THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2021/2022

Information in the Degree Programme Tables may still be subject to change in response to Covid-19

University Homepage
DRPS Homepage
DRPS Search
DRPS Contact
DRPS : Course Catalogue : Edinburgh College of Art : Architecture and Landscape Architecture

Undergraduate Course: Computer-Aided Design after 1960: Critical Practice and Disciplinary Debates (ARCH10044)

Course Outline
SchoolEdinburgh College of Art CollegeCollege of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate) AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits20 ECTS Credits10
SummaryThis course focuses on developments in computer aided design in Great Britain, the United States and elsewhere between 1960 and the present. It aims to enable students to think critically about, and develop a set of arguments and positions on the role of computers, digital media and information technology in the making and functioning of architecture and the built environment.
Course description This honours course considers the primary developments in computer aided design in Great Britain and the United States primarily (to a lesser degree Japan and China) during the second half of the twentieth century. A reading seminar, the course invites students to relate and distinguish the various traditions of thought and practice that were invented and extended during this period. Through an exploration of phenomena such as the first man-machine graphical communication system for design (Ivan Sutherland's SketchPAD), and the early parametric modeling systems for the building industry (e.g. Charles Eastman's BDS system), we will seek to understand the immediate and long-term effects of computational technology and information technology on architectural practice and discourse. Through reading, writing and group discussions, we will define what it meant for designers and architects to work computationally in a range of geographic, cultural, political, socioeconomic, and material contexts. We will also familiarize ourselves with the major writings of some the key scholars of this historically recent but rapidly emerging field.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesAt least 3 courses in Architecture, Architectural History, Landscape Architecture, Design, Computing, Media Studies or cognate subjects at Grade B or above.
High Demand Course? Yes
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2021/22, Available to all students (SV1) Quota:  None
Course Start Semester 1
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 200 ( Lecture Hours 10, Seminar/Tutorial Hours 20, Feedback/Feedforward Hours 1, Summative Assessment Hours 1, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 164 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) Assignment 1: Journal 2,000 words. Assessed against Learning Outcomes 1 and 3. Submitted during exam period. 40% of the student's term grade.
Creation of a Journal with reflective evaluation of each week's readings. Students should produce a summative and reflective assessment of one or more of the week's readings, totaling around 200 words for each week's entry. Students should submit the completed Journal of around 2,000 words during the Examination period.

Assignment 2: Essay 2,500 words. Assessed against Learning Outcomes 1, 2 and 3. Submitted during exam period. 60% of the student's term grade.
Development of a written essay of 2,500 words on a particular topic of computing/computer aided design, evidencing awareness of relevant histories and contested, constructed discourse. This essay must be based on the formative essay proposal that is submitted at mid-term.
Feedback Formative Feedback:
Student are asked to keep a written Journal of the weekly readings, in which entries record reflections and unique interpretations of key arguments, theories, sources and methods. A few times during the term, students will be provided with verbal feedback on in-class presentations of their Journal entries, which act as formative feedback on Learning Outcomes 1.

At mid-semester, each student will also submit a short written proposal for the final essay, outlining a plan for an original work of research including descriptions of topic, key research question, sources and method. Formative feedback will be offered against Learning Outcomes 2 and 3. Each student will present their essay proposal in-class, which creates an opportunity for peer-feedback. Students will be provided with verbal feedback on their in-class presentations, which act as formative feedback on Learning Outcome 1 and 2.

Submissions are supplied in written form and submitted electronically.

Summative Feedback:
Students will receive written feedback on both summative assignments within 15 working days of submission.
No Exam Information
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of a range of key histories, theories and practices of computer aided design and information technology in the architecture and planning professions.
  2. Critically review and extend understanding of a particular topic of computing/computer aided design evidencing awareness of contested, constructed discourse.
  3. Produce a coherent, well-written and illustrated piece of academic writing, following appropriate referencing conventions.
Reading List
Alexander, Christopher. 'The Question of Computers in Design.' Landscape 14, no. 3 (1967), pp. 6-8.

Coons, Steven A. 'An Outline for the Requirements of a Computer-Aided Design System.' In Proceeding AFIPS '63 (Spring), Proceedings of the May 21-23, 1963, Spring Joint Computer Conference (1963), pp. 299-304.

Cross, Nigel. 'Designerly Ways of Knowing: Design Discipline Versus Design Science.' Design Issues 17, no. 3 (2001), pp. 49-55.

Eastman, Charles. 'The Use of Computers Instead of Drawings in Building Design.' AIA Journal (March 1975), pp. 46-50.

Light, Jennifer S. 'When Computers Were Women.' Technology and Culture 40 (1999), pp. 455-83.

Simon, Herbert. 'The Science of Design: Creating the Artificial.' Design Issues 4, no. 1/2 (1988), pp. 67-82.
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills The graduate will have knowledge of, and courage to expand, theories, histories, concepts and principles of computer aided design, including knowledge of key pioneers and sites of research.

The graduate be able to demonstrate a critical understanding of how design computing and computer aided design have influenced and continue to influence architectural and landscape architectural design, design and urban planning locally and globally after 1960.

Graduates will be able to formulate questions for research of an appropriate scope, and synthesise information from multiple sources to produce clear, logically argued and original written work relating to the history and theories of computer aided design.
KeywordsCOMPUTER-AIDED DESIGN,ARCHITECTURAL CRITICAL PRACTICE,CRITICAL MEDIA STUDIES,ARCHITECTURAL HISTORY
Contacts
Course organiserMiss Moa Carlsson
Tel:
Email: Moa.Carlsson@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMrs Anne Davis
Tel: (0131 6)51 5735
Email: Anne.Davis@ed.ac.uk
Navigation
Help & Information
Home
Introduction
Glossary
Search DPTs and Courses
Regulations
Regulations
Degree Programmes
Introduction
Browse DPTs
Courses
Introduction
Humanities and Social Science
Science and Engineering
Medicine and Veterinary Medicine
Other Information
Combined Course Timetable
Prospectuses
Important Information