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TRO architect Steve Berger is out to prove that it truly is a small world - at least where Memphis architects are concerned.
Berger has created a program similar to an elaborate family tree, tracing the genealogy of Memphis architects and architecture firms, both past and present.
I wanted everybody to be able to see how we're all linked," Berger says. "A lot of Memphis architects worked for each other or had partners in different firms, and to have it documented is good to have for a professional interest, but it's also just really interesting."
The format for Berger's genealogy project is a computer program called The Brain, typically used for file management. The Brain acts the way the human mind thinks, using the six degrees of separation method to link seemingly unrelated pieces of information.
The program is searchable by architects' names, firms, hometowns and colleges, as well as by firm names.
A user can select an architect's name, which will show that architect's hometown, college and all the firms for which he or she worked. Clicking on one of the architect's former employers from that screen brings up another screen, showing all the architects formerly or currently employed by that firm and all the firms at which the employees previously worked.
In this way, architects can see their connections to past architects...