Springer Computational Studies on Cultural Variation and Heredity (KAIST Research Series)

This book explores the emerging concept of cultural DNA, considering its application across different fields and examining commonalities in approach. It approaches the subject from four different perspectives, in which the topics include theories, analysis and synthesis of cultural DNA artefacts. After an opening section which reviews theoretical work on cultural DNA research, the second section discusses analysis & synthesis of cultural DNA at the urban scale. Section three covers analysis & synthesis of cultural DNA artefacts, and the final section offers approaches to grammar-based cultural DNA research. The book places emphasis on two specific axes: one is the scale of the object under discussion, which ranges from the small (handheld artefacts) to the very large (cities); and the other is the methodology used from analysis to synthesis. This diverse approach with detailed information about grammar-based methodologies toward cultural DNA makes the book unique. This book will serve as a source of inspiration for designers and researchers trying to find the essence, archetype, and the building blocks of our environment for the incorporation of social and cultural factors into their designs. From the Back Cover This book explores the emerging concept of cultural DNA, considering its application across different fields and examining commonalities in approach. It approaches the subject from four different perspectives, in which the topics include theories, analysis and synthesis of cultural DNA artefacts. After an opening section which reviews theoretical work on cultural DNA research, the second section discusses analysis & synthesis of cultural DNA at the urban scale. Section three covers analysis & synthesis of cultural DNA artefacts, and the final section offers approaches to grammar-based cultural DNA research. The book places emphasis on two specific axes: one is the scale of the object under discussion, which ranges from the small (handheld artefacts) to the very large (cities); and the other is the methodology used from analysis to synthesis. This diverse approach with detailed information about grammar-based methodologies toward cultural DNA makes the book unique. This book will serve as a source of inspiration for designers and researchers trying to find the essence, archetype, and the building blocks of our environment for the incorporation of social and cultural factors into their designs. About the Author Ji-Hyun Lee is an Associate Professor at the Graduate School of Culture Technology in KAIST. She received her Ph.D. in School of Architecture (Computational Design) at Carnegie Mellon University writing a thesis about integrating housing design and case-based reasoning. Since joining the GSCT at KAIST, her research focus narrowed down to three interdisciplinary areas that are not mutually exclusive: (1) calculation for UX + service design, (2) cultural DNA with morphological analysis, and (3) computational creativity. These explorations result in computer-based frameworks or systems contributing to the enhancement of the calculability using algorithmic and/or heuristic computational methods. In other words, her research focus is on 'computational culture' as an extension of computational design.