Discovering architecture within a seashell

The structures in nature are great lessons for human study. Having been in development for several billion years, only the most successful structural forms have survived. The resourcefulness of material, the underlying structural systems and the profound capacity to respond to a variety of climatic and environmental forces make natural structures tremendous exemplars to man-made structures. Their superior design is worthy of study.; Natural form is the manifestation of the phenomenon of invisible forces. These forces give the birth to visible shapes and structures. The results are forms that simply, economically and efficiently express the invisible forces that have a major influence on them. The wholeness of the form indicates that these forces are always in some sense of equilibrium. The internal tensions are balanced against one another into a stable configuration. In organisms of a complex form in nature, this configuration may be difficult to recognize. However, seashells are one of the natural forms whose functions are simple enough for to be approximated by a simple mathematical relationship.; The research is concerned with architectural form generation based on the abstracted seashell geometry. It is the intention of this research to inspire more interest in the analysis of natural forms through integration of architecture and technology. The focus of this research is to understand the seashell forms as applicable to human architectures by investigating the geometries and properties of the actual coiling seashells.; Engineering mechanics and applied mathematics are important tools to conduct this type of form analysis. Digital methods give us a language to create and simulate seashell forms. This research will suggest a variety of possible architectural forms derived from the natural geometry found within seashells.