Asymptote, an award-winning New York City-based architectural firm, expands the boundaries of traditional practice with work that ranges from buildings and urban design to computer-generated environments. Recognized internationally as both cutting-edge architects and virtual-reality artists, Asymptote partners Lise Anne Couture and Hani Rashid have designed and written the first book to document their real world´ (as opposed to virtual) projects completed since 1995. It includes work as diverse as a trading floor for the New York Stock Exchange, a multimedia research park in Kyoto, Japan, a modular furniture system for Knoll, and a centre for art and technology for the Guggenheim Museum in Soho, New York. Their work is intriguing because it draws inspiration from a wide range of sources not traditionally associated with architecture -airline interiors, sporting equipment, and organic systems like seashells and honeycombs and means of communicating and disseminating information. ´