Tree-inspired dendriforms and fractal-like branching structures in architecture: A brief historical overview

Abstract The shapes of trees are complex and fractal-like, and they have a set of physical, mechanical and biological functions. The relation between them always draws attention of human beings throughout history and, focusing on the relation between shape and structural strength, architects have designed a number of treelike structures, referred as dendriforms. The replication and adoption of the treelike patterns for constructing architectural structures have been varied in different time periods based on the existing and advanced knowledge and available technologies. This paper, by briefly discussing the biological functions and the mechanical properties of trees with regard to their shapes, overviews and investigates the chronological evolution and advancements of dendriform and arboreal structures in architecture referring to some important historical as well as contemporary examples

Fabrication of garlic composites nano-biotics and investigating their anti-bacterial activities

Bacterial infections are considered the second main cause of death worldwide and the third main cause of death in the developed countries and as a result, many antibacterial coatings have been prepared in order to fight the different strains of bacteria and decrease the mortality rates. Natural antibacterial products become of great interest nowadays and their use is preferred over the synthetic products in order to overcome the resistance to the synthetic antibiotics. A wide variety of antibacterial coatings have been developed ranging from polymeric to polymer Nano-composites (PNCs) materials. Using nanomaterials as fillers within polymer matrices have been reported to enhance the antibacterial properties significantly. The polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) are promising for natural antibacterial drug delivery. In this study, two types of Garlic oil nano-composites (GO-NCs) have been developed by using two polymers which are poly lactic-co-glycolic (PLGA) and poly lactic-co-glycolic/poly ethylene glycol (PLGA/PEG) mixed with garlic oil (GO). The two polymer Nano-composites were named PLGA-GO-NCs and PLGA-PEG-GO-NCs respectively. Single emulsion/solvent evaporation (SE/SE) technique was involved in the preparation of the different nanocomposite formulations. The polymers conjugated with GO were prepared at three different homogenization time intervals (5, 10 and 15 min.) at the same homogenization speed of 11,000 rpm. All the preparation parameters, such as the concentration of polymers, concentration of GO, amounts of surfactant used (polaxmer 407) and the homogenization speed, were kept constant to identify the effect of the homogenization time on the physicochemical properties and the antibacterial activities of the PNCs. In addition, the effect of other factors such as the effect of solution settling, the use of Buchner funnel in solution filtration, the use of biological filters in solution filtration and the effect of mechanical shaking the solutions by using vortex stirring on the different formulations were carefully examined. The particle sizes, zeta potential and poly dipsersity index (PDI) and GO% in each formulation have been measured. The morphological examination of the prepared nanocomposite formulations was carried out by using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), and the chemical structural characteristics were examined by using Fourier Transform-Infra-red spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Ultraviolet-Visible spectrophotometry (UV-vis). In addition, antibacterial assessment has been carried out against Eichercia Coli (E. coli) (ATCC 8739) as a Gram-negative bacterium, and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) (ATCC 6538) as a Gram-positive bacterium using Colony Counting Method (CCM). The results revealed four important factors that need to be considered during the preparation of GO NPs which are (i) settling of the solutions, (ii) filtration through biological filters, (iii) Buchner filtration and (iv) vortex stirring of solutions. These factors play a crucial role in controlling the size and stability of PNCs. Furthermore, we have observed that the addition of PEG to the PLGA-GO formulations has a significant effect on decreasing the particle sizes and increasing the GO% in the formulations. These results could be promising in producing polymeric drug/extract NPs of small particle sizes, high stability and of pronounced antibacterial activity which is stronger than the original dtug/extract

Rethinking Heritage for Sustainable Development

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the UN in 2015 have influenced the actions of international and intergovernmental organisations and governments around the world, and have dictated priorities for international aid spending. Culture, including heritage, is often presented as fundamental to addressing the SDGs: since 2010, the United Nations has adopted no fewer than five major policy recommendations that assert its importance as a driver and enabler of development. Yet, heritage is marginalized from the Sustainable Development Goals. Rethinking Heritage for Sustainable Development constitutes a substantial and original assessment of whether and how heritage has contributed to three key dimensions of sustainable development (namely poverty reduction, gender equality and environmental sustainability) within the context of its marginalisation from the Sustainable Development Goals and from previous international development agendas. Sophia Labadi adopts a novel, inclusive, large-scale and systematic approach, providing the first comprehensive history of the international approaches on culture (including heritage) for development, from 1970 to the present day. This book is also the first to assess the negative and positive impacts of all the international projects implemented in sub-Saharan Africa by a consortium of UN organisations that aimed to provide evidence for the contribution of heritage for development in time for the negotiation of the SDGs. The book’s conclusions provide recommendations for rethinking heritage for development, while reflecting on the major shortcomings of the selected projects

Rethinking Heritage for Sustainable Development

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the UN in 2015 have influenced the actions of international and intergovernmental organisations and governments around the world, and have dictated priorities for international aid spending. Culture, including heritage, is often presented as fundamental to addressing the SDGs: since 2010, the United Nations has adopted no fewer than five major policy recommendations that assert its importance as a driver and enabler of development. Yet, heritage is marginalized from the Sustainable Development Goals. Rethinking Heritage for Sustainable Development constitutes a substantial and original assessment of whether and how heritage has contributed to three key dimensions of sustainable development (namely poverty reduction, gender equality and environmental sustainability) within the context of its marginalisation from the Sustainable Development Goals and from previous international development agendas. Sophia Labadi adopts a novel, inclusive, large-scale and systematic approach, providing the first comprehensive history of the international approaches on culture (including heritage) for development, from 1970 to the present day. This book is also the first to assess the negative and positive impacts of all the international projects implemented in sub-Saharan Africa by a consortium of UN organisations that aimed to provide evidence for the contribution of heritage for development in time for the negotiation of the SDGs. The book’s conclusions provide recommendations for rethinking heritage for development, while reflecting on the major shortcomings of the selected projects

Rethinking Heritage for Sustainable Development

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the UN in 2015 have influenced the actions of international and intergovernmental organisations and governments around the world, and have dictated priorities for international aid spending. Culture, including heritage, is often presented as fundamental to addressing the SDGs: since 2010, the United Nations has adopted no fewer than five major policy recommendations that assert its importance as a driver and enabler of development. Yet, heritage is marginalized from the Sustainable Development Goals. Rethinking Heritage for Sustainable Development constitutes a substantial and original assessment of whether and how heritage has contributed to three key dimensions of sustainable development (namely poverty reduction, gender equality and environmental sustainability) within the context of its marginalisation from the Sustainable Development Goals and from previous international development agendas. Sophia Labadi adopts a novel, inclusive, large-scale and systematic approach, providing the first comprehensive history of the international approaches on culture (including heritage) for development, from 1970 to the present day. This book is also the first to assess the negative and positive impacts of all the international projects implemented in sub-Saharan Africa by a consortium of UN organisations that aimed to provide evidence for the contribution of heritage for development in time for the negotiation of the SDGs. The book’s conclusions provide recommendations for rethinking heritage for development, while reflecting on the major shortcomings of the selected projects

A Landscape and Materials-based Approach to Royal Mortuary Architecture in Early Third Millennium BC Egypt

This dissertation examines the role that the building of royal mortuary complexes (RMC hereafter) played in the consolidation of the Egyptian state between the reigns of kings Khasekhemwy and Shepseskaf, c. 2,700-2,500 BC. The theoretical basis for this research is inspired by cross-cultural studies that demonstrate (a) that monuments are not only the after-effect of a centralised state system, but may themselves be integrative strategies that contribute more directly to a state’s formation and consolidation and (b) that a monument’s location and construction materials reflect both logistical and symbolic concerns with salient socio-political scope. The main analysis offered here consists of a sequential, monument-by-monument archaeological assessment of RMC location and construction materials with a particular emphasis on the role of a specialist workforce. This research combines both quantitative and qualitative methods that help flesh out possible logistical and symbolic implications associated with the decisionmaking process behind each RMC. The working and symbolic properties of a whole range of construction materials is determined via careful use of the limited contemporary, and more abundant later, Egyptian documentary sources, as well as demonstrable patterns of material use in the archaeological record. A geoarchaeological analysis of mudbrick provides an important category of additional information on the sourcing of mudbrick and the labour organisation, which has received only limited attention. A locational and materials-based approach brings together a wealth of complementary information pertaining to the functional and symbolic aspects of these monuments, and their wider landscapes that is usually treated separately and selectively. It also provides the tools necessary for addressing the use of mudbrick in architecture during this early period and a well-known shift from mudbrick to stone in RMCs. Overall it provides a more dynamic and holistic framework for understanding the role that monumental building played in this early period of the Egyptian Pharaonic state