senseable city lab :.:: massachusetts institute of...

Senseable City Lab :.:: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

This paper might be a pre-copy-editing or a post-print author-produced .pdf of an article accepted for publication. For

the definitive publisher-authenticated version, please refer directly to publishing house’s archive system

SENSEABLE CITY LAB

12/2/15, 11:05 AMModelo Blog — Carlo Ratti of Carlo Ratti Associati

Page 1 of 14http://blog.modelo.io/#/carlo-ratti-of-carlo-ratti-associati/

Carlo Ratti (Photography by Lars Kruger

courtesy of Carlo Ratti Associati)

Carlo Ratti is an architect andengineer by training whopractices in Italy and teaches atMIT, where he directs theSenseable City Lab. Hegraduated from the Politecnicodi Torino and the ÉcoleNationale des Ponts etChaussées in Paris, laterearning his MPhil and PhD at

Carlo Ratti ofCarlo RattiAssociatiModelo Design Manifestos featureinterview with Carlo Ratti of CarloRatti Associati

Share

MODELO DESIGN MANIFESTOS

COMPANY BLOG SUBSCRIBEJoy & Efficiency for 3D Design Teams

Modelo private beta launch - click here for early access! ×

http://www.modelo.io/

http://blog.modelo.io/

http://blog.modelo.io/company-blog/

http://blog.modelo.io/subscribe/

http://blog.modelo.io/

http://modelo.us8.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=7c8f66e8a572a76642c25d8ef&id=206cbf7fbe



the University of Cambridge,UK. Carlo presents around theworld on the theme of SmartCities, including TED 2011, andhis work has been showcasedin leading publications andexhibitions globally. In 2011,Fast Company named him asone of the “50 Most InfluentialDesigners in America” andWired Magazine featured himin their “Smart List 2012: 50people who will change theworld.” Carlo Ratti Associatiaims to develop innovativedesign projects, merging highprofile architecture and urbanplanning with cutting-edgedigital technologies, so as tocontribute to the creation of notjust smart but also “senseable”cities and buildings. Recently,Modelo had the opportunity tolearn about Carlo’s uniqueapproach and designphilosophy.

On pursuing a multi-facetedprofessionI started studying engineeringat Politecnico in Turin and atthe Ecole des Ponts in Paris.Then, after graduation, while

http://www.carloratti.com/?page=home

http://www.modelo.io/



my classmates were busyentering the job market, Imoved on to architecture andcomputer science at theUniversity of Cambridge.Finally, I ended up with aFulbright scholarship at MIT.

You might ask why I followedsuch a convoluted path. Theonly explanation I can find isthat I was passionate aboutthose studies. The dots werescattered at the beginning, butthey lined up afterwards. Ialways liked a dialogue inTruffault’s movie ‘Jules et Jim’-between Jim and his professorAlbert Sorel: “Mais alors, quedois-je devenir?” — “UnCurieux.” — “Ce n’est pas unmétier.” — “Ce n’est pas encoreun métier. Voyagez, écrivez,traduisez…, apprenez à vivrepartout. Commencez tout desuite. L’avenir est aux curieuxde profession.”



‘Digital Water Pavilion’ (Photography by Claudio

Bonicco courtesy of Carlo Ratti Associati)

On starting his own firmToday, I wear three hats: I directresearch institute SenseableCity Lab at MIT; I work withdesign firm Carlo Ratti Associati(CRA); and I am engaged withseveral start ups. The vision isalways the same, although itfocuses on different areas ofapplication: research, projects,products.

At CRA we are passionateabout developing innovativedesign projects, at theconvergence of bits and atoms.We explore the merging of highprofile architecture and urbanplanning with ubiquitous digitaltechnologies. Ultimately, weaim to have a positive impacton the daily lives of the peoplewho will make use of and enjoyour projects.



‘Free Pixel’ (Photography by Nicholas Marchesi

courtesy of Carlo Ratti Associati)

On the relationship betweenowning a practice andteachingI think that the two reinforceeach other — that’s particularlytrue at MIT, a school that isbased on “learning by doing”.“Learning by doing” applies tostudents — as they are engagedwith labs — and professors, asthey carry out not only researchbut also other professionalactivities (offices, start ups,etc.). As in MIT’s motto: “Menset Manus”…

On upcoming projectsWe are working at severalscales — from the spoon to thecity, as Ernesto Nathan Rogersmight have put it. Also, I will tellyou about our project for theRio 2016 Olympics, called theWater Rings Pavilion. Sited onRio’s Lagoa de Freitas, itmagically floats on the water’ssurface thanks to a unique



digital response system — similar to the one used bysubmarines. It uses a real timeresponse system not to movebut to remain static, exactly atthe water level. Unlikely whathappens with normal flotationplatforms or barges, where oneis normally high above thewater level, thus losing contactwith it, the responsive floatingsystem will immerse the visitorsin a brand new waterexperience, letting them seethe lagoon from within.

In other terms the pavilioncreates space by subtraction,allowing views to extend overthe waterline.

‘Future Food District’ (Photography by Delfino

Sisto Legnani courtesy of Carlo Ratti Associati)

On the impact he’d like tohave on the future of design



First of all, let me say that Ibelieve that design shouldalways be concerned with thefuture. As Herbert Simon wrote,“The natural sciences areconcerned with how thingsare… Design, on the otherhand, is concerned with howthings ought to be, withdevising artifacts to attaingoals…Everyone designs whodevises courses of actionaimed at changing existingsituations into preferred ones.”

I believe that designers mustchallenge what exists today,introduce new and alternatepossibilities, and ultimatelypave the way towards adesirable future. This is notdissimilar to BuckminsterFuller’s ComprehensiveAnticipatory Design Science, asystematic approach to design,“to solve problems byintroducing into theenvironment new artifacts, theavailability of which will inducetheir spontaneous employmentby humans and thus,coincidentally, cause humans toabandon their previous



problem-producing behaviorsand devices.”

However, the designer mustpeddle abstract ideas. Crucially,the work must be madetangible — not necessarilycreating fully functionalproducts and systems, butdemonstrable concepts thatpromote interaction anddebate. The goal of design is togenerate alternatives and openup new possibilities.

Broadly speaking, this framesdesign as evolutionary — wherebeneficial changes will steerdevelopment in a positive way.In fact, biological species doessentially the same thing, onan extraordinarily long timeline.Random mutations areintroduced from one organismto the next, and if the mutationis successful, that organism willbe more likely to reproduce.The best changes areincorporated into the species,and, over time, it evolves.Continuing the analogy, thedesigner becomes what, inbiology, is referred to as a



‘mutagen’ — an agent thatproduces mutations. Specificdesign artifacts improvefunction or enable a newprocess, and on a broad scale,collectively drive change anddevelopment in the syntheticworld.

‘Local Warming’ (Photograph courtesy of Carlo

Ratti Associati)

On the state of designsoftware todayI think that the best software isa brain collective… Everythingcomes from there! When weneed special software weproduce it ourselves. It isimportant that architects arealso coders — and vice versa…

On the future of architecturein the next 5–10 yearsWe will continue to see theseamless integration of digital



and physical, bits and atoms.

What is happening at an urbanscale today is similar to whathappened two decades ago inFormula One auto racing. Up tothat point, success on thecircuit was primarily credited toa car’s mechanics and thedriver’s capabilities. But thentelemetry technologyblossomed. The car wastransformed into a computerthat was monitored in real timeby thousands of sensors,becoming “intelligent” andbetter able to respond to theconditions of the race. In asimilar way, over the pastdecade digital technologieshave begun to blanket ourcities, forming the backbone ofa large, intelligentinfrastructure. Broadband fiber-optic and wirelesstelecommunications grids aresupporting mobile phones,smartphones and tablets thatare increasingly affordable. Atthe same time, open databases — especially from thegovernment — that people canread and add to are revealing



all kinds of information, andpublic kiosks and displays arehelping literate and illiteratepeople access it. Add to thisfoundation a relentlesslygrowing network of sensorsand digital- controltechnologies, all tied togetherby cheap, powerful computers,and our cities are quicklybecoming like “computers inopen air.”

Regarding specific examples, Iwould like to highlight twopossible scenarios based onour own research at MIT. Thefirst is in the realm of mobility.Autonomous drivingtechnology has alreadymatured to a point where it canbe tested and viablyimplemented in real urbanspaces. A system of sharedautonomous cars might blur thedistinction between public andprivate transport. “Your” carcould drive you to work in themorning and then, rather thansit idle in a parking lot, drivesomeone else to run hiserrands. Instead of being a“family” car, a vehicle might be



shared among a neighborhood,an office cluster or even ashared social-mediacommunity. Two recent papersby MIT researchers sought tomodel and test this future of carsharing. They show that — intheory — the transportationdemand of a large city suchcould be satisfied with just one-fifth of the number of cars inuse today. Think of the possiblesavings in road and parkingspace and the reducedcongestion and travel times.

‘Future Food District’ (Photography by Delfino

Sisto Legnani courtesy of Carlo Ratti Associati)

Another area of transformationdeals specifically witharchitecture and might have avery direct impact on realestate. Today, buildings operateby approximation, satisfying thepeak demand rather than theactual need, whether with



lighting or temperature orspace. For example, if oneperson is in a room, the wholething will be lit and climate-controlled. A small class of ninestudents will use the sameroom as a class of 30. As ourbuildings become increasinglydigital, they will be able tobetter respond to our behavior.To achieve this, architecture willbe more physically flexible:think of walls and ceilings andpartitions that fold and unfold. Ifbuildings are a kind of “thirdskin” — after our biological oneand our clothing — it has beenrigid for its entire history. Withbetter data, the builtenvironment can adapt to us: Aliving, tailored architecture thatis molded by its inhabitants.

On discovering his voice as adesignerI have been often inspired byoutsiders in the designprofession — from BuckminsterFuller to Cedric Price toConstant. They had veryunconventional views, whichstarted to show all of theirpower after their death.



On advice he would give hisyounger selfRemember Alan Kay’s words:“The best way to predict thefuture is to invent it”. Suchinvention should becollaborative, so that we cancreate together our commonfuture.

http://modelo.us8.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=7c8f66e8a572a76642c25d8ef&id=206cbf7fbe

senseable city lab :.:: massachusetts institute of...

Documents