#CONSTRUCTION TECHNOLOGIES

[akrdesigning]

We Building Everything Best That You Needed

Residential Interior Design Living Room Interior Design Kitchen Interior Design Bedroom Interior Design Bathroom Interior Design Office Interior Design Commercial Interior Design Apartment Interior Design. Interior designing is one of the important aspects of any home, it adds charm and style, and makes a space look beautiful, functional, and stylist which reflects your Personality And taste. Despite any size, big or small, if space is properly designed, every aspect of that space like furniture, lighting, paint, and style everything can be brought to scale and theme, making that space look pleasing to the eye. Interior designing is all about space planning by selecting the right products as per the space constraints and clients’ requirements by keeping a proper alignment, adding ambient lighting, correct color selection, functionality, comfort, and sense of personal style to space. Interior designing is all about artistry, grace, style, and functionality that bring comfort and happiness to one’s life.

[buildwire]

How Technology in Construction is Revolutionizing the Industry

The construction industry, often seen as a bastion of tradition, is undergoing a profound transformation driven by technology. From designing to building, managing to monitoring, technology is reshaping every aspect of the construction process. This revolution is not only enhancing efficiency and safety but also unlocking new creative possibilities. In this article, we delve into the ways technology is revolutionizing the construction industry.

1. Building Information Modeling (BIM)

Building Information Modeling (BIM) is a digital representation of a building's physical and functional characteristics. It's more than just 3D modeling; it's an intelligent information-rich process that allows architects, engineers, and construction professionals to collaborate seamlessly. BIM enables the visualization of a project before it's built, leading to improved design quality, clash detection, and better decision-making throughout the project lifecycle.

2. Prefabrication and Modular Construction

Technology is enabling the widespread adoption of prefabrication and modular construction, where building components are manufactured off-site and assembled on-site. This approach reduces construction time, waste, and cost while maintaining high quality. It's particularly effective for repetitive elements like walls and floors, speeding up projects and minimizing disruption to surrounding areas.

3. Drones and Aerial Imaging

Drones equipped with high-resolution cameras are changing the way construction sites are surveyed and monitored. They provide a bird's-eye view of the site, helping project managers track progress, monitor safety compliance, and identify potential issues. Aerial imaging also aids in site analysis, site selection, and accurate topographic mapping.

4. Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR)

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) technologies are enhancing project visualization and communication. AR overlays digital information onto the real world, helping workers visualize designs on-site. VR immerses users in a digital environment, allowing stakeholders to virtually walkthrough and experience a project before construction begins. These technologies streamline design approvals, reduce errors, and improve collaboration.

5. Robotics and Automation

Robots are increasingly being used in construction tasks that are repetitive, hazardous, or require extreme precision. Robotic bricklayers can lay bricks at an astonishing pace, while autonomous heavy equipment can handle earthmoving and grading. Automation not only improves efficiency but also reduces the risk of accidents and injuries.

6. 3D Printing

3D printing is making its mark in construction, enabling the creation of complex structures with less waste and faster construction times. Large-scale 3D printers can produce entire walls, bridges, and even houses. This technology holds the potential to revolutionize affordable housing and emergency shelter construction.

7. Internet of Things (IoT)

The Internet of Things (IoT) is connecting construction sites like never before. Sensors embedded in equipment, materials, and even worker wearables collect real-time data on everything from equipment health to worker safety. This data-driven approach enhances decision-making, optimizes resource allocation, and improves overall project management.

8. Sustainable Construction Practices

Technology is driving the adoption of sustainable construction practices. Energy-efficient designs, smart HVAC systems, and renewable energy integration are becoming standard. The analysis of data collected from smart buildings helps optimize energy consumption and reduce environmental impact.

Conclusion

Technology is not only transforming the construction industry; it's redefining what's possible. The integration of digital tools, automation, and data-driven insights is optimizing every stage of the construction process, from concept to completion. As technology continues to advance, the construction industry stands on the brink of a new era marked by efficiency, safety, sustainability, and innovation. Embracing these technological advancements is not just an option; it's a necessity for those looking to thrive in the rapidly evolving world of construction.

[nyaa]

[筆刀刀刀]

[science70]

Johns-Manville Versa-Tile advertisement, 1975.

[saysthenightingale]

evil voice in my head: nightingale. you have to write that several part tumblr post about the characters from the games you play that would make for amazing or really fun interactions and parallels with warhammer 40k things especially the primarchs and astartes

my common sense: I mostly play gacha or anime style games. who is actually going to want to read about how I think firefly from honkai star rail is just a cute anime girl version of a space marine or how lagrange from arcaea straight up commits almost blueprint warhammer style thoughtcrime heresy the second she perceives the truth of the world

[its-stimsca]

Trans engineer stimboard to celebrate me getting on T :]]]

Art by @gearbroth

🏳️‍⚧️ 🔧 🏳️‍⚧️ / 🔧 🏳️‍⚧️ 🔧 / 🔧 🏳️‍⚧️ 🔧

[randomitemdrop]

Item: the Skunkabater, an experimental automated combat apparatus

[lonestarflight]

"This image depicts a high angle view of technicians working on the instrument unit (IU) component assembly for the SA-8 mission in Marshall Space Flight Center's building 4705. A thin, circular structure, only 1-meter high and 7.6 meters in diameter, the IU was sandwiched between the S-IV and Apollo spacecraft. Packed inside were the computers, gyroscopes, and assorted black boxes necessary to keep the launch vehicle properly functioning and on its course."

Date: 1964

NASA ID: MSFC-6412716

[phoenixyfriend]

Those Economics/Architecture Videos I've Been Bingeing

But eating less bandwidth than the previous version of this post.

This post has 100 links, because that's how many tumblr lets me add before it refuses to save the post anymore. (Legacy editor allows up to 250, but then I would have the colors.)

A lot of these are about NYC, because that's my personal main focus, but there are a few others. Also, I have absolutely no training in this field and only started watching these a few days ago but Ya Girl Is Bingeing and Really Loves Edutainment. All the descriptions are my own, btw. I'm not looking to gain clicks or references, I want you guys to know what you're getting into.

I was not involved in creating any of these videos, but it did take me over a week to watch them all and decide which ones to include, how to organize, and how to describe the contents.

I cannot speak to a lot of the deeper issues touched on, and do not agree with all the political or economic points brought up in these videos (as this is a wide range of people and topics), but they are by and large a good look at much of an industry that most people, myself included, don't know enough about, considering how crucial it is to our lives.

I'm open to channel/video recs but there are a few I ran into that seem well-done but have an audio quality I can't work with, so that's... unfortunate.

Stewart Hicks - Chicago-based, professor of architecture at the University of Illinois

Why Skyscrapers Are Losing Their Tops - Stewart Hicks - The general history of architectural styles for skyscrapers from the 1930s to the near future.

Why Do Architects Insist on Using Flat Roofs? - Stewart Hicks - Compares and contrasts the strengths and weaknesses of flat vs gabled roofs.

How Buildings Changed After the Eiffel Tower - Stewart Hicks - Thirteen minutes of history on structural engineering in bridges and skyscrapers.

The Bewildering Architecture of Indoor Cities - Stewart Hicks - Goes into the planned and unplanned variants of this phenomenon, which ranges from giant buildings intended to act as an entire community, to the unplanned network of underground tunnels or overstreet enclosed walkways that let people cross blocks upon blocks of a city without having to step outside.

How This Tower Barely Touches the Ground - Stewart Hicks - Addresses the engineering behind 150 N. Riverside in Chicago, and the zoning laws that caused its rather unique Y-shaped base in the first place, along with the requirements causing things like custom giant I-beams and necessitating a barge to host the crane since they had nowhere to anchor one on the ground.

How Chicago is Being Unbuilt: Back to Nature - Stewart Hicks - Explores the ways in which Chicago is undoing prior urbanization, and implementing some new eco-friendly infrastructure and various projects.

Why We Should Live in Our Office Buildings - Stewart Hicks - More and more office buildings are standing empty. With movements towards more mixed zoning and the return to walkable city models, some of those office buildings are getting retrofitted to be livable spaces and mixed-use locations.

How Architects Design for Less Lonely Living - Stewart Hicks - In a lot of places, like the US, the way we interact or avoid other people is impacted heavily by the organization of the buildings we live in.

House Sizes Are Getting Absurd - Stewart Hicks - Just a fun romp comparing the range of sizes (from the bare minimum of capsule hotels to the absurd mass of some modern estates) for various dwellings. Lots of very deliberate visualization.

Shopping Malls are Getting Desperate - Stewart Hicks - Discusses the decline of shopping malls, and the 'tricks' they employ to try to keep people happy and coming by.

The Architecture of Curb Appeal - Stewart Hicks - There's a lot that goes into making a house look good in a way that gets it sold. A lot of people hate it.

The Controversy Over Accessory Dwelling Units - Stewart Hicks - In many places, it's illegal to build a smaller livable space in your backyard. You know, places you put an adult child who wants their own space, or your mother-in-law, or just rent out to college students for the next ten months. But, at least in a few places, it's not going to be illegal much longer.

Toilets Need to Change - Stewart Hicks - Plumbing is such an important part of our daily lives, and it's still evolving!

The Hidden Meaning and Logistics of Fountains - Stewart Hicks - This one is just fun. 😊

The Genius of 2x4 Framing - Stewart Hicks - So apparently the US is a bit odd in how much of our architectural/construction industry uses light wood framing as a standard.

The B1M - Hosted by Fred Mills (British), more generally about construction, rather than just architecture

Why America Is Tearing Down Its Highways - The B1M - Explores the history of the interstate highway system, and how much of it was used for redlining and general segregation, along with the challenges faced by the plans to tear those highways down.

The $1.2 Trillion Plan to Rebuild America - The B1M - NGL I'm like. Ludicrously excited about this one. There's a lot going on! I hope it works out!

Why a Billionaire Tried to Stop This Bridge - The B1M - There's a new bridge being built between Detroit, MI and Windsor, ON. This bridge is going to help with the ongoing trade between the US and Canada; these two cities are already a major hub for one of the largest trading partnerships in the world (the largest where one side is not the European Union), so building another bridge is a reasonable undertaking. However, the new bridge will be just a few miles down from an existing bridge that is currently owned by a billionaire who makes a killing over his control of a major portion of this bottleneck of the trade route. (Also, more engineering challenges!)

The Statue of Liberty: Building an Icon - The B1M - Someone actually asked me about this recently and anyway you should all go learn about how the Statue of Liberty happened, she's a gem.

Why New York’s Billionaires’ Row Is Half Empty - The B1M- The usage of NYC luxury housing as a semi-liquid asset used as investment by the megarich, along with the rights acquisitions that led to their building in the first place, the gentrification they contribute to, and the tax write-offs they get for it.

Why Our Cities Are So Expensive - The B1M - How infrastructure investment by governments can and does frequently lead to gentrification. Focuses on London's Battersea Power Station revitalization plan.

Why New York's Skyscrapers Keep Changing Shape - The B1M - This is actually an exploration of more than just New York, covering much of the same topics as the above 'history of skyscraper design' video, with a great focus on the Chrysler building.

Why No One Wants This New York Skyscraper - The B1M - Investigates the ways in which the development of Two World Trade Center has been delayed over the past decade and change, along with a handful of other projects in the area.

The Wild Story of New York’s Abandoned Skyscraper - The B1M - There's a half-finished skyscraper on the western shore of Manhattan, and due to the errors in laying the foundation, there's an 8cm tilt in it. The parties involved in construction are duking it out in court about who's at fault, and until they're done, that thing is just... sitting there.

New York's Latest $3BN Skyscraper Explained - The B1M - Another stupidly tall skyscraper for midtown. You know. Because we need another one.

The $7BN Plan to Save New York's Most Hated Train Station - The B1M - Explores the history, current state, and planned upgrades to Penn Station of NYC.

New York's Most Hated Highway is Falling Apart - The B1M - The issues hitting the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, and the difficulties in repairing it.

The Secret Subway That Could Save New York - The B1M - Hey do you want to hear about how we might finally be getting that Queens-Brooklyn line that doesn't need to pass through Manhattan first?

The Tunnel That's Failing New York City - The B1M - The tunnel that handles a massive amount of the human traffic between NJ and NYC is starting to break down due to age. This one included a line that actually gave me feelings: "Look, it's a 110-year-old system, you know, it's done its job. Like, we really can't ask any more of it." It did its best! For a long time! Thank you!

The US Government Wants to Destroy These Towers - The B1M - The federal government just wants to demolish some Historic Skyscrapers in Chicago, no biggie.

The Secret $4BN Tunnel Network Under Chicago - The B1M - Since the 1970s, Chicago has been building an absolutely massive set of tunnels hundreds of feet under the surface to handle regular flooding from storms and the climate crisis.

The Fight to Fix the Tilting Millennium Tower - The B1M - There's this skyscraper in San Francisco that's leaning a few centimeters to the side, which doesn't sound like a lot, until you learn that just a few more will mean the plumbing and elevators stop working.

The £100BN Railway Dividing a Nation - The B1M - Goes over the political, economic, and environmental arguments and concerns behind the highspeed rail intended to connect London to the North of England.

Inside London's £19BN New Railway (and its Nightmare Station) - The B1M - Genuinely fascinated at the number of Train Problems that England seems to be having.

Why Europe Doesn't Build Skyscrapers - The B1M - Explains the historical and modern reasons that limit the addition of supertall buildings across most of Europe.

The Insane Scale of Europe's New Mega-Tunnel - The B1M - Explores the engineering and environmental challenges of the Fehmarntunnel, a passage from Germany to Denmark of terrifying size.

Why Europe is Building a 57KM Tunnel Through a Mountain - The B1M - No, a different one. This one is between Italy and France.

We Went Inside the Largest Nuclear Fusion Reactor - The B1M - It's in France, there are over 35 countries involved, and it's just a Lot.

Inside The Lab That Tests Elevator Free-Falls - The B1M - There's this active mine in Finland where they test elevators for safety and it's pretty cool.

Finland Might Have Solved Nuclear Power’s Biggest Problem - The B1M - Finland has a new way of storing nuclear waste.

Nord Stream 2: The $11BN Megaproject That's Dividing - The B1M - It's an oil pipeline and it is causing problems for Everyone.

Why Russia is Building an Arctic Silk Road - The B1M - Russia is taking advantage of the melting ice caps to set up a new trade route through the arctic so shipping can go up through the north instead of down around South Asia and through the Suez Canal.

The $10BN Railway in the Jungle - The B1M - Mexico is building a new, very long high-speed rail line, and it's incredibly controversial.

Hong Kong's $11BN Underwater Railway Explained - The B1M - Hong Kong is putting in a new underwater tunnel (as part of a larger network expansion) for its subway system, and it's. Difficult.

China's Skyscraper Boom is Officially Over - The B1M - Just learned that China is outlawing most skyscrapers. There are a few cases where you can still maybe make one happen, if you can convince the government it's needed, but in most cases... nah. They're cutting you off.

The Unstoppable Growth of China's High-Speed Rail Network - The B1M - [insert gif screaming about trains here]

The Insane Engineering of Tokyo's First Supertall Skyscraper - The B1M - While the focus is ostensibly Main Tower, the video covers a lot of ground regarding earthquakes and the necessary engineering to resist the incredibly frequent occurrence. (Warning: Came out shortly after the Feb. 2023 Turkey-Syria earthquake, and contains references to the event, urging people contribute what they could to help. The video was already almost finished when the Turkey-Syria earthquake happened, and rather than delay it for fear of it being in bad taste, they decided to use it to encourage people to help the victims.)

Japan’s $64BN Gamble on Levitating Bullet Trains Explained - The B1M - Let's talk about maglev, pros and cons.

Is This Asia's Next Financial Capital? - The B1M - Malaysia is building a lot, and it might herald a new financial superpower for the continent and the world.

Why India Doesn’t Build Skyscrapers - The B1M - The short answer is 'zoning laws that didn't achieve what the legislators hoped,' but it's changing.

The $4BN Railway Reshaping Delhi - The B1M - What it says on the tin.

The World's Most Extreme Construction Site - The B1M - Antarctica!!!

Egypt Built a Supertall Skyscraper in the Desert - The B1M - Egypt is straight up building an entire city in the middle of nowhere, primarily as a new seat of government, because Cairo is overcrowded... and a frequent site of protests.

Top 10 Projects Completing in 2023 - The B1M - Some impressive, expensive, and possibly unnecessary projects that are happening.

Tomorrow's Build is a second channel under The B1M, also hosted by Fred Mills. It's more focused on hypothetical, future projects than ongoing ones.

Barcelona’s Car-Free Superblocks Explained - Tomorrow's Build - Barcelona is planning to block off entire parts of the city from most car usage, excepting local delivery, mass transit, and emergency services.

The Hidden Crisis With Renewable Energy - Tomorrow's Build - Storage of energy from renewable sources that are not consistently available (e.g. solar is only available when the sun is out) is difficult, so here are a few options.

This Nuclear Plant is Built in 3 Months - Tomorrow's Build - Mail-order nuclear power is going to be a thing.

Greece is Turning its Olympic Ruins into a Casino - Tomorrow's Build - [good for them dot gif]

This Could Stop Construction Everywhere - Tomorrow's Build - So it turns out we're running out of sand. Which is important, because we need sand for concrete, and the easiest stuff to get (desert sand), doesn't work for that, which is why Dubai has to import sand for construction. So uh. Kind of a crisis. Sand pirates are a whole thing.

Architectural Digest - channel for the architectural magazine that dates back to 1920

Architect Breaks Down 5 of the Most Common New York Apartments - Architectural Digest - Just what it says on the tin! An architect explains brownstones, classics, railroad apartments, and loft/studio apartments. Lots of history, specifically that of the late 19th century tenement buildings and the art community and subsequent gentrification of SoHo.

Architect Breaks Down 6 Luxury Apartments from Billions, Gossip Girl & More - Architectural Digest - On the other end of NYC housing, we got the Rich People Places.

Architect Breaks Down Secret Details Of The Chrysler Building - Architectural Digest - An exploration of the external details of the Chrysler, with commentary on the historical context of art deco and related art movements.

Architect Breaks Down 3 Demolished New York Landmarks - Architectural Digest - Goes over the original Penn Station, Madison Square Garden,and the New York Herald building.

Architect Breaks Down The Evolving Skyscrapers Of New - Architectural Digest - I'm... not going to pretend I'm less than obsessed with NYC videos. Sorry! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Covers setback/wedding cake tiered, glass curtain wall, plaza towers, expressed structures, and the (hated) supertall.

Architect Breaks Down NYC Subway Stations (Oldest & Newest) - Architectural Digest - And we continue on NYC infrastructure history because I am insatiable.

Architect Explores New York City's Greenwich Village | Walking Tour - Architectural Digest - What a beautiful and inconvenient neighborhood, full of so many dead bodies.

Top Luxury - Despite the name, is about construction in general, including critique of megearich projects, so don't go in expecting it to be About The Luxury

World's Most Useless Megaprojects - Top Luxury - Did you know there are entire cities lying around empty? I already knew that, but there are just. So many giant projects that never got finished, ate up a lot of money, and are just kind of sitting around now.

5 Skyscrapers that Never Existed - Top Luxury - Some of these never got past the concept stage, and some ran out of funding, and at least one got turned into a fish farm by locals after it was abandoned.

Biggest Megaprojects in the World - Top Luxury - Exactly what it says on the tin! Guys, there are so many giant projects happening, and so many of them are controversial As Heck.

Why these Megacities are Still Empty - Top Luxury - Not entirely empty, but yeah, there are some megacities designed for one purpose or another that are more Ghost Town than Bustling Metropolis. Other than Naypyidaw, though, most of them are expected to gain larger populations soon, particularly Nusantara (which is being built specifically due to the sinking of Jakarta).

The Most Terrifying Bridges in the World - Top Luxury - Like half of these are in a specific region of China that just has. So many mountains.

Most Expensive Construction Mistakes in the World (Part 3) - Top Luxury - Have you ever fucked up so incredibly that it cost six billion USD to fix?

Not Just Bikes - Canadian living in Europe; city planning with focus on N. American car-centric zoning

Why City Design is Important (and Why I Hate Houston) - Not Just Bikes - Do you want more ammo to show people when they try to argue with you about walkable cities?

America Always Gets This Wrong (when building transit) - Not Just Bikes - How zoning and city planning needs to adjust in order for mass transit to actually work for people.

Suburbs that don't Suck - Streetcar Suburbs (Riverdale, Toronto) - Not Just Bikes - So there actually are good suburbs in the US and Canada, we just can't build them anymore because zoning laws make it impossible.

Stroads are Ugly, Expensive, and Dangerous (and they're everywhere) - Not Just Bikes - So there's this really popular and horrible form of street/road in the US and Canada that is bad at its job.

Would You Fall for It? - Not Just Bikes - 1950s pro-highway propaganda (which is referenced in many other videos from this channel), and the ways in which it was misleading and effective.

These Stupid Trucks are Literally Killing Us - Not Just Bikes - This video actually did numbers on tumblr a few months ago. You know those stupidly big SUVs and Pick-ups? Yeah! They suck!

Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud - Not Just Bikes - With a few small changes, you too could live in a city that doesn't make you want to wear noise-cancelling headphones every moment of the day.

IT'S HISTORY - Various historic places... mostly NYC

Why can't you visit the Statue of Liberty's Torch? - IT'S HISTORY - Has some confusing image choices (photos from the early 20th century while talking about events from the 18th), but delivers on a fun history of the Statue of Liberty (and includes some facts that the other Lady Liberty video didn't get around to).

What's Left of New York's Lost Reservoir? - IT'S HISTORY - Apparently it turned into Bryant Park.

When Chicago built the Tallest Building in the World | The story of Sears Tower - IT'S HISTORY - Just what it says on the tin.. Big building, big history!

The Secret Tunnels Beneath New York - IT'S HISTORY - NYC has lost so many tunnels? Lost track of, forgotten, rediscovered... it's ridiculous. Half of these are for TRAINS. Those are HUGE. Led to me making this post (which contains a meme or two, but also a very important trigger warning).

Other

The lost neighborhood under New York's Central Park - Vox - Explains the history of Seneca Village: a primarily-black community of newly wealthy, often first-generation-freed peoples that was destroyed to make way for Central Park.

The Rise and Fall of American Malls - Bloomberg Originals - Covers the factors that led to malls becoming so common, and the many things that are contributing to the move away from them.

Megastructures: Building the Burj Al Arab | Dubai Engineering - Reel Truth Science Documentaries - This is fifty minutes of engineering and architecture, and really well done/presented. Mostly steers clear of the larger political controversy in favor of focusing on the math, though it can't entirely avoid the political and economic conflicts due to direct influence on the design by a the Crown Prince.

Why Venice is Europe’s Worst Placed City - Real Life Lore - We all know Venice is sinking, but this explains why and how (it's not just global climate change).

Why Wyoming is VASTLY Emptier Than Colorado - Real Life Lore - More of a general history lesson than architecture, but still fun.

Why Engineers Can't Control Rivers - Practical Engineering - I've had a few classes touch on this topic, but it was mostly back in high school. This video has some really good visualization on the main elements, and addresses that there are some places working on actual fixes!

Why Construction Projects Always Go Over Budget - Practical Engineering - Goes over the process by which costs are estimated, the limitations of those processes, and the risks that inevitably force the budget higher.

Czechia's Incredible 1960s Supervillain-Lair Hotel (And Why Its Architect Got Banned By The Regime) - The Tim Traveller - There's this really cool hotel that recently got refurbished.

Why Egypt Is Building a New Capital City - neo - Another video on the new city in Egypt, but with more in-depth exploration of the specific planning choices (where certain buildings are, especially).

The Forgotten Story of Modulex: LEGO's Lost Cousin - Peter Dibble - LEGO had a brand called Modulex that was used for architecture and city planning for a few decades. These days they mostly do signage.

Why Airplanes Are Still Worth Millions After They Stop Flying - CNBC - The various ways planes are broken down, sold for parts, and otherwise recycled.

[afutureworththinkingabout]

The "P" Stands for Pre-trained

I know I've said this before, but since we're going to be hearing increasingly more about Elon Musk and his "Anti-Woke" "A.I." "Truth GPT" in the coming days and weeks, let's go ahead and get some things out on the table:

All technology is political. All created artifacts are rife with values.

I keep trying to tell you that the political right understands this when it suits them— when they can weaponize it; and they're very VERY good at weaponizing it— but people seem to keep not getting it. So let me say it again, in a somewhat different way:

There is no ground of pure objectivity. There is no god's-eye view.

There is no purely objective thing. Pretending there is only serves to create the conditions in which the worst people can play "gotcha" anytime they can clearly point to their enemies doing what we are literally all doing ALL THE TIME: Creating meaning and knowledge out of what we value, together.

Read the rest of The "P" Stands for Pre-trained at A Future Worth Thinking About

[7itch0zero]

[script-a-world]

Submitted via Google Form:

I'm having trouble trying to calculate the costs of how much a city could save purely on lighting alone by building taller buildings above ground rather than deep into the ground. There are so many factors to lighting costs that seem impossible to compare something above ground to something very similar underground and then I get all the costs that don't even matter i.e. street lights. In my world costs to build underground would be cheaper than building up due to extreme (almost magical) advances in tunnelling technology. So really, the only big issue is lighting. Above ground saves on lighting because you can turn them off during the day which you basically can't at all underground. How should I go about this?

Addy: You can have dimmable lights, where you turn lights down real low at night. And you can still turn off lights inside of buildings that aren't being used. That doesn't change at all. Sure, you might have really dim hallway lights (like nightlights), but you don't need lights on full blast 24/7.

If you wanna look at lighting cost savings, I'd say to look at the cost differences in lighting in modern standard buildings vs buildings with adaptive lighting (lights near windows dimmer when it's bright outside).

Or just look at the cost of lighting inside large office buildings - modern office buildings don't make much use of windows, as the buildings are much larger and deeper. Older office buildings made more use of natural light, which has also made them easier to turn into apartments and the like.

Tunneling tech can make it easier and cheaper to build underground, but the main thing about building underground is the sideways pressure from the ground itself. Soil wants to make piles, and building underground means that you have straight walls (aboveground equivalent is a retaining wall), which soil doesn't really like. Still totally doable, though! But you might want to add some kind of soil anchoring mechanism to your tunneling tech.

I'd say that you might want to add in some very high wind speeds at high elevations (say >300' aboveground), which would make building up more than 30 stories difficult to manage. You'd get a lot of lateral shear acting on the building (which is annoying to deal with), plus you'd get a lot of swaying. There are code requirements about the maximum amount a building can sway in the wind – too much movement, and people get vertigo. Or nauseous. You can make a building stiffer to reduce the amount of sway, but it's a hassle and it costs more to do. Steel is especially flexible (concrete is very stiff), so if you've got poor concrete formulations (either weaker concrete or more expensive concrete), or if steel is especially cheap, then building up can become more expensive and just more of a hassle.

Also, if you have soft soil near the surface and good rock further down, that'll also limit your aboveground building height. Heavy buildings put a lot of pressure on the ground. If the ground is rock, that's easy to manage. If it's something soft, then you need to build a larger foundation to spread out the weight into a lower pressure. If you have an area where the top is soft but you've got good bedrock a bit of a ways down, you're going to want to build piles down that far anyways, might as well make a basement. If you've got a basement, well, you've got a building.

On the other hand, it's also a pain to dig through bedrock (especially hard rock), so that's going to add cost once you get further down. Also, in places like Denmark or Florida (places with lots and lots of sand and no bedrock for miles), that brings issues of its own - nothing solid to build anything heavy on. Clay soils are also a pain to deal with, since they swell and shrink based on water content. Imagine if you were trying to build a tower on top of a waterbed…. Except your walls moved just as much. Walls don't like being squished or pulled, and that's what clay soils do.

So if you want extensive underground development, you're probably going to want a place with high winds, soil that'll cooperate (sand, silt, and dry clay (in an area without many trees, say a savanna) could all be suitable), and a rock layer that isn't too close to the surface. That'll help reduce construction costs.

Also, as long as it's plausible, you don't need to know the costs down to the dollar (or similar). Something rough is more than enough.

Feral: Okay so lighting design happens to be the niche within built environment design where my career resides. So… you’re about to get a lot of information you probably don’t need. Sorry. 

To calculate costs, you need to need to know the number of lamps (light sources), the initial cost of each lamp, the wattage of each lamp, the number of hours per day* the lamp is on at what percentage of full output,** the cost of energy per kilowatt hour, and the estimated useful life in hours of each lamp. 

*When I’m doing these calculations for real, we typically assume 8 hours a day for a kitchen, which is a) used a lot and b) requires artificial lighting for task lighting even when ambient lighting can be provided naturally, but we assume 3 hours a day for a bathroom because even though it may not have natural light, depending on local codes at the time it was built, it’s not used that much.

**If you’re using an electroluminescent source, like an LED, the percentage of total watts used will be the same(-ish) as the percentage of full light output. An electric incandescent source, like a tungsten filament bulb, will not have this one to one relationship; they are more inefficient as they are dimmed. 

We’ve talked before about underground living, but it’s really important to recognize that the sun is a lot more important than just ��it’s a free light source.”

Now, if you want to get into photometry, it’s a lot. Godspeed. But basically, the thing about lighting a space that a lot of people don’t get is that humans don’t perceive light output. We perceive relative brightness, or contrast. In other words, we are sensitive to the context of the light and the difference between lighting levels rather than the luminance itself. 

So what does all this have to do with your world-building question. Frankly, I don’t know. I’m not actually sure what your question has to do with your worldbuilding. 

However, visual comfort is a very important aspect of how we perceive an environment. So, if you are trying to build a setting that you can then describe in these terms, you might want to know more about it. So, further reading:

How to Measure Visual Comfort in Buildings (by window manufacturer SageGlass)

How to Design for Visual Comfort Using Natural Light (by ArchDaily)

Guidelines for Optimum Visual Comfort, derived by key performance factors (by The Energy and Resource Institute)

How to Design Buildings for Visual and Acoustical Comfort (by DesignHub1610)  

Optimization of Visual Comfort: Building Openings (originally published in the Journal of Building Engineering)

Daylight in Buildings and Visual Comfort Evaluation: the Advantages and Limitations (published in the Journal of Daylighting)

Conditions Required for Visual Comfort (by the Encyclopedia of Occupational Health and Safety)

Provide Comfortable Environments (by the Whole Building Design Guide)

You’ll notice that daylight is an assumption in pretty much all of the above. So, for your world-building, consider what is lost when daylight is removed. Note: it’s more than just energy savings.

[night-for-night]

construction - jersey city, new jersey - yashica mg-1 & 400 iso color film - developed at eliz digital & scanned with minolta dimage dual iii

[street-corner-felines]

Zero Day Director commentary - With actor Andre Keuck

[vintage-tech]

Every boy needs an Erector. And girls like Erectors too!