Christopher Alexander's Fifteen Properties of Living Structure in Software

Ben Christel, 2024

This essay was originally published on Substack.

• Introduction
• An Extremely Cursory Summary of Alexandrian Thought
• 1. Levels of Scale
• 2. Strong Centers
• 3. Boundaries
• 4. Alternating Repetition
• Interlude 1
• 5. Positive Space
• 6. Good Shape
• 7. Local Symmetries
• 8. Deep Interlock and Ambiguity
• Interlude 2
• 9. Contrast
• 10. Gradients
• 11. Roughness
• 12. Echoes
• 13. The Void
• 14. Simplicity and Inner Calm
• 15. Not-Separateness
• Conclusion?
• The Alexandrian Solution