A key consideration in the making of future environments is the intrinsic role technology plays in their design and engineering. Certain environments known today as extreme, only accessible to a select number of users, in fact reveal core design principles and approaches relevant to the making of future everyday spaces to work, live and learn. This talk will explore the intersection of these design principles with practice. It will reference research on the work of the Exploration Missions and Systems Office at JSC and built projects under a research initiative known as Programmable Environments. The presentation will make the case for the emergence of a field describing a new aspect of architecture, thus expanding the notion of programmability to spaces designed for human habitation.
Jennifer Magnolfi’s work at the front end of Herman Miller Research & Development explores the effects of programmability as a driver for future business development and innovation. During the past five years, she has lead work in an R&D initiative called Programmable Environments, comprising new product concepts, technology integration architecture, building engineering systems in sites, and the development of strategic corporate partnerships and alliances. Some of her built projects include the Microsoft Envisioning Lab in Redmond, and the Georgia Tech main Campus Library.
Jennifer is the co-author of “Always Building: the Programmable Environment”, a design manifesto published by the Herman Miller. The book articulates the core design principles guiding an exploration of intelligent future environments. In previous roles, Jennifer served as an instructor at the Lund Institute of Technology and a Technical Advisor to the Star Design Program, a design and research collaboration with NASA. She was a Research Fellow at the Interactive Institute in Sweden, researching networked habitats and high-tech environments. Jennifer received a Master Degree in Architecture from the Harvard Graduate School of Design and is a U.S. State Department Fulbright Scholar.
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