Lesson 8 - Environmental Factors

Question 1

What is the difference between Macro and Micro Climate?

Answer 1

Macro is the general climate of the region. Micro is the local modification of Macroclimate.

Question 2

NOTE ON COLORS

Answer 2

Warm Colors are best seen in bright sunlight.

Cool Colors are best seen in overcast light or northern light.

Question 3

MACROCLIMATE

What is the latitude in the United States (not including Alaska and Hawaii)?

Answer 3

The Latitude is varies from about 49 degrees north at the northern tip of Minnesota to about 25 degrees north in the Southern tip of Florida.

Question 4

As Elevations Increase Temperatures Decrease.

How high do you have to go to have the temperature decrease 1 degree?

Answer 4

For every 300 feet of increased elevation it becomes 1 degree colder.

Question 5

What does the abreviation NOAA stand for?

And what does it do?

(MICROCLIMATE)

Answer 5

National Oceanic and Atmospher Administration

• Designer can obtain data on Macroclimate from here.

The Best way for a designer to learn about Microclimate is to walk the site.

Question 6

What Day is the Equinox, Summer Solsitce and winter Solstice?

Answer 6

Summer Solstice - June 21 or 22

Winter Solstice - December 21 or 22

March 21 - Vernal Equinox

September 21 - Autumnal Equinox

Question 7

NOTE:

A body of water is usually warmer at night and cooler durring the day.

AND

Answer 7

Its Nornally cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter than adjacent land.

Question 8

Microclimate is affected by ground surface material.

What is Albedo and conductivity?

Answer 8

Albedo is the fraction of energy that is recieved on a surface.

This is measured on a scale from 0.0-1.0

0 Being Flat Black and absorbing alot of energy

and 1.0 being a mirror and completely reflective.

Conductivity refers to the speed with which heat passes thrugh a material. Metal has a high conductivity. and sand and soil are low.

Question 9

What is the comfort zone for a person?

Answer 9

Between 63-71 degrees in the winter

Between 66-75 degrees in the summer

Within a relative humidity range of 30-60 percent.

75 Percent humidity will result in discomfort regardless of temerature.

Question 10

NOTE:

Urban Areas can be 10 degrees warmer then comparable rural areas.

Answer 10

Note: The greater the speed of air movement the greater the cooling affect.

Air Movement less then 50 feet per minute is generally not noticed.

50-100 feet per minute is pleasent.

100-200 Feet per minute is pleasent and noticable.

200-300 Feet Feels Drafty.

300 Feet + is uncomfortable.

Question 11

Sound is Measured in Decibels** on a logarithmic scale that has a value of 1 at the threshold of hearing and _140 at the threshold of Pain. _**

Answer 11

Each increase of 10 decibels represents a tenfold increase of sound energy, which the human ear percieves as approximatley twice as loud.

Question 12

What is a comforatble noise level for the average person?

Answer 12

_50-60 decibels. _

Question 13

What is the recomended decibels for a sleep or a study area?

Answer 13

No more then 30 Decibels.

Question 14

What Decibel of sound could cause hearing imparament if exposed to it for a long period of time?

Answer 14

85 Decibels

Question 15

Sound pitch is determined by frequency, which is the number of oscillations, or cycles, per second.

Sound Audible to Humans is how many cycled per second?

Answer 15

20-20,000+/- Cycles per second.

Question 16

NOTE: Doubling the distance reduces the sound intensity to one-quarter.

Answer 16

• Gusty Winds reduce the sounds by adding white noise.
• Trees Thin Out high frequency noise.
• A low wall midway between source and reciever has a little affect on low frequency sound.

Question 17

What is an example of a sound masking in an enviroment where there is a freeway?

Answer 17

Feeway Park Seatle Washington.

LAWERENCE HALPRIN - Landscape Architect

The white noise generated by its cascading fountain literally drowns out the sound of the nerby interstate.

Question 18

What is Glare the result of?

Answer 18

Glare is the result of too much contrast. NOT BECAUSE OF TO MUCH LIGHT!

Question 19

What is Ecology?

Answer 19

A polticial movement that is ment to prevent the enviroment.

i.e. Pollution

Ecology is the science of the pattern of relationsips between a community of organisms and its enviroment.

Question 20

Who introduced ecology into the 19th century society and what book did he write?

Answer 20

George Perkins

Man in Nature - 1875

An introduction into the study of ecology.

Question 21

What are Catchment Areas AKA market Trade or tributary Area?

Answer 21

It is a geographic area from which the participants in an activity are drawn. It grows and shrink activity.

Question 22

What are Residential Catchment Areas?

Answer 22

Paticipants in an activity area which is Determined by local transit systems.

Question 23

Proctor Compation Test

Answer 23

Geotechnical Tests to determine the maximum, practically achievable, density of soils and aggregates.

Question 24

When was the Regional Planning Association of America created and what for?

Answer 24

This was created in 1920 by a group of American Enviromentalists to explore and expand the possibilities for large sacle comprehensive planning in the US

Question 25

Who is Lewis Mumford, Benton Machaye?

Who were members of his group that furthered on to develope a landmark ecology based plan for the entire state of NY.

Answer 25

Lewis Mumfors and Benton Machaye proposed the appalachain Trail in 1922.

Machayes writtings included The new Exploration: A Philosophy of Reginal Planning.

and From Geography to Geotecture.

Clearence Stein and Henry Wright were part of their group.

Question 26

What is an ecosystem?

Answer 26

An Ecosystem may be a forest, a desert, a pond, a labratory culture, or a manned space vehicle.

Question 27

Explain the Ahwahnee Principles

Answer 27

Y. 1991

Ahwahnee Hotel - Yosemite National Park

A group of architects, planners, and community leaders for together to present community principles. that express new sustainable planning ideas.

See page 140

Question 28

Who introduced the concept of conservation as a philosophy of natural resource managment?

Answer 28

Theodore Roosevelt and His Cheif forester Gifford Pinchot.

Begining 20th Century.

Question 29

What booked cuased an alarm that revealed the reality of an emerging ecological disaster in the mid 1960’s?

Answer 29

Rachel Carson’s _Silent Spring. _

This book identified the gross missunderstanding of the value and hazards of pesticides.

It outlined in specific the pesticide DDT and the impact on the entire natural ecosystem.

Question 30

Name 3 Principles of the Scientific Laws of Nature.

Answer 30

1. In the earth’s ecosystem (the area of teh earth’s crust and atmosphere approximatley 5 miles high and 5 miles deep) there is a finite amount of natural resources.
2. Given the laws of therodynamic, matter cannot be created or destroyed.

3, All Forms of Energy tend to seek equilibrium and therefor disperse.

i.e. water falls from the sky, settles on plants, and then percolates into the soil.

Question 31

Name a credo for enviromental responsibility

Answer 31

The Natural Step

Organized by scientists, deisgners, and enviromentalists in 1996.

Question 32

NOTE:

Buildings consume atleast 40% of the world’s energy.