Comb the Honey: Bee Interface Design by Ri Ren
Comb the Honey: Bee Interface Design by Ri Ren Ph.D., Central Academy of Fine Arts (2014) S.M., Saint-Petersburg Herzen State University (2010) B.A.,Tsinghua University (2007) Submitted to the Program in Media Arts and Sciences, School of Architecture and Planning in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Media Arts and Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology May 2020 © Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2020. All rights reserved. Author ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Program in Media Arts and Sciences May 2020 Certified by ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Neri Oxman Associate Professor of Media Arts and Sciences Accepted by ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Tod Machover Academic Head, Program in Media Arts and Sciences 2 Comb the Honey: Bee Interface Design by Ri Ren Submitted to the Program in Media Arts and Sciences, School of Architecture and Planning on May 2020 in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Media Arts and Sciences Abstract: The overarching goal of the thesis is to understand the mechanisms by which complex forms are created in biological systems and how the external environment and factors can influence generations over different scales of space, time, and materials. My research focuses on Nature’s most celebrated architects — bees — and their architectural masterpiece — the honeycomb. Bee honeycombs are wax-made cellular structures of hexagonal prismatic geometries. Within the comb, bees form their nests, grow their larvae, and store honey and pollen. They operate as a “social womb” informed, at once, by communal (genetic) makeup and environmental forces. Resource sharing, labor division, and unique communication methods all contribute to the magic that is the bee “Utopia.” Given that the geometrical, structural, and material make up of honeycombs is informed by the environment, these structures act as environmental footprints, revealing, as a time capsule, the history of its external environment and factors.
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