The patterns of syntactic differentiation and their causes and effects are fundamental to space syntax analysis. Often, however, differentiation is taken for granted with no reference to the dynamic process that brings it about. Here, we first show that by measuring the amount of syntactic differentiation, we can better distinguish between types of street networks. We then show that repeated local transformations of a regular street grid lead to different yet largely predictable trajectories of differentiation depending upon the rules used. Finally, we show that different paths to differentiation entail different costs in terms of undesirable properties. This allows us to better assess the likely consequences of design moves and their appropriateness relative to design intentions.

句法分化的模式及其因果关系是空间句法分析的基础。但是，通常，差异化是理所当然的，而不涉及导致差异化的动态过程。在这里，我们首先表明，通过测量语法差异的数量，我们可以更好地区分街道网络的类型。然后，我们表明，根据所使用的规则，规则街道网格的重复局部转换会导致不同但很大程度上可预测的差异化轨迹。最后，我们表明，不同的差异化途径在不良特性方面带来了不同的成本。这使我们能够更好地评估设计移动的可能后果及其相对于设计意图的适当性。