About Integrating Affordances Into Function Based Reverse Engineering With Application To Complex Natural Systems
| Authors | Halsmer, Dominic; Roman, Nate; Todd, Tyler |
|---|---|
| Date | 2009 |
| Conference | 2009 Annual Conference & Exposition |
| Vol / Pages | pp. 14.751.1-14.751.18 |
| URL | https://peer.asee.org/integrating-affordances-into-function-based-reverse-engineering-with-application-to-complex-natural-systems |
Type: Conference Paper
Abstract
The practice of reverse engineering is not only receiving increased attention in fields involving artificial systems such as computer software development, but also in fields involving natural systems such as molecular and cellular biology. As an example, a recent pronouncement of the National Academy of Engineering lists “reverse engineering the human brain” as one of the grand challenges for the next century. The applicability of engineering design principles to natural systems has been well recognized, but ambitious attempts to further reverse engineer such complex systems will require the latest advances in design thinking. The recent concept of design affordance readily lends itself to the analysis and understanding of complex natural systems that exhibit multiple interactions between subsystems. Traditionally, reverse engineering has been based on the analysis of decomposing engineered systems into functional components. Recently, the concept of affordance, or what one system provides to a user, or to another system, has broadened the way engineers look at design. This paper attempts to provide an alternate method of reverse engineering that incorporates the idea of affordances. It is anticipated that this method will be particularly useful for illuminating our understanding of natural systems. By looking at the affordances of a system and the interrelationships illustrated by the affordance structure matrix, significant information can be obtained that might otherwise be missed if only considering functionality. Reverse engineering with respect to affordances should lead to a better understanding of not only the system, but also the purpose and plan behind it. In addition, the introduction of reverse engineering of complex natural systems in the engineering curriculum provides a rich vehicle for making connections with several other fields of study, which engineering students would do well to consider. An example is developed which considers the system of life on Earth as a complex network of multiple interacting and interrelated subsystems. The integration of the concept of affordance into a function based reverse engineering approach is sketched. This approach provides additional insight into the system, which may lead to significant implications for the humanities and social sciences.