Rachel Armstrong: Architecture that repairs itself?

翻译人员: Yang Jacky 校对人员: Yin`ai Sun

All buildings today have something in common.

现在，所有的建筑都有一个共同点

They're made using Victorian technologies.

就是都使用维多利亚时代的技术

This involves blueprints,

包括蓝图、

industrial manufacturing

工业制造、

and construction using teams of workers.

还有需要一群工人来建造

All of this effort results in an inert object.

这些都导致了一个消极的结果：

And that means that there is a one-way transfer of energy

这是一个单向的能源转换，

from our environment into our homes and cities.

既从大自然到我们的城市和家中

This is not sustainable.

所以这不是可持续发展的。

I believe that the only way that it is possible for us

我认为，建造可持续发展的家园和城市

to construct genuinely sustainable homes and cities

的唯一方法，

is by connecting them to nature,

就是把他们和自然联系到一起

not insulating them from it.

而不是分离开来

Now, in order to do this, we need the right kind of language.

现在，为了做到这，我们需要一种正确的语言和自然“对话”。

Living systems are in constant conversation

生命系统和大自然得以永久的沟通

with the natural world,

在自然界之中

through sets of chemical reactions called metabolism.

通过一系列“新陈代谢”式的化学反应。

And this is the conversion of one group of substances

这种“对话”是一些物质被转换成另一种

into another, either through

这种“对话”是一些物质被转换成另一种

the production or the absorption of energy.

通过生产或者吸收能量。

And this is the way in which living materials

这是一种将当地资源以可持续的方式转变为生活资料的方法

make the most of their local resources

这是一种将当地资源以可持续的方式转变为生活资料的方法

in a sustainable way.

这是一种将当地资源以可持续的方式转变为生活资料的方法

So, I'm interested in the use of

所以，我对把可以进行新陈代谢的物质

metabolic materials for the practice of architecture.

运用到建筑当中很感兴趣

But they don't exist. So I'm having to make them.

但这种材料并不存在，我要创造它们

I'm working with architect Neil Spiller

我现在在Bartlett建筑学院

at the Bartlett School of Architecture,

和Neil Spiller建筑师一起合作。

and we're collaborating with international scientists

同时，我们还和国际科学家一起合作

in order to generate these new materials

用自下而上的方法

from a bottom up approach.

来产生这种新物质。£

That means we're generating them from scratch.

也就是说，我们要凭空创造。

One of our collaborators is chemist Martin Hanczyc,

化学家Martin Hanczyc是我们的一位合作者

and he's really interested in the transition from

他对处于惰性和活性之间的物质

inert to living matter.

很有兴趣。

Now, that's exactly the kind of process that I'm interested in,

那也正是我们在研究可持续发展物质中

when we're thinking about sustainable materials.

让我感兴趣的。

So, Martin, he works with a system called the protocell.

Martin用一个叫做“原生细胞”的系统工作

Now all this is -- and it's magic --

这和魔术一样，看这个

is a little fatty bag. And it's got a chemical battery in it.

是一团脂肪。里面有一个化学电池，

And it has no DNA.

但没有DNA。

This little bag is able to conduct itself

这东西的行为方式

in a way that can only be described as living.

只有生命体才有

It is able to move around its environment.

它可以在自己的环境中移动；

It can follow chemical gradients.

被化学浓度高的地方吸引；

It can undergo complex reactions,

它们能承受复杂的环境变化。

some of which are happily architectural.

它们是一些快乐的建筑师~

So here we are. These are protocells,

看这些原生细胞

patterning their environment.

能模仿周围的环境

We don't know how they do that yet.

我们还不知道它们是怎么做到这些的

Here, this is a protocell, and it's vigorously shedding this skin.

看，这也是个原生细胞，它正在努力的脱离表皮，

Now, this looks like a chemical kind of birth.

这有点像化学上的分娩，

This is a violent process.

是一个艰难的过程

Here, we've got a protocell to extract carbon dioxide

这是一个能从大气中分离二氧化碳的原生细胞

out of the atmosphere

这是一个能从大气中分离二氧化碳的原生细胞

and turn it into carbonate.

并转换为碳酸盐

And that's the shell around that globular fat.

就是那些球状物边上的硬壳

They are quite brittle. So you've only got a part of one there.

它们很脆，我们只能弄到一部分

So what we're trying to do is, we're trying to push these technologies

所以，我们所作的是试着把这些技术

towards creating bottom-up construction approaches

用来创造一种自下而上的

for architecture,

建筑方法

which contrast the current, Victorian, top-down methods

有别于现在乃至维多利亚时代沿用的自上而下的方法

which impose structure upon matter.

这可以加强材料的结构.

That can't be energetically sensible.

它们更先进

So, bottom-up materials

这种材料

actually exist today.

其实早就有了。

They've been in use, in architecture, since ancient times.

我们的祖先早就把它们运用在建筑上了。

If you walk around the city of Oxford, where we are today,

如果你走在如今的牛津城，

and have a look at the brickwork,

观察一下那些砖块——

which I've enjoyed doing in the last couple of days,

这些天我很喜欢这样——

you'll actually see that a lot of it is made of limestone.

你能看见很多都是用石灰石做的。

And if you look even closer,

如果你更仔细的观察的话，

you'll see, in that limestone, there are little shells

你可以看见那些石头里有些小贝壳

and little skeletons that are piled upon each other.

和小骨头互相堆积。

And then they are fossilized over millions of years.

它们被石化了数百万年，

Now a block of limestone, in itself,

现在做成了一块砖头

isn't particularly that interesting.

很有意思吧。

It looks beautiful.

这看起来很漂亮

But imagine what the properties of this limestone block might be

但是想象一下这石头会怎么样

if the surfaces were actually

如果它的表面可以

in conversation with the atmosphere.

一直和大气“对话”的话。

Maybe they could extract carbon dioxide.

也许它们可以提取二氧化碳。

Would it give this block of limestone new properties?

这会给这石灰砖新的特性吗？

Well, most likely it would. It might be able to grow.

最有可能的就是它可以生长。

It might be able to self-repair, and even respond

也许可以自我修复，

to dramatic changes

甚至对所处环境更复杂的变化做出反应

in the immediate environment.

甚至对所处环境更复杂的变化做出反应

So, architects are never happy

而建筑学不会对

with just one block of an interesting material.

就一块特殊材料的转头感到满足

They think big. Okay?

他要考虑的更多，对吗？

So when we think about scaling up metabolic materials,

所以当我们想考虑更多的代谢材料时，

we can start thinking about ecological interventions

我们可以从生态干预入手，

like repair of atolls,

像修复珊瑚礁一样，

or reclamation of parts of a city

或者是填埋那些

that are damaged by water.

城市被水损害的部分

So, one of these examples

这些例子

would of course be the historic city of Venice.

都像威尼斯一样。

Now, Venice, as you know, has a tempestuous relationship with the sea,

众所周知，威尼斯和海洋有着密切的关系，

and is built upon wooden piles.

而且它建造在木桩上。

So we've devised a way by which it may be possible

所以，我们发明了一种

for the protocell technology that we're working with

可以让原生细胞技术

to sustainably reclaim Venice.

可持续的改变威尼斯的方法

And architect Christian Kerrigan

建筑师Christian Kerrigan

has come up with a series of designs that show us

想出了一系列的设计

how it may be possible to actually grow a limestone reef

可以让城市下面的石灰石生长

underneath the city.

可以让城市下面的石灰石生长

So, here is the technology we have today.

这就是我们现在有的技术

This is our protocell technology,

这是我们的“原生细胞”技术

effectively making a shell, like its limestone forefathers,

有效的生产出一种外壳，就像最早的石灰石一样，

and depositing it in a very complex environment,

并且沉积在非常复杂的环境当中

against natural materials.

并可以对抗自然材料

We're looking at crystal lattices to see the bonding process in this.

现在，我们正在研究这其中晶胞的键合作用

Now, this is the very interesting part.

这是非常有意思的一个部分。

We don't just want limestone dumped everywhere in all the pretty canals.

我们不想让这些石灰石随便在这些美丽的运河中“排泄”

What we need it to do is to be

我们需要它们在指定的地方生长

creatively crafted around the wooden piles.

围绕着木桩生长

So, you can see from these diagrams that the protocell is actually

你看图中这些原生细胞

moving away from the light,

正在远离光线

toward the dark foundations.

而朝着暗处运动

We've observed this in the laboratory.

我们在实验室里观察到这一现象

The protocells can actually move away from the light.

它们可以远离光线

They can actually also move towards the light. You have to just choose your species.

它们也可以朝光运动，你只要选择它们的种类就行

So that these don't just exist as one entity,

所以，它们不是以一个实体存在的，

we kind of chemically engineer them.

我们用化学工程改造它们

And so here the protocells are depositing their limestone

现在看到的这些细胞正在修复石灰石

very specifically, around the foundations of Venice,

非常有目的性的，包围威尼斯的根基，

effectively petrifying it.

有效的固定它。

Now, this isn't going to happen tomorrow. It's going to take a while.

不过这些不是马上就能实现的，需要一些时间

It's going to take years of tuning and monitoring this technology

这需要几年的时间来改进和监控这项技术

in order for us to become ready

为了可以在

to test it out in a case-by-case basis

一个案例一个案例测试的基础上

on the most damaged and stressed buildings within the city of Venice.

在威尼斯损伤最大的建筑上

But gradually, as the buildings are repaired,

但渐渐的，当这些建筑被修复时，

we will see the accretion of a limestone reef beneath the city.

我们将看到一个城市的下方逐渐堆积的石灰礁。

An accretion itself is a huge sink of carbon dioxide.

自我堆积是一个很大的二氧化碳沉积过程

Also it will attract the local marine ecology,

这也会影响到当地的海洋生态系统，

who will find their own ecological niches within this architecture.

它会找到自己在这个生态系统中的位置。

So, this is really interesting. Now we have an architecture

这真是很有趣，现在我们有一种

that connects a city to the natural world

可以把城市与自然连接在一起的建筑技术

in a very direct and immediate way.

通过一种直接有效的方式

But perhaps the most exciting thing about it

不过也学最让人兴奋的是

is that the driver of this technology is available everywhere.

这种技术在任何地方都有用。

This is terrestrial chemistry. We've all got it,

这是一种生态化学，我们全都掌握了。

which means that this technology is just as appropriate

这意味着这种技术

for developing countries as it is

对发达国家和发展中国家

for First World countries.

都适合。

So, in summary, I'm generating metabolic materials

总结一下。我正在研究的代谢材料

as a counterpoise to Victorian technologies,

是作为一种对维多利亚时代技术不足的弥补

and building architectures from a bottom-up approach.

并在建筑学中采用自下而上的方法。

Secondly, these metabolic materials

还有，这些代谢材料

have some of the properties of living systems,

有一些生命系统的特点，

which means they can perform in similar ways.

这意味着它们能与和生命相似的方式工作。

They can expect to have a lot of forms and functions

随着建筑学的进步，

within the practice of architecture.

它们很有用武之地。

And finally, an observer in the future

最后，如果一个未来的人

marveling at a beautiful structure in the environment

来看这些美丽的的建筑时

may find it almost impossible to tell

他可能分别不出

whether this structure

这些建筑

has been created by a natural process

是大自然的杰作呢

or an artificial one.

还是人类的作品

Thank you.

谢谢

(Applause)

掌声