International Journal of Architectural Engineering & Urban Planning
Volume:30 Issue: 2, Dec 2020

This paper addresses the post-war reconstruction experience of Qasr-e-Shirin, Iran, in the aftermath of the Iran-Iraq war (1980-1988). Compared with the war-damaged cities in southwest Iran, western cities such as Qasr-e-Shirin lack a post-war reconstruction assessment and documentation. With an objective view, the author aims at documenting the situation of the city almost thirty years after its reconstruction. To this purpose, ten criteria based on the other national and international experiences, as well as the primary aims of the reconstruction plan itself and the community’s needs have been developed. Data is acquired through extensive fieldwork, interview, reviewing governmental documents and other relevant national and international literature. Moreover, for the assessment of the reconstruction plan, a GIS analysis is conducted. The results show that the reconstruction process of Qasr-e Shirin was not successful in reviving the city nor in encouraging the migrants to return to their hometown. Analysis of this experience confirms that a detailed assessment of pre- and post-war reconstruction, preparing a flexible and long-term plan based on the resources and needs, documentation and monitoring, coordination and harmony between the stakeholders, community participation and empowerment and using technologies such as remote sensing and modern communication means are among the influential factors in yielding positive results in the post-war reconstruction.

Integrating different parts of the curriculum is one of the important challenges in architecture education. Curriculum development has an important role in linking theoretical subjects into practical design studios. This study focuses on an analytical comparison of two architecture curricula in different contexts of Australia and Iran. The purpose is to find the limitations and benefits of each curriculum through educational systems, teaching time for theoretical and practical subjects, and the map of courses and subjects. This paper contributes to the literature of architecture education through analysis of integrating different subjects. This study implements a document analysis method and a comparative case study method. The comparison indicates that although the architecture curriculum in Iran benefits from an extensive education with more subjects, wider content, and triple teaching time, it provides less opportunity for integrating theoretical and practical subjects. Furthermore, course structures at Australian universities benefit from greater flexibility and choice for students to individualise their course through elective subjects. Architecture education is a problem-based and project-based learning, so the results of this research have a wide application in research on higher education. Also, the findings of this study can assist design schools to improve their curricula through linking theory to practice.

Abu Hamed Mohammad al-Ghazālī was a mystic, jurist, and theologian who lived in the fifth century AH and significantly influenced Iranian culture. His most significant work is Iḥyaʾ ʿŪlum al-Dīnʾ, written in his seclusion period to revive religious knowledge, with the subject being applied knowledge. Therefore, it can be regarded as an architectural information reference. This research is dedicated to understanding al-Ghazālī’s principles for architecture and its status in Iḥyaʾ. It was done by the Historical-Interpretation approach, reading and interpreting the original text of Iḥyaʾ, and that is why just for mentioning the evidence and having an improved perception of Iḥyaʾ, other al-Ḡhazālī’s books and references were used.The outcome of this research is two architectural categories from Iḥyaʾ. These are form and content and the rules of architecture. In al-Ghazali’s opinion, the craftsmen, along with other people, can also make the spiritual journey based on their crafts. He has to do his crafts with the ḏhekr (God’s Remembrance), Seek the real contents from the worldchr('39')s forms, construct as an implication to the most beloved, God, and construct the world to construct his hereafter.

Evidence of the past shows variation in human settlements. Nomadic house the” Black Tent” shows relationship between humans and the natural environment surrounding them. Black Tents are made of natural materials consistant with environmental conditions. This paper discusses nomadic living space of some Iranian tribes located in different regions to show their unique architecture and culture. Rediscovering different architecture to understand this particular modus in nomadic life which need migration between their summer and winter residences. Given the factthat Black tent material is approximate similar, after thorough study in seven tribes in different provinces of Iran, it has been revealed tha  general ideas concerning the set up and installation of the tents have been the same. However, Black tent shapes and forms are different in those regions. In this regard, documenting how Iranian nomadic tribes arrange their settlement and the methods of using vernacular material by them, seems to be a good way to preserve their architecture. The Black tent is a synergy of nature and humanchr('39')s creative power. Method of data collection include desk studies as well as observation and documentation of indigenous habitat patterns of Iranian nomads by field observations and  ethnographyEvidence of the past shows variation in human settlements. Nomadic house the” Black Tent” shows relationship between humans and the natural environment surrounding them. Black Tents are made of natural materials consistant with environmental conditions. This paper discusses nomadic living space of some Iranian tribes located in different regions to show their unique architecture and culture. Rediscovering different architecture to understand this particular modus in nomadic life which need migration between their summer and winter residences. Given the factthat Black tent material is approximate similar, after thorough study in seven tribes in different provinces of Iran, it has been revealed tha  general ideas concerning the set up and installation of the tents have been the same. However, Black tent shapes and forms are different in those regions. In this regard, documenting how Iranian nomadic tribes arrange their settlement and the methods of using vernacular material by them, seems to be a good way to preserve their architecture. The Black tent is a synergy of nature and humanchr('39')s creative power. Method of data collection include desk studies as well as observation and documentation of indigenous habitat patterns of Iranian nomads by field observations and  ethnography

School environments are connected to children perceptions and emotions. The goal of this research is to explore children subjective perceptions of their school environment using “Q-sort methodology” as a unique method for environmental studies. This paper makes two main contributions. First, the research provides a study design to identify children’s perceptions of school environment that propose new information about what children prefer and can be used in the design of school spaces by designers. Second, it evaluates Q-sort methodology for gathering data directly from children concerning about their perceptions and preferences to clarify their perspectives of  the environment based on these objectives. The questions that this paper addresses are: 1- What environmental components in schools do children percieve positively and prefer? And, 2- How can research with children about their place perceptions using Q-sort? According to the purpose of the study, the respondents included 30 children (boys) from the first and second grade of two private primary schools in Kerman. The research, based on q-sort methodology, used interview as a tool for collecting data and discourse analysis for analyzing the data, and exploring the children’s perspectives. The study revealed that children interpreted spaces psychologically and had positive perceptions of and preferences for informal, personal, hiding, cozy, home-like and playground spaces and so on, likely due to affording their psychosocial needs.  The result shows that future school designs should explore strategies that use connections of physical and psychosocial characteristics of childchr('39')s environments to foster positive experience and perceptions.

Disconnection with nature and history as a result of modernist approaches occurred in the early twentieth century has led to great consequences. Climate change, environmental problems and energy and resources crises have posed numerous challenges to contemporary architects across the globe. The present paper focuses on the issue of passive thermoregulation strategies in vernacular and biomimetic architecture - two approaches in architecture that connect architecture to nature and history -which can offer solutions for environmental crisis. The main objective of this study is to highlight the similarities and differences between vernacular and biomimetic architecture based on passive thermoregulation criterion. So the main question is: what are the common features of biomimetic and vernacular architecture in their use of passive thermoregulatory mechanisms. In this study, the comparative method is used to point out the similarities and differences that can be found between some case studies of vernacular and biomimetic architecture. First, some examples of biomimetic architecture are selected using desk studies and, then, their approach to heat regulation are analyzed using descriptive-analytical research methodology. The results show that while vernacular architecture has a static nature and is depended on low-tech and biomimetic architecture has a dynamic (kinetic), intelligence and interactive nature which relies on high-tech and new materials, their approaches to thermoregulation are similar in some ways. While different in form, they are both based on controlling solar radiation through shading, dissipating heat through convective and evaporative cooling systems, and using the sun as a renewable source of energy.

The advent of modern planning in the early twentieth century and its failure in practice caused the emergence of planning crisis which theory-practice gap has been its central theme of debate. This gap begot various readings of urban planning theory to make theory and practice much closer. Radical planning, as one of these readings, deprives the power of central government in favour of empowering the citizens and considers the highest level of participation in decision-making processes for them. Nevertheless, it failed to address the planning crisis and theorists continued theory making to address the crisis. Hence, the current study aims to investigate radical planning with a critical perspective by using a deep-seated research method and referring to related topics. Results ended in finding reasons led to the failure of radical planning to address planning crisis. The uncertainty of radical planning process, the idealistic looks of theorists and radical planning mismatch with the current forms of state planning are three main reasons which hindered it from addressing planning crisis despite being the turning point of urban planning theories.

Understanding the historical background of societies and the various aspects of life that has evolved over time, affects the architecture of rural housing today. It's an important factor in processing the answer to today's needs. Considering the features of rural architecture and recognizing its features as the origins of the architectural tradition of any land, is one of the necessities. Its preservation is a fundamental principle. Therefore, this research has tried to collect various aspects of life and housing in rural settlements of Mazandaran in a historical survey based on library resources. Using the historical interpretation method, this paper examines the aspects of the relationship between different dimensions of life, shaping and spatial structure of housing with the social, economic, and geographical factors of native societies. According to the findings of this analysis, effective variables can be identified and categorized. The results of the research show that geographical location, financial resources, location capability, geographical and social security and, finally, family structure are factors that affect the habitat patterns. They also affect vernacular houses in different areas of the villages of the region. These determine five species of mountainous, forest, plain, rural citadel, and rocky habitats. The impact of these factors on the three modes of fixed-dwelling, two-spatial and nomadism has been studied.

Housing has always been studied due to its role in the daily lives of humans. This significant issue is a main subject of architectural research. Yet, each study investigates a limited number of factors effecting houses. The main aim of this study is to comprehensively investigate different subjects about housing determined by researchers and experts in Iran and other countries. Having an explicit list of important housing variables can help study the work in this scientific area to a high context and provide researchers with new ideas as well. Heading forward, 187 articles published in 15 Iranian scientific-research journals, along with 276 international papers from 15 Q1 and Q2 journals published in 2013-2017 were investigated. To find out the importance and ranking of each variable, this study, as a systematic literature review, implements Shannon’s entropy method. This methodology is a weighting tool to indicate the amount of uncertainty and challenge of components in a continuous probability distribution. All the factors measured, described or presented are extracted from Iranian and international papers which were respectively 264 and 281 in number. Based on resemblance of the concepts, they were classified in different categories of environmental factors, architectural elements, geometry and proportions, fundamental concepts of architecture, standards and codes, psychological and social concepts. Among these categories, the tangible physical areas including environmental factors and standards and codes have been considered in international papers in a quantitative perspective which should be further explored in Iranian studies. In contrast, qualitative and intangible factors such as the fundamental concepts of architecture and psychological and social concepts, which include variables that require more time to be understood, have been more challenged in Iranian articles. With the use of SPSS and 0.771 Cohen Kappa agreement coefficient and Shannon Entropy tool, in Iranian studies, the components of privacy, culture, area, lifestyle, mental and emotional comfort, satisfaction, security, identity, territory and meaning have been more important, attracted the highest attention, and can be recommended to be addressed in international papers. Whereas, light, ventilation, sustainability, climate, sunlight, temperature, green space, energy consumption, thermal comfort and wind are the most debated factors in international journals and can be focused more in Iranian articles.

The purpose of this research is to investigate the travelerschr('39') visual preference criteria in caravanserai hotels’ interior design to enhance human’s social, historical and cultural interactions. Using 356 questionnaires and Quantitative Research approach, the travelerschr('39') visual preferences of three hotels in Tabriz city are assessed. Photo questionnaires are prepared according to the Information Processing Analysis theory and were examined by SPSS software. The results indicate that preferred caravanserai hotels are mysterically related to physical factors like medium intensity of light, warm and neutral colors, modern and traditional furniture integration, green space and wooden decoration. Interior architects can increase peoples’ interest for using Caravanserai Hotels by considering this results and its application in their design methods.

Ergonomics as a multidisciplinary science is known as a human centered science that is concerned with human beings and their quality of life. In this regard, the integration between ergonomics and the concept of sustainability might culminate in higher levels of quality of life. In terms of research methodology, this article is a review, and the main research question is to figure out the relationship between ergonomics and sustainability towards develop a new synergetic paradigm between these two mentioned fields. In this review article, we assessed some of the recent and related articles in which both ergonomics and sustainability were considered. This review aims to develop an integrated state-of-the-art approach including the benefits of both fields. PubMed and EBSCO were the databases consulted and the keywords of “ergonomics”, “sustainability”, and “product design” were selected to gather the relevant papers. Papers in English, which were published during last decade and that includes the keywords, were our inclusion criteria. Exclusion criteria were: microeconomics and cost-benefit studies, aspects of law in environmental issues, and technical issues in environmental protection (such as waste-water treatment, air pollution, etc.). We initially identified 255 papers. This was narrowed down to 33 articles that addressed issues. In a critical review of the abstracts and full papers, 9 papers remained for the final assessment. Of these papers, 64% were from a management approach. Three articles had product design approach. Most of the assessed issues were about ergoecology, business management, s system-based approach, global supply chains, design for sustainability, and a cost-effective approach. Based on the mentioned articles, it seems that introducing a new term that includes all the positive aspects of ergonomics and the sustainability scope, is unavoidable. Therefore, we propose a new approach that includes the majority aspects of ergonomics, sustainability, and design. This new paradigm helps the related experts to manage a better future life for all.

Nowadays, urbanization is growing increasingly and cities are going to be more complicated than ever including local-global duality. On one hand, Cities are not limited to their geographical boundaries. Neoliberal globalization, which has been rapidly expanding since the late 1980s in the economic circle, places the world into a money game and cities into competition with each other. On the other hand, there are some influential forces on a local scale that determine the urban evolutions. Regarding these two global-local factors, non-powerful groups are neglected increasingly from urban transformation and main projects. This article reviews the “everyday life” concept in spaces through Lefebvre’s writings and draws its dimensions and criteria through descriptive- analytical study. How could everyday life be explained in the current architectural and urban transformation? Surely, Urban evolutions could affect everyday life. After that, it reviews the transformation of Valiasr intersection through historical- interpretation study. Valiasr intersection is the most important intersection in Tehran. It is considered as the spatial gap of Tehran, separating the “high status” and the “low status. Recently, an underpass project for pedestrians was built in this intersection. The results show that this urban transformation is mainly defined by administrational- status forces in the absence of social ones which mainly consider the economic- ideological aspects. It reduces social inclusion and social participation. Following that, this important project could not improve the everyday life of Tehran.