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Powers of politics, scientific measurement and perception: Evaluating the performance of the Houses of Commons'first environmental system, 1852- 54

Schoenefeldt, Henrik (2018) Powers of politics, scientific measurement and perception: Evaluating the performance of the Houses of Commons'first environmental system, 1852- 54. In: Gillin, Edward and Joyce, Horatio, eds. Experiencing Architecture in the Nineteenth Century: Buildings and Society in the Modern Age. Bloomsbury, London. ISBN 978-1-350-04594-1. (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:67053)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided. (Contact us about this Publication)
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Abstract

The chapter explores the role of the user experience in the design development and evaluation of Reid’s ventilation system, focusing on the period between 1835 and 1854. Eyewitness accounts from Members, which were recorded in Hansard reports, parliamentary papers, and newspapers, as well as scientific reports and the engineers’ monitoring log-books, which contained notes on Members’ self-reported feedback, provide critical insights into the internal environmental conditions and how Members experienced them. This chapter also retraces how insufficient success in satisfying the MPs’ expectations drove the House of Commons to commission various scientific inquiries into the system and contributed to the premature decommissioning of Reid’s system after only two years. Inquiries into the experience of occupants in buildings, however, were not unique to the Houses of Parliament. They represent a major strand within the history of building science in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and still form an important part in modern methods of Building Performance Evaluations. As such, the inquiries inside the House of Commons offers some insights into early nineteenth-century practices of environmental design.

Item Type: Book section
Projects: Between Heritage and Sustainability - Restoring the Palace of Westminster's nineteenth-century ventilation system
Uncontrolled keywords: House of Commons, thermal comfort, user experience, post-occupancy evaluation, parliament, experience, parliament, palace of Westminster restoration and renewal programme
Subjects: N Visual Arts > NA Architecture
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Arts and Humanities > Kent School of Architecture and Planning
Funders: Arts and Humanities Research Council (https://ror.org/0505m1554)
Depositing User: Henrik Schoenefeldt
Date Deposited: 16 May 2018 14:47 UTC
Last Modified: 12 Jul 2022 10:41 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/67053 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

University of Kent Author Information

Schoenefeldt, Henrik.

Creator's ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1768-0255
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