I asked Google for the essential elements of survival and got the following response:
“The fundamental requirements for
survival include air, water, food, shelter, sanitation, sleep, space, and touch.”
I expected to see “shelter” but was
surprised by the presence of “space” in the Google sentence. Shelter and space
are the building blocks of architecture and urban design. They have been
associated with fine art rather than survival because we have been distracted
by their final appearance. The importance of shelter and space to survival seems
self-evident, but the fundamental issue is their quantity and quality on a
planet that must share its space with the shelter we need and the environment
our source of life requires.
SHELTER CONTEXT
Shelter mass combines with pavement and
unpaved open space in quantities that produce a spectrum of physical intensity
options. They range from “sprawl” to “excessive intensity” in defined project land
areas. The issue of survival enters the picture because excessive shelter
sprawl threatens to consume our source of life and excessive shelter intensity is
a threat to our health, safety, and quality of life. The devil is in the
definition of “excessive” and “intensity” because the terms have simply been undifferentiated
ranges on the missing yardstick of “intensity”. We have been distracted from these
measurements by the appearance of a shelter result that has always begun with
these intuitive, unwritten intensity decisions for the land available. Google
has reminded us that survival is at stake. Literature warns us to avoid judging
a book by its cover. Architecture, urban design, city design, and city planning
should judge both – in my opinion.
The relationship between shelter and
space in the Built and Natural Domains is the least understood among the
survival topics mentioned by Google. It involves a rather simple commandment,
however. We must provide adequate shelter capacity for growing population
activity within space that must be limited to coexist with that required by a
Natural Domain that is its source of life.
The issue we face is the “quantity and
quality” of space that must be provided for both the Built and Natural Domains,
and the shelter capacity of the space allocated for the Built Domain, since it
must also accommodate the arteries of movement, open space, and life support
that serve its urban and rural phyla. The Natural Domain requires space to
serve the ecology that is our source of life. The relationship is inherently
unstable when human motivation remains growth without limits on limited land
area.
SHELTER INTENSITY and CONTEXT
Shelter capacity options produce a
spectrum of physical intensity results with “sprawl” at one end and “excessive
intensity” at the other, but the spectrum of shelter capacity, intensity, and
context has never been mathematically defined. These conclusions have remained
matters of perception, intuition, and unsubstantiated opinion. In fact, sprawl
is simply a degree of intensity, and the spectrum can be mathematically
measured and predicted.
SHELTER CAPACITY
The “equations of shelter capacity evaluation”
have been derived to produce intensity, intrusion, and context measurements
from design specification values entered in their forecast models. The
equations and models are included in a book of the same name. They represent
the leadership vocabulary needed to mathematically measure, evaluate, predict,
and lead the shelter capacity of land and the economic organization of activity
for growing populations within geographic limits scientifically defined to protect
their quality and source of life.
Shelter demand for activity has often
been answered with unlimited sprawl or excessive intensity. One threatens our
source of life and the other threatens our quality of life. Improvement will
require the correlation of shelter capacity, intensity, and activity options to
consistently produce economic stability and a desirable quality of life within limited
geographic areas.
Shelter capacity is the amount of gross building area in square feet present, planned, or possible per buildable acre of designated project land area. It can be occupied by any activity permitted in a zoning district. It can be measured, predicted, and evaluated based on a building category forecast model and values entered in the category’s design specification template. The values entered can be measurements or design options correlated by the forecast model algorithm to produce consistent shelter capacity, intensity, intrusion, and context measurements.
LEADERSHIP DECISIONS
Leadership decisions based on
mathematical evaluation are the only way to emerge from the morass of undisciplined,
emotional opinion that continues to promiscuously consume the land while overlooking
the fundamental correlation and mathematical allocation required to achieve a
desirable, economically sustainable quality of life– in my opinion.
In this discussion, “space” has meant
land used for the construction of shelter, movement, open space, and life
support in the Built Domain. It has also meant land in the Natural Domain that
is our source of life. Defining the relationship between these two spatial domains,
and the adequate quantities needed to serve each, will demand far more accurate
attention, evaluation, and leadership than presently committed. Fortunately, the
foundation for leadership opinion can be mathematical evaluation.
A FORECAST MODEL
I’ve discussed the building design
categories, forecast models, design specification topics/values, and master
equations related to shelter capacity measurement, evaluation, prediction, allocation,
and land consumption in many essays. The discussions have focused on mathematical
values entered to define topic quantities in the design specification module of
a building design category forecast model. These project value options are
correlated by the model’s algorithm to calculate their combined planning and
design implications. These shelter capacity, intensity, and context implications
can then be evaluated for their potential to establish correlated physical, social,
psychological, environmental, and economic stability within neighborhoods,
districts, cities, and regions. The caveat for the process is that the shelter
capacity of the Built Domain cannot be permitted to consume its source of life.
Forecast Model G1.L1 in Table 1 illustrates
the primary mathematical terms and equations associated with shelter capacity
evaluation for the G1 Building Design Category when gross land area is given. The
forecast model, given information, forecast objective, and design premise are explained
in the first four lines of the model.
Optional design specification values have
been entered into the 26 gray cells of Table 1 to illustrate the operation of
the model. The equations in cells H3-H33 convert these percentage values to their
equivalent sq. ft. values in cells G3-G33. The objective is to find the CORE
value in cell G33 for use in the master equation located in cell B39. The master
equation combines this value with the parking quantity (s), parking area (a),
and floor quantity (f) values entered in cells A35, A36, and A44-A53 to find
the gross building area (GBA) options listed in cells B44-B53. These gross
building area options are key to the forecast and are a function of the floor
quantity options (f) entered in cells A44-A53. All remaining planning and design
implications predicted in cells C44-J53 are a function of the gross building
area options predicted in cells B44-B53.
The measurement predictions in the Implications
Panel of Table 1 have physical, social, psychological, environmental, and
economic implications that can be organized and evaluated in relation to these
measurements to build knowledge and leadership direction. This can assist in
forming the knowledge needed to consistently improve context results without
dictating appearance.
CONCLUSION
I was gratified to see “shelter” and
“space” mentioned as essential elements of survival, but these elements are
topic titles. They do not indicate the essential quantities and intensity
levels required for the survival of growing populations on a limited planet with
a desirable, sustainable quality of life.
The building design category
classification system, specification topics, and equations supporting Shelter
Capacity Evaluation are also topic names that require quantity and quality
evaluation. The results can be used to build leadership knowledge. Knowledge
itself will remain a mystery until consistent measurement, evaluation, correlation,
and prediction produce desirable shelter capacity and activity allocation within
sustainable geographic limits. This is the foundation needed to support the
fine art and quality of life that can emerge - in my opinion.
Walter M. Hosack, June 2025
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