Knowledge production, sharing, and design in an age of fundamental transformations

Knowledge is a central constituent of the societal infrastructure. Knowledge is produced, interchanged, represented, and used for different purposes. In societies, where tangible or intangible artifacts are essential elements of the interaction of humans with the environment, knowledge is a central piece of the reasoning and realization mechanisms of artifacts. In multiple domains of knowledge where the design of artifacts is a central activity, such as engineering, biology, or chemistry, successful design approaches tend to favor descriptions of the systems based on external conditions. The design process is also involving detailed design phases where the functions, geometry, the behavior of the system must be described. A complementary approach to design is the use of biologically inspired solutions in design.