Summary

A comprehensive summary of the vocabulary used across the building industry, from the preparation of an architectural brief, through creative and technical design, to construction technology and facilities management.

The latest edition has several substantially revised entries as well as many new additions, including new illustrations and terms. Covering a range of disciplines across architecture and building and including both SI metric and Imperial units, this dictionary and reference work will enable students and professionals to use and understand vocabulary from other areas of expertise, and contribute to better communication.

Choice Review

Cowan (architectural science, University of Sydney, Australia) is one of the more prolific authors in the field of architecture. This dictionary is an update of his earlier Dictionary of Architectural Science (CH, Sep '84). The book has been completely revised and while some obsolete terms have been removed, more than 1,500 new terms have been added to this edition. Although the final selection of terms was in the hands of Cowan and his colleague, special attention was paid to the definitions and terms in John S. Scott's Dictionary of Building (3rd ed., 1984) and Dictionary of Architecture and Construction, ed. by Cyril M. Harris (CH, Nov '75). The definitions are clear and uncomplicated and there are many illustrations. Since the terms appear to be those used most often by the industry and by general readers, the book will be of value in almost any reference library, not just special or architectural libraries. An additional advantage is that the authors have paid attention to the growing field of architectural computing and have included helpful terms in this area. The cross-references are plentiful and helpful, and special care has been taken to resolve problems of spelling and usage among British, American, and Australian terms. Non-English terms only occur when they are in common use. Highly recommended.-R.J. Havlik, University of Notre Dame