Research On The Identification Approach Of Urban Space Gene

The Space Gene Research,a study of SPACE-NATURE-CULTURE interaction model in the Urban Space Development Theory,which elaborates spatial organized laws of urban form and provides an operational thinking paradigm and approach for the win-win of natural protection,cultural inheritance and contemporary construction,has significant research and practice value.However,due to the space gene research is still in the initial phases,the systematic approach for identifying space gene has not been proposed and the completion of this step only rely on the ability of the researchers.Objectivity of findings as a result are then often questionable.The key reason of this issue is that the concept and mechanism of space genes are not understood correctly,so the approach of identifying space genes cannot be used appropriately.Which contributes to the operational efficiency and accuracy of space gene analysis and inheritance technology in practice.Consequently,the aim of this Ph D thesis is to propose a systematic approach for identifying space genes while consolidating space gene’s definition and mechanism.First of all,based on the summary of gene analogy research in urban form and the discrimination of related concepts,the definition of space gene is further clarified,which mainly includes the core points of material elements,hierarchical attributies and contained information.Secondly,based on the theoretical basis of urban complex system and referring to the genetic principle of biogical genes,the mechanism of space gene affecting urban form is discussed,including three processes of coding,replication and expression.The above two parts provide the basis for the systematic and scientific cognition of space gene.Then,based on the research results of space gene’s connotation and mechanism,the technical framework of space gene’s identification is proposed.The core view of identifing a space gene is the space traced of local urban identity,which means abstracting the stable patterns of spatial organization from urban characteristic space,including local harmonious interation model of space,nature and culture,and its concrete mainifestation in space – space elements configuration relations.The specific process is elaborated from two stages of identifying specific urban spatial characteristics and abstracting stable patterns of spatial organization from spatial characteristics,and five steps of(1)summarying urban characteristic space,(2)obtaining the public cognition of the characteristic space,(3)identifying the space gene character(including spatial cognition and spatial morphology)by clustering and screening the spatial characteristics,(4)abstracting the configuration relations of spatial elements from each space gene character,and(5)combining a set of spatial organization rules affecting the expression of specific spatial characteristics based on the selection of spatial elements configuration relations.Finally,the approach is represented and proved by case study of Xiamen,China.The main contributions of this Ph D thesis include three aspects.First,based on the existing definition and research framework of space gene,the connotation and mechanism of space gene are further elaborated,which provides a cognitive basis for the future research.Second,in the view of the lack of the systematic approach of space gene’s identification,a generalized approach is proposed,which guides reseachers to identify space gene effectively.Thired,combining the case of Xiamen,it attempts to connecting the urban planning strategies with urban identity through the space gene study.