About Norman Foster and Britains Modern Architecture

About Norman Foster and Britains Modern Architecture Pritzker Prize-winning architect Norman Foster (born June 1, 1935 in Manchester, England) is famous for futuristic designs - like Apple Headquarters in Cupertino, California - that explore technological shapes and social ideas. His big tent civic center constructed with the modern plastic ETFE even made the Guinness Book of World Records for being the worlds tallest tensile structure, yet it was built for the comfort and enjoyment of the Kazakhstan public. In addition to winning the most prestigious award for architecture, the Pritzker Prize, Foster has been knighted and granted the rank of baron by Queen Elizabeth II. For all of his celebrity, however, Foster came from humble beginnings. Born in a working class family, Norman Foster did not seem likely to become a famous architect. Although he was a good student in high school and showed an early interest in architecture, he did not enroll in college until he was 21 years old.   By the time he had decided to become an architect, Foster had been a radar technician in the Royal Air Forces and worked in the treasury department of Manchester Town Hall. In college he studied bookkeeping and commercial law, so he was prepared to handle the business aspects of an architectural firm when the time came. Foster won numerous scholarships during his years at Manchester University, including one to attend Yale University in the United States. He graduated from Manchester University School of Architecture in 1961 and went on to earn a Masters Degree at Yale on a Henry Fellowship. Returning to his native United Kingdom, Foster co-founded the successful Team 4 architectural firm in 1963. His partners were his wife, Wendy Foster, and the husband and wife team of Richard Rogers and Sue Rogers. His own firm, Foster Associates (Foster Partners), was founded in London in 1967. Foster Associates became known for high tech design that explored technological shapes and ideas. In his work, Foster often uses off-site manufactured parts and the repetition of modular elements. The firm frequently designs special components for other high-tech modernist buildings. He is a designer of parts that he elegantly assembles. Selected Early Projects After establishing his own architectural firm in 1967, the affable architect did not take long to be noticed with a portfolio of well-received projects. One of his first successes was the Willis Faber and Dumas Building built between 1971 and 1975 in Ipswich, England. No ordinary office building, the Willis Building is an asymmetrical, three-story blob of a structure, with a roof of grass to be enjoyed as a park space by the office workers. In 1975 Fosters design was a very early example of architecture that could be both energy efficient and socially responsible, to be used as a template for what is possible in an urban environment. The office building was quickly followed by the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, a gallery and educational facility built between 1974 and 1978 at the University of East Anglia, Norwich. In this building we begin to see the Foster enthusiasm for observable metal triangles and walls of glass. Internationally, attention was paid to Fosters high-tech skyscraper for the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) in Hong Kong, built between 1979 and 1986, and then the Century Tower built between 1987 and 1991 in Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan. Asian successes were followed by the 53-story tallest building in Europe, the ecology-minded Commerzbank Tower, built from 1991 to 1997 in Frankfurt, Germany. The high profile Bilbao Metro in 1995 was part of the urban revitalization that swept the city of Bilbao, Spain. Back in the United Kingdom, Foster and Partners completed the Cranfield University Library in Bedfordshire (1992), the Faculty of Law at the University of Cambridge (1995), the American Air Museum at Duxford airfield in Cambridge (1997), and the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC) in Glasgow (1997). In 1999 Norman Foster received architectures most prestigious award, the Pritzker Architecture Prize, and also  was honored by Queen Elizabeth II naming him Lord Foster of Thames Bank.The Pritzker jury cited his steadfast devotion to the principles of architecture as an art form, for his contributions in defining an architecture with high technological standards, and for his appreciation of the human values involved in producing consistently well-designed projects as their reasons for his becoming a Pritzker Laureate. Post-Pritzker Work Norman Foster never rested upon his laurels after winning the Pritzker Prize. He finished the Reichstag Dome for the new German Parliament in 1999, which remains one of Berlins most popular tourist attractions. The 2004 Millau Viaduct, a  cable-stayed bridge in Southern France, is one of the bridges youll want to cross at least once in your life. With this structure, the architects of the firm claim to be expressing a fascination with the relationship between function, technology and aesthetics in a graceful structural form. Throughout the years, Foster and Partners has continued to create office towers that explore the environmentally sensitive, uplifting workplace begun by Commerzbank in Germany and  the Willis Building in Britain. Additional office towers include the Torre Bankia (Torres Repsol), Cuatro Torres Business Area in Madrid, Spain (2009), the Hearst Tower in New York City (2006),   the Swiss Re in London (2004), and The Bow in Calgary, Canada (2013). Other interests of the Foster group have been the transportation sector  - including the 2008 Terminal T3 in Beijing, China and Spaceport America in New Mexico, the U.S. in 2014 - and building with Ethylene Tetrafluoroethylene, creating plastic buildings like the 2010 Khan Shatyr Entertainment Center in Astana, Kazakhstan and the 2013 SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. Lord Norman Foster in London One need only visit London to receive a lesson in Norman Foster architecture. The most recognizable Foster design is the 2004 office tower for Swiss Re at 30 St Mary Axe in London. Locally called The Gherkin, the missile-shaped building is a case study for computer-aided design and energy and environmental design. Within site of the gherkin is the most-used Foster tourist attraction, the Millennium Bridge over the Thames River. Built in 2000, the pedestrian bridge also has a nickname  -    it became known as the Wobbly Bridge when 100,000 people rhythmically crossed during the opening week, which created an unnerving sway. The Foster firm has called it greater than expected lateral movement created by synchronised pedestrian footfall. Engineers installed dampers under the deck, and the bridge has been good-to-go ever since. Also in 2000, Foster and Partners put a cover over the Great Court at the British Museum, which has become another tourist destination. Throughout his career, Norman Foster has chosen projects to be used by different population groups - the residential housing project Albion Riverside in 2003; the futuristic modified sphere of London City Hall, a public building in 2002; and the 2015 rail station enclosure called Crossrail Place Roof Garden at Canary Wharf, which incorporates a rooftop park beneath ETFE plastic cushions. Whatever project completed for whatever user community, the designs of Norman Foster will always be first class. In Fosters Own Words I think one of the many themes in my work is the benefits of triangulation that can make structures rigid with less material. - 2008 Buckminster Fuller was the kind of green guru...He was a design scientist, if you like, a poet, but he foresaw all the things that are happening now....You can go back to his writings: its quite extraordinary. It was at that time, with an awareness fired by Buckys prophecies, his concerns as a citizen, as a kind of citizen of the planet, that influenced my thinking and what we were doing at that time. - 2006 SUMMARY: Triangulation in Norman Foster Buildings The Bow, 2013, Calgary, CanadaGeorge Rose/Getty ImagesThe people of Calgary call this building not only the most beautiful in Calgary and the best skyscraper in Canada, but it is also the tallest building outside of Toronto, at least for now. The crescent-shaped design of The Bow makes this Alberta skyscraper 30 percent lighter than most modern buildings its size. Named after the River Bow, Norman Fosters building was built between 2005 and 2013 as a mixed-use structure anchored by the headquarters of Cenovus Energy, Inc. Its curved design faces south  - gathering valuable heat and natural daylight  - with a convex facade toward the prevailing wind. Designed as a diagrid, six stories for each triangulated section, most offices of the 58 story skyscraper (775 feet; 239 meters) have a window view because of the curved design. Constructed of trussed-tubes, steel-framed with a glass curtain wall, The Bow has three interior sky gardens - on levels 24, 42 and 54.30 St Mary Axe, 2004 , London, EnglandDavid Crespo/Getty ImagesThe visual geometry of what locals call The Gherkin changes as point of view changes - seen from above, the patterns create a kaleidoscope. Hearst Tower, 2006, New York CityhAndrew C Mace/Getty ImagesThe modern 42-story tower completed in 2006 on top of the 1928 Hearst building is both award-winning and controversial. Norman Foster built the high-tech tower atop the six-story Hearst International Magazine Building designed by Joseph Urban and George P. Post. Foster claims that his design preserved the faà §ade of the existing structure and establishes a creative dialogue between the old and new. Some have said, A dialog? Oh, really? To the unsuspecting, the Hearst Corporation global headquarters is a shocking site as one crosses 57th Street at 8th Avenue in New York City. Like The Bow, the Hearst Tower is a diagrid, using 20% less steel than similar structures. True to Foster architecture, the Tower is constructed of 85% recycled steel and   high performance low emission glass with integrated roller blinds. Harvested roof water is recycled throughout the building, including to the Atriums three-story waterfall wall ca lled Icefall. The building received a LEED Platinum; certification. Sources Foster Partners, Projects, https://www.fosterandpartners.comJury Citation, The Hyatt Foundation, https://www.pritzkerprize.com/1999/juryLord Norman Foster. Interview by Vladimir Belogolovskiy, archi.ru, June 30, 2008, https://archi.ru/en/6679/lord-norman-foster-fosterpartners-intervyu-i-tekst-vladimira-belogolovskogo [accessed May 28, 2015]My green agenda for architecture, December 2006, TED Talk at the 2007 DLD (Digital-Life-Design) Conference, Munich, Germany,  https://www.ted.com/talks/norman_foster_s_green_agenda [accessed May 28, 2015]Project Description, foster partners, fosterandpartners.com/projects/the-bow/The Bow, Emporis, https://www.emporis.com/buildings/282150/the-bow-calgary-canada [accessed July 26, 2013]Specifications, The Bow Building, www.the-bow.com/specifications/ [accessed August 14, 2016]Project Description, foster partners, fosterandpartners.com/projects/hearst-tower/ [accessed July 30, 2013]Hearst Tower, hearst.com/real-estate/hearst-tower [accessed July 30, 2013]

How to Graduate With a Bachelors Degree Faster

How to Graduate With a Bachelor's Degree Faster Many people choose distance learning for its convenience and speed. Online students are able to work at their own pace and often finish faster than traditional students. But, with all the demands of daily life, many students  search for ways to complete their degrees in even less time. Having a degree sooner may mean making a larger salary, finding new career opportunities, and having more time to do what you want. If speed is what you’re looking for, check out these six tips to earning your degree as quickly as possible. Plan Your Work. Work Your Plan Most students take at least one class that they don’t need for graduation. Taking classes unrelated to your major field of study can be an excellent way to expand your horizons. But, if you’re looking for speed, avoid taking classes that aren’t required for graduation. Double-check your required classes and put together a personalized study plan. Staying in contact with your academic advisor each semester can help you stick to your plan and stay on track. Insist on Transfer Equivalencies Don’t let work you’ve done at other colleges go to waste; ask your current college to give you transfer equivalencies. Even after your college has decided what classes to give you credit for, check to see if any of the classes you have already completed could be counted to fill another graduation requirement. Your school will probably have an office that reviews transfer credit petitions on a weekly basis. Ask for that department’s policies on transfer credits and put together a petition. Include a thorough explanation of the class you have completed and why it should be counted as an equivalency. If you include course descriptions from your previous and current schools’ course handbooks as evidence, chances are you’ll get the credits. Test, Test, Test You can earn instant credits and reduce your schedule by proving your knowledge through testing. Many colleges offer students the opportunity to take the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) exams in various subject matters for college credit. Additionally, schools often offer their own exams in subjects such as foreign language. Testing fees can be pricey  but are almost always significantly lower than tuition for the courses they replace. Skip the Minor Not all schools require students to declare a minor and, truth be told, most people won’t make too much of a mention of their minor during the life of their career. Dropping all minor classes could save you an entire semester (or more) of work. So, unless your minor is critical to your field of study or would bring you foreseeable benefits, consider eliminating these classes from your plan of action. Put Together a Portfolio Depending on your school, you may be able to get credit for your life experience. Some schools will give students limited credit based on the presentation of a portfolio that proves specific knowledge and skills. Possible sources of life experience include  previous jobs, volunteerism, leadership activities, community participation, accomplishments, etc. Do Double Duty If you have to work anyway, why not get credit for it? Many schools offer students college credits for participating in an internship or work-study experience that relates to their major – even if it’s a paid job. You may be able to get your degree faster by earning credits for what you already do. Check with your school counselor to see what opportunities are available to you.

How does buying a cup of coffee from Starbucks affect the environment Dissertation - 2

How does buying a cup of coffee from Starbucks affect the environment - Dissertation Example Starbuck’s, use of non –recyclable cups of synthetic nature can pollute the planet greatly and can cause irreversible damage to it. Starbucks being a huge food chain have captured the coffee market globally by taking on the increased demand of coffee lovers. They also maintain their good will by means of powerful advertisement they display in the international business arena. This coffee chain have spread over much part of the globe and have influenced people many people in buying their product , as it is assured to be the best and perfect in the market. This coffee chain has attempted to take action to make it products eco – friendly, but was not successful in its efforts. Seven stores of Starbucks in Manhattan have launched a cup-recycling program in collaboration with Global Green USA’s Coalition for Recovery in an effort to reduce the usage of non – recyclable in their coffee chains (Mohan ,2009). Much of the countries on global level, are facin g natural adversities because of the extreme exploitation and pollution of the nature. Even though the governments and legislations of various developed and developing countries create strategies and plans to implement environmental protection, less can be seen in action.

The Function of Seduction in Maupassants novels Bel-Ami, Pierre et Essay

The Function of Seduction in Maupassants novels Bel-Ami, Pierre et Jean and Une vie - Essay Example First, the male characters in Bel-Ami and Pierre et Jean use seduction appealing to women in order to be accepted by them because perhaps they do not accept themselves the way they are. George Duroy (Bel-Ami) seduces all the women in the novel because he does not have what Roy (Engendrement du Romanesque) calls the â€Å"ideal self†. It is this lack of self-confidence, the weakness of his ego, that pushes him to seduce. Duroy comes from a modest family which he wants to change by becoming wealthy. Second, male protagonists often use seduction to change their identity, to take one some other identity. . In Bel-Ami, Duroy is frustrated of being part of the lower social rank, so he always tries to dissimulate his poverty from others. For example, when Duroy invites Mme de Marelle to his place, he changes the decor of his â€Å"shabby apartment† in order to hide his poverty. Also, in order to hide his peasant background, Duroy â€Å"forgets† to invite his parents to his wedding with Madeleine Forestier. Similarly in ‘Une vie’, Julien de Lamare disconcerts us by his successive metamorphoses all along the novel. The narrator portrays Julien as a handsome man, a seductor and as someone full of disguise and dissimulation. In fact, we realize that Julien is just a fortune hunter who knows how to play his physical appeal for seducing. Once he marries Jeanne, he drops his mask and reveals his true personality. Third, men use seduction to reach wealth and power. Indeed, in Une Vie, Julien de Lamare comes from a ruined family and that had a great impact on him. Julien will do anything to seduce and marry a rich commoner (Jeanne) in order to regain legitimacy and the glamour of his name (Ball 56). In Bel-Ami, on Madeleine Forestier’s recommendations, Duroy seduces Mme de Marelle and then Mme Walter. One provides him with housing and money while the other makes him chief editor. After Mme de Marelle remark about Mme

Appraising The Performance Of An Organizations Employees Essay

Appraising The Performance Of An Organizations Employees - Essay Example Indeed, making a business successful in a particular setting demands crucial and detailed studies and examination of the factors that will generate the best results that will serve the aims and objectives of the company. In this light, owners of big business organizations operating in a competitive business environment should be in constant look out with its competitors and the overall status and events in the industry. Taking advantage of the opportunities and intensifying the strengths while minimizing the risks and weaknesses of a business firm greatly helps in predicting the success in business enterprise. Graphic rating scale can be used in appraising the performance of an organization's employees. Ranking employees from best to worst on a particular trait, choosing highest, then lowest, until all are ranked. Another method is the Alternation ranking method - An appraisal method that aims at combining the benefits of narrative and quantified ratings by anchoring a quantified scale with specific narrative examples of good and poor performance. (bars) . Paired comparison method - Keeping a record of uncommonly good or undesirable examples of an employees work-related behavior and reviewing it with the employee at predetermined times. (critical incident). While in forced distribution method, uses a scale that lists a number of traits and a range of performance for each. The employee is then rated by identifying the score that best describes his or her performance for each trait. Similar to grading on a curve; predetermined percentages of rates are placed in various performance categories. (forced distribution) Management by objectives (MBO) - Involves setting specific measurable objectives with each employee and then periodically reviewing the progress made. Management By Objectives (MBO), is a traditional management approach to directing the efforts of managers and the organizational units for which they are responsible. It is intended to motivate stronger performance on the part of managers and employees through goal setting, participative decision-making, and objective feedback (Rodgers and Hunter, 1992). In its broadest construction, it is seen as a planning and control system which is designed to encourage self-control over an individual's work while assuring that managers' efforts are aligned with the organization's overall goals and priorities. According to Swiss (1991), the heart of a full-fledged MBO process is the negotiation between a higher level manager and a subordinate manager of a performance contract that has the components such as major objectives to be accomplished by the subordinate manager within specified completion dates, resource commitments to support these objectives, action plans and milestones for accomplishin g these objectives, periodic meetings of the manager and subordinate to review progress and make midcourse corrections if necessary, and an assessment at the end of the MBO cycle of the subordinate's performance, which should feed into both personnel appraisal processes and MBO planning for the next cycle. Swiss (1991) characterizes MBO as being particularly useful for providing direction and control over project oriented agencies where workloads shift and priorities tend to change frequently, as opposed to another major management approach, performance monitoring, which may be more appropriate for managing the continuing operations of organizations whose outputs are relatively stable. LearnInMotion.com: The Performance Appraisal Jennifer and Mel disagree over the importance of having performance appraisals. Mel says it's quite clear whether

Answer this question Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Answer this question - Assignment Example Those who earned more contributed more and hence will receive more. Those in the public sector either rely on their pensions or the 403(b) which is available for the church ministers, certain tax-exempt organizations as well as public school employees. The retirement money is provided through an insurance company, invested in mutual funds or a retirement account set up. The public employees’ retirement system is common in the state of Nebraska making it stand out from the other states such as Kansas as the retired public employees live comfortably on their retirement savings plan paid monthly (Fenge, De Menil and Pestieau 172). Americans have moved from the corporate sponsored retirement plan where the corporates were offering pensions. With the increase of people in this sector, the plan was simply too much to sustain and the employers moved towards the defined benefit (DB). The DB plan is sponsored by the employer in addition to employee contributions. The money is then pooled together with the available funding from government and other sponsors of the plan. Employees under this plan are therefore able to receive certain benefits based on their number of years in service as well as their average salary. The DB plan can also offer payment monthly for as long as the annuitants live instead of a lump-sum distribution option (Slesnick and Suttle, 115). There is also the retirement plan of defined contribution pension plan (DC) which works similarly like a regular insurance. The employer specifies the amount of money needed for the plan to be contributed on a regular basis. The money in invested and the performance of the investment over time as well as amount contributed will determine how much they will get in their retirement funds. Even though the plan provides more flexibility in payment, the investment risks are shouldered by the employee (Slesnick and Suttle,

Advertising and its Effects on Childhood Obesity Research Paper

Advertising and its Effects on Childhood Obesity - Research Paper Example This essay "Childhood obesity affected by advertising" outlines the connection between junk food advertisement and the level of children obesity. Young children are easily hooked when a product is displayed with the endorsement of role models or cartoon characters that they literally worship. For children who are not keen about cartoons, there are advertisements that portray peers of their own age, which is something that no child can resist following. Advertisements achieve success in their mission of penetrating children’s most basic desires. On the flipside, a child who has to grow strong with lots of physical activity gets relegated to the menial position of a couch potato and in the bargain compromises his or her potential for proper development and becomes obese. Considering the case of children that fall in the age group of 6-11, 22% of Mexican American kids are found to be overweight, 20% African American kids and 14% of non-Hispanic White kids also fall under the same category. â€Å"The childhood obesity epidemic is a serious public health problem that increases morbidity, mortality, and has substantial long term economic and social costs. The rates of obesity in America’s children and youth have almost tripled in the last quarter century. Approximately 20% of our youth are now overweight with obesity rates in preschool age children increasing at alarming speed. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the prevalence of obesity has more than doubled among children ages 2 to 5 (5.0% to 12.4%) and ages 6 to 11 (6.5% to 17.0%)†