terraforming nomadic farming architecture

THE TERRAFORMING NOMADICFARM OF REJUVENATION THEGENIUSINNATURE YEAR2STUDIO SherisseAnneChanEnQi













Programme Title The terraforming nomadic farmers of the Johor Straits The programme was derived from how fiddler crabs naturally aerate the soil when digging their burrows, as they spread sediment and oxygen that is vital for the growth of micro organisms living in the soil. As the fiddlers travel in large communities, this mea that they are able to bioengineer wholes swathes of marshland, thus changing the surface of the marsh to a green and sustainable Thus, my architecture is meant for a specific group of nomads calle Orang Seletar. The nature in which they move is much like the fiddle as they travel in communities and use the marshlands (Johor Straits) home. The main programme of my architecture lies in its ability to move an the soil. The legs, inspired by the way the crab digs its burrow, is buil able to turn over the soil to introduce oxygren and spread nutrients so that the people are able to use the soil to plant their crops. CHRONOLOGY After 3 months, the nomads will uproot the architecture after harve bountry and move up the Johor Strait. Doing so leaves whatever pl that they cultivated behind, as well as a thriving ecosystem.

d SEDIMENT LAYERS s ARCHITECTURE ON SITE ans e land. ed the er crabs, ) as their nd churn lt to be s around esting their lants

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION PRODUCED BY AN AUTOD SECTION DETAIL 1 SCALE: 100 ESK STUDENT VERSION

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION DESK STUDENT VERSION PRODUCED BY AN AUTO

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION PRODUCED BY AN AUTOD Floor Truss 1 SCALE: 1:50 ESK STUDENT VERSION

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT VERSION DESK STUDENT VERSION PRODUCED BY AN AUTO

SUNPATH 1 MONTH TESTED ON 26 DEGREES SUNPATH YEARLY TESTED ON 30 DEGREES JANUARY YEARLY

STRUCTURAL SYSTEM FIDDLER CRAB SPECIES: Uca Male fiddler crabs, have one greatly enlarged claw with which they court females and threaten and fight other males. USES OF MAJOR CLAW THERMOREGULATION: The major claw may function like a heat sink, transferring heat away from the body and, through convection, dissipating that heat into the air. The cooling action may help crabs to spend more time out of their burrows for foraging or sexual display. MATING: Male ddler crabs wave an enlarged major claw during behavioural displays to attract possible mates. It also uses its oversized claw to get the attention of a prospective mate and then uses drumming to demonstrate its degree of physical tness. BURROWS A burrow is an extremely important resource for a ddler crab. It o ers refuge from predators and the high tide, provides water, a place to thermoregulate and a site for egg incubation.

SYSTEM STUDY MODEL: LEGS crab moving from right to left LEGEND: 01 front pair middle pair back pair main joints RESTING POSITION 02 LEG POSITION 1 03 LEG POSITION 2 04 LEG POSITION 3 ENDING POSITION

RESEARCH: RUNNING PATTERNS COURTSHIP HERDING: Herding occurs when resident burrow-owning males attempt to push passing female wanderers towards the entrance of the male’s home burrow. Males achieve this, by moving to the far side of the passing female so that she is positioned between the male and t he burrow. SYNCHRONOUS WAVING: In all the synchronous ddler crabs, males form small clusters around a mate-searching female and wave in synchrony. The males that fall within the cone of selective attention of a particular male will trigger his synchronous waving. Males that fall outside of his eld of selective attention would not trigger synchrony. 4 PHASES OF COURTSHIP HERDING: OUTWARD RUN After spotting a wandering BROADCAST WAVING female, the burrow-owning The claw travels in male ran in a curved a diagonal trajectory trajectory towards the involving both female’s position. When close vertical and lateral to the female, the curve of movement components, the male’s trajectory so that at the peak of tightened so that he ended the wave, the claw is up on the far side of the positioned above female’s position, presenting and away from the his posterior carapace to her. body . BURROW DISPLAY HEADING TO BURROW Once herded to the burrow The male then proceeded the female remained to push or guide the motionless at the entrance female in a slow, roughly and the male started the linear trajectory towards the home burrow, nal courtship phase, maintaining the female the burrow display. and the burrow in a posterior position. The male then proceeded to On some occasions push or guide the female in females made short, a slow, roughly linear fast sideways runs trajectory towards the home and the herding males burrow, maintaining the f countered with quick emale and the burrow in a detouring movements posterior position. In most of their own. of the recorded herding interactions, males and females moved relatively slowly in a roughly linear trajectory towards the home burrow.

LIVE STUDY: CRAB LEG OBSERVATIONS RANGE OF MOTION OF A LEG Crabs have joints in their legs (peg in socket mechanism) moving in a restricted number of planes so that they can only move sideways. flexed in this direction Although there are 6 joints in a crab leg, I observed that the bending motion came primarily from the two joints as highlighted below. moving segments I also noticed that the leg is joints primarily composed of 3 main segments. SEGMENTS breaking down the leg into 3 segments carpus segmentation + merus dactyl manus + I decided to focus on these three segments and therefore ony made 3 joints to emulate the movement of the crab’s legs

RESEARCH: WALKING SYSTEM 01 The eight walking legs (also known as ambulatories) are numbered in pairs from the anterior (front) to the posterior (rear) of the crab. All of the legs have the same basic struc Each limb is composed of 23 45 seven segments 1 (proximal to distal): coxa, basis, ischium, merus, carpus, manus, and dactyl. The first three (coxa, basis, and ischium) are small segments which attach the limb to the body of the crab. jo Each leg has 6 joints.

cture. 02 Muscle blocks in crabs are attached to the inner surface of the exoskeleton Legs pivot at numerous peg-in-socket joints that are sealed by flexible chitin 03 Crabs have joints in their legs moving in a restricted number of planes so that they can only move sideways. Each joint moves in a different plane, 6 and so together they allow the crab to move in all directions like our shoulder and hip joints. 04 DACTYL oints The sharp ends of each leg grip on to surfaces and can grip on to tiny irregularities.

ASSEMBLY Cut out cardboard parts for Join together using Used tape as a stop each “leg” paper-clip pins for the pe MAKING THE AXIS PROCESS Measured 1cm in and bent at a right angle Measured 1.3cm in and bend again at a right angle. Bend again at a right angle after 1.3cm. 0.5 cm in bent it again at a right angle one third foward than the last one. Repeated twice to get 3 indents Attached the piec Axis to attach all the leg pieces together

FINAL PRODUCT pper Assembled six sets to egs simulate six crab legs ces to the axis FINAL PRODUCT INTERIOR ARRANGEMENT one by one

STUDY MODEL: WALKING SYSTEM/GEO When a crab, is running rapidly across a beach or dune, only the second, third, and fourth pairs of the five pairs of legs are employed The legs move alternately on the two sides of the body; i.e., when one leg is in a power stroke, its mate on the opposite side of the body is in the recovery stroke. The legs in front or back are a little ahead or behind in the movement sequence FRONT LEGS RECOVERY STROKE BACK LEGS RECOVERY STROKE

OMETRICAL SYSTEM

FINAL MODEL

Head of the model is made out of bamboo fastened together with wire to create a head cavity (atrium). wire to connect the bamboo together Flat pieces of bamboo to form the roof. ACTUAL MODEL Using the function of the strandbeest to imitate the sideways movement of the crab. Legs are crucial for burrowing and making shelters.

PROGRAMME rn the beginning. there a e only As. fime goes on. more cons.truction work, ell'S wiD The resulting lan small setttements that will set up gather ,andl link the s.tructures. togefher to arearte and as. there is a a.t these cons1ruction sites. more living spaces. occuring in sing a nomadlc natur CENIRM. PROCESSING HUB Excavating hub that stores unwanted sediment such as leftover 1rocks that can't be used in the build. 1UNNBJNG APPENDAGES Legs help to brace and dig into 1/ the ground to resurface· new ground LMNGBUBBLB The interconnecting legs of the � strudure farm living and res id ents .; � garthe:ring spaces far the to mingle. SECTION ViEW These spaces also function o� large air filters, as air is .ruclioned ttyoug� �e coivities in the hub1 Wsh air as filtered through the spaces as they poss from1 each bubble to another.