Notes on "simplest possible pattern"

[Michael Mehaffy]

Some thoughts for discussion on Sunday -

My suggestion is that the repository would archive a standardized
format that then links to much more content on the repositor's site
(more discussion, background, research, citations etc etc - it can go
as far as it wants, and hyperlink into a network).

Each would be a short description, and link to more as needed.

1. Upward hyperlinks

2. Title (bust be a concise statement of the configurational
resolution: "staircase as a stage" etc...

3. Photo

4. Problem-statement. (All-important)

5. Discussion

6. Therefore statement (All-important)

7 Downward hyperlinks

1 and 7 would be dynamic and evolutionary, and editable by anyone
following typical wiki protocols. 2-6 would be put up by the
repositor. Changes/edits would be of two kinds: 1) proposed edits to
the pattern, and 2) Proposed new pattern. The new pattern would not
replace the old, but other editors would strengthen or weaken it by
the number of links they provide to it. In this way, stronger
patterns would come to prominence within the network over weaker ones.

[Bob Theis]

Here's a first pass at a new pattern. 

Head Height Parity

People like to sit near pedestrian activity, but normal sitting height puts one uncomfortably low in relation to standing people. 

( Photo of people perched on a wall facing a busy sidewalk ) 

It is not comfortable to sit with a standing person looming over you. In public places, this uncomfortable feeling compromises a lot of seating. 

Overcoming this disparity in head height is commonly done two ways: 

 1.  To define a piece of private space between the sitters and the standers, keeping the standers at a distance from the sitters so the sitter is not craning their neck to look up at the stander. This is one reason why a public bench recessed in an alcove feels better than one right on the sidewalk. 

2. To perch on a higher than normal seat. At stool height, the sitter has rough head height parity with people standing nearby. Bars are prime examples. 

A less common way to address this conflict is to raise the floor level of the sitting area relative to the adjacent walking area. This helps define the personal space mentioned earlier, and permits the use of normal height seating.  

Head height disparity is particularly pronounced when people sit on the floor.  Where floor sitting is the cultural norm, it is often the case that the sitting floor is raised several steps up from where people enter and circulate. 

Therefore: Where sitting is adjacent to a lot of pedestrian traffic, adjust seating heights or floor levels to give sitting people roughly the same head height as standing people. 

Comments welcome. 

Bob

[Eliezer Israel]

Glad to see patterns coming in. 
For any patterns that pass through this group, I'll commit to getting the material online - comments, images, and whatnot included, all with appropriate credit.

Thanks for jumping in the water, Bob!

[Eliezer Israel]

Been thinking a lot about this.  I think your sketch of a data model for patterns is a good starting point, Michael. 

As we work, I expect the model to adjust to the media that it is being presented (and developed) in.

We heard Murray Silverstein describe the process of creating the original book.  He described taking over a living room in south Berkeley and putting hanging folders from one end of the room to the other, arranged by scale.  The names on each folder could be changed easily, and many of them started off unnamed.  As material was collected - images, articles, studies - they'd get dropped into the appropriate folder. Sometimes folders would get merged.  These folders ended up being the raw material for the book. 

In that time, a process like this could only happen with a group that shared a location.  Now, a very similar process can take place in the common location of the Internet.  I think that is what we are creating here - a system of virtual hanging folders, the ability to collect material - images, links, blocks of text, 3d models, movie - and the ability to select, cull, refine that material into something of a 'current canonical' form that is the 'best of' the raw material.

The best form to present the full folder and to present the 'current canonical' will be driven by the medium of viewing -  a screen, a pad, a phone...

[Michael Mehaffy]

Lev - Yes, this is why Ward's platform is very intriguing to me...   Let's discuss on Sunday!

Cheers, m

--
Michael Mehaffy

Structura Naturalis Inc.

742 SW Vista Ave., #42

Portland, OR 97205

(503) 250-4449
www.tectics.com