CARLO RATTI, MIT, BOSTON

An architect and engineer by training, Carlo Ratti practises in Italy and teaches at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he directs the SENSEable City Lab.

Carlo has co-authored over 200 papers and holds several patents. His work has been exhibited worldwide at well-known venues such as the Venice Biennale or The Museum of Modern Art in New York. His Digital Water Pavilion at the 2008 World Expo was hailed by Time magazine as one of the Best Inventions of the Year. He has been included in Esquire magazine's Best and Brightest list, in Blueprint magazine's 25 People who will Change the World of Design and in Forbes magazine's list of Names You Need to Know in 2011. Ratti recently served as the inaugural Innovator in Residence in Queensland, Australia.

One of his most famous projects is the Copenhagen Wheel, which was unveiled in 2009 at the COP15 United Nations Climate Conference. It transforms ordinary bicycles quickly into hybrid e-bikes that also function as mobile sensing units. The Copenhagen Wheel allows the energy dissipated while cycling and braking and to be captured and saved for when a bit of a boost is needed. The Copenhagen Wheel is currently in its final prototyping phase and will go commercial in June 2011.

At the see conference he will talk about his project "Trash-Track", in which he has traced and visualised some bizarre disposal routes for household rubbish around the world.

http://www.carloratti.com/
http://senseable.mit.edu