Three mysteries precipitate an investigation into an otherwise ordinary suburban property; revealing a past inextricably woven into four centuries of American history.When Eleanor Phillips Brackbill bought her suburban Westchester house in 2000; three mysteries came with it. First; from the former owner; came the information that the 1930s house was ldquo;a Sears house or something like that.rdquo; Thrilled to think it might be a Sears; Roebuck Co. mail-order house; Brackbill was determined to find evidence to prove it. She found instead a house pedigree of a different sort.Second; and even more provocative; was the discovery of several iron stakes protruding from the propertyrsquo;s enormous granite outcropping; bigger in square footage than the house itself. When queried about them; the former owner told her; ldquo;Someone a long time ago kept monkeys there; chained to the stakes.rdquo; Monkeys? Was this some kind of suburban legend? A third mystery came to light at closing; when a building inspectorrsquo;s letter contained a reference to the house having had; at one time; a different address. Why would the house have had another address? Her curiosity aroused; and intent upon finding the facts; Brackbill gradually peeled back layers of history; allowing the house and the land to tell their stories; and uncovering a past inextricably woven into four centuries of American history. At the same time; she found thirty-two owners; across 350 years; who had just one thing in common: ownership of a particular parcel of land.An Uncommon Cape not only tells the story of an eight-year odyssey of fact-finding and speculation but also answers the broader question: ldquo;What came before?rdquo; and; through material presented in twenty-two sidebars; offers readers insights and guidelines on how to find the stories behind their own homes.Eleanor Phillips Brackbill is former Curator of Education at the Neuberger Museum of Art; Purchase Collegendash;SUNY.
#1840129 in eBooks 2006-08-14 2006-08-14File Name: B0089LOKFI
Review
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful. Interesting cross-disciplinary book not just for architectsBy calvinnmeThis is a very interesting book on the use of algorithms to come up with interesting solutions to architectural design problems. It is a sort of cross between artificial intelligence. computer science. computer graphics. and. of course. architecture that uses the language of algorithm implementation to get its point across of all of these disciplines intersecting. The first three chapters are introductory in nature and focus on the philosophy of combining the various disciplines. The fourth chapter is where the author gets down to business and begins to discuss specific algorithms. Boolean operations. stochastic search. fractals. cellular automata. and morphing are all shown in algorithmic form and discussed within the context of solving architectural design problems. For each algorithm the author gives code. explanations. and examples. Chapters five and six provide illustrations of types of architectural design that use algorithms. Chapter five presents three projects: a parasite structure. a morphed high-rise. and a Boolean concert hall. Chapter six shows how intricate structures can emerge from simple algorithms. Three projects are presented in this chapter too: a repetitive pattern for a house of worship. a stochastic-based residential high-rise. and a library. Chapter seven acts as a kind of summary of ideas presented in the book. I am involved in computer graphic programming. not architecture. and I still found lots of ideas in this very fascinating and well-illustrated book. This would be interesting reading for people involved in the design of virtual worlds too.9 of 9 people found the following review helpful. Including MEL scriptsBy ErnstThis book starts by explaining the nature of algorithmic architecture. Next to the interesting theories and viewpoints it gives short MEL-scripts. These scripts are the code behind the amazing algorithmic shapes and spaces. I found these MEL scripts very useful and by studying the scripts this book will give you the key to create your own algorithm. I was able to make simple scripts myself. but these nice examples really improved my skills and gave me new ideas of how to use MEL (within maya).2 of 4 people found the following review helpful. interestingBy Pedro BarranThis is a good book for architecture students. There you ll find an introduction to the use of scripting in architectural design. algorithms. students projects and even MEL code.Nevertheless I think the first half of the book is forgettable. there the author tries to come up with a BIG theory for design. and falls short.
