perhaps this system will work better towards your ends of establishing ‘courts’, as i do not think that the other system (thermal mass floor) will function without enclosing the floor area with glazing.

here, you may use solid walls along the south face, and they will passively control the temperature within any chambres you place them. windows can now be added with indifference to the angle or louvres or flooring, but keep in mind that every addition of window surface is more heat lost gained.

+ santouen_section01.jpg
1 room thick house w/ wall section as seen in next image.

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external skin [abilities: passive solar, biomass] establishes atmospheric …

+ dual membrane

external skin [abilities: passive solar, biomass] establishes atmospheric conditions within which individual chambres drift. occupants [abilities: ventilation, shading regulation] engage in seasonal or daily migration through the atmosphere according to desires for comfort and privacy.

re: planning(site), materiality, planning(program)

“If the new idea or gadget does not assist in keeping their lives simple and their families together, [the amish] probably will reject it.”
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i am somewhat skeptical of this bundling of systems. it makes me nervous that we might be psychologically cutting out the notion of independence that makes homeownership such a strong force. i know these would still be individual dwellings but i feel that the sharing of architectural elements, whether they be roof, wall, or floor, is (as you and i have experienced) a quite emasculating phenomenon. i think as a concept, which is what i understand your images to be, it could be useful to think of how shared systems can minimize land usage, but i think maybe those systems could be more latent, ie. driveway/garage, septic field, waste disposal… it just makes me nervous to see anything resembling a duplex because the idea of habitat for humanity seems to be founded on the single family home, not getting people into a ‘nicer’ multifamily housing situation.

there is a gap between recycling something and using something that is recycled. whereas the promise to recycle can be used as an excuse for consumption or destruction; the idea of using something recycled, in a way, has preempted some of the damage by lessening the raw materials taken. whether or not recycled materials are recycled again; their use presupposes a more positive move than the use fresh materials with a mere promise of recycling later.

Some time ago you posed a question…
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