The most intriguing part of the Project. The behaviour of the subject. (PT.2)

Behavior

Social Organization

1. Bottlenose dolphins live in fluid social groups.
   • In the past, bottlenose dolphin groups have been referred to as pods-social groups of unchanging composition. More recently, long-term studies of bottlenose dolphins have now shown that their group composition changes.
   • Bottlenose dolphins commonly swim in groups of 2 to 15 individuals. Several groups may temporarily join (for several minutes or hours) in open ocean waters to form larger groups during which the dolphins may change associates.
   • In general, group size tends to increase with water depth and openness of habitat. This may correlate with foraging strategies and protection.
   • Some group members establish strong social bonds.
   
   Bottlenose dolphins live in fluid social groups. Although some dolphins
   may repeatedly associate with one another, these associations
   are rarely permanent.
2. In the wild, group composition and structure are based largely on age, sex, reproductive condition, family relationships, and association histories.
   • For example, the Sarasota, Florida resident dolphin community shows patterns of association. Basic group types include nursery groups (mothers and their most recent offspring), juveniles (both males and females), and adult males (alone or in pairs).
   • Mother-calf bonds are long-lasting; a calf typically stays with its mother three to six years.
   • A female may return to its mother or female relatives to raise its own calves, comprising a multigenerational group.
   • Adult male pair bonds are strong and long-lasting. Male pairs often engage in a number of cooperative behaviors. Researchers have documented 20-year pair bonds.
   • Associations between males and females are short-lived.
   
   A calf typically stays with its mother three to six years or more.
3. Social hierarchies exist within bottlenose dolphin groups.
   • Bottlenose dolphins establish and maintain dominance by biting, chasing, jawclapping, and smacking their tails on the water.
   • Dolphins often show aggression by raking-scratching one another with their teeth, leaving superficial lacerations that soon heal. Traces of light parallel stripes remain on the dolphin's skin. These marks have been seen in virtually all dolphin species. Dolphins also show aggression by emitting bubble clouds from their blowholes.

Daily Activity Cycles

1. Bottlenose dolphins are active to some degree both day and night.
2. Observations indicate that dolphins undergo daily cycles of activity, which include feeding, socializing, traveling, and resting.
3. Social behavior comprises a major portion of bottlenose dolphins' daily activities.
4. Feeding usually peaks in the early morning and late afternoon.
5. Daily activity cycles are influenced by both environmental factors (habitat, time of year, time of day) and physiological factors.

Individual Behavior

1. Dolphins frequently ride on the bow waves or the stern wakes of boats. This activity is probably adapted from the natural behavior of riding ocean swells, the wakes of large whales, or a mother dolphin's slip stream (hydrodynamic wake).
2. Dolphins have been seen jumping as high as 4.9 m (16 ft.) from the surface of the water and landing on their backs, bellies, or sides in a behavior called a breach.

Dolphins have been seen jumping as high as 4.9 m (16 ft.)
3. Both young and old dolphins chase one another, carry objects around, toss seaweed to each other, and use objects to solicit interaction. Such activity may be practice for catching food.

Protection & Care

1. Large adult males often roam the periphery of a group, and may afford some protection against predators.
2. Researchers have observed scouting behavior in bottlenose dolphins. An individual may investigate novel objects or unfamiliar territories and "report" back to the group.
3. Bottlenose dolphins may aid ill or injured dolphins. They may stand by and vocalize, or they may physically support the animal at the surface so it can breathe.

Interaction With Other Species

1. Bottlenose dolphins have been seen with groups of toothed whales such as pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus), Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus), spotted dolphins (Stenella attenuate), and rough-toothed dolphins (Steno bredanensis).
2. Bottlenose dolphins have been seen riding the pressure waves of gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus), humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), and right whales (Eubalaena spp.).
3. Researchers have observed bottlenose dolphins chasing and displacing other species of dolphins from prime bow-riding spots in waves.
4. Dolphins respond to sharks with tolerance, avoidance, and aggression. Tiger sharks elicit the strongest responses from dolphins. Researchers have observed dolphins attacking, and sometimes killing, sharks in the wild.
5. Some dolphins may approach divers, swimmers, or boaters.

The most intriguing part of the Project. The behaviour of the subject.

Whale Behaviour

There are a number of different behaviours you may witness during Whale Watching. This are described below.Breaching There are four types of breaching you will witness during a whale watching tour. A spinning head breach, chin breach, tail breach and lunge breach. This may be a form of solicitation, warning device or just a way of having fun. Lob Tailing Lob tailing is when the whale raises its tail or fluke out of the water and slams it down on to the surface. When witnessed, it is usually repetitive with the whale either lying on the surface flat out or head inclined in the water up to 180 degrees. They will either slam their fluke ventral or dorsal side down or switch back and forth without missing a beat. Fin Slapping Fin slapping is when the whale lies on its side, or its back and raises its pectoral fin out of the water, then slaps its fin on the surface repetitively. They may do this with one pectoral fin or utilize both pectoral fins. Dorsal Fin The dorsal fin is fleshy and consists of cartilage, blubber and skin. When the humpback comes to the surface and arches its back, the dorsal fin and caudal peduncle will appear to be a hump on the back of the whale. Pectoral Fin The pectoral fin is approximately 1/3 the body length of the humpback whale. Pectoral fins are believed to be used similar to stabilizers or rudders of a ship. They enable the whale to swim backwards and stop on a dime. These long pectoral fins are where humpbacks get their name Megaptera novaeangliae or big winged New Englander. Flukes The humpbacks fluke or tail fin is very broad and flat, ranging in size from 3-4.5m (10 to 15) feet wide and are capable of propelling the whale at over 12 knots for short periods of time. The flukes normally have a serrated edge and a deeply notch center called the median notch. The term fluking is when the whale raises its tail out of the water and descends beneath the surface. Blow Holes/Blows The blowholes are equipped with nasal plugs, which remain closed until forced open by respiratory contractions. Humpback whales are voluntary breathers where we are involuntary breathers. During inhalation a humpback will fill its lungs to capacity and when exhaling they will expel 90% of their air supply each breath. This blast of air will exit their blowholes at over 480km per hour. It is believed that humpback whales can hold their breath up to 40 minutes. Spy Hopping  spy hop is when the whale raises its head out of the water, typically straight up and down, looking to see what is around them. A spy hop is when the whale raises its head out of the water, typically straight up and down, looking to see what is around them. Traveling whales turn on their side, one eye out of the water, looking at you as they go by. Rowdy Groups A rowdy group or competitive group is when whales, typically males, compete for the position next to the female in estrous. Their whole purpose is to displace the current escort to the female, plying for that position in any way possible. This is what their entire season boils down to, securing their position next to a female and protecting that position from any challenging whale or whales in the area. If a challenger moves into the area, the escort will display surface postures to warn off all competitors and competitors will display surface postures to scare off escorts. A rowdy group can contain as few as three whales or as many as fifteen or more in a single session. They can last from a few minutes to hours at bursts of speed of up to twelve to thirteen knots at a time.

     Getting ready for portfolio. Working on project 1 again... Good Luck to Everyone.

Found this while busy with the case study for the dolphin and whale research center at Cape recife nature reserve. Glenn Murcutt inspires to design according to climate.

Bowali Visitor Centre _ Case Study

For part of my ‘Technologies’ coursework this year we were split into small groups to a series of case studies looking at the building technologies of a variety of structures. For this case study our group was asked to produce two analytical models of a building called the Bowali Visitor Centre in Northern Territory, Australia, designed by Glenn Murcutt; the first model was a CAD model done to illustrate the overall structure and form of the building and the second was a 1:20 scale physical model demonstrating the building’s finishes and internal structure.  The Bowali Visitor’s Centre, based in the Kakadu National Park, is an exhibition space based around the culture of the Aboriginal People; their relationships with people and with the land. It also houses a library, meeting spaces and administration offices for the park itself.

Murcutt chose to use corrugated iron to clad the sweeping roof, like in many of hisprojects, because of its high strength to weight ratio and because it helps reflect solar radiation.  It has also become part of Australia’s vernacular archetype, corrugated iron being the most prominent form of cladding in the countries first colonies.  The material is lightweight, easily transported and fixed and reflects the intense heat of the sun.

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Internally there are a number of strategies employed to passively cool the environment as well as highlight the surroundings. This is mainly achieved through its open, lightweight envelope that allows for ventilation and shading.

Another major passive cooling strategy is the formalized Billabong that collects rainwater creating a more temperate environment as the water evaporates. The Billabong is also homage to the Australian landscape and its native inhabitants.

Women's opportunity center - Rwanda.

AN EMPOWERING WOMEN'S CENTER IN RWANDA

Architectural designer Sharon Davis helps to create a forward-thinking educational and community center in Kayonza to train and educate local women through farming

Text by Tim McKeough

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A classroom at the Women’s Opportunity Center, created by architectural designer Sharon Davis, in Kayonza, Rwanda. Photo: Elizabeth Felicella

  

When New York City architectural designer Sharon Davis first visited Kayonza, a village in eastern Rwanda, in 2009, she witnessed up close the economic hardship and lack of basic necessities in this region that has seen more than its share of conflict. “We came upon children and women lugging jugs of water from a dirty stream that looked like mud,” she recalls. “That was their drinking water.” There were no treatment facilities for water or for waste, and little firewood for cooking.

Commissioned by the Washington, D.C., nonprofit Women for Women International, Davis crafted a plan for an educational and community center in Kayonza to help female survivors of war start businesses to support themselves and their families. The focus is on training residents to transition from subsistence farming to larger‐scale entrepreneurial farming.

Architectural designer and Women's Opportunity Center creator Sharon Davis.
Photo: Tyler Survant

After four years of planning and construction, the Women’s Opportunity Center opened this summer on a five-acre campus and features a series of rounded brick-walled buildings topped by steel water-catchment roofs. The center, which Davis designed pro bono, is intended as a model of small-scale sustainable architecture. The 450,000 bricks used to create the structures were handmade by local women from clay dug up on the site. (In that project, Davis helped them devise a better brick, and the workers gained another income-generating skill.) Rainwater collected by the leaf-shaped roofs is purified by solar-powered sand- and UV-filtration systems and stored for drinking and cooking. As Davis notes, “How can you run a business if you’re spending four hours a day getting water?” Composting toilets, meanwhile, provide fertilizer for fields. And in addition to classrooms and offices, the center has a working farm for hands-on training, storage for communal tools and processing equipment, and a marketplace where the women can sell their produce.

The campus has a working farm for hands-on training.
Photo: Elizabeth Felicella

“It’s design meeting development,” says Afshan Khan, president of Women for Women International. “The center allows the women of Kayonza to become producers, owners, job creators, and leaders in their community. It’s amazing to see their resilience and progress.”

For her part, Davis is eager to do more. “I ended up helping to found a nonprofit called Big Future Group,” she says. “We’re looking for other projects like this around the world.”sharondavisdesign.com and womenforwomen.org

The center’s sustainable features include roofs that collect rainwater, which is purified for drinking and cooking. Photo: Elizabeth Felicella.

Congratulations to all the wonderful people that were involved!

Sourced from: 

http://www.architecturaldigest.com/architecture/2013-11/sharon-davis-architectural-design-womens-opportunity-center-kayonza-rwanda