Abstract: A compliant bearing surface supported by an enclosed nearly incompressible fluid is described. A fluid supported compliant bearing surface has the ability to separate out the average load on the bearing surface from the local load variations across the surface. The average load is balanced directly by the supporting fluid leaving the compliant surface in a globally balanced condition and thus a able to readily conform in response to local load variations. A fluid supported compliant bearing surface has excellent compliance coupled with high unit load capacity. The applications include a wide range of bearing types from high pressure gas bearings to ball and socket joints. The fundamental elements of the fluid supported bearing surface are based on observations of nature's optimum design--the intervertebral discs of the spine.