052-0606-00L  Mathematics and Programming II

SemesterSpring Semester 2021
LecturersL. Hovestadt
Periodicityyearly recurring course
Language of instructionGerman


AbstractAn introduction to information technology for architects. It is not about the HOW, but rather about the WHAT, not about virtuosity when dealing with digital tools, but rather about understanding coding. Not about pragmatism, but rather about literacy. It forms the basis of digital architectonics, the art of joining, which needs to be cultivated with care, prudence and patience.
Learning objectiveNormally, one would expect this course to teach students how to draw architecture while using computers. This course does not because digital architectural models are not drawn, but encoded.

In the current discussion about building information models (BIM), we see how blocked the situation can become when one draws architecture digitally. Today, digital models are a tedious 'minefield' with hundreds of gigabytes of data of all kinds. A digital model as code, however, is lightweight, compact and fast – a sparkling crystal, like poetry.

That is why coding is the focus of this course. More specifically, students learn to read code and to value thinking in code. Learning active coding goes beyond the time-frame and should not be forced upon people. Thanks to digital awareness, students can quickly learn a wide variety of software using help available in the Internet, and competently use it according to their personal preferences. The aim of the course is for the students to develop as architects and to grow a digital personality.

Specific reference is made to the history of architecture in conjunction with mathematics and philosophy. The essential tool of the trade is the lambda calculus in the implementation of Mathematica. The information technology interconnection of all digital media will be presented: text, image, graphic, model, animation, film, audio and the corresponding software. Current issues will be discussed: Internet, Internet of things, cryptography, privacy, big data, machine intelligence, building information models, responsive cities, smart homes, robotics, energy and logistics. Current and historical modelling processes will be worked on.
ContentThe Mechanics of Digital
Introduction and overview on folding
Calculus
Text and numbers
Lists and colours
Pictures and films
Cryptography and communication
Rules and graphs
Graphics and Animation
3D models
Solid models
Music and sound

The Big Plenty
Parsers
Databases
Machine intelligence
Many images
Many texts
Many drawings
Many models
Smart buildings
City and country
On the Internet of Things

A Digital Archaeology of Architecture
The geometry of Euclid
The architecture of the Greeks
The arithmetic of Ptolemy
The architecture of the middle ages
The geometry of Descartes
The architecture of the Renaissance
The arithmetic of Lagrange
The architecture of the Enlightenment
The algebra of Boole
The architecture of the classical period
The theory of categories
The architecture of the 20th century

The Digital Architectural Model
Architecture and poetry
The perspective model
The probabilistic model
The crystal
The hybrid
The continuum
The Oikos
The model concept 1920
The model concept 1950
The model concept 1980
The model concept 2010
Brand and style