones were connected to colored lights separately. When people on the ground were calling a particular receiver inside one of the balloons, that balloon’s color was changing. It looks bright and incredible but what is his philosophy behind it? He didn’t provide any reason for coordinating and designing any of his work. Most of his design was excellent and flashy to watch for the first time and get excited with technology but nothing more than this. It was more about watching a new computer game with different colors and fancy look. “Moving Columns” by Omar Khan was another example of this absence of purpose. Depending on the level of carbon dioxide in the air, these columns were moving up or down. However, the reason behind using CO2 was not really clear. Why he didn’t use oxygen instead? On the other hand, Usman’s presentation was really nice but it did not discuss the philosophy and function of their design.

Gabby Shawcross’s lecture at ASU

2009-02-23T21:27:00.000-08:00

Gabby Shawcross’ lecture was different in many ways than other lectures I have been to. In the first few minutes of the lecture two main questions popped in my mind. How sustainable their projects are? And also whether they used light in their design as an ornament or not? Although I got lots of good information from this lecture these questions are still unanswered for me.

At the end of the lecture I was certain that they picked light as a communication tool to make a connection between spaces and people. I believe that is what many architects attempt to achieve in their designs. For example Memory Project in London's Southbank is all about people, spaces and the relationship between them. It is a fascinating idea especially the ability to walk back to the earlier time of the day. Inside the structure, thermal cameras can detect people and show the surrounding of the building in a particular time as a function of people’s position with respect to the screen.

They are also very creative in using light features as an architectural tool. I think by listening to his lecture we could really observe their design philosophy. Also in some projects like Aeolian Tower, and Wind to Light I realized that there is a lot of usable energy in the nature that is not being used appropriately and has lots of potentials to be utilized in our day to day life.

Messie’s Lecture in ASU

2009-02-23T21:26:00.000-08:00

Lecture was really interesting. Footprint of the nature was visible in all of his works especially when he was talking about frozen earth as a mold, using the beams with the same color of the landscape trees and having the skylight in the shower. He is very passionate about his work and honest about what he is doing and you can see this excitement in his designs. About digital world, I have had Jason Griffiths as a studio instructor last semester and he was giving us the lecture about digital world during the semester. I had to learn Rhino for my final project but I never deeply believed on digital methodologies to create building forms. In the lecture today I could really see the future of the design and how we can have our original ideas and push it to the unique design with technology. Also, I was fascinated with the way he builds things with his hands and experiences the new material in his design.

It is good to be unknown

2009-01-14T21:15:00.000-08:00

Well, I am so happy to write here. I can write about whatever I want because nobody knows about this blog and nobody really cares.:)

Sad Moment :(

2009-01-14T21:07:00.000-08:00

Believe me, I really need to write. It made me cry so badly. I have an exam tomorrow but I can not even read a single page. It is crazy. I use to read the news every morning to know what is going on around the world but I wish I haven't had this habit. Today I read an article about execution in Iran. Well, article has some pictures of the person who has been executed. Oh, my god, I couldn't believe it. In one image he was smiling. Smiling like a baby. He seems so naive and innocent to me. Gosh, he didn't know what is going on around or probably he didn't care at all. Knock, knock, Excuse me Mr.God I am a stupid educated person. Can you please explain it to me? Can you give me a definition for bad person? What was his fault? He was so young most likely my age or even younger. It was not any other way to help him to change? Who was his judge?

I have got embarrassed and started crying like a baby. Seriously think about it. He was part of my family. He was Iranian. Damn it what am I doing here? I am sitting in another country and cry for my unknown brother. Man, it is not fare. I can just name it "geographical Compulsion".

2008-11-12T15:17:00.001-08:00

ایمیل دریافتی
ياد گيريم كه:
با احمق بحث نكنم و بگذاريم در دنياي احمقانه خويش خوشبخت زندگي كند.
با وقيح جدل نكنيم چون چيزي براي از دست دادن ندارد و روح ما را تباه مي‌كند.
از حسود دوري كنيم چون اگر دنيا را هم به او تقديم كنيم باز از زندان تنگ حسادت بيرون نمي آيد.
تنهايي را به بودن در جمعي كه ما را از خودمان جدا مي کند، ترجيح دهيم.
از «از دست دادن» نهراسيم که ثروت ما به اندازه شهامت ما در نداشتن است.
بيشتر را بر کمتر ترجيح ندهيم که قدرت ما در نخواستن و منفعت ما در سبکباري است.
کمتر سخن بگوييم که بزرگي ما در حرفهايي است که براي نهفتن داريم، نه براي گفتن.
از سرعت خود بکاهيم، که آنان که سريع تر مي دوند، فرصت انديشيدن به خود نمي دهند.
ديگران را ببينيم، تا در دام خويشتن محوري، اسير نشويم.
از کودکان بياموزيم، پيش از آن که بزرگ شوند و ديگر نتوان از آنان آموخت.

strange friends

2008-11-07T22:37:00.000-08:00

I feel really better now compare to couple days ago. The truth is having a good relationship with others is difficult and I am so proud of myself right now. We have a group of friends around us and some strange things were happening in the group in the last couple of months. We were friend with some of them for a long time and it was so hard to deal with them now especially some Iranian habit that they were started in the group. Gossips about our others friends and make a joke about whoever was not on the group on that moment. Well, Med and I decided to stay away from the group for a while. I felt guilty because I thought it is our fault that we can not get along with people. It has happened almost two months ago and today I was talking to one of my friend which is still in the group and she said she has same issues and she and her husband are not going to attend their parties any more.

Wed Class

2008-10-29T12:03:00.001-07:00

I hate this stupid class. I hate Harvey with his stupid voice and ideas. He doesn’t know shit. Let’s make it clearer. I hate school now the only thing I need is go away and stay somewhere and don’t hear anything about architecture. Oh god, school sucks.

USA 20 Years from Now ...

2008-10-27T10:26:00.000-07:00

” The future is not a result of choices among alternative paths offered by the present, but a place that is created--created first in the mind and will, created next in activity. The future is not some place we are going to, but one we are creating.”

America has reached a big milestone in its history. Last week the last fuel refinery in the US was closed and all the workers in the Texas Petrochemical Refinery were offered a redeployment package. With the training that they have been going through in the past couple of years, all these people are hopeful to establish a new career elsewhere. Although the fuel production from oil and subsequently the fossil fuel emission is coming to an end, there are still some refineries that use oil to produce necessary ingredients for plastics. The scientific methods developed to recycle plastics have helped reduce the plastic production significantly. Most cars now have solar cells built in their body that absorbs and stores solar energy. More than 50% of the cars in the country are using solar or electricity as their main energy resource and the other half are hydrogen cars. About five years ago the only US car manufacturer offered to replace gasoline engines with hydrogen ones at no cost. Starting Jan 2030 no gasoline car will be allowed on the streets of major cities. It is astounding to see how far America has come in the last years. Majority of states are now establishing laws to reduce the amount of plastic-base components. In the last few years scientists have bumped up their activities to come up with an intelligent material that replaces plastic and can recycle itself into the environment with no impact. Many reckless and irresponsible behaviors in the past few decades have had an enormous irreversible impact on the global environment. During the last few decades, the sea levels have raised significantly that eventually forced some cities like New York city to abandon many areas of the city and the city center which used to be Manhattan has moved about 10 miles inland. Food shortage still remains a big concern for the world. Since the scientific researches in the last twenty years proved that use of many chemicals to produce more crops can result in many health issues for people, the focus in the last ten years has been to move more toward organic products. With the increase in the life expectancy and better health services the population of the world will reach 8 billion in the next month. Cure of cancer and AIDS has been some of the biggest achievements of scientists in the last century. It is remarkable to notice the changes world has been going through in the last 10-15 years. Many lands that used to be used for farming are now filled with skyscrapers. The advancements in the technology has helped many deserts to become crop producible but the water shortage for these lands is what many scientists are trying to address. To optimize the use of water in the farms, most farmers now have intelligent drip systems that minimize the use of water. In order to mitigate the risks of food shortage, congress is drafting a bill that can make more lands available for farming.
Many scientists believe that with the improvements that started about two decades ago the world is still trying to find its new equilibrium state. The extinction of many wildlife species has resulted in a dramatic change in the ecosystem. One of the major changes in the US in recent years has been the culture of consumption. Looking at the start of this century one would notice that US has dropped out of the list of top 50 polluters of the world. This has been a result of effective policies and change of culture that has been adapted. Americans have also been able to better distinguish between what they really need in their life vs what they want. With the enhancements in the public transportations use of personal cars for daily commuting has significantly dropped in the last decade. Availability of public transportation at almost no cost, lack of parking spots in many populated areas and heavy traffic have led most people to limit their use of cars in most urban areas of the country. Diversity is still a big success factor in the US economy. Even the rural areas of the country now consist of different ethnicities. In twenty years (by 2050) the Hispanic population of the country will exceed the white population. It was not long ago that people used to immigrate to US in order to seek and build a better life. The recent report by the US Census Bureau shows that the number of Americans immigrating to other countries has increased rapidly in the last ten years. The same report indicates that the main reasons for the immigration of the Americans are to get away from the industrial world and also to look for better economic benefits. In most urban areas of the country, the non-white population of the working people exceeds the number of white workers. More than 40% of the country is now bilingual in contrast to 9% of the population in 2005. Many areas of the country that was once considered to be rural are now urbanized. The proportion of the developed land base has almost doubled to 10% in about 20 years (in contrast to 5% in 2005). The population of Los Angeles metropolitan area has quadrupled in a quarter of a century.
The increase in the urban area population and also the diverse culture of the people living in these areas has posed new challenges to the city officials. To name some transportation, food and environmental concerns have been a few of these. With the recent improvements in the public transportation city officials have been able to effectively address the transportation. Use of green resources such as hydrogen, solar and wind and limiting the use of personal cars has also helped better control the traffic and also carbon footprint on the planet. Food that is still being produced mainly in the heartland and west coast is shipped to the cities using green transportation means. People have become more conscious and pay more attention to what they eat and have chosen a healthier life style. Most homes in the urban areas generate some of the energy they use employing solar cells that are installed on the roofs. By state law in many different areas, all newly developed houses are now required to comply with the new rules to use the insulations that have smaller heat transfer rates in the roof and walls. This will result in less energy loss from the building.
Recycling has also become an important part of everybody’s life. The teachings at schools to recycle more effectively are now paying off. People keep plastics, papers, glass and metals in separate containers and each one of these items gets recycled and used in one form or the other. Many cities even recycle organic materials and process them to produce fertilizers which will be eventually used in farms. Use of bottled water has dropped significantly and people tend to use reusable water bottles.
The technology advances in the communication systems has allowed many companies to offer their employees telecommute several days of the week. This has also helped reduce commuting between work and home. Comparing the size of cars with what it used to be less than two decades ago, one can notice how smaller the cars have gotten. Although this has required a serious effort to change people’s culture, it surely has been worthwhile since they consume less energy and also better fit into the big city lifestyles.
Reducing the use of fossil fuels to produce energy has been one of the biggest milestones our country has achieved in the past two decades thanks to the great researchers all around the world. Many major metropolitan areas now have solar panels installed in different locations. Even some small towns are now replacing the asphalts on the street with a new material that can absorb energy from sun and transform it to electricity. Use of tidal energy has also become very common in many coastal cities like New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. These cities can now produce all their consumed energy through wind, solar and wave resources.
The recent developments in the electricity storage technologies have also helped power plants to store energy and feed it into the system when needed. Using these technologies some solar power plants can still feed the stored electrical energy into the system even during cloudy days. Many urban residents are also using thermal reservoir for heating and cooling of their homes or the water. These reservoirs simply store the heat during the day with a minimum energy loss. This energy can be used during the night to heat up the water or the house. The same concept applies to cold temperatures. Also with the new conductive materials the energy loss during electricity transfer has dropped significantly. Many medical research activity conducted all around the world showed that wireless transfer of electrical energy by creating magnetic fields can have a negative impact and put human’s health and wellness at risk.
Nuclear power plants remain a major source of electricity production. The number of these plants has increased significantly in the last twenty years. However, due to the nuclear waste disposal issues, the negative impact of radiation on human and also the high risk of explosion or leak of radioactive material these power plants have not gained the popularity as was expected. Hydroelectric energy remains a major and reliable renewable energy resource. However, its share compare to the other energy resources is still slim since the flowing water resources are limited. Steam-electric power plants account for some portions of the electricity generation. These units now mainly consume clean-coal technology. A new proposal by government requires all fossil fuel based plants to be replaced by a renewable energy resource by 2050.
America has been through lots of challenges during past decades. Several initiatives and years of hard work by many different individuals and communities have helped US to totally abandon its dependence on foreign oil and also reduce the CO2 emission significantly. With the steps taken in the past few years the global warming trend has finally reversed and everybody has become a better citizen of the world. People have become more aware of the man-made threats to the nature and world and act more responsibly. Now it is our generation’s term to pave the road for the next generation and hand them a world better than what was handed to us. There are still challenges to face. These challenges are not only maintaining the world but also trying to improve it and make it better for the generations to come.

Busy Week

2008-10-15T11:17:00.000-07:00

Next week is a really busy week for me. I have a stupid paper about global warming which is due Monday morning then I have a presentation about my library design in studio at 2:00, midterm exam which I haven’t started to study for and designing a underwater drain system for another building. Oh god, I wish I could sleep and wake up next Thursday.

Yazd/Phoenix :)

2008-09-25T11:14:00.000-07:00

it is a small research about similarities and differences between Yazd and Phoenix.

Yazd-"the bride of the desert"-Coordinates 31°54′N 54°22′E. Elevation:The city itself is located at 1203 m. above sea-level.southern and Southern West Mountains, Shirkoh.Eastern Mountains bon lokht and bajegan.Deserts are Dasht-e Kavir desert and the Dasht-e Lut. Also Yazd is the driest major city in Iran.

Phoenix-Valley of the Sun-Coordinates 33°26′54″N 112°04′26″W.Elevation:1,117 ft (340 m).Desert:Sonoran Desert.Phoenix has an arid climate and also the Salt River course runs westward through the city.

My New Life

2008-09-14T20:32:00.001-07:00

Well, Gestalt is mine.

My internship in NTD Stichler

2008-09-14T20:30:00.000-07:00

By three methods we may learn wisdom: first, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest. ~ Confucius Chinese philosopher.

My learning experience with NTD Stichler began on May 2008 when I started my internship that lasted five weeks. NTD Stichler is a comprehensive architectural, engineering, and interior design firm consisted of professionals from different disciplines such as architects, planners, engineers, interior designers, construction managers, and others. The firm has an international reputation in implementing innovative strategies and sensitive design solutions for the construction and renovation of healthcare, K-12 education, civic, college and university facilities as well as other complex facilities across the United States and internationally. It is a California Corporation maintaining four offices located in California and Arizona and I had the opportunity to work with them in their Scottsdale Office.

As a new architecture student, I spent quality time in this company and got to learn many new things about architecture. It helped me learn how to approach and deal with different situations and practice work under pressure. Because of the of projects deadlines I learned to be more practical and make a right decision on time. As a result of working under stress to meet the committed deadlines, flexibility, hard work, team work and creativity I gained lots of experience from my internship time. I would like to highlight that my experience with NTD Stichler was very impressive and full of learning, where I achieved numerous positive changes in my thoughts and manners.

My first interview was with Jasmine Jones the Scottsdale’s Office manager from whom I got my first impression of the people working in the company. Although during my interview I was not nervous about the job since it was my experience in an architectural firm I was a little anxious. Her nice personality made me feel more confident in my capabilities and I started enjoying the interview. She was a brilliant energetic woman and inspiring and I had no concerns or fears to start my work in the company.

NTD has different sections but their main focus recently has been on health care and education. During my time there I got to work in both departments and I believe it was very beneficial for me. They were working on big projects like Banner Thunderbird and Mayo Clinic and sometimes more than ten architects worked on the same project. Being part of their group in the meetings and site visits was so exciting. In addition, I experienced working as a team and learned to write report sheets for different meetings.

Working in architecture firm thought me to be cautious not to make mistakes on details and made me really believe that the “devil is in the details”. Small miscalculations can lead to big differences in the final job. Visiting the site during the project gave me a better perspective of the actual work and helped me understand how paying attention to little element is necessary.

One other important learning of my experience with NTD was to get acquainted with different computer software, building codes, manual books, construction documents and quality control in buildings. Ravit and Rhino were two new programs that were widely used at this company that I got to learn. Moreover, they were really open all my questions and made me feel that I am part of their group.

As a conclusion, the environment and people at NTD Stichler makes it a type of place that many architects including myself would wish to work for. Friendly atmosphere with knowledgeable architects make a good combination for any fresh graduate. I had a great experience from my first internship and I would like to be in touch with them for my future work.

AUDUBON HOUSE

2007-11-01T22:07:00.000-07:00

Green Building is a documentary movie about the Audubon house and how a dedicated team of architects, environmentalists, engineers, research scientists, and interior designers recycled this significant 100-year old building and reduced the energy utilization to 52% of that used in a comparable office building. It is amazing to see how a group of experts accomplished to make a big difference in the structure by adding some changes to the actual building such as natural light and highly resourceful electrical light for lighting the office spaces, nontoxic paints for the wall and recycled newsprint for flooring. They produced a better and healthier environment for people, wildlife, and the earth's natural resources and developed a good workplace model for future. The movie points to several improvements in Audubon House that can be also implemented in my studio project which is a residential units in Tempe area with 2000 square foot in each unit.

The first and most notable area of improvement is in energy efficiency that can be achieved by making use of enhanced natural light and highly urbanized lighting system. Full-size windows on the Northern and Western sides of the building allow large quantities of natural daylight into the living area. Use of light colors for furnishing and interior surfaces increase reflectance of natural light and can help this pheromone further. The “Task/Ambient” lighting system for living room and bedrooms introduce soft background light to the room and wherever focused light is needed task lighting can be implemented. In the bathroom, T8 Triphosphor fluorescent lamps bring in the light with natural tone and insignificant heat.

Decreasing pollution and making a healthier environment is another major challenge that should be considered for any design. By using gas fired absorption heathers/coolers, creation of sulfur dioxide can be prevented while about 60% reduction in nitrogen oxides creation can be achieved compared to similar units that use other sources of energy. In addition, for reducing electricity demand for cooling system applying for an on-site energy source, gas, during the summer is a great opportunity that can be explored.

Another key takeaway of this documentary was the importance of recycling and protecting resources in the nature. The first step to gain this goal in my project is to switch to recycled material instead of the regular material. Many materials such as steel, wood, concrete, masonry are sent out for recycling and can be used after reprocessing. Homosote sub is a new type of wallboard developed from recycled paper which is designed to be used for flooring and it is made from 60% recycled newsprint. One interesting idea for kitchen flooring is to use reprocessed tiles that are recycled from light bulbs. Recycled plastic bottles can be used for bathroom countertops and also reprocessed gypsum and newsprint for wall.

Although the Audubon House was an office building most of change that they made during the renovation can be used for residential building as well. As a result of my research I further discovered that being green and contributing to greener architecture design is a continuous daily task that we should all take part in to make the world a better place. By doing some research and using the right material for the structures one can have a significant impact on our surrounding.

Phoenix Green Building Expo

2007-11-01T22:06:00.000-07:00

The 10th annual Green Building Expo in Scottsdale was held on Oct 5-6th. The event was very well-organized and many companies with different disciplines had participated in this expo. The diversified range of companies attended this event helped us learn further about various green building techniques and environmentally low-impact products for structure, exterior and interior building design. Our visit to this event was mainly intended to find potential construction methods or materials appropriate for our current design studio project. This project is a single story prefab building that is going to be constructed on 18’x12’ footprint in Tempe area.

The Icynene Insulation System booth – a company well-known for its soft foam insulation – was the company that its simple but innovative green design approach really caught my attention. Richard, a representative of the Icynene Insulation System who was explaining the advantages of their products to the enthusiastic crowd was also impressed with the attention their products had received in this expo. He said "It is excellent to see how communities are learning from this event and I get really happy when people especially students come here to educate themselves and others about green design."

Over the course of time, almost all building materials have evolved gradually and today it is almost impossible to think of any type of building material that has not been improved. Among all these, insulation is no exception. Looking back in the last century one can find a wide variety of materials people have used for insulation means. Some of the most common ones can be named as cellulose, fiberglass, sheep's wool and polyicynene and polyurethane which are oil-based materials. Although some of these are derived through green processes, some of these are available in large (such as sheep’s wool). The Icynene Insulation System is a high-quality insulation that is developed by merging building science technology with design performance. It is a soft spray-in-place, light density, expanding foam insulation that acts both as insulation and air barrier. It takes the shape of where it is contained and offers a custom fit every time it is installed because it expands 100 times its initial volume. One of the great advantages of this insulation is its capability to deliver improved sound control while providing superior control of air leakage. On top of all, it is environmentally-friendly, non-toxic, and formaldehyde free.

With the current growth in the number of homeowners and further focus on providing more reliable and sustainable energy saving solutions, Icynene is a healthier alternative to conventional insulation. It provides the protective barrier preventing allergenic and dust from entering the home by completely sealing the building envelope. This water-based product also contains none of the harmful chemical and gasses often associated with traditional insulations such as fiberglass. By minimizing air infiltration it also reduces the amount of airborne moisture that can result in mold.

It not only makes a healthier home but also a quieter home. Traffic, neighborhood activities and plumbing runs can be the sources of annoying and unwanted sounds that can intrude into our living spaces, thwarting comfort and enjoyment. By acting as a sound barrier and sealing the building envelope against unwanted sounds, it effectively minimizes airborne sounds in the mid range frequency and it is perfect for limiting noises from plumbing runs, road, home theater and playrooms.

Energy efficiency can often be associated with green design. With Icynene, energy cost savings can be as high as 50% compared to the conventional insulations. Furthermore, the elimination of the random air leakage allows homes that utilize Icynene to maintain the same heating and cooling performance while potentially reducing the cost of HVAC equipment. In addition, since this technique is easy to implement the labor and materials normally required to achieve a properly sealed building envelope are no longer necessary.

After visiting the Icynene Insulation System booth and learning about this fabulous solution, I have decided to apply it as a base insulation in my prefab building and employ this concept to have a healthier, quieter, greener and more economical home. This can also help saving energy and resources.

Ecological Footprint Quiz

2007-11-01T21:40:00.000-07:00

Numerous people like me have never paid attention to the term “Ecological Footprint”. In fact, I had no idea what the term exactly meant and consequently did not know what my social responsibilities to the world are. When I took the quiz and saw the result I was shocked “IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 5.3 PLANETS”. I started to think over my life style. How many miles I drive every day to school? How many hours I use my computer at home per day? How many minutes I am in the shower? Why I do not use locally grown vegetables and fruits? I waited for a couple of days before taking the next quiz. I wanted to be more realistic and implement some of the changes that were recommended in the website and also gain some experience with my new lifestyle before taking the exam again. Although I had made some improvements the result was still below my expectations. “IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 2.7 PLANETS”. This taught me that, there are still several changes that I need to make in my life to use the available resources more efficiently. Perhaps, one of the most important things in our life is to feel more responsible about our environment. In addition, we all need to find a way to help keep and maintain the natural resources in our surrounding instead of wasting and damaging them. I personally think reducing the ecological footprint and acting economically is not as hard as we may think. It is a good idea to start from small things in our life to make big changes.

Controlling heating and cooling system is a simple approach to reduce energy consumption. We use our natural resources faster than they can be generated. I would not support a Stone Age way of life, but we can further utilize passive systems using natural forces such as wind, solar, etc to heat and cool our residences. Keeping windows closed and using thick curtain is also suggested for cold days and vice versa. Combination of solar energy with other types of heating system can dramatically decrease the level of energy loss. In other hand, by using solar systems we truly can save hundreds of dollars and be part of environment conservation family.

Using of compact florescent lamps (CFLs) is a simple idea to save more energy too. They last much longer than other lamp and use less energy. A recent research by the City of Phoenix shows that replacing at least one bulb with CFL’s in 571000 homes and businesses in the Phoenix metropolitan will cut greenhouse gas emissions by more than 251 million pounds over the life of the bulb. It will also reduce energy consumption by more than 159 million Kwh and results in $16 million saving in energy costs (per year). The conserved energy would be enough to light 91,000 homes for a year.

Some plastic bags are not recyclable and they cause an irreversible damage to environment. They take too long to decompose and fill up landfills. Several grocery stores such as Trader Joe’s and Sprouts offer reusable bags for shopping. This is a practical method to stay away from plastics bags. As a good example plastic bags are not offered in grocery store in Europe which encourages people to use reusable bags.

To produce papers for magazines, newspapers, bank statements, etc, valuable natural resources such as trees have to be used. Nowadays, technology can help prevent wasting papers and provide a more efficient and eco-friendly way to exchange information and limit our use of paper. Most banks and big companies provide online services without charge and the customers can receive and review their statements online or via email instead of paper statements. It is understandable that not everyone may be able to access or use these services but their contribution to papers and magazines recycling is still valuable.

Producing more organic food (to eliminate the addition of pesticide, antibiotic, etc to the soil) would result in a healthier lifestyle and also help keep the soil cleaner. Adding more vegetarian meals to our daily diets would also result in a healthier lifestyle. In fact, there are lots of substitutes for meat that could replace it without causing lack of vitamins or proteins in the body. Supporting local farms and markets, purchasing unpacked, unprocessed, organic and sustainable grown are other practical ideas to help the planet and ourselves.

In addition, one of the most important changes we can make in our personal life is to be more efficient in commuting. Riding on a bus, train, or other public transportation means, biking and walking (if possible) are some of the changes we can consider to include in our daily life.

As a matter of fact we waste more natural resources than the earth provides us and it is not late to change our behavior. It takes hundreds or even thousands years for our planet to regenerate the resources that we are consuming. “If everybody lives like me, we would need more planets” is a heartbreaking truth. In fact we are spending resources faster than they are produced.

In the couple of day gap between two quizzes I attempted to consider some of those changes in my habits and everyday life. Although the quiz result was still showing that I need to do more I was already feeling more useful to myself and the community. Using bus and walking to school was a brilliant plan. To stop wasting plastic bags in my grocery shopping I bought two reusable shopping bags and added an extra trash can for paper recycling. I switched some of the old light bulbs with CFL’s to save more energy and money. In addition, I started to practice some new habits in my life such as optimizing the amount of water used during the shower and laundry time.

This quiz and my research about it had a big influence on my perspective in using natural resources. My philosophy is everyone can make positive impact to the planet and change it to a greener place to live. It is amazing to realize that how making small changes to our lives and habits can lead us to a better utilization of resources. Beside that, we are responsible for the next generations. As a big gift to them and the world we can educate them the recycling process and how to appreciate and respect the nature and try to use the resources more efficiently.

Pearl River Tower

2007-09-14T11:39:00.000-07:00

It is amazing to see how the headquarters of the Tobacco Company in Guangzhou was feeling responsible about our planet and selected a sustainable design over seven design firms from four countries. The new city of Guangzhou is located at the north end of the Pearl River delta in China. It is the capital and the sub-provincial city with economic, scientific, political, and cultural life. This ancient city, with more than 2, 800 years of history, was the best place to build a modern structure within a peaceful natural setting to show the beautiful side of the contrast between modern and traditional architecture.

The Pearl River Tower is a skyscraper that is under construction in Guangzhou, China. The intended office complex, designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM), consists of 303 meters and 69 floors, starting in 2006 and planned for completion in autumn 2009. The tower has the possibility of being one of the most environmentally friendly buildings. This building not only has an incredible aesthetically, but also has special energy conservation and arguably it will become China's first zero-energy skyscraper in 2009.

Roger Frechette, Director of MEP Engineering, and Russell Gilchrist claim this net-zero-energy skyscraper can generate more energy than it uses. As a fact, it will use three natural power sources to get its energy; sun, water and wind. In addition, the structure is being designed with energy conservation mentality and designers attempt to create an environmentally friendly building by including solar and wind turbines, humidity and rainwater collectors in the structure.

The goal of the design was to make an incredible ultra green tower with the most sustainability as possible. This mentality causes some major design mechanism in the building as follows: First, for reducing the structure’s energy use, designers decided to rotate the structure to the east and take an advantage of sunlight while the late-day sun on the large, southern horizontal contact are minimized. Second, four wind turbines -two per each floor- were designed on two mechanical floors to convert the kinetic energy in wind into mechanical energy. The wind turbines use the current winds from the south, which create the negative pressure at the north side. Skidmore, Owings & Merrill estimate the turbines will generate 15 times more electricity than a usual wind generator. Third, double layer curtain-walls prevent gaining heat in the south side of the building. Fourth, “a radiant cooling system allows for the buildings HVAC system to be 1/5 the normal size, and also improves indoor air quality since the air is not recycled within the building.” In addition, it gives the possibility for the building to save extra space in each floor and to have 5 more floors at the end. Sixth, the mainly attractive characteristic of the building is a financial part. Between the decreased costs with due attention to lower energy requires and additional space which is available for rental this building is an economy construction to build.

The Pearl River Tower has lots of benefits behind its amazing look. Sustainable building, or power independency, will save the expenses of energy in long term such as the price of coal, power electricity, nuclear energy and other alternative sources. They leave a lighter footprint on the earth as well as accumulate the natural sources. It will help pollution and make our planet a better place to live. By incorporating the most recent technology on the building this will obtain the attention of corporations around the world and encourage them to use the same system.

When Roger Frechette, director of m/e/p sustainable engineering at SOM said “We knew the tower was going to get built with or without us, so we felt we might as well design it and make it as sustainable as possible,” he made a good statement about their work since it is a responsibility of all people to save the natural sources and grid energy. As a fact, this modern building has this possibility to take a big step in commercial building design and it can be a good example and model for future building. I personally think an architect can learn from this design and cut the costs of the building to the lower range by using the natural forces, this way we can guarantee that people of all range will get more familiar with the advantage of green design and the philosophy behind it and as soon as we can imagine they will start using that.