Settlement Technologies

Feel free to edit :)

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to converge on ( not sure it will be active - just to make it easier for people to converge ) https://www.facebook.com/groups/144508152394503/

and

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Within a scope of emergent synthesis,

I imagine ( and this may be shared / out there in the grid of collective intelligence )

using low cost materials, and specific technologies,

for

=modular / granular / systems oriented settlement technologies=

I for example imagine the use of tensegrity and other techniques ( domes, etc ) for modulable constructions ( think lego / meccano / zomes : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zome#The_Zome_as_Building_Concept )

The idea is no enable experimentation with various combinations of geometric structures, themselves created out of standard structures.

One of such standard structure can be made out of a combination of materials, such as for example bamboo. ( fortified with a silicon solution ? )

I also imagine the use of information technologies, including computer aided parametric design, for an overall planning and design of such combination of granularity / modulable materials and sets,

as to fit it with a veriety of conditions and needs, including overall landscapes and environment : make it fit with the landscapes, use wind, solar energy, or water in a way as to create synergies with the combination of modules, themselves assembled into zome geometries shaping the overall parametric designs.

For example, I imagine, as with sets of maccano pieces, or lego blocks, the building of such granular elements into ensembles, having each piece have its own unique resource identifier ( rfid, bar code, ... ), enabling even non experienced "builders" to participate by using a smartphone application, and following the instructions of the smartphone, scanning pieces and knowing where to place them, at what angle, in what position in relation to geographical data, ... and in relation to other elements of the emergent structures.

In other words, all data, and design, would already be accomplished through open sourced collaborative work done on pc's, combining parametric design, with negotiation and pattern language applications.

=A transdisciplinary field of research= between tent builders and researchers, architects and urbanists, artists, community facilitators, and programmers can emerge...

The basic elements can be produced / created / manufactured in DIY / Hacker spaces, and partnerships for growing varieties of bamboo can be made with certain permaculture farms.

Better still, at some point, such combination of living / development / community / permaculture production spaces can emerge out of the process, and with the materials it produces...

An initial stage may be to =gather data about potential partners=

in the field of research and development as first layer ( those already active in such fields ),

with focus on technology ( materials, production / manufacturing of such materials, and also software and design related solutions )

and then by extension,

=converge information and contacts about communities interested=

...in integrating with their current processes such technologies and collaboration.

The modularity and low cost of such technologies can then further help experiment in an agile approach, about new social configurations - for example, placing a school / learning space in the middle of a community, experimenting with space and trans-generational interactions, etc

Trans-disciplinary synergies can be made also in terms of economic viablity, with multi purpose use of such structures.

Partnerships with existing events businesses or organizations can use such research and development ( and contribute to it ), as to apply them for events - with a prolonged pre and post event settlement potential for social experimentation.

When certain parts of such settlement become less of a temporary experiment, they can, for example for more easily going through certain seasons, such as winter, be combined with other local materials, such as clay and straw, building on existing knowledge and experience in the field of natural housing.

In effect, we can return to approaches used by some of our ancestry ( 10 000 or longer ago ), but re-actualize it to current technologies / knowledge.

I imagine first phases could build / use existing infrasructure ( be on a plot of land near an existing farm, with all conveniences ), and as technologies progress, enable further autonomy, even in more remote places, using "modules" that can easily be deployed and be environmentally friendly, leaving no traces if need be, or even helping regenerate depleted / polluted ecosystems ( which can also become a business model - supporting local communities and facilitating the integration of a variety of local forms of knowledge into a wider network of collaboration )

Using such modules in abandoned settlements is also an interesting perspective ( for example isolated villages in the mountains, who lost their population but already have proven their settlement viability )

Legal aspects can be taken into account through the process - the initial temporary and low environmental impact nature of such structures limiting initial needs for building permits. Yet depending on countries, safety regulations - midst others - may also need to be taken into account, hence the creation of an additional legal node within such transdisciplinary "phyle" approach.

I also imagine that if this can be developed under open source / open hardware licenses ( such as http://opensourceecology.org/, or arduino boards , ... ), there can be ( community supporting ? ) business models emerging for the manufacturing and sale of such "construction kits"...

further links
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Pattern_Language

http://sharewiki.org/en/Tensegrity http://sharewiki.org/en/Nomad_Tribe http://sharewiki.org/en/Emergent_Synthesis http://sharewiki.org/en/Leipzig_project

Parametric Design
http://www.rethinking-architecture.com/introduction-parametric-design,354/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parametric_Landscapes ... Open Source Ecology http://opensourceecology.org/

Zomes
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zome#The_Zome_as_Building_Concept

Also see :

Phyles and Open Hardware
http://www.humblefacture.com/2009/08/three-pillars-of-humblefacture.html https://www.sparkfun.com/news/963 http://p2pfoundation.net/Phyles http://p2pfoundation.net/Open_Structures_Project design like no one is patenting : http://www.wired.com/design/2013/01/sparkfun-10-years

excerpted from

Eimhin's reply
https://groups.google.com/d/msg/global-survival/HDWc3bnO2jY/ZS9L2hzd-rUJ

"I designed tents in Morrocco with 4th generation tent designers, made models and spoke with friends such as Gora from www.Gora.hu who are builders of these kinds of materials. Gora developed a method to treat Bamboo with a silicon solution that made them super super strong ( they tried to break them with a JCB and quite contentedly failed. Gora is currently in the build phase with a new eco community in Hungary...he is also a Yurt builder...well he builds things stat. Daniel has also built a few domes and Vinay's Hexayurts are wildly popular, at least in the US."

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