core laws of space syntax

Space is the Machine. There it was shown that every time a partition is placed in a system, it has a predictable effect on ‘universal distance’ within that system. In that text, four partitioning principles were proposed for the minimising or maximising of ‘depth gain’ in a system, depth gain being the increase in universal distance due to the placing of a partition. The principles were: centrality– partitioning a line in its centre creates more depth gain than partitioning it eccentrically; extension– partitioning a longer line creates more depth gain than partitioning a shorter line; contiguity–making partitions contiguous increases depth gain more than making them discrete; and linearity– arranging contiguous partitions linearly increases depth gain more than coiling them up, as, for example, in a room.