now and not anything else. Generational Typology Generational Typology (also ‘Machiya Metabolism’) is based on research into the building type known as machiya (traditional townhouses/merchant houses constructed in the Edo period), specifically in the Kanazawa area of Japan. This area is optimal for the investigation into the transformation of these building types over time as the area was spared destruction from the earthquakes and effects of war during the 20th century. The machiya chosen for this research were not necessarily those designated for comprehensive historic preservation, but were “nameless machiya” – those that may have transformed due to more humble influences. These examinations were undertaken to further develop the concept of ‘Behaviorology’ and stems from the understanding of the existence of different “timescales” and that these must be taken into consideration when observing the behaviour of various systems; a human being's psychological behaviour could be observed in a period of one day. A society group's routines could become apparent in a week, or a community's in a year. For buildings, its behaviour may only become apparent after documenting its transformations over decades or centuries. From the investigations into these machiya, several generational typologies are described based on the behaviour and evolution of the machiya over time by being exposed to the “pressures of modernization, from its original formula”. Void Metabolism Void metabolism is an urban formula which focuses on void spaces which develop between buildings when they are rebuilt. In Tokyo small houses cover the land with greenery inserted in the gaps between. This is a highly sustainable urban form which regenerates itself; with privately owned properties. It can be considered a type of metabolism, though quite different in content than the 1960s architectural thought. At that time concepts focussed on the composition of the vertical core. We can see that architects believed that the construction of the city would be carried out effectively through a concentration of power and capital. However, the regeneration of houses revolve not around a core, but a void- the gap space between buildings. This would be determined by the initiatives of individual families, rather than the accumulation of central capital. If the urban formula of void metabolism begins with Tokyo's first developments in the 1920s, then the oldest parts are already 90 years old. With the 26-year lifespan of houses, those in the original areas have, in theory, regenerated twice over. There are differences