EBookClubs

Read Books & Download eBooks Full Online

EBookClubs

Read Books & Download eBooks Full Online

Book Urban Design Ethics in Ancient China

Download or read book Urban Design Ethics in Ancient China written by Gideon Golany and published by Edwin Mellen Press. This book was released on 2001 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examines achitecture and urban design as a joint entity, using socio-cultural studies to develop a complete picture of the forces that shape Chinese design. This study incorporates information from other disciplines - history, archeology, anthropology - to elaborate the discussions and conclusions. It highlights the influence of Chinese thoughts, behavior and ethics upon the formation of their distinctive spatial form.

Book Ethics and Urban Design

Download or read book Ethics and Urban Design written by Gideon S. Golany and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 1995-08-01 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The city," according to urban design scholar Gideon Golany, is"the largest and most complicated project ever produced byhumankind." In Ethics and Urban Design, he challenges designprofessionals to reexamine their basic assumptions about the urbanenvironment and offers design strategies based on enduring humanvalues. In search of answers to the paradoxical problems of the moderncity, Golany takes the reader through the sweep of humansettlements from the dawn of civilization to the present. Hisauthoritative examination of the genesis of the city is illuminatedby instructive examples of early urban centers. Mesopotamia, theIndus River Valley, the Egyptian cities of the Nile, and thecapital cities of ancient China--all are examined in the light ofwhat made them work as major centers of human activity. What Golany finds in the success stories of the past are cohesivesociocultural values that shaped the design of homes,neighborhoods, and cities. These ethical values helped to maintainan equilibrium within the society that permeated its natural,social, and human-made environments. In the present era,conversely, he finds a major disconnection between human values andthe ethics of technology, which has resulted in confusion,imbalance, and dehumanization. To help designers gain a perspective on possible solutions, Golanyexplains leading comprehensive design strategies, including thevalley theory, the urban border zone concept, and the regionalconcept of Patrick Geddes. In the case study of contemporaryHolland, he details what a small, densely populated country hasbeen able to achieve through design planning rooted inenvironmental ethics. "Future Frontiers for Urban Design," the culminating section ofthis groundbreaking book, opens with Golany's vision of the futurecity. He examines the issues of thermal performance and climate asthey relate to urban design and offers the concept of"geospace"--the earth-enveloped habitat. Buttressing hispresentation with detailed information on the mechanics ofgeospace, Golany describes case studies of the successful use ofearth-enveloped habitats in China and Tunisia. He makes a powerfulargument for the geospace city as a renewal of ancient traditionsthat can restore the vital equilibrium between nature and humansettlements that we seem to have lost. Ethics and Urban Design is a distinguished scholar's analysis andprescription for the city; it offers an abundance of stimulatingideas for the architects, designers, and planners who have assumedresponsibility for its future. Ethics & Urban Design draws on historical examples andcontemporary case studies from around the world to illustrate urbandesign strategies that can help restore equilibrium to the natural,social, and built environments of the city. In this stimulatingbook, urban design scholar Gideon Golany offers architects,designers, and planners both an in-depth analysis of thefundamental issues of urban design and practical options for thedesign of the future city. * Examines the genesis and development of the city from theearliest presettlements to the rise of urban society * Presents urban design strategies based on historical examples ofearly urban centers, including Mesopotamia, the Indus River Valley,Egypt, and China * Offers case studies of environmental success stories from Europe,Asia, and Africa * Details geospace design options--the use of underground space fordiversified land use, housing, and transportation * Fully illustrated, with over 80 photographs, drawings, anddiagrams

Book Geo Space Urban Design

Download or read book Geo Space Urban Design written by Gideon S. Golany and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 1996-09-03 with total page 412 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Visit any large metropolitan area in the world, and you'll feel theurgent need for innovative solutions to the many problems that facethe modern urban center. Geo-Space Urban Design offers a revolutionary proposal that willlead future urban growth quite literally in a differentdirection--down. Gideon Golany and Toshio Ojima clearly demonstratethat subsurface urban expansion is not only practical and feasible,but also that it can reverse many of the negative effects normallyassociated with urban expansion. They present a comprehensive andsystematic plan for developing underground spaces fortransportation, delivery systems, infrastructure, residences,shopping and commercial spaces, and social and cultural activities.The authors focus on integrating geo-space with existingabove-ground structures and offer well-illustrated examples ofspecific design theories and methods. They also anticipate avariety of contingent issues, such as land ownership, legal rights,and psychological adjustment to underground living andworking. Three case studies of Japanese projects that use underground spacefor shopping, transportation, and infrastructure explore the entirespectrum of issues surrounding the design, construction, andongoing operation of the facility, including form, function, andefficiency; health, safety, and comfort; legal issues; and specialmanagement and security considerations. Geo-space projects inMontreal and Paris are also examined. Geo-Space Urban Design appeals to a broad range of professionals,all of whom have important roles to play in the creation andoperation of the cities of the future. For urban designers,architects, and civil and architectural engineers, this book offersboth an eye-opening vision and a challenge to create viable spacesthat will revolutionize urban life; landscape architects,geographers, and environmentalists will find opportunities toredefine the relationship between society and the natural world;and psychologists, social scientists, and government officials willdiscover new levels of human adaptability, interaction, andcooperation. In this revolutionary book, two leading figures explain howgeo-space design and construction will enable urban planners tocope with the most difficult challenges posed by the continuedexpansion of metropolitan areas, including * Land preservation--conserving precious agricultural land in theface of rapid urban expansion * High urban land prices--making economical use of limited space inurban centers with soaring property values * Efficient urban scale--shrinking overextended and inefficientutility networks * Response to stressful climate--reducing energy consumption inregions subject to extremes of hot or cold weather The authors explore every facet of geo-space and point out thechallenges and opportunities these projects will hold for urbandesigners, architects, civil engineers, architectural engineers,landscape architects, geographers, environmentalists,psychologists, social scientists, and government officials.

Book Asian Ethical Urbanism  A Radical Postmodern Perspective

Download or read book Asian Ethical Urbanism A Radical Postmodern Perspective written by William Siew Wai Lim and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 2005-07-15 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With the impending demise of modernist planning, the footprints and corpses of failed modernist visions are littered everywhere. A vacuum of implementable urban theories has occurred at the time when unprecedented expansion and restructuring of cities in rapidly developing economies are taking place. In this collection of essays, William S W Lim zeroes in on the peculiarities and dynamics of present Asian urban and architectural conditions in order to challenge and transcend the socio-ecological forms and political influences generated by the current system of global capitalism.Part I of this book consists of the main essay, which attempts to establish baselines for an effective formulation of ethical urbanism in Asia, by clarifying issues that have previously been unquestioningly bound up with Western values and discourses. As an architect/urbanist, Lim lends a determinedly spatialist and environmental perspective to issues such as rights, ethics, happiness and social justice, while compelling his readers to rethink previously established notions about them.Part II of this book consists of three city studies on Hanoi, Shanghai and Singapore, completed in the last two years, which attempt to match Lim's theoretical formulation with actual conditions occurring in Asia today. Also included is “Asian Architecture in the New Millennium”, a fascinating discourse on contemporary design conducted from a postmodern perspective.

Book Urban Planning and Development in China and Other East Asian Countries

Download or read book Urban Planning and Development in China and Other East Asian Countries written by Guanzeng Zhang and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-10-29 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines urban development and its role in planning in China and other Asian cities. Starting with a substantial narrative on the history, development philosophy, and urban form of ancient Asian cities, it then identifies the characteristics of urban society and different phases of development history. It then discusses urbanization patterns in China with a focus on spatial layout of the city clusters in the Yangtze River Delta since the 20th Century. Lastly, it explores institutional design and the legal system of urban planning in China and other Asian cities. As a textbook for the “Model Course in English” for international students listed by the Ministry of Education in China, it helps international researchers and students to understand urban development and planning in Asian cities.

Book An Urban History of China

Download or read book An Urban History of China written by Chonglan Fu and published by Springer. This book was released on 2019-07-25 with total page 317 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book considers urban development in China, highlighting links between China’s history and civilization and the rapid evolution of its urban forms. It explores the early days of urban dwelling in China, progressing to an analysis of residential environments in the industrial age. It also examines China’s modern and postmodern architecture, considered as derivative or lacking spiritual meaning or personality, and showcases how China's traditional culture underpins the emergence of China’s modern cities. Focusing on the notion of “courtyard spirit” in China, it offers a study of the urban public squares central to Chinese society, and examines the disruption of the traditional Square model and the rise and growth of new architectural models.

Book Understanding the Cultural Landscape

Download or read book Understanding the Cultural Landscape written by Bret Wallach and published by Guilford Press. This book was released on 2005-01-21 with total page 420 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This compelling book offers a fresh perspective on how the natural world has been imagined, built on, and transformed by human beings throughout history and around the globe. Coverage ranges from the earliest societies to preindustrial China and India, from the emergence in Europe of the modern world to the contemporary global economy. The focus is on what the places we have created say about us: our belief systems and the ways we make a living. Also explored are the social and environmental consequences of human activities, and how conflicts over the meaning of progress are reflected in today's urban, rural, and suburban landscapes. Written in a highly engaging style, this ideal undergraduate-level human geography text is illustrated with over 25 maps and 70 photographs. Note: Many additional photographs related to the themes addressed in the book are available at the author's website (www.greatmirror.com.)

Book Chinese Urban Planning and Construction

Download or read book Chinese Urban Planning and Construction written by Lanchun Bian and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-05-29 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume introduces and discusses the achievements and mechanisms of urban planning and construction in China from multiple professional perspectives, covering practices and processes ranging from ancient times to the present day. The book has 14 chapters, each addressing a specific Chinese urban planning and construction topic with examples and applications in various cities and regions, and each providing an all-around analysis of Chinese urban development issues at different scales, including government administrations, planning progresses, urban investments, social impacts and construction models. The book provides a comprehensive overview of urban planning and construction in China, especially its successful experiences in the historical period and modern era, which will greatly benefit scholars and readers who are interested in China, as well as urban planners, architects and historians. The book is organized into 4 main parts. Part 1 focuses on "historical wisdom" to summarize ancient Chinese efforts to cope with nature and the environment. It interprets the unique wisdom of ancient Chinese cities related to regional design, water conservancy system, and urban districts. Part 2 presents the “transformation" of urban planning in China by learning from both the traditional value and western experiences based on several cases, such as the spatial development of Beijing and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei capital region, the preservation of Qingdao city, the urban community development and regeneration in Chongqing city. Part 3 explores the "green and eco-city" by looking towards the future, illustrating Chinese practices and efforts to build more sustainable cities, such as green and low-carbon city construction in Wuhan, healthy city planning and eco-cities construction in China. Part 4 prospects the “modern miracles” brought forth by technological innovation and economic growth, and introduces the newest planning trends in China, such as the E-commerce Taobao villages in China and the innovation districts in Beijing. It also explains the driving force of the "growth machine" of Suzhou city.

Book Chinese Urbanism

Download or read book Chinese Urbanism written by Jing Xie and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Since the 1990s, the urban landscape of China has witnessed revolutionary changes that are unrivalled in any country of the world throughout history. Rapid urbanization, facilitated by the modern planning mechanism for growth, provides a feast for property developers. Yet, associated urban problems such as housing affordability, traffic congestion, energy consumption, and environmental deterioration are aggravated. This book takes a historic approach to investigate the planning philosophy, urban form and life of the past. Through a detailed study of urban development from early times through the imperial period with a focus on the Tang-Song dynasties, this book attempts to articulate the good qualities of urban landscapes from the past that still have instructive value for modern practices. The focus on the Tang-Song period is not only because China was the most advanced civilization of its time, but also because it underwent a similar process of "urbanization", evident by tremendous economic growth, a dramatic rise of urban population, and an extended building boom. Through evaluating the streets, city layout, public places, urban communities, houses and gardens, and using interdisciplinary research in urban planning, urban design, architecture, history, and cultural studies, this book asserts that the past is quintessentially important. The past not only truthfully records the course of social and cultural formation of urban community and its associated physical fabric, but also regulates the directions we may take in the future"--

Book Sustainable Development of Urban Infrastructure

Download or read book Sustainable Development of Urban Infrastructure written by Xiang Dong Zhang and published by Trans Tech Publications Ltd. This book was released on 2012-12-13 with total page 2400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The collection includes selected, peer-reviewed papers from the 2nd International Conference on Civil Engineering and Transportation (ICCET 2012) held October 27-28, 2012 in Guilin, China. The 432 papers are grouped into the following chapters: Chapter 1: Architectural Design and its Theory, Chapter 2: Urban Planning and Design, Chapter 3: Sustainable City and Regional Development, Chapter 4: Building Materials and Processing Technology, Chapter 5: Renewable Energy and Building Energy Saving, Chapter 6: Building Ecological Environment, Chapter 7: Environmental Engineering and Environmental Protection, Chapter 8: Transportation Planning, Construction and Operation Organization, Chapter 9: ITS Theory and Applications, Chapter 10: Modern Logistics System Planning and Optimization, Chapter 11: Traffic Control and Information Technology, Chapter 12: Urban Transportation Planning and Management, Chapter 13: Vehicle Engineering.

Book Routledge Handbook of Chinese Architecture

Download or read book Routledge Handbook of Chinese Architecture written by Jianfei Zhu and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2022-11-30 with total page 1016 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This handbook, representing the collaboration of 40 scholars, provides a multi-faceted exploration of roughly 6,000 years of Chinese architecture, from ancient times to the present. This volume combines a broad-spectrum approach with a thematic framework for investigating Chinese architecture, integrating previously fragmented topics and combining the scholarship of all major periods of Chinese history. By organizing its approach into five parts, this handbook: Traces the practices and traditions of ancient China from imperial authority to folk culture Unveils a rich picture of early modern and republican China, revealing that modernization was already beginning to emerge Describes the social, intellectual, ideological, and formal enterprises of socialist architecture Frames a window on a complex and changing contemporary China by focusing on autonomy, state practices, and geopolitics of design, ultimately identifying its still evolving position on the world stage Examines the existing cultural and political theories to highlight potential avenues for future transformations in Chinese architecture that also retain Chinese identity Providing a pioneering combination of ancient and modern Chinese architecture in one coherent study, this book is a must-read for scholars, students, and educators of Chinese architecture, architectural history and theory, and the architecture of Asia.

Book Feng Shui and the City

Download or read book Feng Shui and the City written by Manuela Madeddu and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-04-19 with total page 158 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Feng Shui and the City analyses the past and contemporary influences of traditional geomancy on Chinese built environments across three domains: domestic spaces, spaces of commercial development and the public realm. Using Lefebvre’s notion of absolute and abstract space—spaces of ‘symbolic existence’ and ‘everyday life’ versus spaces of domination and control, it tracks evolving attachment to, and use of, Feng Shui in Guangdong and Hong Kong. The book seeks to understand the changing role of Feng Shui in modern urban development and its regulation, and to question what constitutes authentic Feng Shui today.

Book Introduction to the Urban History of China

Download or read book Introduction to the Urban History of China written by Chonglan Fu and published by Palgrave Macmillan. This book was released on 2020-08-16 with total page 385 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores China’s urban development, examining the history and culture of Chinese cities and providing a cultural background to the rapid urban development of contemporary China. It offers a new perspective on Chinese urban history, showcasing the traditional culture which underpins the emergence of the modern city and highlighting how traditional Chinese philosophical thought is reflected in the culture of urban planning and architecture in China, notably examining such issues as ‘the integration of man and nature’, yin and yang, bagua, and the Wu Xing.

Book Understanding the Chinese City

Download or read book Understanding the Chinese City written by Li Shiqiao and published by SAGE. This book was released on 2014-04-29 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book teaches us to read the contemporary Chinese city. Li Shiqiao deftly crafts a new theory of the Chinese city and the dynamics of urbanization by: exploring the rise of stories of labour, finance and their hierarchies examining how the Chinese city has been shaped by the figuration of the writing system analyzing the continuing importance of the family and its barriers of protection against real and imagined dangers demonstrating how actual structures bring into visual being the networks of safety in personal and family networks. Understanding the Chinese City elegantly traces a thread between ancient Chinese city formations and current urban organizations, revealing hidden continuities that show how instrumental the past has been in forming the present. Rather than becoming obstacles to change, ancient practices have become effective strategies of adaptation under radically new terms.

Book Evolution of Water Supply Through the Millennia

Download or read book Evolution of Water Supply Through the Millennia written by Andreas N. Angelakis and published by IWA Publishing. This book was released on 2012-04-14 with total page 585 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evolution of Water Supply Through the Millennia presents the major achievements in the scientific fields of water supply technologies and management throughout the millennia. It provides valuable insights into ancient water supply technologies with their apparent characteristics of durability, adaptability to the environment, and sustainability. A comparison of the water technological developments in several civilizations is undertaken. These technologies are the underpinning of modern achievements in water engineering and management practices. It is the best proof that “the past is the key for the future.” Rapid technological progress in the twentieth century created a disregard for past water technologies that were considered to be far behind the present ones. There are a great deal of unresolved problems related to the management principles, such as the decentralization of the processes, the durability of the water projects, the cost effectiveness, and sustainability issues such as protection from floods and droughts. In the developing world, such problems were intensified to an unprecedented degree. Moreover, new problems have arisen such as the contamination of surface and groundwater. Naturally, intensification of unresolved problems led societies to revisit the past and to reinvestigate the successful past achievements. To their surprise, those who attempted this retrospect, based on archaeological, historical, and technical evidence were impressed by two things: the similarity of principles with present ones and the advanced level of water engineering and management practices. Evolution of Water Supply Through the Millennia is intended for engineers in water resources companies, hydraulic design companies, and water Institutes. It can be used for all courses related to water resources. Authors: Andreas N. Angelakis, Institute of Iraklion, National Foundation for Agricultural Research (N.AG.RE.F.), Greece, Larry W. Mays, School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, Arizona State University, USA, Demetris Koutsoyiannis, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Greece, Nikos Manassis, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Greece.

Book Heritage led Urban Regeneration in China

Download or read book Heritage led Urban Regeneration in China written by Jing Xie and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-11-13 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Urban planning, regeneration and design is an essentially cultural practice with the outcomes often depending upon an understanding of and engagement with the past. As cities in China strive to be competitive and attractive on the world stage, their decaying historical urban fabrics are being transformed into vibrant places through historical-cultural led urban regeneration, however, the impact of their rapid development has escaped serious scrutiny. Heritage-led Urban Regeneration in China presents the detailed evolution of three well-known historic streets in China: the Southern Song Imperial Street in Hangzhou; the residential Pingjiang Street in Suzhou; and the commercial Tunxi Old Street in Huangshan. From their original formation to their more recent regeneration, this book offers a critical evaluation of historical-cultural led urban regeneration projects in China and provides theoretical guidelines for contemporary practice in relation to its tangible and intangible urban heritage. Using interdisciplinary research in architecture, urban design, history and cultural studies, Jing Xie and Tim Heath provide a detailed analysis of the conservation and regeneration efforts of China as an emerging and pivotal world power. An invaluable resource for urban designers, urban planners and architects interested in and working in China, Heritage-led Urban Regeneration in China helps its readers to engage with the essential and invisible factors that produce these revitalised places while forming a critical view towards these projects.

Book Chinese Urban Design

Download or read book Chinese Urban Design written by Fei Chen and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-01-12 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The traditional Chinese city is undergoing an identity crisis. With the rapid development taking place, there is growing conflict between this new building and the existing urban heritage. An appropriate approach, both in design and in legislation, is urgently needed to deal with this problem. Furthermore, although Chinese cities have a remarkably long history, existing methods of urban form study in China are either descriptive or loosely structured, whereas a comprehensive methodology is necessary to 'read' Chinese urban forms in a consistent way, and thus inform designers and policy-makers. Chinese Urban Design targets these problems and offers an analytic and conceptual framework for both urban investigation and consequent design. Firstly summarising traditional urban design principles and how Chinese cities have transformed over time, it then introduces and offers a theoretic ground and scientific methodology for understanding the evolution of urban forms, initially developed in western countries. It demonstrates the theoretic model via real cases - from the city of Nanjing - and establishes a direct link between understanding of urban forms and design development. By providing a cross-cultural investigation on the theories and methods of urban typology and morphology, this book aims to suggest best future practice for urban design in China. It explores how urban designers and local policy-makers can produce culturally responsive designs and how they might better understand the formation and transformation of the built environment in which their creations sit. It also looks at how local residents' lifestyle, culture and demands might be reflected and respected in design process.