Archinect - News

Florida International University to develop virtual reality games for training future AEC workers thanks to NSF grant

2023-03-27T12:06:00-04:00

Florida International University (FIU) has been awarded a grant to develop games that can train individuals for roles in architecture, engineering, and construction. The funding, awarded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), will support FIU’s exploration into how institutions can train skilled workers at a time when robotics and autonomous systems are increasingly being deployed in the AEC sector.

As part of the project, faculty from the institution’s School of Architecture and School of Computing and Information Services will work together to develop a platform that will use virtual reality games to train workers through a personalized learning program. The learning tool is expected to focus on operational industrial robots, with learning delivery tailored for "differences in ability, experience, and sociocultural backgrounds."

The tool will see users asked to explain their decisions ...

FIU Architecture students are getting their feet wet thanks to this long-standing campus tradition

2022-11-17T17:45:00-05:00

This is the 33rd year the "Walking on Water" competition has been held at FIU as part of Professor Jaime Canaves’ Materials & Methods of Construction course. As reported by WSVN Miami , "Not many people can say they can walk on water, but these second-year architecture students at Florida International University need to do in order to get a good grade in the class."

Winners receive $1,000 plus another $1,000 bonus if they can surmount the record, while those whose shoes do not succeed can either swim the expanse in the event for a C grade or, "if they fell and gave up, it was a straight F," reports Dannielle Garcia of WSVN.

Walking on Water at FIU. Video courtesy of FIU The College Tour.

According to Canaves, “The purpose of the assignment is for the students to design and build shoes to be able to cross the lake 175 feet." Students were tasked with researching materials and "put them together and solve the problem of floating and walking, and if they’re successful, they get an A....

Florida International University launches DDes doctoral program

2020-08-03T14:39:00-04:00

Florida International University (FIU) has launched a new Doctor of Design (DDes) degree program that aims to "prepare architects for global leadership careers in design investigation, industry, applied research and related emerging technology fields."

The program is set to begin during the Spring 2021 semester and will be housed within FIU’s Department of Architecture, which is itself located within the school's College of Communication, Architecture + The Arts. According to FIU, the new degree is one of only five post-professional DDes programs nationwide. The program will be led by FIU Professor Neil Leach.

“FIU’s climb as one of the nation’s top research universities is fueled by programs of the future such as this new Doctor of Design that involves experiential learning leveraging state-of-the-art technology,” said FIU Provost and Executive Vice President Kenneth G. Furton. “We expect that graduates of this program will reach the highest levels of their profession and contribut...

3D-printed stadium created by FIU students helped Florida police prepare for the Super Bowl

2020-02-03T11:58:00-05:00

In preparation for yesterday's Super Bowl, the Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD) utilized a highly detailed 3D-printed model of the Hard Rock Stadium. The model was created by students at Florida International University's (FIU) College of Communication, Architecture + The Arts along with the school's Robotics and Digital Fabrication Lab.

Measuring 4' x 5', the model intricately shows the stadium's bleachers, hallways, exits, rooms, and even structural elements. It can be separated and reconfigured, allowing viewers to focus in on focal areas of interest. In total the printing took over 3,500 hours and was the result of months examining digital documentation of the stadium, walkthroughs, and calibration and programming of the printers.

“This was something unique, for FIU and MDPD, the creation of a physical model to use in training,” said Professor Shahin Vassigh, Director of the RDF Lab in a statement. “It’s not necessarily the scale that is unique – architects make models for d...

FIU Considers Merging Journalism and Architecture

2015-12-08T15:34:00-05:00

FIU is now considering a merger between its journalism school and College of Architecture + The Arts. The new combined college would probably get a new name (such as adding “communications” somewhere in the title), and journalism would continue as a “school” within this larger umbrella college. Journalism would still be an available degree track, as would the school’s other offerings in broadcast media, public relations, and advertising.

FIU Professor Marilys R. Nepomechie starts term as ACSA President

2015-07-21T13:45:00-04:00

The Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) is pleased to announce that Marilys Nepomechie, Professor of Architecture in the College of Architecture + The Arts at Florida International University (FIU), has begun her term as ACSA President for 2015-2016 academic year. [...] Bruce Lindsey, teacher and administrator at Washington University in St. Louis, is also starting his term as Vice President this month.

The ACSA announcement goes on to say: "As president of ACSA, Nepomechie has vowed to address the challenges facing ACSA schools, including diminishing institutional funding to support faculty and student work; a need to increase student and faculty diversity; the imperative to facilitate broad accessibility and affordability to our programs; the challenges of reframing the possibilities offered by online education; and in response to the breadth and rapid pace of change in the academy and the profession, the need to reassess, and perhaps recalibrate, our curricular structures."

Related Archinect news:

Get Lectured: Florida International University, Spring '15

2015-02-11T13:20:00-05:00

Archinect's Architecture School Lecture Guide for Winter-Spring 2015

Archinect's Get Lectured is back in session! Get Lectured is an ongoing series where we feature a school's lecture series—and their snazzy posters—for the current term. Check back frequently to keep track of any upcoming lectures you don't want to miss.

Next up in our featured posters is the Florida International University Department of Architecture Spring '15 Events.

Want to share your school's lecture series? Send us your school's lecture series poster and details to connect@archinect.com.

Unless noted, lectures take place on Thursday evenings at 5 p.m. in the Modesto A. Madique Campus’ Paul L. Cejas School of Architecture Building (P.CA) Room 135. Free and open to the public.

Listed below are upcoming Lecture Series events only.

Feb 12
Randy Hollingworth / Bermello Ajamil & Partners

Feb 19
Liam Obrien / Collective-LOK

Feb 26
Alastair Golden / CARTA (College of Architecture + The Arts) Dean's Distinguished Fellow

Mar 19
Enzo...

"Miami 2100" exhibition reinforces the urgent need for designing resilient cities

2015-01-19T22:59:00-05:00

Miami, Florida is one of those cities that is projected to be underwater over the next 100 years. And with climate change and rising sea levels continuing to occur worldwide, it's never too early to start preparing for what natural disasters may lie ahead. Students at the Florida International University School of Architecture took a proactive approach to this grim outlook with the exhibition, Miami 2100: Envisioning a Resilient Second Century, currently at the Coral Gables Museum until March 1.

Funded by the National Science Foundation, the exhibition showcases the projects conducted by graduate research studios and seminars in the school's Departments of Architecture and Landscape Architecture over the course of three years. With a solution-driven focus in architecture, landscape architecture, and urban design, Miami 2100 includes models, drawings, video interviews, and various digital materials and projections.

Find more exhibition photos here.