Some ramblings on lists. Anyone else love them?
I have always appreciated a good list. I think the (now passed?) listicle trend was a travesty because it cheapened a beautiful thing. There is just something intellectually satisfying about enumerating a taxon.
I’m studying architecture for a class I’m taking and wow do academic architects LOVE lists. And I also study Buddhism and the sheer number of lists is staggering. A recent dive into both of these topics and I’ve finally hit a tipping point.
I have started collecting especially juicy lists I’m finding. Both official named lists and one-offs introduced in essays I’m reading.
Here’s one about the list of modern demands of architecture:
And today the wants of program, structure, mechanical equipment, and expression, even in single buildings in simple contexts, are diverse and conflicting in ways previously unimaginable.
From "Non-straightforward Architecture: A Gentle Manifesto," Robert Venturi
I have this pet theory that memorizing lists like the above helps transform the mind. It installs anchors that other information and experiences can be attached to.
What are people’s experiences with lists? What are your favorites?