

#1540
Mentioned in 22 episodes
A pattern language
Towns, Buildings, Construction
Book • 1977
This book, written by Christopher Alexander and his colleagues, introduces the concept of a 'pattern language' consisting of 253 patterns that address various design problems in architecture, urban planning, and community design.
Each pattern describes a recurring problem and its solution, allowing readers to adapt these solutions to their specific needs and local conditions.
The book is structured to help ordinary people, as well as professionals, design and improve their homes, streets, and communities.
It has had significant influence on fields beyond architecture, including software engineering and urban planning.
Each pattern describes a recurring problem and its solution, allowing readers to adapt these solutions to their specific needs and local conditions.
The book is structured to help ordinary people, as well as professionals, design and improve their homes, streets, and communities.
It has had significant influence on fields beyond architecture, including software engineering and urban planning.
Mentioned by





















Mentioned in 22 episodes
Mentioned by 

as the author of "A Pattern Language."


Michael Dean

848 snips
Michael Dean: The 27 Patterns To Fix Bad Writing | How I Write
Mentioned by 

as a work that breaks architecture down to primitive geometries and patterns.


Michael Dean

210 snips
Michael Dean — The Architecture of Essays (EP.281)
Mentioned by 

as an inspiration for his essay architecture framework.


Michael Dean

111 snips
#133: Michael Dean – The Invisible Patterns Behind Great Essays: How Essay Architecture Can Shape Your Writing and Break Through Perfectionism.
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as an inspiration, detailing patterns for people to design their own houses.

Geoffrey Litt

92 snips
Geoffrey Litt - The Future of Malleable Software
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because Patrick Hollison admires Christopher Alexander and takes a lot of inspiration from him.

Tamara Winter

68 snips
23: Tamara Winter - Tacit Trust & Caring Curiosity
Mentioned by 

as an example of someone who encouraged aiming for greatness in one's work.


Nabeel Qureshi

40 snips
Nabeel Qureshi: Principles For Living
Recommended by 

as a book on design principles applicable to software engineering.


Kent Beck

29 snips
Kent Beck Reflects on Tidy First?
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as a concept based on emotional, sensory, and tonal cues.

Darren Glencross

24 snips
110 New Neurodivergence Model with Darren Glencross
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as an author who emphasizes the innate human sense of quality in design.

Amit Paul

18 snips
256. Kasper Bjorkskov - shifting the building industry, transformation through action and biodiversity
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as a series of books built on the idea of languages in architecture to build modern towns.

Nadia Idle
18 snips
ACFM Microdose: Gardening
Recommended by 

, mentioning that design patterns were based on this architecture book.


Will Larson

14 snips
Will Larson Reflects on Staff Engineer
Mentioned by 

when talking about components in every building.


Chris Strahl

13 snips
137. Why You Shouldn’t Aim for Perfect: Building Design Systems That Deliver Business Value with Noelle Lansford
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in the context of architectural patterns and decision-making.

Andrew Harmel-Law

12 snips
Facilitating Software Architecture • Andrew Harmel-Law & Sonya Natanzon
Mentioned by 

in relation to designing systems around human behavior.


Paul Orlando

12 snips
Complex systems & second-order effects (Interview)
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when discussing patterns and the process of repair in architecture.

Andrew Harmel-Law

Breaking the Architecture Bottleneck • Andrew Harmel-Law & Marit van Dijk
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to explain a phenomenon where design patterns help experienced people but might hinder beginners.

Eric Normand

The Christopher Alexander Effect
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when discussing design patterns in built environments that correlate with human flourishing.

Deb Roy

Alexis Ohanian and Deb Roy on Big Tech’s Effects on Democracy
Mentioned when discussing the importance of common land for social systems to survive, referencing a quote from the book.

Beating the Loneliness Epidemic, One Step at a Time
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for its architectural theories and connection to environmental serendipity and phenomenology.

Andrea Hiott

#29: Pattern Language, Wholeness and Place-synergy: discussing Christopher Alexander with geographer David Seamon
Mentioned by Mia Winther-Tamaki as a reference for understanding pattern language in urban planning.

Season 8. Ep. - 5 - Governance W/ Ethan, Mia & Will









