Editorial introduction: Design and Technology of Sustainable Architecture

The role of architecture and architects in sustainable design has aroused interests and discussions in both academia and profession. Architectural design, especially in terms of climate adaptability and responsiveness have been seen a huge positive impact on building design, construction, use, operation and maintenance. Factors such as building layout, orientation, envelope, and interactions with both the technological and immediate natural and surrounding built environment, influence immensely both energy consumption as well as efficiency and comfortability for the human user

Adding 6 months of androgen deprivation therapy to postoperative radiotherapy for prostate cancer: a comparison of short-course versus no androgen deprivation therapy in the RADICALS-HD randomised controlled trial

Background Previous evidence indicates that adjuvant, short-course androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) improves metastasis-free survival when given with primary radiotherapy for intermediate-risk and high-risk localised prostate cancer. However, the value of ADT with postoperative radiotherapy after radical prostatectomy is unclear. Methods RADICALS-HD was an international randomised controlled trial to test the efficacy of ADT used in combination with postoperative radiotherapy for prostate cancer. Key eligibility criteria were indication for radiotherapy after radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer, prostate-specific antigen less than 5 ng/mL, absence of metastatic disease, and written consent. Participants were randomly assigned (1:1) to radiotherapy alone (no ADT) or radiotherapy with 6 months of ADT (short-course ADT), using monthly subcutaneous gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogue injections, daily oral bicalutamide monotherapy 150 mg, or monthly subcutaneous degarelix. Randomisation was done centrally through minimisation with a random element, stratified by Gleason score, positive margins, radiotherapy timing, planned radiotherapy schedule, and planned type of ADT, in a computerised system. The allocated treatment was not masked. The primary outcome measure was metastasis-free survival, defined as distant metastasis arising from prostate cancer or death from any cause. Standard survival analysis methods were used, accounting for randomisation stratification factors. The trial had 80% power with two-sided α of 5% to detect an absolute increase in 10-year metastasis-free survival from 80% to 86% (hazard ratio [HR] 0·67). Analyses followed the intention-to-treat principle. The trial is registered with the ISRCTN registry, ISRCTN40814031, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT00541047. Findings Between Nov 22, 2007, and June 29, 2015, 1480 patients (median age 66 years [IQR 61–69]) were randomly assigned to receive no ADT (n=737) or short-course ADT (n=743) in addition to postoperative radiotherapy at 121 centres in Canada, Denmark, Ireland, and the UK. With a median follow-up of 9·0 years (IQR 7·1–10·1), metastasis-free survival events were reported for 268 participants (142 in the no ADT group and 126 in the short-course ADT group; HR 0·886 [95% CI 0·688–1·140], p=0·35). 10-year metastasis-free survival was 79·2% (95% CI 75·4–82·5) in the no ADT group and 80·4% (76·6–83·6) in the short-course ADT group. Toxicity of grade 3 or higher was reported for 121 (17%) of 737 participants in the no ADT group and 100 (14%) of 743 in the short-course ADT group (p=0·15), with no treatment-related deaths. Interpretation Metastatic disease is uncommon following postoperative bed radiotherapy after radical prostatectomy. Adding 6 months of ADT to this radiotherapy did not improve metastasis-free survival compared with no ADT. These findings do not support the use of short-course ADT with postoperative radiotherapy in this patient population

Duration of androgen deprivation therapy with postoperative radiotherapy for prostate cancer: a comparison of long-course versus short-course androgen deprivation therapy in the RADICALS-HD randomised trial

Background Previous evidence supports androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) with primary radiotherapy as initial treatment for intermediate-risk and high-risk localised prostate cancer. However, the use and optimal duration of ADT with postoperative radiotherapy after radical prostatectomy remains uncertain. Methods RADICALS-HD was a randomised controlled trial of ADT duration within the RADICALS protocol. Here, we report on the comparison of short-course versus long-course ADT. Key eligibility criteria were indication for radiotherapy after previous radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer, prostate-specific antigen less than 5 ng/mL, absence of metastatic disease, and written consent. Participants were randomly assigned (1:1) to add 6 months of ADT (short-course ADT) or 24 months of ADT (long-course ADT) to radiotherapy, using subcutaneous gonadotrophin-releasing hormone analogue (monthly in the short-course ADT group and 3-monthly in the long-course ADT group), daily oral bicalutamide monotherapy 150 mg, or monthly subcutaneous degarelix. Randomisation was done centrally through minimisation with a random element, stratified by Gleason score, positive margins, radiotherapy timing, planned radiotherapy schedule, and planned type of ADT, in a computerised system. The allocated treatment was not masked. The primary outcome measure was metastasis-free survival, defined as metastasis arising from prostate cancer or death from any cause. The comparison had more than 80% power with two-sided α of 5% to detect an absolute increase in 10-year metastasis-free survival from 75% to 81% (hazard ratio [HR] 0·72). Standard time-to-event analyses were used. Analyses followed intention-to-treat principle. The trial is registered with the ISRCTN registry, ISRCTN40814031, and ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT00541047 . Findings Between Jan 30, 2008, and July 7, 2015, 1523 patients (median age 65 years, IQR 60–69) were randomly assigned to receive short-course ADT (n=761) or long-course ADT (n=762) in addition to postoperative radiotherapy at 138 centres in Canada, Denmark, Ireland, and the UK. With a median follow-up of 8·9 years (7·0–10·0), 313 metastasis-free survival events were reported overall (174 in the short-course ADT group and 139 in the long-course ADT group; HR 0·773 [95% CI 0·612–0·975]; p=0·029). 10-year metastasis-free survival was 71·9% (95% CI 67·6–75·7) in the short-course ADT group and 78·1% (74·2–81·5) in the long-course ADT group. Toxicity of grade 3 or higher was reported for 105 (14%) of 753 participants in the short-course ADT group and 142 (19%) of 757 participants in the long-course ADT group (p=0·025), with no treatment-related deaths. Interpretation Compared with adding 6 months of ADT, adding 24 months of ADT improved metastasis-free survival in people receiving postoperative radiotherapy. For individuals who can accept the additional duration of adverse effects, long-course ADT should be offered with postoperative radiotherapy. Funding Cancer Research UK, UK Research and Innovation (formerly Medical Research Council), and Canadian Cancer Society

Connecting Theory and Practice: An Overview of the Natural Ventilation Standards and Design Strategies for Non-Residential Buildings in Singapore

With increasing environmental damage, passive architectural design strategies, particularly natural ventilation strategies, are essential techniques for architectural design to protect the environment. In order to improve human comfort and the health of the living environment, spaces for human activities are no longer bounded primarily by closed, indoor artificial spaces and have extended to open, semi-indoor naturally ventilated spaces. Singapore, located in the tropics, has a unique climate where the attention of the Singapore government to natural ventilation indicators in green building decision making, and application of natural ventilation tropical architecture, can be seen. This paper analyses the development of evaluation contents related to natural ventilation in the Singapore green building standard – Green Mark, studies typical naturally ventilated buildings and then proposes effective design strategies. The relationship between standards and cases are finally discussed to explore the differences from theory to practice, with a view to using suitable approaches and methods to encourage natural ventilation design, thus promoting the green building movement and achieving sustainability

A Comparative Study on Architectural Design-Related Requirements of Green Building Rating Systems for New Buildings

Design teams’ work is greatly influenced by green building rating systems (GBRSs). Early GBRSs that had an energy- or resource-based hierarchy and prioritized mechanical components and active technologies were unable to adequately support the architectural design (AD). Due to the recent rise in awareness of the importance of AD in the creation of GBs, many GBRSs may now improve requirements pertaining to AD. However, it has not been examined in earlier studies. As a result, this study uses a comparative approach, content analysis, and significance evaluation to examine the effectiveness of six GBRSs as applied to AD in terms of significance, inclusiveness, comprehensiveness, and certainty. Six GBRSs include Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), Assessment Standard for Green Building (ASGB), Green Mark (GM), WELL Building Standard (WELL), Assessment Standard for Healthy Building (ASHB), and Living Building Challenge (LBC). A heuristic theoretical evaluation framework (TEF) is developed with the goal of providing guidelines and references for the improvement of GBRSs and the strategic idea of AD. There are four key findings. Firstly, LBC assigns the highest and certain weight to AD, followed by LEED and ASGB, then ASHB, and finally GM and WELL. Secondly, green and regeneration GBRSs emphasize resource, environment, and physiological health, while wellbeing GBRSs emphasize physiological and psychological health. Thirdly, GM, ASGB, WELL, and ASHB are the most inclusive and comprehensive in process, resource, and environment, physiological health, and sociological and psychological health, respectively. Fourthly, LBC performs best in setting mandatory requirements in included aspects

Sostenible: el modelo urbano basado en alta densidad, construcción en altura, y en el uso intensivo y múltiple del suelo: el caso de Hong Kong

China is going through one of the most dramatic social and cultural transformations in its history. In this speed change scenario, the never - questioned conventions in the western architecture have been betrayed. Invention, reinterpretation sometimes even revolution, never represent a step further as they did in the XXI century theoretical thinking. To engage architectural thoughts with the booming economy could contribute to the definition of a contemporary Chinese architecture, far from the generic city, in a society that has evolved from pre-modernism to post-industrialism in a short period of time. Through the analysis of Hong Kong, and a series of case studies, a conclusion to this scenario is sought.Xina està travessant una de les transformacions socials i culturals més dramàtiques de la seva història. En aquest escenari de canvi de velocitats, les convencions mai qüestionades en l'arquitectura occidental han estat traicionades. Invenció, reinterpretació, inclús a vegades revolució, no representen mai un pas endavant com ho van fer en el pensament teòric del segle XXI. Acoplar els pensaments arquitectònics amb una economia florescent podria contribuir a la definició d'una arquitectura xina contemporània, lluny de la ciutat genèrica, en una societat que ha evolucionat des de la premodernitat al postindustrialisme en un període curt de temps. A través de l'anàlisi de Hong Kong i una sèrie d'estudis de cas es busca una conclusió d'aquest escenari.China está atravesando una de las transformaciones sociales y culturales más dramáticas de su historia. En este escenario de cambio de velocidades, las convenciones nunca cuestionadas en la arquitectura occidental han sido traicionadas. Invención, reinterpretación, incluso a veces revolución, no representan nunca un paso adelante como lo hicieron en el pensamiento teórico del siglo XXI. Acoplar los pensamientos arquitectónicos con una economía floreciente podría contribuir a la definición de una arquitectura china contemporánea, lejos de la ciudad genérica, en una sociedad que ha evolucionado desde la pre modernidad al pos industrialismo en un período corto de tiempo. A través del análisis de Hong Kong y una serie de estudios de caso, se busa una conclusión de este escenario.Peer Reviewe

An Investigation on Ventilation of Building-Integrated Photovoltaics System Using Numerical Modeling

10.1115/1.4044623JOURNAL OF SOLAR ENERGY ENGINEERING-TRANSACTIONS OF THE ASME142