A Moebius strip, also known as a Moebius band, is a fascinating mathematical object and a type of non-orientable surface. It was discovered independently by the German mathematicians August Ferdinand Möbius and Johann Benedict Listing in the 19th century. To visualize a Moebius strip, imagine taking a long, narrow strip of paper and giving it a half twist before connecting its ends to form a loop. The result is a surface with only one side and one edge. This Grasshopper…

This is a basic formation of component-based design in a dataflow environment. A double-curved surface is subdivided and re-constructed using straight sections. Parametric model of a surface construction by variable components. The main data list of subsurfaces are distributed into four distinct lists, that will be used to construct lines out of double-curved quadrilateral faces. Such definitions could be further advanced by adding a precise fabrication detail.

Design computing in architecture is evolved enough to form a more spread out advance, instead of being an alternative way of thinking and practising. Contemporary architectural practice is beginning to push forward such a transformation. This also effects architectural education, that is beginning to focus on digital design paradigm especially at undergraduate level not only in experimental studios, but also in formal education. Design studios however, play an important role on this transformation. Experimental studios on “computerized” architectural design are…

One of the most popular shapes in topology studies is the one-edge, one-face Moebius strip. Here is a basic definition that generates Moebius-like lofted surfaces. I say Moebius-like because, in Grasshopper, Rhino, or any NURBS surface method, I couldn’t manage to model this shape in its real topological singularity. The tricky part of this Grasshopper definition lies at the end, as I take the first segment of the surface, flip it, and attach it to the end of the segment…

Here are some basic references to Grasshopper’s handling of objects. As the most powerful and intuitive part of such Visual Programming Languages is the focus of dataflow, the critical part of it’s education lies at the fundamentals of data tree manipulations. Designers using these tools should understand and predict the type of data trees their parametric model would process. We’ll start with basic and the most important ones: Data tree conversion right on the input and output gates of any…

This was an interesting challenge for me to find out if an architect can use Visual Programming Languages (VPL’s) also for graphical purposes? Now, I would say “not exactly” because this definition took much time than I expected. The aim was to create an algorithm for a business card design that has variable outputs. Each card should be different, but without using any randomization. This project is suitable for more development because now it is only producing one sequence of…

I developed this code 13 years ago while learning the fundamentals of Visual Programming in Grasshopper. I was studying the ways of NURBS curve geometry. The animation shows the construction process of several Bezier Curves. In 2024, I optimized the code and added the thickness. The Flow Earring project showcases the beauty of parametric curves. The Grasshopper definition displays the animated construction process and the variations. The flow of the curve and its variations still look fascinating, reminding me of…

Here, we plan and develop a 3d model that uses regular flow on surface command. However, while we are doing this, we also start to create a pseudo-parametric definition (or diagram) of the modeling process. In the end, this gives us the complete dataflow diagram of the 3d model. Students are expected to start understanding both the differences between geometric modeling and parametric modeling and also between procedural computing and dataflow computing. Below is an example of such diagrams students…

There are a couple of experiments in different schools about organizing free-form surfaces (walls here) with a composition of modular elements (bricks). Even though they created robots to make such brick walls, I still couldn’t understand why. Although creating a parametric model that calculates the exact locations of bricks, seems very easy at first sight, there came severe problems to solve in order to achieve a correct layout without using helpers such as physics engines. Of course, it’s possible to…

Here, I used a curve to accomplish grid tearing. It’s straightforward, and from an educational perspective, this exercise includes several potentials on vector arithmetics and graph manipulation techniques. As a design domain, this definition stresses the use of associative entities in a parametric model. Any primitive or complex entity may evoke different parameters in others. The beauty in the simplicity of these algorithms still amaze me.