For most of our history, humans have treated Nature as a gigantic warehouse and commissary. The natural world has been a
source of raw materials, food, and other resources. Today, rapid advances in biological science and the growth of
nanotechnology are taking that inspiration to a new level and driving the creation of a new field: intentional biology.
Intentional biology, and its two main subfields, biomimicry and synthetic biology, treat nature not as a source of raw
materials, but as source and code. This report, Intentional Biology: Nature as Source and Code (SR-1051), reviews the
growth of these subfields; describes some of their key accomplishments; and explores their potential futures and impacts.
Borrowing from Nature is not new. The natural world has always been a source of materials and ideas for architects,
artists, and engineers. That's exactly what makes intentional biology so important: it promises to bring novel
scientific and technological knowledge to bear on design processes as old as life itself.
http://www.boingboing.net/2008/01/03/roy-amara-forecaster.html
Roy Amara, forecaster, RIP
Posted by David Pescovitz, January 3, 2008 1:44 PM | permalink
Images Roy 1 "We tend to overestimate the effect of a technology in the short run and underestimate the effect in the
long run." - Roy Amara (1925-2007)
Roy Amara, engineer, forecaster, and longtime president of Institute for the Future, died on Monday. At age 82, Roy
still made regular visits to IFTF and attended our conferences, always offering sage advice and brilliant bits of
insight. Several months ago, I had lunch with Roy and we talked at length about synthetic biology, an emerging field we
agreed will likely have a profound impact on our world. At IFTF, we always make a point to look back at history before
starting any forecast. As part of his personal interest in the future of synthetic biology and healthcare, Roy told me
he was taking a look way back, reading Charles Darwin's diaries from beginning to end.
Roy's career began in 1952 at the Stanford Research Institute where he worked on the development of the ERMA computer.
During his 18 years at SRI, he directed research programs on interactive computing, decision analysis, and worked
closely with Doug Engelbart on the proposals that led to Engelbart's history-making Augmentation Research Center. In
1970, he left SRI to become president of Institute for the Future, a not-for-profit research group that helps companies,
governments, foundations, and other institutions think about the long-term future. At IFTF, Roy established our Ten-Year
Forecast, now in its 35th year. In 1977, he led one of the first studies on the possible impacts of global climate change.
This year is IFTF's 40th anniversary. We'll miss Roy as we celebrate where his dedication, generosity, and foresight has
led us.
[permaculture] Intentional Biology: Nature As Source and Code,
Lawrence F. London, Jr., 01/04/2008