Singapore URA website

I attended few courses from SIA (Singapore Institute of Architects). The lectures are in broadview but at least there are websites with information of the statutory in Singapore. Things are open and easy to reach.

"The URA website, launched in 1996, is an initiative owned by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). The website is positioned as the one-stop for all URA e-services on the web and organised with the needs of the public and customers in mind.
The URA website enables users:
To search for and access a diversity of information from URA
To conduct a wide range of transactions online with URA" to find out more...
Passage & Image from http://www.ura.gov.sg/about/ura-intro.htm

Singapore Garden Festival

I visited the Singapore Garden Festival in Suntex Convention Hall and find it fascinating and inspiring, where live plants are treated as art, creating emotion, reflecting thoughts and evolving illusions~!
"The Singapore Garden Festival, the first garden show in the tropics to bring together and showcase creations from the world’s top award-winning garden and floral designers under one roof, returns on 25 July to 1 August 2008! The truly cosmopolitan Singapore Garden Festival in 2006 was a roaring success, having received accolades from overseas horticultural experts, rave reviews from more than 200,000 visitors from Singapore and around the world, and full support from the industry. This pre-eminent event has been established as a top international flower and garden show in the tropics, further enhancing Singapore's reputation as a garden city in the tropics."[1] to find out more...
Image from http://www.singaporegardenfestival.com/show_gallery.html
Passage [1] from http://www.singaporegardenfestival.com/

Mr Materials

"Great news! Monday we are officially launching a new site called MrMaterials! The site will be a mental ray material repository for Max, Maya and XSI with a section for straight texture files as well, so it should prove useful to all once it gets up to speed."
"We have some great people on board for the project, I think most of you know Jeff Patton, he created the MatLabs (material setup scenes) in Max and others like Jared Martin and Harry Bardak translated the scenes to Maya and XSI. We have Blogs and other stuff in the works and plan to have articles and tutorials in the near future as well as a lot of other cool stuff. Each week for about 5 months we will be giving away a material and texture set of full sized Arroway Textures. We have lots in the works and Jeff Patton's Blog will be occuring at the site." to find out more..

Max MatLabs: http://www.mrmaterials.com/index.php?option=com_remository&Itemid=57&func=select&id=109
Maya MatLabs: http://www.mrmaterials.com/index.php?option=com_remository&Itemid=57&func=select&id=110
XSI MatLabs: http://www.mrmaterials.com/index.php?option=com_remository&Itemid=57&func=select&id=112

Passage from Russell Thomas

Design Your Dwelling Competition

Google sketchup is on going growing~! After the 3d Basecamp of 2008, a design competition for dwelling is raise and everyone, anyone would sketchups can participates~!
"The contest will be judged by Dwell editors, Google SketchUp experts, and MIT professor and Dwell NextHouse architect Joel Turkel. All entries will be posted on Dwell.com no later than August 31, 2008." to find out more...

50 must read architectural and resources blogs

"Architecture can be a challenging and sometimes stressful major, but you can help yourself stay informed and get creative new ideas by keeping on top of the news through the use of the Internet. With many architects blogging, and loads of resources and information out there, it can be well worth your time to check out at least a few blogs in your free time or to help you with a project. Here¡¯s a list of 50 blogs and helpful sites we think are great sources for architecture majors." to find out more...
Happy to know that my blog is in the list. Cheers~!
Passage from http://www.bestcollegesonline.com/blog/2008/07/15/50-must-read-blogs-and-resources-for-architecture-majors/

Evolo

"Evolo Architecture was founded by a group of international architects in 2003 in New York City. Our goal is to create a forum of discussion for the development of new ideas towards excellence in architectural design for the XXI Century." to find out more...

passage from http://www.evolo-arch.com/

Image from http://www.evolo-arch.com/cskyb.html

Roblon

Roblon had did a presentation to us today of Fibreoptics and there are free fibreoptics lux calculation program to be downloaded from their website. to find out more...

"An optical fiber (or fibre) is a glass or plastic fiber that carries light along its length. Fiber optics is the overlap of applied science and engineering concerned with the design and application of optical fibers. Optical fibers are widely used in fiber-optic communication, which permits transmission over longer distances and at higher data rates than other forms of communications. Fibers are used instead of metal wires because signals travel along them with less loss, and they are immune to electromagnetic interference. Optical fibers are also used to form sensors, and in a variety of other applications." [1] to find out more...

Passage [1] from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical_fiber#History

Image from http://www.roblon.com/en/roblon_fiber_optics/fiber_optics_lighting/

applications/pool_and_spa_lighting_02/pool_and_spa_lighting.htm

Eco-city Development: Planning a Sustainable Community

"Unlike biological communities, cities constitute a kind of artificial ecosystem dominated by human activities, sustained by natural life-support systems, and vitalized by ecological processes. The concept was introduced by Ma and Wang a Social-Economic-Natural Complex Ecosystem (SENCE) (4). The natural subsystem of the eco-city consists of the 5 traditional Chinese elements: metal (minerals), wood (living organisms), water, fire (energy), and soil (nutrients and land). Its economic subsystem includes the components of production, consumption, reduction, transportation, and regulation; while its social subsystem includes technology, institutions, and culture. Urban sustainability can only be ensured by human ecological understanding of the complex interactions between environmental, economic, political, and social/cultural factors and with careful planning and management based on ecological principles.
An eco-city is an ecologically healthy city. It is a healthy human ecological process leading to sustainable development within the carrying capacity of local ecosystems through changes in the production mode, consumption behavior and decision instruments based on ecological economics and systems engineering (5). Cities should be ecologically designed to enhance the health and quality of life of their inhabitants and to maintain the ecosystems on which they depend. This requires careful ecological planning and management and participation of citizens and stakeholders in the planning and management processes.
Eco-city development is a whole systems approach integrating administration, ecologically efficient industry, people's needs and aspirations, harmonious culture, and landscapes where nature, agriculture, and the built environment are functionally integrated." to find out more...

Passage from http://ambio.allenpress.com/perlserv/?request=get-document&doi=10.1639%2F0044-7447(2004)033%5B0341%3AEDIC%5D2.0.CO%3B2&ct=1&SESSID=e6fad4d675a4b0275c4b3d8c8cb965ce

BuildLC

"We started the BUILD blog with the intention of providing a communication hub for modern design in the northwest as well as an information trading ground for The Modern List."

"The Modern List is a modernist guide to several cities around the country, primarily on the west coast. It’s a guide intended for the design conscious interested in experiencing modern architecture, design, art, food and culture. With the guiding principal that every traveling experience should be exciting or at least enjoyable, we originally started compiling these lists of places and spaces out of a desire for fun and effective travel. Nothing pisses us off more than settling for a mediocre cup of coffee at some fill-in-the-blank large coffee chain when you know that there must be a great little well-designed coffee shop with great beans just around the corner – like Grey Dog Coffee in Manhattan. If only you had a list of such places… We’re constantly updating the guide so if you’ve got recommendations, opinions or scathing criticisms, send them our way.
With the BUILD blog we intend to toss-out the holy veil of the design culture that seems to make architecture so snooty and uninteresting to discuss. We’d like to get fun, sensible, genuine information out on the table. Let us know how we’re doing." to find out more...

Passage from http://buildllc.wordpress.com/category/about-us-contact-info/

Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city

"Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city has applied the planning concept of eco-economy, eco-residence, eco-culture, harmonious community and scientific management. By integrating advanced ecological, environmental protection, and energy-saving techniques, it will create a natural, harmonious and livable human residence, and thus commit itself to constructing an eco-city that is economically vibrant, environmentally friendly, resource-efficient and socially harmonious. The project will promote the use of clean energy and renewable energy/resources, with strengthened innovation capabilities and optimized industrial structure to achieve a highly-efficient recycling economy. An eco-culture with regional features will be formed to promote a green and healthy style of life and consumption. Focusing on coordination with the neighboring regions in terms of environment, socio-culture, economy and policy will help to realize regional integration. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

An Eco-city of International Cooperation A showcase of sustainable development A dynamic city with great vitality A comfortable city featuring healthy lifestyle A harmonious city of beneficial coexistence A future city of ecological culture" to find out more...
Passage from http://www.eco-city.gov.cn/eco/shouye/zoujinshengtaicheng/shengtaichengjianjie/en/en.html
Image from http://www.eco-city.gov.cn/eco/shouye/zongtiguihua_en/Part_6/index.html_1094844438.html

Urbanus

"URBANUS Under the leadership of partners Xiaodu Liu, Yan Meng and Hui Wang, Urbanus is a think tank providing strategies for urbanism and architecture in the new millennium.
The name of "Urbanus" derives from the Latin word of "urban", and strongly reflects the office's design approach: reading architectural program from the viewpoint of the urban environment in general, and the everchanging urban situations in specific.
Urbanus is committed to the Modernist believe that architecture is a pivotal force for a better life, and hence architects should push the boundary of their traditional role and be a progressive force in the society. Urbanus theorizes its idea and ideal through a unique practice. The core concern of this practice is design excellence.
Urbanus' design scope includes urban design, architectural design , landscape design, interior design and exhibition design. Its works have been widely exhibited in prestigious domestic and international shows, and reported by major trade magazines. It has been recognized as one of the leading forces among China 's young design firms. " to find out more...

Passage from http://www.urbanus.com.cn/cn/main.htm

Image from http://www.urbanus.com.cn/cn/PROJECTS1-OFFICE/2007-07014-ditieshanggai/2007-07014.html#7

Radical approach to cities rethinks the urban myths

Some interesting studies from AA for your browsing pleasure.
"But in some ways its radicalism in design is becoming mannered and predictable. A high percentage of the work here seems locked into a narcissistic logic that cannot stop producing the same architectural bling of distorted nets, abstract grids and curvy blobs. Although this is all drawn and modelled to an incredibly high standard, it is reiterative. But the work on cities is strong, inspiring, and authentically radical." to find out more...
Passage & Image from http://www.bdonline.co.uk/story.asp?storycode=3091651

LTLArchitects

"Lewis.Tsurumaki.Lewis (LTL) is an innovative, award-winning architecture partnership founded in 1997 by Paul Lewis, Marc Tsurumaki and David J. Lewis, located in New York City. LTL actively pursues a diverse range of work, from large scale academic and cultural buildings to interior architecture to competitions. LTL's approach is to realize inventive solutions that turn the very constraints of each project into the design trajectory, exploring overlaps between space, program, form, budget and materials.
The firm's work has been extensively published and exhibited internationally. LTL Architects received the 2007 National Design Award for Interior Architecture from the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum and was selected as one of six American architectural firms featured in the U.S. Pavilion at the 2004 Venice Architecture Biennale. In addition, LTL was included in the 2000 National Design Triennial at the Cooper-Hewitt and was selected in December 2000 by Architectural Record as one of ten firms representing a Vanguard in Contemporary Architecture. Lewis.Tsurumaki.Lewis are co-authors of two books, the monograph Opportunistic Architecture (Princeton Architectural Press, 2008) and Situation Normal....Pamphlet Architecture #21 (Princeton Architectural Press, 1998)."to find out more...
Passage from http://www.ltlarchitects.com/pages/profile.html
Image from http://www.ltlarchitects.com/pages/portfolio/speculations/tourbus.html

U.S. Whole Building Design Guide

"The WBDG is the only web-based portal providing government and industry practitioners with one-stop access to up-to-date information on a wide range of building-related guidance, criteria and technology from a 'whole buildings' perspective. Currently organized into three major categories—Design Guidance, Project Management and Operations & Maintenance—at the heart of the WBDG are Resource Pages, reductive summaries on particular topics.
Development of the WBDG is a collaborative effort among federal agencies, private sector companies, non-profit organizations and educational institutions. Its success depends on industry and government experts contributing their knowledge and experience to better serve the building community." to find out more...
Passage from http://www.wbdg.org/about.php

Ecotect with Sketchup model importing tutorial

"ECOTECT allows you to run analyses on models imported from Sketch-Up. If you use the right format (explained below), ECOTECT will maintain all your Sketch-Up material assignments, allowing you to auto-convert them to elements in its own library.You will need about 5 minutes to complete this tutorial." to find out more...
There are more training packages available. to find out more...
And to familiarize fast, got a post in pushpullbar forum that introduce Ecotect. to find out more...
Passage & Image from http://squ1.org/wiki/Importing_From_SketchUp_Tutorial