No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

Abstract:Water is ubiquitous and essential, yet we struggle to understand it from a systems perspective. Water is a terrestrial closed-loop system involving individuals, communities, cities and geographies, and as such, might it serve as a metaphor for sustainable design?We identify four locations and frame their connections through water and society. This interaction is highly relevant to future dense urban environments and of interest to CAAS (City As A Spaceship) who explore reciprocities between terrestrial and extra-terrestrial architecture and design. CAAS explores these approaches to water management: 1) California State (United States) 2) New Delhi (India) 3) The International Space Station (Lower Earth Orbit) 4) Micro-Ecological Life-Support System Alternative (European Space Agency Research settings)In this paper, CAAS applies design research approaches to curate and frame reciprocities between situations and societies. Using locational case studies and city-by-city scale infographics it generates a discursive space from which to imagine conceptual shifts in sustainable design.

The paper explores protective equipment for work in extreme environments manifested in a proposal for a haptic feedback system for astronauts. It follows the thesis that the safety of astronauts wearing Extra-Vehicular Activity (EVA) suits, whether in space or on planetary surfaces, is connected to their ability to interact with their environments, their equipment and suits, and their coworkers. The project emphasises the use of new technologies to enhance the quality of said interactions. Focusing on manned exploration and construction activity in space, qualitative research methods are employed to gain an overview of the factors that dictate work in space, endeavours in design and architecture for space, and research into the ways humans interact with their surroundings. Lastly, a conceptual prototype was made to explore the possibilities of exploring a language of haptic feedback to complement other systems and to mediate the sensory filters imposed by the modern space suit.