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EVALUATION OF OPTIMAL HEIGHT THRESHOLD FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND THERMAL COMFORT IN TROPICAL HIGHRISE DWELLINGS


 The concept of high-rise buildings continues to provide a meaningful solution for land conservation in cities. Highrise buildings stand out for many good reasons. A challenge with them however, is that they demand huge amounts of energy to build and operate compared to low and medium-rise buildings. Studies show that this is largely due to the heating and/or cooling load required to sustain human activities at such great altitudes, amongst other factors. The concept of bioclimatic skyscrapers popularized by Ken Yeang is undoubtedly a good approach to tackling this challenge as it helps to save conventional energy, protect the environment and improve indoor thermal comfort. Some questions however still remain unresolved like; “What are the optimal design conditions for achieving bio-climatism in tall buildings? Should height be arbitrary? Does it bear significant influence on thermal comfort and energy use? If so, What is the nature of this influence? and How can developers use this knowledge to their advantage when planning highrise buildings?

Recent studies reveal that building energy use increases as height increases but very little is yet known about the empirical nature of this increase. This paper reviews existing literature related to the relationship between height, occupants’ thermal comfort and building energy use in tropical high-rise dwellings. The authors examine research gaps related to bioclimatic skyscrapers with specific attention to the influence of height as a major design parameter. It concludes that there is a need for further scientific investigations in the light of existing research gaps.

On Love, Marriage and Polygamy

 

As with every other aspect of life, issues concerning love and marriage are largely based on personal convictions. Whether you believe there is one person alive who is your forever person or you believe in spreading the love, the fact remains that as human beings we are designed as creatures of association. We associate with other members of the society, church, school or family in order to get care, mentorship, approval for our actions etc.

Marriage can be viewed as one of such associations specifically designed to kickstart the family which is the smallest single unit of society. Marriage in many regions symbolizes the agreement between two persons who have resolved to merge their interests in such a way that makes it easier for each of them to achieve their life goals. This agreement extends to other members of the both families and is usually consummated to produce offspring in an organized manner.

In some traditions, it is common to find men with multiple wives or life partners. This is sometimes as a result of prevailing circumstances such as farming or warfare that may necessitate the need to have many children. Some religions have strict instructions regarding marriage. Most of them condemn polygamy and encourage monogamy. Some believe that a marriage continues even after physical death on earth. One could write long epistles about marriage, but I believe there are other volumes that have treated the subject very extensively. 

The purpose of this diary entry is to address my opinion on having multiple life partners. I think it is impossible and a wearying of self and spirit for anyone to try to complicate his life any further than life already is by choosing to build more than one family in a lifetime. I will explain why I think so in the summary below.

1. Do one thing, do it well, expect no mercy
2. Economic weariness
3. Emotional stress
4. Psychological mix-ups
5. Lack of total commitment on neither sides
6.  Human health limitations
7. Sexual stress
8. Chances of unwanted infiltration
9. No assurance of health status of multiple partners
10. Poor attention to all the kids from numerous wives
11. Possibility of religious dichotomy
12. Multiple distractions 
13. May breed jealousy and envy amongst co-wives and siblings
14. Favoritism will naturally creep in.

I will expand each of the points mentioned here in a future post, but suffice it to say here that none of the points mentioned above are necessarily religious based  or influenced. These to me, are simply logical reasons why I would not be opting for a polygamous marital arrangement. There are several religious backed points that could be added here, but at the end of the day, I think polygamy may also have its benefits and should a situation arise where one finds himself arm-twisted, it is not a completely terrible thing to enjoy the beauties of family living with multiple women in one life-time.

Let me know what you think about this topic and be sure to keep it civil and logical.



BLUEPRINT FOR A FUTURISTIC URBAN SETTLEMENT


Planning a city must be an interesting exercise. I'm not sure why, but recently, my interests were drawn to a simple personal brain teaser excercise where I tried to play the role of a city planner. I must have been fascinated by how God was able to write a universal program running the metaverse.

 I said to myself, "What if I am called upon to plan a new city?" 

How would it have felt for God, planning out and actually writing the programs that make seasons, births, deaths etc. happen? Excited by the potential of what beautiful city I could develop, I resorted to try out the game. 

Yes, I know, people get trained and get licensed to do this, but as an Architect, I just felt like trying. It felt interesting thinking out and providing for all the necessities for a pleasant life in my small city. The time I spent considering what else should be on the list, was refreshing to my philosophy-thirsty soul. 

For formality and memorability, I named my pet city; Peaceland. I itemized all the realities of life that needed to be provided for and then the physical provisions needed to satisfy them, in a tabular format. I'm adding to the list as the game unfolds. So far I have made a list of realities that need to be provided for in the order as it came to me while developing the model; below:


The task is to plan a modern city with provisions that cater to the identified necessities of life, work, religion, health, fitness, education and other important aspects of settlement. Now lets see what we can come up with, hopefully you can suggest a plan that works or just hang on till I find time to finish the game and show you a proposal for your review.