August 15th, 2009

The structures that software built

The exquisite and daring curved planes of Frank Gehry's Walt Disney Concert Hall. The complex nest of woven steel beams that cover the Herzog & de Meuron-designed National Stadium in Beijing. And the flowing, wave-like roof created by Zaha Hadid to house water sports at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. These icons of contemporary architecture are the products of great minds. They also rely on increasingly sophisticated software systems that allow architects and engineers to realize the structures' complexity. They also help builders cut costs and cope with intermittent design changes. Check out
some of the most daring designs of recent—and future—times.