MAAD Digital Craft Independent Study description for Jiries Alali:Building Industry is at an exciting inflection point, as new concerns for sustainability and technology performance are rising. It is noticed in this type of projects, a big part of the budget is invested in the process of making rather than being invested in the product itself. Which proposes the question of investigating new potentials of sustainable free-form construction techniques and materials to replace wasteful rigid ones. Initially, I propose to find more responsive construction technology by investigating methods to manipulate primitive materials such as sand, a readily available material with a granular quality that enables it to reform, where its predictable behavior can shape regenerative geometries and volumes mold, hopefully, this mold can be responsively driven to meet the architectural design inputs with almost zero waste of formwork materials. Considering the field of research interest is not provided by the CCA current schedule, an independent study in Fall 2019 will address the following:1. Precedent studies: researching the topic’s available resources and related case-studies to build a sufficient background, knowledge, and tools proficiency for supporting my research process and objectives. 2. Research through design: employing design methodologies and processes to find answers potential answers for my research inquiries by developing new construction systems and techniques.  Meetings with Instructor: A two-hour weekly meeting is designated to take place every Monday. Additional meetings will be scheduled when required based on the project needs and progress.

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