Welcome to Cardinal Scholar
Cardinal Scholar is the University Libraries Institutional Repository for archival and scholarly research produced at Ball State University.
Recent Submissions
Item Senior's Place(2023-05)This thesis is predicated on addressing the increasing lack of ‘third places’ in local neighborhoods for senior communities. A ‘third place’ is a local anchor in the community that hosts frequent and informal gatherings of people outside of your home or work where you can relax, hangout, and connect with others. The lack of local gathering spaces for seniors, coupled with barriers of the built environment, stereotypical views, and issues of the American suburbs has the senior population experiencing serious health issues. Senior’s Place provides a template for a local ‘third place’, where social interactions remain at the forefront of the experience through connections with local neighborhoods and various programs that fulfill the social needs of the local senior community. Senior’s Place is designed as a comforting yet playful social center embedding concepts of experiential and inclusive designs to enhance the community’s health and well-being. The programmed spaces are molded around a zoned spine of public, private, and transitional spaces for different types of social interaction, and provide activities that spill into the outdoor environment. The primary objective of Senior’s Place is to support seniors’ health, wellbeing, and social networks in the neighborhood of N. Anthony Fort Wayne, Indiana.Item Presence through absence(2023-05)Item Tadpole Learning Center(2024-05)The built environment can affect teaching strategies and how well students learn. Most schools are built with few colors, concrete blocks, and brick. Where young children sit at a desk all day with the expectation to focus forward and learn without distraction, but does this design negatively affect how students learn? This thesis looks at how a school building can promote creativity and curiosity in children. The goal is to take an experiential approach to learning and encourage movement and interaction with nature throughout the day. This kindergarten through 8th-grade school has been designed using biophilic patterns, attention to daylighting, and natural materials. The brightly colored school sits in Toledo, Ohio, on the Maumee River, with each classroom overlooking the water. Students and teachers are encouraged to go outside and learn or move out of the typical classroom environment.Item Solutions to Homelessness Through Architecture(2023-05)This project re-envisions transitional housing and addresses issues of homelessness by incorporating principles of sustainability and material reuse to achieve optimal affordability both in terms of construction costs and cost of living for the users. The program includes opportunities for work for its residents as well as funding for the project itself, while also offering resources that facilitate the transition of unhoused individuals back into society. The modular units being utilized are shipping containers, which can be assembled in different configurations to accommodate different needs within the design. The use of recycled materials further saves on construction costs and also reduces the environmental impact of the building. Additionally, the design thoughtfully incorporates intertwining passive systems. Also included are communal spaces designed to encourage social interaction; spaces for social, mental, and physical health services; and community gardens with access to essential resources to foster a sense of community and support. Unhoused individuals not committed to this housing framework are still encouraged to inhabit spaces throughout the site which offers locations for sheltering around and under the building. All of these concepts will work in tandem as means to provide more ways to welcome the underserved, as opposed to pushing them away.Item Public Marketecture: Multisensory Integration at a Food Market(2023-05)Multi-sensory perceptions play an important role in the way we experience environments around us. A public food market is an ideal setting to activate multi-sensory perceptions, as it offers a diverse range of food, drink, and other products that can engage all the senses as well as enhance the overall experience for visitors. By engaging all the senses, including sight, smell, taste, touch, and sound, the market can create a more immersive and memorable experience for visitors. This can be achieved through elements such as lighting, music, fragrance, and tactile materials, which can be used to create a unique ambiance and showcase the diverse range of food offerings. Multi-sensory perceptions also help to create a sense of community within the market, bringing together people from different backgrounds and cultures to share in the experience of food. By incorporating multi-sensory perceptions, a public food market can become more than just a place to buy food, but a destination that appeals to all the senses and fosters a sense of connection and engagement. The multi-sensory integration at a food market in this project can help shape what it means to define sensory architecture.
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