Course units

Introduction to Scientific Research

3 CFR, 15 hours - I year

1 CFR, 5 hours - II year

Nuts and bolts of scientific research for PhD students: what scientific research is, what we should count as a step forward in advancing knowledge, the role of explanation and causal relationship, the argumentative dimension in research, the contribution of images figures and graphic resources. The class will also deal with such issues as the role of data, the question of methodology, the importance of case studies, the difference between human and natural sciences.

General Epistemology of Architecture

1 CFR, 5 hours

Fabio Bacchini

An interdisciplinary inquiry into the specifities of architectural knowledge. The relation between architecture, design disciplines and other fields of knowledge. Architecture in the context of humanities. Architecture in the context of STEM disciplines. The epistemology of designing. Architecture, forecasting and the future. Architecture and normativity. Architecture and language. Architecture and AI. 

Visual and Graphic Design

1 CFR, 5 hours

Michele Valentino

The course will deal with issues related to graphic thinking and learning; drawing, geometry and history of representation; digital modeling, virtual and augmented reality, gaming; graphic languages, writing and lettering; data visualization and infographic; and animated image as a language of communication for cultural heritage, scientific dissemination and social communication.

Structures and Mathematical Modelling in Architecture

1 CFR, 5 hours

Margherita Solci

An interdisciplinary approach to structural analysis towards a high technological quality architecture through the variational and computational modelling of materials and components, focused on their geometrical, physical, and constructive properties as well as on the new perspectives in mechanical metamaterials.

Architecture and Urban Studies in a Cultural Context

1 CFR, 5 hours

Antonello Marotta 

An exploration of the relationship between architectural cultures and the multifaceted complexity of the city and the territory seen in their social milieu, under an interdisciplinary approach. Theoretical reflection is meant to have an impact on the reading, interpretation and valorisation of cities, built environment and cultural heritage.

The Historical Dimension of Architecture and Environment

1 CFR, 5 hours

Cecilia Rostagni

The history of architecture through the ages and across overarching stylistic changes and developments. The exploration of the relationship between the history of the built environment and the transformations in the conceptions of architecture, architectural practice, and the natural environment. The history of the representations of buildings, cities and environments in the arts.

Architecture, Ecology and Sustainability

1 CFR, 5 hours

Antonello Monsù Scolaro

The class aims to provide a conceptual understanding of sustainable urbanism and a critical review of its philosophical and practical framework. The landscape ecology approach emphasizes the interrelationship between urban landscape patterns and ecological/socioeconomic processes on different scales. Special attention will be devoted to the theme of climate change and the study of its effects on territories and built architecture.

Architecture and Learning Processes

1 CFR, 5 hours

Samanta Bartocci

The relationships between natural and artificial space and learning processes; knowledge transmission and architectural space; the possibility of integration, whether physical or immaterial, real or virtual, in dependence of spatial experience.

Architecture and Ontology

1 CFR, 5 hours

Fabio Bacchini

The metaphysics and ontology of architectural works and the comparison between architectural works and other kinds of works. The metodology of designing. The metaphysical relation between architectural design and the architectural work. Authoriality in architecture. The nature of architectural site-specificity.

Urban Studies, Territory and Dwelling

1 CFR, 5 hours

Tanja Congiu

New urban populations and the new forms of nomadic dwelling. New lifestyles in the network society. Territories, private and public transportation, and public transport strategy studies. Globalization processes and their impact on land, territories, and cities. The transformation of urban spatial structures in relation to contemporary demographic processes, especially depopulation of territories, and the development of new social identities and new forms of social and spatial injusticies; urban policies, new technologies and social innovation.

Participatory Planning in the Context of Risk

1 CFR, 5 hours

Paola Rizzi

Participatory design processes and community planning before, during, or after a disastrous or potentially disastrous event; community-based disaster risk reduction and community-based disaster mitigation processes.

Natural Environment and Climate Change

1 CFR, 5 hours

Silvia Pulina

Biology and ecology in the functioning of natural systems also in the applied projects of management and territorial planning, as well as in architecture and design projects through a biomimetic approach. Ecological approach to climate change. The efficacy of natural protected areas.

Geology and Human Environment

1 CFR, 5 hours

Vincenzo Pascucci

The study of coastal areas and the seabed around them, the aim being to define the parameters for preserving the marine and coastal environment. Soil management and conservation.