What is a Building? Is it a Dwelling?

Martin Heidegger wrote an article in 1951 called "Building Dwelling Thinking". The philosophical work ponders - What is it to dwell? - it's translated by Albert Hofstadter, 1971.

We try to fill the need by providing houses, by promoting the building of houses, planning the whole architectural enterprise. However hard and bitter, ... The real dwelling plight lies in this, that mortals ever search anew for the nature of dwelling, that they must ever learn to dwell... Rightly considered and kept well in mind, it is the sole summons that calls mortals into their dwelling

Not every building is a dwelling.

"In what way does building belong to dwelling? A bridge may serve as an example ... The bridge swings over the stream with case and power. It does not just connect banks that are already there. The banks emerge as banks only as the bridge crosses the stream. The bridge designedly causes them to lie across from each other. One side is set off against the other by the bridge."

<-- The "concrete bathtub" bridge over the Elbe River in Germany. Also located in Falkirk, Scotland - A giant wheel lifts and lowers canal boats from one canal to another. The move is about 200 feet.
When you watch the Falkirk Wheel video here is what to expect.

• 1min 30sec the giant wheet starts to turn
  
• 4min 30sec Half way there
  
• 6min 30sec both boats leave the wheel

Architecture From Around The World

Hey there, thanks for coming back to hang out. I found a cool site and want to share GreatBuildings.com. Here you can find pictures, 3D models, and links to structures of all kinds. A great resource to view architecture from around the world and designs from leading architects throughout history.

Great Buildings

Roman Colosseum
Fallingwater <-- (Article & Video)
World Trade Center
The Alhambra
Sagrada Familia
Great Pyramid
Chrysler Building
Notre Dame Cathedral

Great Architects

Antonio Gaudi <--Casa Batllo is incredible.
Frank Gehry
Frank Lloyd Wright
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
Le Corbusier
Alvar Aalto
Tadao Ando

Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Architecture

The building sector not the transportation sector is responsible for the largest consumption of fossil fuels and natural resources in the world today. According to this independent survey.

U.S. CO2 Emissions by Sector
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration statistics

Architecture2030.org explains that combining the annual energy required to operate residential, commercial, and industrial buildings along with the embodied energy of industry-produced building materials like carpet, tile, glass, and concrete exposes buildings as the largest energy consuming and greenhouse gas emitting sector. (Seems to makes sense when you combine such a large list of energy needs.)

U.S. Energy Consumption by Sector
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration statistics

After looking at this study - Is there a need for massive change in the way architects design buildings? The building community (according to this calculation) is responsible for almost half of all U.S. greenhouse gas emissions annually. Globally the percentage is even greater.

About Architecture2030

Falling Water - Frank Lloyd Wright Video

A Half Life 2 user created a game model of the Falling Water house by Frank Lloyd Wright with the Half Life Source Engine.



Viewing the video to explore the building and its grounds was almost like being there. The Half Life user behind this video is known as Kasperg and tried to make his work as true as possible. He is an architecture student and built the Fallingwater map based on floorplans, layouts and available interior and exterior photos of the grounds.. Considering the detail this is an excellent piece of work. The performance quality of the video is slow, so dont expect to see this at high speeds... Awesome~!