What came first – the society, or the science and technology? Understanding the ouroboros for improving the quality of life around the world.

In understanding the role of contemporary science and technology in our society today, the impact of society on science and technology, and thus on the quality of life, is often misinterpreted. Perhaps it is so, as the very nature of such an inquiry, is a matter of a cause-effect argument. This argument in its entirety can form the basis for a thesis – the scope of which, is beyond this modest essay.

Until the very beginning of the industrial age in the late eighteenth century, progress of science was dominated by discovery, and not invention. Then, the impact of science and technology on society was obvious, and was often, with the might of the religious structures, of a conflicting nature. But as the industrial revolution unfolded over the next two centuries, man’s needs and wants began to drive invention and innovation. More so, it were the needs and wants of the western society that demanded the growth in science and technology. By the beginning of the twentieth century, the western society, now an aptly functioning developed society, garnered substantial incentives from the resulting advancement of science. Yet, still, the ramifications of scientific progress on society were more intense than the other way around. Matters drastically changed, first during and after the First World War, and then, during and after the Second World War.

The western society by now had started investing enormous amounts of resources in driving science and technology, in ways it deemed fit, either to hon the interests of its socio-moral values, or to project a sense of authority of its governing structures over the virgin, but resource rich, nations which had spawned after imperial colonies had dissolved. This was evident at the macro-level. At the micro-level, institutions such as universities, and at the other end, manufacturing corporations, began to diverge the progress of science and technology in directions which they deemed financially profitable. Research and development in areas viable to the developing and under- developed societies was overlooked.

Today, in the twenty-first century, the impact society has on contemporary science and technology is greater than ever before, and ever more apparent. From the growing awareness of mass consumerism to the state of earth’s climate, from stem cell research to development of weapons of mass destruction, etc., the contemporary society is rift with leashes controlling the growth in science and technology. And with the advent of globalisation, we have witnessed societies harbouring intentions to help better the conditions in the developing and under-developed regions of our world. Nevertheless, the attitude towards science and technology directed towards the development of underprivileged regions is still appalling. From an industrial designer’s point of view, this appalling attitude has resulted in a disparity between the industrial design for the first world and the third world – a distinction so immoral, that it could arise only out of political mistrust and greed.

How science and technology affects the society, on the other hand, has always been a customary undertaking whilst analysing feasibility of emerging science and technology. No where is it more apparent than in the field of aerospace technology (Though there are other comparable technologies, the focus on aerospace is based on the underlying interest in space technologies for developing closed-loop solutions). Armed with three hundred odd years of an insight into Newtonian physics, the technological advances due to the industrial revolution and the military-industrial-complex, industrialised nations have been investing heavily in developing aerospace technologies since after the Second World War. The aerospace industry being a high-maintenance undertaking, devouring enormous amounts of material and financial resources, was quick to realise the financial potential in licensing and leasing its cutting-edge technologies to commercial sectors. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) agency of the United States has been actively licensing their technologies since 1970s. Since then, products and processes developed using these technologies have been permeating our society.

The European Space Agency (ESA), a conglomerate of national space agencies of many nations in the European Union, too, has taken to initiating space technology transfer initiatives in its member nations. From high grade plastics to composite alloys, from high performance computing systems to advanced micro-electronics, from resource-generation systems to recycling systems, from global positioning systems to manufacturing processes, have all found their way in to everyday objects like automobiles, consumer electronics and products, medical equipment and procedures, furniture and housing materials, transportation and communication systems, etc. The result has been startling. It has been pivotal in the transition, and subsequent proliferation of the experience economy. It has truly enabled consumerism strengthen its grip in the developed world. It has, consequently, empowered the developed society define the developments in science and technology, so as to serve itself. This is why the society has had a polarised impact on sustained and unbiased scientific progress.

“Since science is problem driven, it should be judged by the quality of the problems it poses, and the quality of the solutions it provides”, wrote Sydney Brenner in Science, volume 282. The problems posed by the situations in the developing and under-developed regions are characteristically different from those in the developed regions. Consequently, any attempts to converge and find solutions to these problem will require dedicated and specialised effort, and more importantly, additional, stipulated resources. Yet, the expected pay back from these solutions, in terms of financial surplus is mediocre. This is where the major hurdle lies. Overcoming the very nature of the industrial, capitalist economies in order to invest in science and technology for everyone, without any prejudice towards political boundaries, economics and social strata, will provide a breeding ground for new opportunities and avenues to uplift underprivileged regions of our world.

This essay is part of a series of essays on the challenges facing sustained and unbiased development of the quality of life in the underprivileged regions of our world, which were a prologue to my thesis work at Konstfack in 2010-2011.

Cooperation of Humans and Robots for Mars (CHARM) exploration was a team project at the Space Studies Programme of 2011 at TU Graz, Austria.

The CHARM team — forty-one professionals from various backgrounds, from nations around the world, but united by a common interest in space exploration — developed a framework to evaluate planetary exploration scenarios involving both humans and robots. The outcome of this project was a report that highlights different factors that affect human-robotic exploration of space, and space projects in general, along with the CHARM model that builds upon these insights to develop feasible mission scenarios for future planetary exploration endeavours. The executive summary and the report can be downloaded from this webpage.

I had the privilege to design the graphic and print identity for the CHARM project, including the logo, which symbolises the focus of our project as being the cooperation of humans and robots, through a human eye and a camera lens contained within the zodiac symbol for Mars.

In the summer of 2011, I attended the Space Studies Programme organised by the International Space University and hosted by Technische Universität Graz, Austria. Sponsored and supported by the European Space Agency, NASA and many other national space agencies around the world, the programme presented me with the proceedings, materials, processes and techniques within the space industry along with ample networking opportunities to get to know like-minded people from the world over. It took a while to get here, but finally, my October Sky began that summer!

The thesis project enquired into understanding the scope of industrial design for introducing sustained and unbiased development of quality of life in the underprivileged regions of the world.

Subsequently, it investigated radical approaches to improve the access to potable water, sanitation and cooking fuel in the underprivileged regions around the world.

It all began with my fascination for everything aerospace, when I was about ten years old. As I moved through the academic factions of high school and university, I failed to grasp on to this calling due to my mediocre capabilities with mathematics. Nevertheless, I graduated as a computer science engineer – which has its fair share of mathematics, albeit discrete – and then decided to venture into the field of design, to find alternative routes into the aerospace industry.

The move to Sweden was a breath of fresh air. Literally. Now I had the opportunities to get ever more closer to what I had desired about thirteen years earlier. It was not easy. After two years at the Umeå Institute of Design, and a year at Konstfack, I felt I had enough credibility to contact Cecilia Hertz of Umbilical Design, to express my ambition and desire to work with the space industry. I was grateful to have her approval, and was glad to know that we shared a similar perspective.

With space somewhat conquered, I began concentrating on my other interest that I had picked up after moving to Sweden – design and development for extreme environments in underprivileged regions. There are many parallels between living in outer space and living in underprivileged regions here on earth. Both have limited supply of water and food, among other resources – both are resource-poor systems. Can we then apply the billion dollar studies made for living in outer space, to improve the life of a billion people here on earth? I thought of giving it a shot. I began formulating my thesis.

The nature of nature on this planet is such that no one region can establish complete resource independence whilst sustaining contemporary human settlements. Nevertheless, some geographical regions are extremely favourable, while some are not, for sustaining such modern day societies. With the advent of science and technology, we have proven ourselves to be capable of adapting to even the harshest of circumstances, but unfortunately these developments have not benefited all of humankind. Millions of people living in regions in Africa, Asia, South America and Oceania, which are often resource-rich in terms of resource availability, live without appropriate access to water, food, shelter and energy. We are interested in these underprivileged regions.

It was particularly important to me to ensure that the solutions which we develop, are not only environmentally sustainable, but are also a catalyst for initiating and sustaining local ecologies and economies. We believe sustainable solutions imply a fair distribution and consumption of resources, rather than the enforcing of a green agenda. Sustained, then, implies a perpetual process of development and evolution, factoring in local ecologies and economies.

To ensure a fairness on all levels, the quality of design and the experience it delivers cannot be compromised for the sake of affordability. Unbiased implies a maintaining of a universal standard in the quality of the design and the experience it provides, thereby dignifying the use of the product, by one and all.

Connecting the dots

Concept map In the real world, everything is connected to everything. Identifying the connections, then, is as crucial as knowing the components, to better understand their inter-relationships, and the consequences of exploiting them. I wanted to make sure that my design process and outcome, respect the fidelity of these often fragile connections.

Everything in this world is connected, and one can seldom understand the world just by studying design. I often feel I need to study everything else but design.

One of the crucial objectives of the thesis was to validate the feasibility of realising the outcomes in the near future. As stated in the introduction to the essay, in the beginning of this chapter, I felt it was necessary to enlist and comprehend the reasons behind the state of affairs in our society, to try and promote sustained and unbiased growth and development through design. It was important to not only study the avenues of design and human ingenuity, but also the circumstances and conditions surrounding the contemporary society. I wanted to explore a cross-disciplinary approach to design. My methods of research were thus defined by the need to connect and correlate different areas of science, sociology and design, highlighted in the concept map (above).

Ethiopian utopia

After spending eight days in Ethiopia, I realised something significant. People were not poor because they had very little money. People were poor because they did not have basic amenities.

Patterns like these began to emerge as I slowly started dissecting my observations and insights after returning to Sweden. After a while, my original ideas about home and dome architecture gave way to the new ones, and I narrowed the scope of the thesis to addressing three issues – water availability, sanitation and minimising the dependence on firewood. In retrospect, these issues are indeed a part and parcel of a home, and perhaps in the near future, I shall revisit my ideas about dome architecture to try to integrate the current solutions.

To view the photo journal covering the trip with detailed side notes, please browse this page. For those interested, here is a quick travel summary. I covered around 1300 km by a four-wheel drive – from Addis Ababa – Awasa – Shashemene – Agere Maryam – Yvebello – Konso, and on the way back from Konso – Ārba Minch – Sodo – Hossaina – Butajira – Addis Ababa. In the region of Karat-Konso, I visited the villages of Konso, Upper Docatu, Lower Docatu, Busso, Mecheke, Sewgame and Fasha, a total of around 25 km on foot, and then a motorbike ride 25 km back to Konso.

Ethiopian utopia I left for Ethiopia on 31 January 2011 and returned on 9 February 2011, spending seven nights in Karat-Konso and two in Addis Ababa - all in all, nine days travelling around in the land with thirteen months of sunshine.

During the mid-term presentations at Konstfack, I was recommended to pick just one among the three, to work upon further. I could not let go of any as, firstly, I was sure that the three which I had chosen, were justified and required immediate deliberation, and secondly, that they were all inherently connected to each other through the fabric of society. Furthermore, each of the three issues demanded varying expertise and skills – from purely conceptual industrial design to hardcore system engineering. This appealed to me the most, as I believe design to be an amalgamation of the art of science and the science of art, and any task demanding such, is bound to test my credibility, patience and perseverance – a test of a true student. I took up the challenge.

The concepts span multiple dimensions, with an intent to subscribe to several issues at once, without overwhelming the end user experience. This intention aligns with my research process, which too, spanned multiple dimensions, thereby laying a firm foundation for the prospective solutions to stand upon.

Product One

Cooking stove

This product concept is a cooking stove assembly utilising alternative fuel, beeswax in this case, to cook food. The key focus while designing this concept was on computer aided design, engineering and manufacturing, to create a highly functional, durable and aesthetically acceptable product. The underlying desire to do so was to drastically improve the lives of the young girls and women in underprivileged regions, by reducing their workload gathering firewood, thereby also keeping a check on deforestation in these regions; to provide commercially viable opportunities for locals to indulge in, and to bring about a dignified and uncondescending product experience to these peoples.

The design tries to keep the part count to minimum, promotes symmetry for ease of manufacturing and maintenance, and provides room for employing other alternative fuels such as paraffin wax, vegetable oil, clarified butter, animal lard, etc., in place of beeswax. The construction and assembly tries to ensure a constant, steady draft of air to fuel the flames, and to minimise the formation of soot. Along with the design of the stove, the design of the fuel pellets (beeswax candles) too, will require careful attention. The wick height and thickness needs to fit within the given tolerances to ensure a laminar flame, thereby maximising the heat transfer and minimising the soot.

Product Two

Composting toilet

Simplest of all the three product proposals, the composting toilet is a modest improvement over the current designs. The key focus areas were enforcing sanitation through behavioural abstraction, improving the portability of the unit, and hence enhancing its role in permaculture, and overcoming the logistical fallacies observed in an underprivileged region.

I envisioned two possible scenarios to integrate sanitary measures into the unit – antibacterial surfaces and ultraviolet irradiation. Neither are particularly complex. Although ultraviolet irradiation is more effective than the other, it presents severe health risks if implemented without rigorous precision. Finding the best alternative then, is still a matter of debate for me, as it would require a thoughtful insight of more than a designer. Also, just by increasing the number of composting toilet units available to a community can significantly reduce the spread of contagious diseases.

Ease of fabrication, assembly and maintenance was the next important issue. With this particular solution, I wanted to push for in-situ resource utilisation for production and maintenance. I soon realised that, due to mediocre raw materials and manufacturing infrastructure, I would need to compromise this constraint to standardise the quality of design. To strike a balance, care was taken to keep the prefabricated parts to a minimum. At the same time, I wanted to add a western feel to the whole experience, as it was something actively desired by the locals. Having finely produced prefabricated parts could perhaps incite this feel. To make the unit portable, the entire unit was built upon a stable and sturdy tripodal frame structure. The choice of materials was governed by the available in-situ resources to overcome the logistical shortcomings.

Product Three

Water pump and purifier

The premise of this concept lies in utilising solar energy to pump turbid water from natural or man-made reservoirs, and then distilling it to provide potable water to the people. Standalone solar water pumps and solar water distillers already exist. But an efficient combination of the two is yet to be developed. Rather than employing electrical energy to drive the pump, I opted to utilise the incident solar energy, to convert available water into superheated steam, which in turn drives the steam engine that powers the pump to draw out more water from a reservoir – natural or man-made.

To improve the effectiveness of the system as a water purifier, filters will be deployed at three stages to counter impurities of various dimensions and types. The distilled water in then pumped into overhead or inflatable water tanks for distribution to the local populace. It is empirical that the design of these storage systems and other distribution channels synthesise with the solar water pump and purifier, to maintain a standard in water purity. As a means for distributing the water, a portable storage unit made of earthenware or clay, with support braces can be developed. Earthenware vessels act as natural coolants and maintain the water temperature at a level not conducive to bacterial growth. These vessels will provide a better alternative for water storage as compared to the plastic cans used by the locals today.

Unlike the majority of standalone solutions developed for making potable water accessible to the people in underprivileged regions today, the proposed solution takes a step in the direction of infrastructural system-design.

A fair judgement

The ability to be your own worst critic, is probably the most important thing I have learnt during my design education. The moment of satisfaction should not be a long lasting one, if I am to grow as a professional. In the series of moments that this project has been, satisfaction has come far and apart, and I must say, I’m satisfied the way it has.

I had set out to study the possibility of introducing a sustained and unbiased improvement of the quality of life of people in the underprivileged regions around the world. As I begin to evaluate my proposals against this hypothesis, I am confronted with the harsh reality that I am no where even close. For this evaluation to continue any further, I have to create full functioning prototypes and try them out in the real world, which is a long shot at the moment. In my defence, what I can conclude with the certainty of an open mind is that I have identified some crucial areas that need to be addressed through design or otherwise, and that I have outlined a unique process of research, analysis and execution as an aid for attempting so. Judging whether the proposals are sustainable or not, will require prototyping and field testing. On the other hand, I was actively unbiased throughout the process, and I do want to believe that the outcomes reflect this.

Konstfack Spring Exhibition 2011 Installation describing the thesis

The three proposals, with varying degrees of complexity, are all technically feasible today. I resort to think of complexity as the measure of the number of variables that completely define a system. That said, the inherent complexity of a system does not necessarily determine the time it will take to build and deploy the system. However, it does define the time it will take to design it. The composting toilet is a fairly simple concept, apart from the unknowns regarding both preferred sanitation implements – antibacterial surfaces and ultraviolet irradiation. These need to be deliberated and verified before the system can be completely designed and deployed in the real world. The cooking stove has a well laid out design with very few unknowns, the likely ones being the availability and efficiency of a wax based fuel. Consequently, this proposal is the most prototype ready of all the three. At the other end of the spectrum, the water pump and purifier proposal is entirely conceptual, with very little scientific and technical data to support its significance. It is also the most complex of all the three, and will effectively require hundreds of work hours and a range of experts to merely design it.