Building Analysis + Programming

Question 1

Asbestos

Answer 1

set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals, which all have in common their eponymous asbestiform habit: long (roughly 1:20 aspect ratio), thin fibrous crystals, with each visible fiber composed of millions of microscopic “fibrils” that can be released by abrasion and other processes.

Asbestos mining existed more than 4,000 years ago, but large-scale mining began at the end of the 19th century, when manufacturers and builders began using asbestos for its desirable physical properties: sound absorption, average tensile strength, resistance to fire, heat, electricity, and affordability. Asbestos use continued to grow through most of the 20th century until public knowledge (acting through courts and legislatures) of the health hazards of asbestos dust outlawed asbestos in mainstream construction and fireproofing in most countries.

Prolonged inhalation of asbestos fibers can cause serious and fatal illnesses including lung cancer, mesothelioma, and asbestosis (a type of pneumoconiosis). Concern of asbestos-related illness in modern times began in the 20th century and escalated during the 1920s and 1930s. By the 1980s and 1990s, asbestos trade and use were heavily restricted, phased out, or banned outright in an increasing number of countries.

Asbestos Insulating Board (AIB) are thought to be the most dangerous due to their high content of asbestos and friable nature. Many older buildings built before the late 1990s contain asbestos. In the United States, there is a minimum standard for asbestos surveys as described by ASTM Standard E 2356–04. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency includes some but not all asbestos-contaminated facilities on the Superfund National Priorities list (NPL). Renovation and demolition of asbestos contaminated buildings is subject to EPA NESHAP and OSHA Regulations.

U.S. asbestos consumption hit a peak of 804,000 tons in 1973; world asbestos demand peaked around 1977, with 25 countries producing nearly 4.8 million metric tons annually.

Question 2

Asbestos Containing Materials (ACM)

Answer 2

regulated by EPA/OSHA/State/Local Agencies

Question 3

Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL)

Answer 3

standard that sets the number of asbestos fibers a worker can be exposed to

Question 4

Symmetry

Answer 4

The balanced distribution and arrangement of equivalent forms and spaces on opposite sides of a dividing line or plan, or about a center or axis.

Two fundamental types of Symmetry: 1. Bilateral 2. Radial

Question 5

Hierarchy

Answer 5

The articulation of the Importance or significance of fa form or space by its size, shape, or placement relative to the other forms and spaces of the organization.

Question 6

Rhythumm

Answer 6

A unifying movement characterized by a patterned or repetition or alternation of formal elements or motifs in the same or a modified form.

Question 7

Datum

Answer 7

A line, plane, or volume that, bu its continuity and regularity, serves to gather, measure, and organize a pattern of forms and spaces.

Question 8

Transformation

Answer 8

The principle that an architectural concept, structure, or organization can be altered through a series of discrete manipulations and permutations in response to a specific context or set of conditions without a loss of identity or concept.

Question 9

Axis

Answer 9

A line established by two points in space, about which forms and spaces can be arranged in a symmetrical or balanced manner.

imaginary and not visible
can be a powerful, dominating, regulating device
implies symmetry, demands balance

Teotihuacan, City of the Gods near Mexico City.

Uffizi Palace, Florence, Italy,

Villa Farnese, Caprarola, Italy

Beijing, China - The Forbidden City

Itsukushima Temple, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan, 13th Century (Torii in the sea)

Temple of Amun at Karnak, Egypt, c. 1500-323 B.C.