MIT Libraries homeDSpace@MIT

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 2012.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 70).Introduction: In spring 2011, while I was working on my thesis in architectural Design degree, I came across with an interesting problem in design: a parametric river. I realized that it is not possible to control the river parameters without understanding the geometry of the surface of terrain. in other words, the shape of the terrain or topography may change the shape of the river down the hills. I started to look up more examples in geoscience and geomorphology to find out more about this topic. I came across drainage patterns which vary based on the shape of the terrain in different parts of the world [Howard 1967]. As a designer, the first thought passed through my mind was: "is it possible to design a terrain using drainage patterns?" There must be a way to derive the landscape geometry from the one of the river!" Later on, through searching related topics in geoscience, I realized that this topic has interested researchers from 1858 and there is a quite enormous body of research on that in geo-computation and geography and computer science. I made this topic as the main goal of present thesis to explore the design possibility of such representation in architecture and connecting the world of design with hydrological and geological characteristics of the land. Recently the design proposals tend to become more engaged in sustainability aspects, more recently in energy generation. Therefore, many designers now seek approaches to integrate architectural ideas with interdisciplinary subjects to tackle the different aspects of energy constrains and sustainability issues. There is a recently developed area of research among architects which tries to define the design through the lenses of energy production. This field has received more attention in landscape design and planning strategies. Among all energy generating methods such as wind and solar, there are no many examples of addressing the design through hydropower energy generation which is the main basis of investigation in current study. In order to explain the goals of the thesis it is important to clarify the objectives of this study in a simple question: Is it possible to construct complex geometry of the surface of the terrain using drainage analysis? Or is it possible to embed required information of 3-dimensional space into 2-dimensional drawing. In that case, designers can design complex geometries using simple plan drawings which might result in more function-oriented design.