To die from heat or stupidity
To die from heat or stupidity
If there is any positive degree in the fierce heat that falls upon us every year in July and August, it is in the thought that perhaps the world really is coming to an end. You?re perspiring and frustrated with the air conditioner that can?t overcome the weatherman, calming down with the stupid conciliation that a minor annual increase in the heat may yet leave us a few years for somebody to develop more efficient air conditioners.
As one who avidly listens to the religious radio stations - a world of wisdom in their own right - I know that things don?t just happen. There is always a good reason, and it is the will of God almighty. It is he who decides when and where the blessed rains will fall, where the earth will quake, and when it will spit out on us its black gall. Nature is God?s gift and we should treat it nicely, as said in Ecclesiastes: ?Put your mind so that you do not ruin and destroy my world?, and the Rambam interpreted - ?for there is no one to mend it after you?.
Although I have no doubt that the green campaign has only good intentions, I?ve been claiming for years that the fanatic gimmicks decorating the ecological issue have caused many architects to steer away from it, and by doing so - to actually distance themselves from the foundations of architecture. The term ?ecology? originated in the Greek word ?oikos?, meaning ?place of dwelling?. That is, if there is no oikos there is no architecture, and no hocus pocus will help.
Buildings are intended neither to produce electricity, nor to recycle water, but rather for dwelling, working and spending time in them. And may the campaign forgive me, but the air conditioner is the invention of the century, since it contributes more than any other to man?s comfort. Spending time in an air conditioned space reduces tension and anger, increases efficiency, and prevents traffic accidents. The problem is that precisely this invention is what has anesthetized architects, making them forget that one of the fundamental aims of proper planning is to protect the building from the climate, thus reducing the need for artificial heating, cooling and lighting devices.
And in other words - climate-aware planning may save considerably in the use of air conditioners (up to 70%), and that is not a fact to be taken lightly.
The current issue of AI has been written at the height of the heat, with the ants, roaches and snakes demonstrating everywhere, raging at god for not teaching them electronics in order to be better prepared for the unexpected situation. With much empathy, and no little guilt, we?ve decided to devote this issue to the subject of ecology, with the idea of distinguishing the substantial from the superfluous - from the misuse of the color green to the buildings laden with plants yet devouring energy. Included are articles by serious people, who have devoted their professional lives to the problem, attempting in every possible way to stop the demon chariot of technology, while desperately trying to save the next generation from extinction, and if possible - what?s left of this one.
By the way, the term ?ecology?, as a discipline dealing with the connection between animals and their natural environment, was coined by the German biologist Ernest Haeckel in 1873 - about ninety years before the air conditioner was invented and a hundred years before they discovered the ozone hole. Who knows if there isn?t a connection.
We have wonderful ozone, a god to guide us, and the free will to choose between dying from heat or stupidity.
dr. ami ran
If there is any positive degree in the fierce heat that falls upon us every year in July and August, it is in the thought that perhaps the world really is coming to an end. You?re perspiring and frustrated with the air conditioner that can?t overcome the weatherman, calming down with the stupid conciliation that a minor annual increase in the heat may yet leave us a few years for somebody to develop more efficient air conditioners.
As one who avidly listens to the religious radio stations - a world of wisdom in their own right - I know that things don?t just happen. There is always a good reason, and it is the will of God almighty. It is he who decides when and where the blessed rains will fall, where the earth will quake, and when it will spit out on us its black gall. Nature is God?s gift and we should treat it nicely, as said in Ecclesiastes: ?Put your mind so that you do not ruin and destroy my world?, and the Rambam interpreted - ?for there is no one to mend it after you?.
Although I have no doubt that the green campaign has only good intentions, I?ve been claiming for years that the fanatic gimmicks decorating the ecological issue have caused many architects to steer away from it, and by doing so - to actually distance themselves from the foundations of architecture. The term ?ecology? originated in the Greek word ?oikos?, meaning ?place of dwelling?. That is, if there is no oikos there is no architecture, and no hocus pocus will help.
Buildings are intended neither to produce electricity, nor to recycle water, but rather for dwelling, working and spending time in them. And may the campaign forgive me, but the air conditioner is the invention of the century, since it contributes more than any other to man?s comfort. Spending time in an air conditioned space reduces tension and anger, increases efficiency, and prevents traffic accidents. The problem is that precisely this invention is what has anesthetized architects, making them forget that one of the fundamental aims of proper planning is to protect the building from the climate, thus reducing the need for artificial heating, cooling and lighting devices.
And in other words - climate-aware planning may save considerably in the use of air conditioners (up to 70%), and that is not a fact to be taken lightly.
The current issue of AI has been written at the height of the heat, with the ants, roaches and snakes demonstrating everywhere, raging at god for not teaching them electronics in order to be better prepared for the unexpected situation. With much empathy, and no little guilt, we?ve decided to devote this issue to the subject of ecology, with the idea of distinguishing the substantial from the superfluous - from the misuse of the color green to the buildings laden with plants yet devouring energy. Included are articles by serious people, who have devoted their professional lives to the problem, attempting in every possible way to stop the demon chariot of technology, while desperately trying to save the next generation from extinction, and if possible - what?s left of this one.
By the way, the term ?ecology?, as a discipline dealing with the connection between animals and their natural environment, was coined by the German biologist Ernest Haeckel in 1873 - about ninety years before the air conditioner was invented and a hundred years before they discovered the ozone hole. Who knows if there isn?t a connection.
We have wonderful ozone, a god to guide us, and the free will to choose between dying from heat or stupidity.
dr. ami ran
