I think climate is nevertheless an important aspect of
the form-generating forces and ahs major effects on the forms man may wish to
create for himself. i would like to begin with this statement of the louis khan
in this chapter i.e
"I saw many huts that the natives made. They were
alla alike, and trhey they all worked. There were no rachitects there. I come
back with impressions of how clever was man who sloved the problems of sun ,
rain , wind "
after reading this chapter i think climate plays an
important role in governing forms of the bulidings or shelters. THe more severe
the climatic constraints, the more will the form be limilted and fixed, and
less variation will be possible from what one could term " pure climatic
functionlism ". In this chapte the use of old techniques and methods have
been discussed and the importance of that techniques or method s our ancestors
used to do to have shelter in adverse climatic conditions for example the
movement of hot and cold air- and bulid thier houses accordingly. in the
description by kare blixen already discussed, the africans placed their houses
in relation to wind, sun and shade as well as topography. In this case, each
house was identical in form and type, where as among europrans peasents,
forexample although each house is basically like all the others in the area,
there are individual variations to the model. some of the houses were group
solutions reperesentative of a culture and it respons to the characteristics of
a region-its general climate and micro-climate, typical materials, and
topography.from this chapter i learned the climatic variables. the following
are the variable
temperature heat-dry and humid,
cold.
humidity low, high.
wind desireable or
undesireable, and hence whether it should be
encouraged or dis couraged.
rain come
mostly under construction, but involves climate by the need to keeo out rain
while reataining ventilions, especially in hot humid areas.
radiation and light desireable or undesireable, and
hence whether it should be encouraged or dis
couraged.
from the above variables of the climate we can build a
comfotable shelter or a space. under consideration of this variables our
ancestors used to adopt the nature and bulid there sheltors there are many
examples discussed in this chapter igloo, tepee, the use of double sectiond
roof, the use of the courtyard in the house etc.
When the evenings are cool , people in hot dry areas
sleep on the roof or in the courtyard when it is cold they sleep inside.in
punjab the houses are buld with thick muds walls and few opwnings, are
constructed in an effort to keep out the sun the result is the interiros remain
cool and dark all day. the roof or walled courtyard is used during the evening
and warm nights, and the interior during cold ones. Outdoors sleeping- whether
on the roof, in the court, or on the shaded verndahsof bungalows used by the
wealthier people in common. many of the houses have two kicthens, one indoor
for winter use and one out doors for summer use. since people work most of the
day in the fields, summer living takes plac largerly outdorrs, and the house
becomes storage space rather than a dwelling.
the court is also useful in coping with dry heat itself,
and has climatic implications as well asthe social and psycological ones
already discussed. it gives protection to the sand storms.whe it is provided
with greenery and water it is shaded, it acts as acooling well and actually
modifies the micro climate by lowering ground
temperatures and radiation and by evaporation.
The double roof
has four advantages
1. THach shed water and protects the mud in the rainy
season
2. the thatch shades the mud roof from the direct sun,
reducing heat build-up and hence the heating up of the house.
3. the airspace provides additional insulation during the
hot days, while the heat capacity of the mud keeps down the day temperatures.
4. The mud conserves the heat for cold nights, and the
thatch helps it conserve that heat for a
longer portion of the night by reducing heat loss to the cold sky.
thatch alone would be sufficient structurally, and even
for rain protection, but the mud is
cleraly used for its thermal properties, and the combination is very effective.
There is also a climatic component in the use of verandahs in various areas, as
well as in the use of shutters , but the choice among these different
solutions, as has already been suggested is culturally determined.
In the mioslem areas like pakistan and in north india,
were the need for at least sisual privacy becomes socially important because of the attitudes toward woman, but
where ventilation is essential to cope with humid heat, the development of
open-work screens (jali) has taken place. these provide shade and privacy for
women while allowing effective cross ventalition . In these same areas, where
the humid heat is only seasonal , high ceilings of 15 and 20 feet in urban
houses allow cool air in at nuight during the hot dry season and , in effect ,
store it during the day. tis has little effect during the hot humid season as
long as cross ventalition is allowed, but is a disadvantage during the cold
winters, when such rooms become difficult to heat.
since it is generally easier to capture wind than to
avoild it. i will consider the latteral aspect as in the japenses house with
the adobe of New mexico or the yagua house with Arab house, enables us to grasp
the basic differences in form entailed by encouraging or dis couraging wind. As
we would expect areas with severe problems show the most forceful solutions.
Both the eskimos and the Mongols live in areas of extremewinds, particualarly
during the winter, and both the igloo and yurt represent extremely succesfull
soltuions.
windpoles in switzerland, used to protect the house
against the force of the wind.
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