Lecture

Berlin: Water and Sand

Graph Chat

Chat with Graph Search

Ask any question about EPFL courses, lectures, exercises, research, news, etc. or try the example questions below.

DISCLAIMER: The Graph Chatbot is not programmed to provide explicit or categorical answers to your questions. Rather, it transforms your questions into API requests that are distributed across the various IT services officially administered by EPFL. Its purpose is solely to collect and recommend relevant references to content that you can explore to help you answer your questions.

Description

This lecture explores the transformation of a site in Berlin after the fall of the Berlin Wall, focusing on the construction of the Olympic velodrome and swimming pool. The site's unique soil composition of sand and water required innovative civil engineering solutions, including the development of walls to support the structures. The lecture delves into the architectural integration of the velodrome into the urban fabric of Berlin, emphasizing the connection between different neighborhoods and the architectural significance of the infrastructure. Through the excavation process and the installation of protective walls, the lecture highlights the architectural and historical implications of the project, creating a distinctive building that harmonizes with its surroundings.

Official source

Related concepts (21)

Urban planning

Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportation, communications, and distribution networks and their accessibility.

Soil pH

Soil pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity (alkalinity) of a soil. Soil pH is a key characteristic that can be used to make informative analysis both qualitative and quantitatively regarding soil characteristics. pH is defined as the negative logarithm (base 10) of the activity of hydronium ions (H+ or, more precisely, H3O+aq) in a solution. In soils, it is measured in a slurry of soil mixed with water (or a salt solution, such as 0.01M CaCl2), and normally falls between 3 and 10, with 7 being neutral.

Soil gas

Soil gases (soil atmosphere) are the gases found in the air space between soil components. The spaces between the solid soil particles, if they do not contain water, are filled with air. The primary soil gases are nitrogen, carbon dioxide and oxygen. Oxygen is critical because it allows for respiration of both plant roots and soil organisms. Other natural soil gases include nitric oxide, nitrous oxide, methane, and ammonia.

Soil

Soil, also commonly referred to as earth, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life of plants and soil organisms. Some scientific definitions distinguish dirt from soil by restricting the former term specifically to displaced soil. Soil consists of a solid phase of minerals and organic matter (the soil matrix), as well as a porous phase that holds gases (the soil atmosphere) and water (the soil solution). Accordingly, soil is a three-state system of solids, liquids, and gases.

Berlin

Berlin (bɜːrˈlɪn , bɛʁˈliːn) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constituent states, Berlin is surrounded by the State of Brandenburg and contiguous with Potsdam, Brandenburg's capital. Berlin's urban area, which has a population of around 4.5 million, is the most populous urban area in Germany.

Related lectures (64)

Soil Science: Introduction and Functions

Covers the introduction to soil science, its ecosystem functions, the finite nature of soil, and its diverse functions like production and regulation.

Stalinallee, Karl-Marx-Allee MOOC: Housing and Cities

Discusses the urban planning principles applied in the Stalinallee project in East Berlin in 1950.

Soil Sciences: Living Organisms and Soil Structure

Delves into the functions of living organisms in soil and their impact on soil structure and plant growth.

Soil Composition and Living Organisms

Delves into the composition, properties, and living organisms in soil, highlighting their roles in nutrient cycling and ecosystem health.

Architecture Critique: Reconstruction and Preservation