ABSTRACT
A study of predatory insects known as water striders, which miraculously appear to walk on top of water, informs the project's approach. A series of diagrams explains this fascinating insect's locomotive behavior and quantifies the dynamic interaction between its body and the water's surface. The project combines the creature's micro-structural efficiency with the dispersive fluid dynamics of water to form a series of programmatic bands which unfold across successive layers of program. These layers include athlete housing, an administrative office, a buffer zone, and an athlete-press zone. The neoprene unit becomes a formal analysis of the complexities of the water strider's physiological structure, while the larger surface studies capture the momentum associated with the insect's tireless effort to propel forward. The water strider's legs are covered with microscopic hairs that scientists describe as superhydrophobic, that is, they trap tiny air bubbles, allowing the insect to temporarily float.
