Evolution Process of Scientific Space: Spatial Analysis of Three Groups of Laboratories in History (16th–20th Century)

Abstract

Different disciplines need specialized spaces to ensure the smooth conduct of research, and the laboratory plays an important role as the physical carrier of knowledge production today. Reviewing history, it is found that the image of the laboratory and the organization of internal space have undergone great changes, which reflects people’s cognition of scientific practice in different periods. This study uses space syntax tools to analyze relationships between scientific research activities and spatial forms over time, preliminarily discussing laboratories’ spatial characteristics in different periods and the corresponding research modes. It is found that scientific research has undergone several phases, and the scientific paradigm deeply influences the spatial logic of scientific research buildings. The scientific research space in different periods presents unique syntactic results and topological structures, suggesting the trend of specialized research from closed to open and decentralization to centralization.

Keywords

• spatial syntax
• laboratory space
• historical evolution
• scientific research activities