5 comments about Geodesic Math and How to Use It.

1. I don't like to spend money on information that I can get for free. I found plenty of free information about geodesics on the web, but not enough.
   
   I'm glad I spent the cash. This book filled in all the gaps.
   
   It is not for people with weak math skills.
   
   The book seems confusing at first, but if you keep reading and studying you will be rewarded with a deeper understanding of geodesics than you can imagine.
   
   This book is a "must have" for anyone who wants to build their own dome, or just learn more about geodesics.
   
   And yes, it's worth learning the math skills to understand this book.



2. To paraphrase Barbara Mandrell, geodesic domes were green when green wasn't cool. I read this book in college and was sorely tempted to steal it out of the university library because it had gone out of print and was just not available new or used anywhere else. I kicked myself later for not yielding to temptation when I went to check it out again and realized that someone else stole it before me! Seriously, give Kenner his rightful due, this is a classic in its field. What is my test for saying so? It has been thirty years since the book's first printing and has yet to see its equal. And there have been many many contenders. I could not recommend any one book higher for hobbyist or even professional reference to geodesic calculation and the practical design of geodesic domes. Though Hugh is no longer with us, five years gone as I am writing this, but the effects of his powerful intellect live on and continue to infect others with his inquisitive spirit by way of such seminal work.



3. Seemed over-technical at 1st, but after about a year has been my reference book on geodesics & making all kinds of geodesic domes... It lists chord factors (lengths of segments before applying radius of dome) on tables to 7 decimals for various domes @ the end of the book if you don't want do calculate w/formulas provided. If your familiar with trigonometry, it will let you jump around chapters that are of more interest.
   
   This book was originally copyrighted in 1976, but not edited for this 2nd paperback 2003 Edition (glossy color cover). The author, Hugh Kenner (1923-2003), has compiled a very thorough book. Very well written & explained in orderly fashion with excellent general layout & (especially for the time) detailed diagrams plus cross page-references. IMO there is very little that I would change except for replacing current diagrams with modern CAD generated illustrations, that's about it.
   
   Has 172 pages with several blank pages for notes (I note in the wide margins instead) & is 8.7 x 8.7 x 0.5 inches. Not a small book but not a big bulky one either. Makes for a lot of information handy to store just about anywhere...
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   I found many formulas & shortcuts throughout the book. From Chapter 12 I plotted a 16 frequency (# of divisions making total # of triangles) icosahedron (the typical geodesic polyhedron shape) dome with 3880 chords or "struts". Even made them into arcs for a perfectly round sphere. Chapter 12 has "Using the Tables" with a simple symmetric triangle xyz-grid on a spreadsheet. Each chord calculated does not rely on another chord's result, so chance of error is greatly reduced. Chapter 14 "Truncations" has "Truncation by Rotation", which saves time on calculating the rest of the chords in dome, or moving chords by their symmetry.
   
   This "still nicely" bound book after a lot of use covers tension & tensegrities, subdivisions, great circles, symmetry & breakdowns, choosing a polyhedron, spherical coordinate system, ellipses & superellipses, truncations, space frames & many kinds of angles - plus charts & other resources @ the end.
   
   A free program on the web called Windome is useful to 8 decimals, but lacks input parameters like radius... So I use it to verify chord factors. From 2-16v involving about 12,240 chords plotting all verified (to 15 digits) on 1st try. Besides spreadsheets, formulas can be used in programming like "The R Project", formulas & programs are also written for old Hewlett-Packard HP-35, 21 & 45 series calculators & programs filed with the HP-65 library (circa mid-1970's). I guess it also goes to show Hewlett-Packard has a history in the PC & hardware programming business...
   
   One thing - spherical coordinate symbols for Theta & Phi are switched, though referenced in correct order (check Mathworld). Easy to correct, just read "Phi symbol" as Theta & "Theta symbol" as Phi - references & formulas will be in order. This book was written in mid-1970's, guess more? people then used this as convention.
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   There are many good free sources on the web for geodesic domes & math plotting through Cartesian x,y,z and/or spherical Theta, Phi coordinates using basic trigonometry. This book cost me $13.57 shipped free brand new & is WELL worth it, even after searching the web...
   
   
   A final word of caution on building materials for domes in general: if you use wood make sure you take extra fireproofing precautions, unless it's a temporary frame. 2 domes here in town (on same lot) burnt down before fire department got to them - and they were right down the street! The intense heat from both fires left nothing except the slab & melted everything.
   
   So, when they start to burn there is very little time to exit the structure. As energy efficient as they are, the same design allows for a very efficient combustion, especially with wood stud frames & panels. Other problems arise as well with ventilating interior wood frames to help prevent condensation.
   
   There are many other materials that will not burn that could make up the panels (like from American Ingenuity, Inc.), or even a monolithic concrete pour over a temporary plastic covered geodesic wood frame. Another method that doesn't use geodesics is a "monolithic shotcreted airform dome" (from a company called Monolithic Dome Institute).



4. The subject very well presented and in a way that is easy to understand. Gives the underlying math to be able to use our modern computers setting on our desk tops to go far beyond what one person could do 25 years ago.



5. Well, the time has come for the pirates to take a hike. UC Press is reprinting this book. The information I have indicates both hard and softcover bindings...It will be available this year (2003).

   Geodesic Math and How To Use It is an extremely well written book, and with the NASA papers, forms the "canon of applied geodesic math." It is a great book, well written and useful.

4 comments about Structure as Architecture: A Source Book for Architects and Structural Engineers.

1. If architecture is viewed as ideas of establishing different relationships between people and space, then structure is the first step to achieve these relationship in reality. How do we appropriately use different structure elements in reality, what kind of architectural effects will them create? These questions are answered in Andrew W.Charleson's book 'Structure as architecture'. The book is divided into chapters such as function/exterior/interior of buildings,structural detailing, light and structures and so on, which are discussed from both theoretical and practical approach. With enormous amount of first hand photo illustrations, the book also gives a comprehensive visual case studies to the reader. It is enjoyable to read and I recommend this stunning book to all architectural, building science students as well as architects and engineers in practice.



2. Although Architecture and Engineering are really only different sides of the same coin, they are often treated in completely different ways. Certainly they are normally approached from different directions. Charleson's book addresses this lack of continuity, and reduces structural diagrams down to a simple level (good for architecture students) as well as opening up the ideas of light and air and structure to thoseof a more engineering bent... And from all accounts he's a pretty inspirational lecturer as well, with the students fizzing away with excitement.
   
   End result: if you are a student of Architecture or Engineering, then rush out and buy this book. Invaluable source of knowledge - guaranteed to help you through those exams...



3. As per name, this book provides an excellent reference to building structures that expresses its architectural ideas. The book is well written and provides examples from around the world! ^_^



4. I am a student studying architecture, and have found this book to be a very useful reference.
   
   The first time I used it, I was looking for specific examples of "expressive" architecture. In the index, I found a long list of qualities such as "grounded", "light", "dynamic" etc. with references to pages illustrating specific projects whose structure has those qualities. The clear, full colour photos really help you get the feel of the buildings.
   
   I don't know of any other book that I could have looked to for that purpose. Of course, the content is useful for numerous other reasons as well.

1 comments about Ten Shades of Green: Architecture and the Natural World.

1. Peter Buchanan's TEN SHADES OF GREEN: ARCHITECTURE AND THE NATURAL WORLD centers on ten buildings which illustrate how environmental responsibility influences modern architectural pursuits. Peter Buchanan is a curator and critic: his choices reflect designs which blend environmental responsibility with design excellence, showing how such a focus provides architects with new, innovative ideas.

3 comments about Land Development Calculations: Interactive Tools and Techniques for Site Planning, Analysis and Design.

1. A bit dissapointed that there was very little targeted toward Retail, specifically lacking in the areas of shopping center and out parcel development... but the formulas were interesting, and the concepts that were explained... were done so in great detail.



2. "Land Development Calculations" provides an excellent and innovative strategy for working towards sustainable land use and development. The models for varying land development strategies can assist local government land use decision makers and planners as well as developers determine the carrying capacity of land within realistic thresholds. The accompanying spreadsheets for the development scenarios on the CD-ROM are extremely user friendly and do not place an undue burden on the user by requiring what may be hard to find or to collect data. All of the data required just is typical of what is necessary to make appropriate land development decisions. As a local government planner, I am working towards incorporating the information received from the models in to the zoning and development code as part of the approval process by using it to further assess suitability of the property for the purposes proposed (a zoning consideration required in accordance with the State of Georgia Zoning Procedures Act). I strongly encourage other land planners and developers to read "Land Development Calculations," because of its highly practical and very timely material.



3. This is a terrificaly valuable technical reference for practitioners who need an efficient method of performing land development calulations. The book and its companion set of spreadsheets enable users to answer two key questions: 1) how much can be built on a given piece of land; or 2) how much land is needed to accommodate a given use? The material is clearly written and well illustrated, especially a series of worksheets leading through the method. Another strength is its comprehensiveness and detail, including all major land-use and micro site conditions.

2 comments about Treehouses: Living a Dream.

1. I bought some books on tree houses cause I want to build one. This was no help. Nice pictures (and ideas, maybe), tough.
   If you want to look pictures and dream, buy the book. Otherwise don't.



2. There are an awful lot of 'pretty house' books out there. Some of them offering quite unusual house designs. But nothing I've ever seen compares with the designs in this book. ==I've seen houses built on poles because they are located in a flood plain. Of course the Swiss Family Robinson and the Ewoks of StarWars fame lived in tree houses. I had one as a kid, and when my daughter came along, she had one (she could pull up the ladder and keep her brother out).
   
   In this book however professional architects from all over Europe, Tasmania, and the U.S have been used to design houses that live up in trees. The houses are mostly not the entire living structure but are offices, retreats, studios, and some of the most exciting entertainment areas imaginable. The results are unbelievably striking.
   
   The integration of the advanced design with the natural look of the trees gives a feeling of working together that I wouldn't have expected. This is true if the tree house is ultra modern, traditional, or some that I guess I'd just call unconventional. A surprising book.

3 comments about Off The Grid Homes.

1. Has very little for which I was looking. A lot of white space per page around pretty photos of architectually interesting structures that are off-grid. A lot of paper material for few words and little useful information. If you want information to help you know what it takes to go off-grid, this isn't it; it's just coffee table cosmetics.



2. This book was really fun to read. The pictures were beautiful and the surrounding of most of the homes were incredible. Some times the floor plans were a bit confusing and one of them had no definitions for the numbers that represented the rooms. It definately inspired me to do more with less and to consider green building as my next project. I was a bit dissapointed in the definitions of some of the energy saving apparatuses. I wish that the book would have gone into more detail on the excerpts of geothermal, solar hot water, PV arrays, and wind turbines. At best these were teasers and left me wanting much more explaination. I will say it gave me a world of great ideas. I would be very interested in a book on totally off the grid, fully functional with flushing toilets etc incorporating all aspects of rain water collection, grey water heating and collection, optimal design to do this and more, plus sub 1200 square feet homes that offer options on what can be afforded. In depth explainations on all the buzz words like living machines what it entails (cost,size,optimal location, size vs. amount processed per hr or day or what? better diagrams with flow directions and larger in format etc. This should give the author another book to write that I for sure will purchase. I am well over 13!



3. Nature is efficient. To become sustainable, we need to relearn the art of efficiency. The six "off the grid" homes featured in this book include two that are over 4,000 sq'. Did the author consider how much energy it took to build these things? The smallest house is about 1,600 sq' and it is the only one of the six that is actually off the grid. Four of the others are on intertie connections and one is featured because it uses geothermal. A more honest title would be "How to Generate Some of the Energy Required by Your Oversized House". This book demonstrates that sustainability depends not so much on changes in technology but changes in the way we think. Two books which I found helpful in changing my understanding of shelter are the classic "Owner Built Home" by Ken Kern and "The Hand-Sculpted House" by Evans, Smith and Smiley.

5 comments about Comfort in Any Climate.

1. I love the concept of earth ships and have been infatuated with them for a good while. I thought I would start reading up and this is the first book I bought. I don't think this was the right first book for the subject. It was very brief and was more suited to be an "Earthship Calendar". They put it together quickly and made a few editing mistakes. Not terrible but I feel other books out there are better.



2. good topic for discussion around a break room or sitting lounge. not extremely detailed on mechanics of an Earthship house (guess you have to buy a blueprint or get a contractor). well worth it if you want to be more environmentally involved.



3. I have all M. Reynolds' other Earth Shelter books and this one has some great pictures and gives a short background on the Earth Shelters. This is a great "starter" book for anyone who thinks they might be interested in building an Earth Shelter. (I can't wait to get mine started!)



4. Comfort in Any Climate is an introduction to building your own home using passive solar techniques. The book is not intended to be the book to end all books, in fact it is an introduction that gets one thinking about how different climates affect the performance of any dwelling. No one cookie-cutter formula will work for different situations (Latitude, Altitude, Micro-climate, etc.) and this book gets one thinking about how to adapt a design to a given area based on narrowing down specific paramaters. It is not intended for Rocket Scientists, it is more for people who are new to natural and sustainable building, and wish to pursue their education in learning how to properly pick a building location so that they will be in a better position to make sensible choices that lead to asking the right questions of what design will work best on their chosen building site. This is a good place to start. The three original earthship books are more "one size fits all" and this book will add to knowing how to modify the "one size fits all" mentality so that a comfortably dwelling can be constructed.



5. This book talks about insulation, space, and mass and the need
   to "tune" a house to benefit from free heat/cooling. HOWEVER,
   it never mentions a single tuning formula. Unless you plan on
   building many homes to "tune" your designs, this is only a book
   on common sense and you'ld be better off with Reynolds' other
   books or another book on this topic by another author.

No comments about Interior Design: Materials and Specifications.

1 comments about Visual Notes for Architects and Designers.

1. If my bookcase were on fire, I would be willing to burn my hand to save this book. I am currently studying anesthesia at Columbia University, and I still draw on the things (oops, no pun intended) I learned from this book during my career in architecture.
   
   If process and developing ideas is what you want, this is sure to jog your thinking.

3 comments about Liquid Stone: New Architecture in Concrete.

1. This book did a fantastice job of conveying the limitless possibilities of concrete as an art form expressed in architecture.



2. The title of this book is an excellent choice of words. All you have to do is creat a form of almost any conceivable shape; pour or spray the concrete in place and you have stone that is no longer liquid.
   
   This book has three major sections.
   
   It starts with a series of essays on concrete. This give some history, some of the characteristics, some of the things for which concrete has been used. The middle section of the book consists of photographs and drawings of some of the most advanced buildings imaginable that have been constructed using concrete. This section serves almost as an idea book of its own. Finally the last section is on the future of concrete. This includes some of the advanced types of concrete that will enable even more advanced concepts to be utilized in the future. Some of these include Translucent Concrete, Bendable Concrete and more.
   
   This is an excellent book that gives you some thoughts that your next building should be structural concrete.



3. LIQUID STONE: NEW ARCHITECTURE IN CONCRETE doesn't just come from architects or artists: it includes engineers and scholars alongside those working in the medium to explore the changing nature of concrete from both aesthetic and technical perspectives. Chapters use over thirty buildings by leading concrete architects as foundations for descriptions, photos and discussion. From the characteristics of space to structural links, LIQUID STONE offers plenty of insights on concrete production, design, and art.