This paper is intended as a contribution to the discussion of the declared topic of this journal, architectural research. It stems partly from the author's book From Idea to Building and is mainly an analysis of the similarity between architectural design and scientific research based on Karl Popper's hypothetico-deductive theory, and in particular the sequence from problem recognition through tentative solution and error elimination to an explanation which may become the problem in the next sequence of research.

This paper looks at the case for studio design work taught in a unit system at Diploma/RIBA Part II level to be considered as a fundamental tool of research with a direct contribution to contemporary architectural practice. A case study of unit proposals for one year at the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London and its subsequent adoption by practitioners is used to illustrate the discussion.

This essay explores the problem of creating a contemporary architecture for a rural setting with a strong indigenous character. It focuses on a series of three inter-related projects, designed by a team which includes the author, for the village of Calver in the Derbyshire Peak District. One of these projects, ‘The Orchard’ is presented in some detail to illustrate the investigation of an architecture that can be simultaneously cognisant of both broad cultural ideas and rooted to the specifics of a local cultural context.

This paper explores how the new library for Cork Regional Technical College, Ireland, by de Blacam and Meagher, becomes a critique of the contemporary architecture and institution of the library. Its relationship with the evolving typology is excavated.

In connection with the Scharoun Exhibition held at the RIBA last February, Peter Blundell Jones and Nasser Golzari organised a one-day symposium about Scharoun and his influence. Among the invited speakers were Friedrich Mebes, whose contribution we published in the first issue of arq, and Günter Behnisch, the leader of the most distinguished German firm that could be said to follow the Scharounian spirit today. Behnisch & Partners first rose to world fame with the Munich Olympic buildings of 1972, but it has gone on to complete such prestigious works as the new Bonn Parliament, the Frankfurt Post-museum and the University Library in Eichstätt. Behnisch was invited to speculate on his relationship with Scharoun, and more generally on the master's influence in Germany today.

In this article the design of Mendelsohn's famous Expressionist tower at Potsdam is shown to have been shaped by the cosmology of Albert Einstein informed, however, by the apparently conflicting occult philosophy of Rudolf Steiner.

Developing a new building type raises questions of accommodation appearance and cost. This paper sets in context the emergence, development and decay of one highly specialised and localised building type – the purpose-built coroner's court which appeared in the metropolis in the 1870s. Surviving references suggest how far the existence and the details of the coroner's courts owed to a particular and short-lived combination of procedural requirements, administrative wrangles and social pressures.

The Museum of Natural History in London exemplified the state of environmental services when it was built in 1873. Although the admirable qualities of the building's natural lighting have sometimes been noticed, other aspects of its environmental design have drawn little comment. This paper explores the fabric of the building behind the scenes, related to the integral construction for ventilation. Recent on-site investigations under the floor of the basement, within the attics and elsewhere, reveal the former presence of a comprehensive fresh-air ventilation system of surprising versatility before the advent of electrically-driven fans. Archival documents provide details. The design and performance of such fresh-air systems inform us about the evolution of building services and about the practice of architecture and engineering as distinct professions. And the forgotten knowledge revealed may serve to help in the design of natural and low energy systems for large buildings today.

The students and faculty affiliated with the Design Studios at MIT have conducted several experiments in geographically distributed design activities as part of the Design Studio of the Future research and education initiatives. Some of these experiments have involved collaboration among the studios within the institute while others have involved faculty and students in academic institutions from as far East as Singapore, Australia and Hong Kong. The goal of this paper is to describe our experiences to date with synchronous distributed collaborative design over the Internet, the World Wide Web, and other commercially available communication systems. In particular, we will outline technical and social requirements for successfully conducting remote design reviews. Such reviews require a shift in design content from physical to electronic media which brings with it associated changes in roles, responsibilities, tools, and feature set. These changes are identified in this paper. Finally, we provide helpful suggestions for others who want to try the virtual review format in their organisations.