MEXICO- La Mision - Terraced Houses - The Paraiso Project

Recently the Archimede Institute has developed a series of models to help finance our non-profit organization. These prototypes being built in Northern Baja MX are designed to be sold locally once the testing is finished. This model has three modules with rooftop terraces, allowing the view of the sea and a means to catch the breezes or a suntan. The central courtyard is one way to allow the enjoyment of the outdoors during the colder winter months.

SOUTH CALIFORNIA - Earth, Wind, Fire and Water

Baja Californians (Mexicans) reject American 'stick-built' housing construction, American heavy-watering landscaping and American no-cash-down mortgages. They build very slowly, in concrete blocks, ceramic roof tiles, paying cash as they go, planting cacti and other fat desertic plants. They basically enjoy their scenery the way nature made it: semi-desertic.
To them the American 'Dream Home' is 'matchsticks and cardboard', cannot stop a bullet (!) or even a toddler on his trike. On the outside it is packed with plants species that drink up like drunken sailors. And this is depleting the water tables and slowly drying up Mexican farms and cities too close to California. So that when the wildfires licked Mexico's border yesterday, pushed by violent Santa Ana winds, they had nowhere to go. The land in Mexico is rocky and mostly barren, the plants are all native, having thick water-gorged leaves, the houses all have mostly non-combustible shells. Here in Baja the 'bomberos' are truly a lazy bunch as there are few house fires to put out, focusing on cats stranded in trees, it seems.
An analyst on TV suggested that some of the arsonists in California are probably angry owners about to lose their house to foreclosure. This breed is unlikely to exist in a country where houses are built with cash.
Thanks, Mexico, for your school of realism, but don't you find it ironic that your Mexican sons in California have become the dominant landscapers, house framers, stick-builders and sheetrock applicators? Thanks also for helping consolidate with our Archimede Institute a few good arguments for the peculiar housing system we are about to build locally and export: low-cost prefabricated fire-proof ,earthquake and hurricane proof housing.

PERU - Earthquakes don't have to Be Like this - They are non-lethal for those residing in Archimede Houses

The immense tragedy like the one shown above have no reasons to be. These houses are actually slow and expensive to build as compared to Archimede, the latter having an incredible earthquake resistance for the following reasons:

• 30% to 50% less unsprung weight
• All concrete surfaces reinforced with a gauge12 mesh
• All panels joined with similar mesh and armatures
• Connection to floor with shear resistant steel @ 1m O/C
• All openings reinforced with #4 rebars, protecting doors and openings
• All wall are shear walls, yet weigh sometimes less than half of that of regular construction. The axial and perpendicular stress resistance on walls and roof is astounding.
• All roof/ceiling panels weigh sometimes 4 times less than regular roofs, yet are fully reinforced with concrete mesh on both sides.
• Connections between roof and walls has a factor of safety of up to 3.

Insects- Archimede Offers Nothing To Eat !!!

In the 2/3 of the world where 3/4 of the population lives, wood is threatened by insects, mildew, rot and fungi of all sorts. Aging is NOT a possibility for most wooden housing, as it is quickly lunch for the local parasites. The chemicals to protect from these are even more harmful (Chromated cupric arsenate,phenols etc...). Concrete is both unedible, rot proof and permanent. We want nothing less for our houses.

ABREF

The design of tents for refugees has been plagued for years with serious shortcomings. Not any more, as our contributors have provided us with a set of features that we are putting together, designing the perfect tent.
Its features:

• Internal guy wires that you can't trip over as they are built into the walls.
• Allows groupings of basic units called 'ABREFS',  in thousands of different ways.
• Wind resistance tested in wind tunnel at our Mexico facility.
• Can be quickly on spit of size.
• Can be subdivided into roomettes quite easily.
• Forms a bundle that is easy to carry.
• Comes with color coding and personalization features.
  

Below, slide of a very dense proposed refugee camp for future Armenian earthquake victims. We will take great pleasure in working with Armenian citizens and artists to make those camps thoroughly lovable by these afflicted people. Music by :

Ithikon Akmeotaton - Armenian Music Medley
Medley of traditional Armenian songs performed by ITHIKON AKMEOTATON, recorded at Octalogic Studio Mannheim, Germany 2007

OPERA

Our oldest medical building was a success from day one, back in 1990 in Louisiana.

ABREFS

ABREF is a sturdy tent that can be adapted for groupings. These have several advantages:

• Grouped tents combine each unit's high resistance to wind pressure to allow for stability under gusts of over 80 mph (see wind testing of tents)
• Because of the ziggurat shape of these, the lanes between the clusters cut down wind speed, allowing users to walk with less difficulty under high winds.
• The formation of wind protected courtyards allow for some privacy in an area that can be made insect-free, ideal for some cooking, child play or any function common to all 6 adjoining units (i.e. storage, water, etc...). In cold areas, we are working on a concept where a central heat source distributes hot air to the six neighboring tents.
  
  
  
  
  This grouping #8.1 (8 units + 1 courtyard) is ideal for high densities that still manage to leave some privacy. With close to 40% ground occupancy, this configuration can reach a site occupancy of up to 400 persons per acre.
  

There are hundreds of combinations that would greatly benefit special site morphologies, like hillside, wooded, rocky etc...We are preparing a movie showing a few of these special cases, so come back here.

TSUTSU

A lowcost

Fire - Archimede Has Just Nothing To Burn !!!

Wood is a friend of insects and rot....AND fire, producing noxious CO and capable of killing within 5 minutes. We use NO wood at all except some doors and occasional shelving. Our pantry material is fire-resistive and all our plastics (insulation, wiring etc...) are protected by at least one inch of sealed concrete.