Green Roof

   In the lecture today, Fran Vernon from fitzgerald frisby talked about green roof.

The issue that I got interested in is Hanging Garden of Babylon, that she briefly mentioned as historical perspective. However, There seems like not much valid information about its detail, as it is well known as one of the seven wonder.

However, in one of the many descriptions about it, Dalley and Oleson mentioned about this simple technology "Water screw/Archimedes' screw" as important irrigation tool for the hanging garden. According to them, that "water screw consists of a cylinder containing several
continuous helical walls that, when the entire cylinder is rotated on its longitudinal axis, scoop up water at the open lower end and dump it out the upper end"

It is seems to be used now.

Modern Alchemedes' Screw which replaced some of the windmills to drain the polder in Holland.

Although we cannot help mentioning about this ugry fat structure, some of these technology are appealing aesthetically too.

I think this is quite retrofitted to the current environment too.

This kind of reminds me a waterwheel that I sometimes saw in countryside. It is a similar system.

It is a old picture showing the farmer bringing water into rice field from creek by stepping the water wheel.

Here, I just noticed that old/ancient technology often allows people visualize ecosystem, or how things are working. Also it allows people experience natural system by involving thier body and outputting man-power to the dynamic natural system. Human body has worked as mediator to connect mind and environment.

Mmmm, then it seems like controversial that we are looking for some technology for landscape that people can experience ecosystem.

One hand, people want to be easy, looking for efficiency; on the other hand people actually need to move/work to feel certain satisfaction.

Anyway, I think landscape has to call for some sort of one's physical movement, and this active movement can be drawn within one's daily life; experiencing landscape can be translated in this way too.

Roof Garden in Japan

Coming back to roof garden, I found that Japan is quite progressive in a way there are many projects that solves one of the hardest issue of loading in roof garden.　

This is a roof garden in middle of Tokyo, Roppongi Hills. It locates on 45 m high and is 1300mxm. 

One of the theme for this project is to show the Japanese landscape with cultural activity in four seasons.

This project successfully utilize the load of roof garden for building stability with the Design of seismic control using roof garden as mass damper.    It also largely contributes on education for children that live in middle of city as you see the picture above.  I'm not sure the total productivity of this garden;however, it reminds us the strong image of Japanese traditional image to the people by symbolically exist on top of the most modernized area where Channel, Gucci, Luis vitton, Goldman sacs, etc...

For the detail of roof garden, following web sites are offering rich information that I will refer in the future project.

http://www.zinco.de/ausland/english/index.php
www.bauder.co.uk
www.toho-leo.co.jp　(japanese)

Regarding to my point of visualizing ecological system or mechanism of how things work, I found the potential elements in this project, although it is not really successful project over all.

This is an educational park attached water sewage plant.   It accommodates various play equipments that introduces material and process of how water purification system works in that  sewage plant.  It appeals the characteristic both in appearance and experiencing water with play equipments that children physically interact with.  

This is a water gun that they experience the strength of water depending on their input to pulling and pushing the lever that connects with a spring of gun.  Once the water fills the dish of target, it makes sounds with a system of gravity.

This equipment allows childrens to generate electricity that splash water from the fountain by rotating the handle and cycling the pedal.  The amount of electricity that they generates are digitally visualized too, while they see the difference of power between legs and arms.

This is  seesaw that has two cylinder to pump water up on the center.  Children are able to manipulate the water of the fountain by playing with this seesaw.

Other than the equipments, this is a bench.

Again, i am not saying this is an ideal project, but I found many hints to design landscape that allows visualizing and experiencing ecological/mechanical system.