In Book 3 of his Four Books on Architecture (1579), Palladio gives alternative designs for a wooden trussed bridge to span a river 100ft wide. The designs are ingenious, and analysis of Palladio's proposals shows that the bridges would have been effective. Some of the details, however, seem to be at variance with the expected structural action of the bridges, and there remain problems (not fully answered here) of practical construction.

Zürich architects Annette Gigon and Mike Guyer display an enjoyment of the realities – both physical and intellectual – of architectural production and, to this extent, can be seen as part of a prevailing pattern in northern Switzerland. This paper comments on their work and shows it also to be creatively critical, subverting a number of modern orthodoxies and supplanting them with an affective internal logic.

The controversial book Design by Competition by Jack L. Nasar (1999) is a challenge to designers (it must qualify as controversial after the stinking review in arq 3/4). It's a tacky production - banal cover, messy text layout, photos taken without a perspective control lens - and it also claims to speak for the people in a crusade against ‘high architecture’. Clearly, neither form nor content is calculated to stimulate enthusiasm in the architectural community.

Healing gardens have been widely used in healthcare settings, but rarely to heal the psychological illnesses of youth in inner-city neighbourhoods who have lost friends and family to violent deaths. The Urban Ecology Sanctuary in a courtyard of Du Sable High School in Chicago serves as a model of what such a garden might be like, providing places in which young people can reflect upon their loss, regain a sense of purpose, and reconnect to the natural world. This Sanctuary shows how architecture and landscape architecture can buffer the worst effects of social disruption.

The U.S. home builders and suppliers, funded by the Federal government, have developed new methods and technologies to improve the energy efficiency and reduce the cost of single-family housing. This report by Michael Crosbie, one of the researchers involved in the effort, reviews the work done so far and looks ahead to future collaborative efforts to advance this huge sector of the U.S. economy.

Cambridge University and Microsoft are planning a shared computer research and teaching laboratory on a green-field site to the west of the city. The clients wished to use Internet based communication between themselves and their architects, including email, a website and virtual reality. We explain how this is to be achieved, and describe experiences during the first half of a two year project. Particularly successful has been the use of games software (Quake II) for 3D presentation of the emerging building design.

The library at Sunshine Coast University, Queensland was completed three years ago. The library is both the physical heart and the social focus of the new campus. Two firms of architects collaborated on the design: one, Lawrence Nield & Partners, with extensive experience of major projects and the other, John Mainwaring & Associates, familiar with the local climate. The low budget encouraged innovatory construction. The building is of interest for its visual openness, its suitability for the subtropical climate and the extensive use of timber for cladding and screening.

Prefabricated wall systems are becoming a popular element of building construction, lending themselves to streamlining construction schedules and reducing overall construction costs. They also offer the potential for increased quality due to assembly in controlled factory environments. This paper reviews basic principles and concepts for the design of waterproofing systems for prefabricated brick wall panels. Using a project case study, the author shows that failure to adhere to certain proven conventional practices can have serious adverse consequences.

The AERC provides a focal point within Australia, on issues of indigenous housing and architecture for academic, government and community sectors. It fulfils three functions as: an undergraduate and postgraduate teaching centre, a research practice, and an archive incorporating an extensive collection of literature and images. The allied consultancy practice delivers services ranging from architectural design and settlement planning, to anthropological research, and has worked with numerous indigenous agencies, as well as government and private sector clients. Contact: Assoc. Prof. Paul Memmott, Director