Having domain-specific vocabulary doesn't imply something is scientific, much less pretentiously pseudo-scientific.
It's hard to talk about the specifics of a problem if you don't have names for things, don't you agree?
The secondary masses should never compete with the primary mass.
We are bikeshedding on the word "science" so I regret using that phrase because it diverted the replies from my point. Perhaps it would have been better to say I disagree with his opinion on house design presented as some kind of universal aesthetic. His condescending tone[1] used throughout the article in an attempt to sound "authoritative" seems strange considering many professionally trained architects deliberately design houses with the "voids" and "masses" he dislikes.
In another example he writes, "another issue with McMansions and mass is the use of too many voids". For some reason, the author doesn't acknowledge that many classically trained architects will deliberately put in "too many voids" so it brightens the interior of the house with light. The other reason for extensive windows/voids is to provide an expansive view of an outdoor feature such as a lake from inside the house. Smaller windows or no windows as the author advises detracts from these desirable design goals.
[1] e.g. "it means that they are simply not educated in basic architectural concepts."
This strikes me as a reasonable argument, but then the issue isn't the author's vocabulary; it's the contents of his analysis!
It's quite strange to get hung up on this issue. Yes, those principles are subject to interpretation/taste/subjectivit/etc, but that's hardly the point.
I mean no disrespect to anyone in this comment thread, but this line of criticism is pedantic.
Strongly disagree. In my experience, people who like to use highly specific domain vocabulary are far more concerned with appearing intelligent than they are with actually being intelligent.
I've heard so many senior engineers speak in Buzzword Babble that I no longer take seriously the opinion of someone who cannot have a conversation in plain English.