Please click on the Registration button below to receive the Zoom link to join us for the MIT Chinese Alumni Group webinar and hear the story of how architectural robotics meet sculpting arts, as Dr. Zhao Ma discusses his research. With the industrial upgrading trend in the AEC (Architecture, Engineering and Construction) field, using industrial robots to automate the construction processes has become more prominent in recent years.
However, unlike most robotic treatments in modern assembly lines, the design uniqueness of architecture components requires personalized customizable robotic fabrication procedures, powered by specialized algorithms. What can these robots and algorithms really do? While academia and industries are seeking different solutions, Dr. Ma has provided his unique answer: sculpting art. Dr. Ma will also discuss his career and personal challenges, particularly as a Chinese, and how he bridges the many worlds that he inhabits.
We are pleased to present:
Speaker Zhao Ma (MIT 2017 Master of Engineering, in Civil and Environmental Engineering; MIT 2017 Master of Architecture; ETH Zurich 2020, PhD Architecture) is an architect, designer, and computer scientist based in Zurich, Switzerland. He is a researcher at ETH Zurich, where he focuses on optimization-based methods for computational robotic fabrication. His featured work “Stylized Robotic Sculpting” developed a novel design and robotic fabrication system for carving clay sculptures with robots.
Zhao received a Master of Architecture degree and a Master of Engineering (Structural) degree from MIT. He obtained his Ph.D. at ETH Zurich, where he conducted cross-discipline research shared with Gramazio Kohler Research (ETHZ), Computational Robotics Lab (ETHZ), and Disney Research Zurich.
Zhao seeks to bridge the fields of design, engineering, and computational fabrication through cross-disciplinary collaborations. His work has been featured in various awards and patents across disciplines including architecture, landscape, and computational design. His awards include: 2021 DigitalFutures Young Award and 2018 American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Professional Award.
Moderator Wean Khing Wong, MIT SB Biology 1984, is a multilingual and multicultural attorney, mediator and trainer with an American and international client base. She is a court-appointed mediator for the California Court of Appeal, 2nd Appellate District. She has taught mediation and multicultural interactions to senior international judicial officers. She was also a Hearing Officer for the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office. Wean Khing authored award-winning law and mediation articles and provides Continuing Legal Education. Wean Khing holds a California Bar license and a US Patent Attorney license; and an MA in Counseling Psychology. She is the Founder and President of the MIT Chinese Alumni Group.
Please visit and join the MIT Chinese Alumni Group at: http://mitcag.alumgroup.mit.edu to be added to our event invite list.
All MIT alumni/ae, students, Sloan fellows, and affiliates are welcome. You do not have to be Chinese. Membership is free. Events are public and free.
You will need an Infinite Connection account to join us. You may create your account at: https://alum.mit.edu/account/create. We look forward to seeing you.