This short paper demonstrates the existence of an error in instantaneous heat loss calculations due to errors inherent in the input data. By implication, these errors will also be present in thermal simulation programs.

Visual DOE is a Windows interface version of the DOE2 simulation program. Its purpose is to help save time in writing BDL input for the simulation. As its calculation engine is the same as DOE2 in the DOS version, DOE should result in the same output as the DOS version. However, difficulties arise in identifying the building's configurations, materials and construction and systems in the two input versions. While modeling a simple one-story Hpassive H building, it was difficult to get a good match in the simulation results in the two versions.

Sustainable building design has received increased attention over recent years and the use of natural ventilation in non-domestic buildings has been integral to this forward-looking issue. Natural ventilation design has been assisted by the availability of computer-based simulation techniques capable of predicting aspects of building design such as thermal comfort and air quality.

A course which implemented a computer tool •As/CL/MA", as an aid in passive solar design, was taught in the School of Architecture of the University of Zulia, in Maracaibo, Venezuela. AS/CL/MA was designed by the author and used by students for the simulation of thermal conditions inside buildings. The students applied their creativity to generate ideas and the computer program to evaluate them, with the benefit of increased speed and precision over manual methods.

This paper describes the measurements and evaluation of the indoor thermal environments in a large domed stadium. This stadium was built mainly for professional baseball games, but it has a lot of other purposes. It will be used not only for many sport games but also for various entertainment events. To satisfy such purposes, various intelligent mechanical systems were equipped to control and create a suitable space and environment without consuming excessive energy.

The article describes experiments with wall-mounted air terminal devices. The airflow from an air terminal device influences the occupants' thermal comfort and, therefore, it is important to develop an expression for the flow in the occupied zone. The velocity at the floor is influenced by the flow rate to the room, the temperature difference and the type of diffuser. The flow is stratified at Archimedes numbers larger than four. The article gives expressions for the velocity distribution close to the floor.