Tensi... what?

           I have begun reading Thomas Myers' articles entitled the Body 3 (or the Body Cubed). It's a facinating look at the structure of the human body. You soon realize that we take so much for granted. He stesses something called "tensegrity".
So what is tenesgrity?

To quote Richard Buckminster Fuller (exerpt from Synergetics, p. 372)
          "The word 'tensegrity' is an invention: a contraction of 'tensional integrity.' Tensegrity describes a structural-relationship principal in which structural shape is guarenteed by the finitely closed, comprehensively continuous, tensional behaviors of the system and not by the discontinuous and exclusively local compressional member behaviors. Tensegrity provides the ability to yield increasingly without ultimately breaking or coming asunder." 

          Again I ask, what does that mean? Think of the structures like the Arch in St. Louis, it is held together souly by the compression of all it's parts. However, it is a moving object. There is the ability to absorb shock- thus preventing it from breaking apart. Now apply that principle to the human structure. We are made up of bones, muscles, and connective tissues. We are able to absorb massive amounts of stress and gravity. Bascially what I'm attempting to say, and how Myers looks at the body is that you cannot separate out the parts. Each part is dependent on the other. If there is undue strain or injury in one area it stands to reason it would affect others.

            We take our bodies for granted. We have forgotten to look at it as a whole structure. Look at the body as more of an arcitectural creation. It makes you appreciate the fact that we can stand up, let alone function.