OCS Seminars
Dr. Martyn Dade-Robertson: Growing Buildings with Bacteria: An Architects approach to Synthetic Biology
Abstract:
Architects have a long-standing interest in Biology and, in more recent years, this interest has extended to include speculation on a wide range of biotechnologies. Some have proposed that in the future buildings may construct themselves and grow and heal using living materials and structures. This presentation will attempt to move beyond this speculation and introduce very early work that has been conducted using bacteria based technologies to create a new range of materials. This presentation will focus on the EPSRC funded Computation Colloids project, as well as, introducing a selection of projects and concepts. EPSRC investigates how Civil Engineering may be integrated with the emerging field of Synthetic Biology. Combining these fields has potential transformative implications to both and may generate a new field of Engineering Design. Imagine a column of sand saturated with billions of engineered bacteria cells. As a force is applied to the top of the column, bacteria in the sand detect an increase in pressure. The bacteria respond by synthesizing a new biological material to bind the grains together and resisting the load. The resulting structure would consist of a material where sand grains are only cemented where the forces through the material require it. Dr. Dade-Robertson is developing a proof of concept to show how one might design a manufacturing process where the material itself acts as manufacturer and designer, modelling and responding to its environment. Such a technology would push well beyond the current state of the art and challenge a new generation of engineering designers to think at multiple scales from molecular to the built environment and to anticipate civil engineering with living organisms.
Biography:
Martyn Dade-Robertson is the Reader in Design Computation at Newcastle University. Through the development of core research programs in technology and scientific areas such as Synthetic Biology, his aim is to develop a rigorous intellectual engagement with new types of material systems and practices. Martyn holds degrees in Architecture from Newcastle University, and Masters and PhD degree from Cambridge University. More recently Martyn has completed an MSC in Synthetic Biology and specializes in the application of bacteria based materials and systems for Architectural Design and Engineering. Martyn has published more than 30 peer reviewed publications including the book The Architecture of Information (Routledge 2011) and received more than £700,000 in research income working on projects which span architectural design, computation and biotechnologies. Most recently he has lead the EPSRC funded project “Computational Colloids” which aims to engineer bacteria based mechanical sensors to develop responsive materials. His work has been covered in a range of international media including The Times, Reuters, The Daily Mail Online and Science.
