Bilingual

Do Wavy Walls Use Fewer Bricks? I Tested It in Blender
20 days ago
- Crinkle Crankle walls are curvy brick walls that originated in ancient Egypt but are now more common in England.
- Online sources often claim these wavy walls use fewer bricks and are stronger than straight walls, but details are sparse and contradictory.
- The author built procedural serpentine and straight walls in Blender's geometry nodes to test brick usage and strength.
- At 100 meters, the serpentine wall used 55% as many bricks as a typical straight wall, confirming the brick-saving myth.
- Lateral impact tests with heavy balls showed both wall types failed, but the serpentine wall suffered less damage, potentially lowering repair material costs.
The mathematical secrets of Barcelona's Sagrada Familia
22 days ago
- The Sagrada Família's design is guided by a proportional system based on the number 12 and a 7.5-meter module.
- Mathematician Claudi Alsina discovered that ratios between divisors of 12 (like 1:4, 1:3, 1:2) explain much of the basilica's proportions.
- Key dimensions of the temple, including length (90m), width (60m), and various heights, are multiples of 7.5m.
- Towers feature polyhedral shapes, such as dodecahedrons, truncated octahedrons, and cubes, with symbolic elements like a 12-pointed star.
- Structural elements include catenary arches and double-helix torsion columns, optimized for load-bearing and light projection.
- Hidden symbolic features include a heptagonal canopy representing the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit and a magic square summing to 33.
All 253 Patterns from Christopher Alexander's a Pattern Language Summarized
2 days ago
- Christopher Alexander's 'A Pattern Language' contains 253 patterns for designing towns, buildings, and construction details, organized into three sections.
- Patterns 1-94 (Towns) focus on gradual, piecemeal development with small individual acts to fit larger global patterns, emphasizing human scale and community.
- Patterns 95-204 (Buildings) are under control of individuals or small groups, giving three-dimensional shape to structures with principles like natural light and intimacy gradients.
- Patterns 205-253 (Construction) provide detailed methods for making buildings that encompass larger patterns, using materials and structures that are organic and adaptable.
- Key themes include independent regions, local transport, human-scaled spaces, and the importance of nature, social interaction, and personal expression in design.
The Irony of Technology: As Technology Increases We Suck More at Craft
8 hours ago
- Technological advances in building have led to a decline in craftsmanship, as seen in modern cabinet making.
- Historic structures like the Parthenon and Gothic cathedrals were built with low technology but exhibit enduring beauty and detail.
- Modern production cabinets rely on software, CNC routers, and standard parts, resulting in identical, low-quality designs.
- Handcrafted elements in homes, such as doors and windows, create uniqueness and magic that machines cannot replicate.
- The human touch in building is vital for beauty and longevity; technology should complement craft, not replace it.
- Looking to historical designs inspires breaking molds and solving problems, leading to better building practices.
- Hand-worked surfaces provide ongoing visual depth, unlike machine-made items that quickly become unnoticeable.
- Neuroscience research shows that varied, detailed facades improve mood and engagement compared to blank walls.

Hasty Briefsbeta

#architecture

Do Wavy Walls Use Fewer Bricks? I Tested It in Blender

The mathematical secrets of Barcelona's Sagrada Familia

All 253 Patterns from Christopher Alexander's a Pattern Language Summarized

The Irony of Technology: As Technology Increases We Suck More at Craft