We enjoyed hosting Prof. Attilio Petruccioli, who gave a super exciting lecture on traditional courtyard houses in the Middle East. Prof. Petruccioli, former Professor of Design for Islamic Societies at the Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture at MIT, gave the first lecture of the "Extra-Urban House" design seminar within the first-year course at Heriot-Watt Dubai in Spring 2021. Deep awareness and knowledge of history and traditional typologies are essential to elevating young architectural designers' intellectual development.