The Architecture of Closed Worlds: Or, What Is the Power of Shit?

What do outer space capsules, submarines and office buildings have in common? Each was conceived as a closed system—a self-sustaining physical environment demarcated from its surroundings by a boundary prohibiting the transfer of matter or energy. As partial reconstructions of the world in time and space, closed systems identify and implement the basic materials necessary for the sustenance of life.

From the space program to coun...