[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:00.00,0:00:01.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I think stairs may be
Dialogue: 0,0:00:02.77,0:00:07.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,one of the most emotionally\Nmalleable physical elements
Dialogue: 0,0:00:07.44,0:00:09.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that an architect has to work with.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:09.14,0:00:11.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[Small thing. Big idea.]
Dialogue: 0,0:00:12.77,0:00:15.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,[David Rockwell on\Nthe Stairs]
Dialogue: 0,0:00:15.45,0:00:19.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,At its most basic, a stair is a way\Nto get from point A to point B
Dialogue: 0,0:00:19.13,0:00:20.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,at different elevations.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:20.74,0:00:23.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Stairs have a common language.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:23.29,0:00:26.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Treads, which is the thing\Nthat you walk on.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:26.15,0:00:30.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Riser, which is the vertical element\Nthat separates the two treads.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:30.09,0:00:33.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A lot of stairs have nosings\Nthat create a kind of edge.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:33.99,0:00:36.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And then, the connected piece\Nis a stringer.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:37.76,0:00:41.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Those pieces, in different forms,\Nmake up all stairs.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:41.78,0:00:44.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I assume stairs came to be\Nfrom the first time someone said,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:44.64,0:00:47.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"I want to get to this higher rock\Nfrom the lower rock."
Dialogue: 0,0:00:47.69,0:00:49.91,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,People climbed\Nusing whatever was available:
Dialogue: 0,0:00:49.93,0:00:52.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,stepped logs, ladders
Dialogue: 0,0:00:52.18,0:00:54.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and natural pathways\Nthat were worn over time.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:54.87,0:00:58.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Some of the earliest staircases,\Nlike the pyramids in Chichén Itzá
Dialogue: 0,0:00:58.54,0:01:00.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or the roads to Mount Tai in China,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:00.85,0:01:03.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,were a means of getting\Nto a higher elevation,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:03.38,0:01:06.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which people sought\Nfor worship or for protection.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:06.85,0:01:10.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,As engineering has evolved,\Nso has what's practical.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:10.68,0:01:13.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Stairs can be made\Nfrom all kinds of material.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:13.39,0:01:15.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There are linear stairs,\Nthere are spiraled stairs.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:15.80,0:01:18.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Stairs can be indoors,\Nthey can be outdoors.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:18.36,0:01:20.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They clearly help us in an emergency.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:20.70,0:01:23.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But they're also a form of art\Nin and of themselves.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:28.60,0:01:30.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,As we move across a stairway,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:30.91,0:01:35.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the form dictates our pacing,\Nour feeling, our safety
Dialogue: 0,0:01:35.27,0:01:39.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and our relationship and engagement\Nwith the space around us.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:39.76,0:01:44.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So for a second, think about stepping down\Na gradual, monumental staircase
Dialogue: 0,0:01:44.27,0:01:46.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,like the one in front\Nof the New York Public Library.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:47.20,0:01:48.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,From those steps,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:48.42,0:01:51.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you have a view of the street\Nand all the people around you,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:51.67,0:01:55.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and your walk is slow and steady\Nbecause the tread is so wide.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:55.73,0:01:57.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That's a totally different experience
Dialogue: 0,0:01:58.00,0:02:01.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,than going down the narrow staircase\Nto, say, an old pub,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:01.05,0:02:02.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where you spill into the room.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:02.72,0:02:06.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There, you encounter tall risers,\Nso you move more quickly.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:06.20,0:02:08.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Stairs add enormous drama.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:08.34,0:02:11.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Think about how stairs\Nsignaled a grand entrance
Dialogue: 0,0:02:11.77,0:02:13.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and were the star of that moment.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:13.65,0:02:15.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Stairs can even be heroic.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:15.31,0:02:18.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The staircase that remained standing\Nafter September 11th
Dialogue: 0,0:02:18.62,0:02:20.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the attack on the World Trade Center
Dialogue: 0,0:02:20.66,0:02:22.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was dubbed the "Survivors' Staircase,"
Dialogue: 0,0:02:22.56,0:02:26.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because it played such a central role\Nin leading hundreds of people to safety.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:27.44,0:02:29.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But small stairs\Ncan have a huge impact, too.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:29.98,0:02:32.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The stoop is a place\Nthat invites neighbors to gather,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:32.99,0:02:35.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,blast music, and watch the city in motion.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:36.05,0:02:39.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's fascinating to me that you see people\Nwanting to hang out on the stairs.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:39.74,0:02:44.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I think they fill\Na deeply human need we have
Dialogue: 0,0:02:44.40,0:02:48.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to inhabit a space\Nmore than just on the ground plane.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:48.63,0:02:52.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And so if you're able to sit\Nhalfway up there,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:53.09,0:02:54.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you're in a kind of magical place.