[E&E seminars] WEDNESDAY - "Daylighting at MIT"

[Karen Gibson]

LFEE Seminar on Energy and Environment
Sponsored by the MIT Laboratory for Energy and the Environment


“Daylighting at MIT: why, what and how...”

Prof. Marilyne Andersen
Building Technology, MIT Department of Architecture

Wednesday, November 1, 2006
12:00 - 1:30 pm
E40-496


Daylighting, or more generally lighting, is one of the fundamental  
components of the built environment. In addition to revealing and  
structuring volumes, producing visual effects, and providing  
character to a space, it must adequately respond to our needs for  
visual comfort, for a connection to the outside world, and for a  
healthy environment. Thus, lighting must be carefully planned to be  
ecologically viable.

	In terms of a building’s environmental impact, the potential for  
saving energy using daylight is undisputable. Buildings represent  
about a third of total energy use in the US, and 40% of that energy  
is generally dedicated to lighting. In addition, careful management  
of daylight can help to increase solar gains in winter and decrease  
them in summer, allowing significant reductions in cost and energy  
use for warming and cooling. Perhaps most important, numerous  
scientific studies have demonstrated that human productivity and well- 
being are positively affected by the availability of daylight (if  
properly controlled) and access to a view.

	In response to the increasing incentive to design buildings that  
take full advantage of daylighting, MIT is conducting research in  
several areas. Topics range from innovative approaches in daylighting- 
simulation tools to the in-depth analysis of light-redirecting  
materials that could increase the amount of natural light and solar  
radiation usable in buildings, thereby reducing energy consumption  
and improving occupant comfort. An overview of these new research  
areas will be presented during this talk.

Bring your lunch - light refreshment will be provided.


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please contact Karen Gibson, kgibson at mit.edu


Karen  L. Gibson
Program Assistant
MIT Laboratory For Energy and the Environment
77 Massachusetts Avenue, E40-469
(1 Amherst St., E40-469 - for DHL and FedEx)
Cambridge, MA 02139  USA
Tel:  1 (617) 258-6368; Fax:  1 (617) 258-6590

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