Routledge Builders of the Vision: Software and the Imagination of Design

Explore the intellectual history and evolution of digital design in Builders of the Vision: Software and the Imagination of Design. Published by Routledge, this work traces the development of Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and Numerical Control from the post-World War II era to the present day. By utilizing primary archival and ethnographic sources, the text documents the ideas that have shaped digital design technologies. It examines the origins of these systems, starting with the early numerical control and CAD research conducted under US Air Force contracts at MIT between 1949 and 1970. Readers will gain insight into the cybernetic theories that defined design as a human-machine endeavor. The book explores the historical vision of computers as tools designed to handle repetitive tasks, allowing designers to focus on higher-level creative processes. This is an essential resource for those studying the history of architecture, design theory, and the technological foundations of modern digital practices.