I'm not complaining about Youtube by any means, there is certainly some useful information to be had there.

Im just encouraging people not to use things like Youtube and Wikipedia as primary sources. They are great for pointing you in the right direction to do some serious research or introducing you to a new topic, but there is no guarantee of their accuracy. But go ahead and link videos, they are interesting and do point out things we may not have found otherwise.

Now back to geometry...

It is interesting to think of geometry in terms of celestial harmony, and even music. We have the Musica Universalis, the music of the universe. But we also have the the Harmonius Mundi, the harmony of the earth. The former is often represented in the grand scale, such as with Kepler's models with the platonic solids. The latter is thought of in a minute scale, and is in the middle ages manifested by geometry. Geometry, one could say, IS Harmonius Mundi. It is the harmonic relationship of all earthly things.

This is interesting, because we know that vibrations can destroy things. A constant vibration in many cases can do much more damage than a sudden blast of much greater force. We have the example that many wooden bridges restricted travel across them to a walk, as the harmonic rhythm of a horse's trot could lead to the destruction of the wooden frame. We also have the example of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, where the wind achieved the exact speed to cause the bridge to vibrate in such a way that it shook apart. The bridge had been subject to much higher winds, but this particular wind was at the exact right speed and angle to cause it to vibrate in a damaging way.

In the same way, we recognize when designing floor frames that they must be designed in such a way that their harmonic vibration is well outside of the range that might be caused by normal human activity, lest they fail quite unexpectedly.

SO one could take these ideas and theorize that geometry divides a frame along lines of harmony. As a string divided in perfect geometric ratios creates perfect notes that resonate in harmony with each other, so the it is with the geometric frame. We might think of our timbers as great strings being plucked to create a certain resonance. If we divide these string arbitrarily we will create dissonance. Think of the violin with no frets, we must put our finger at the exact right spot to create a harmonious note. Otherwise we have dissonance. This dissonance, even if very minute, is immediately noticeable to he human ear and will ruin the music. You cannot pick a spot to place your finger without the knowledge of where it should go.

And so it may be with timbers. IF we arbitrarily choose a location to place a post or strut or brace or whatever, then we may indeed create geometric dissonance. But divide the the frame, indeed the building as a whole, along geometric means, then we achieve 'Harmonius Mundi' And what better method is there to stand against the forces of nature than with nature itself?

What geometric dissonance could be I am not entirely certain. It could be an aspect of vibration, and poor choice of division leads to poor handling of vibration, or for that matter any other natural force (it is the natural forces over long periods of time that are the most damaging). Or it could be a matter of strength, rather than weakness. That is to say, poorly divided frames don't weaken any of the members, but rather by doing so you are not gaining an aspect of strength that is available to you. A dissonant frame could indeed stand, as a dissonant not doesn't cause the instrument to shake apart, but it would not stand for long I suspect.

Dissonant intervals are used to stir emotion in music. The tritone, for example, is a musical interval that will immediately cause a feeling of discomfort, anxiety, and even to some degree anger. It leaves you in anticipation of another note, but if it goes unresolved than it is unsettling. Total dissonance, where notes have no harmonic relationship whatsoever, is terrible, and we cannot stand to listen to it.

In a similar way, dissonance may leave the geometry of a building in anticipation. It expects something else to come along, but if it is not thee than the frame is left in unequal tension. I propose that a frame must be in balance. Not reflective symmetry, but harmonic balance. This means that harmonic relationships must be balanced out, as in music you do not hold the tritone without resolving to the fourth or the fifth, or you do not end a song on a note that is not suitable. In a frame you cannot have unbalanced relationships.

Perhaps a deep study of the music theory of those before the creation of the modern tempered western scale would tell us a lot about building and engineering...

This could all be crazy, but it could all be something huge. If this theory is right, than it is everything.

I would love to be able to test it, but I do not have the resources.