MAD in Dialogue

Rebecca Lin is a third-year EECS PhD student at MIT, co-advised by Erik Demaine in CSAIL and Zach Lieberman at the Media Lab. By connecting mathematical and computational insights with challenges in art, design, and fabrication, she creates tools, abstractions, and systems that enable new and more expressive ways of making.

Her ongoing research with Adobe Research investigates a modular approach to reconfigurable garments that fosters playful and practical reuse. Prior to garment-making, she worked with shape-morphing structures, from formulating theoretical foundations at MIT to devising new fabrication processes at the University of Tokyo.

Beyond her doctoral research, Rebecca explores mathematics and computation as medium for art, and art as a vehicle for science communication. Her artworks have been featured in various mathematical art exhibitions and in the New York Times.

At MIT, Rebecca has served as a teaching assistant for four semesters, mentored undergraduate students on projects that range from theoretical computer science to hands-on fabrication, and co-organized MIT EECS GAAP alongside other outreach initiatives.

Lauren "Ren" Ramlan is a genetic engineer and biodesigner who believes the future of design isn’t made—it’s grown. Raised in the Bay Area, California, Ren grew up exploring vast redwood forests and hidden worlds inside tidepools, fascinated by nature’s grand and intricate designs. A tinkerer at heart, she went on to study Bioengineering at Stanford, where she discovered a love for genetically modifying organisms and a dream for harnessing biology's potential through engineering and design.

Ren is now an PhD student co-advised by Chris Voigt in Biological Engineering and David Kong at the Media Lab's Community Biotechnology Initiative. Her work here reimagines fungi as architects of living, responsive materials— engineering mycelium to change color, sense the world around it, and adapt to different environments. To bridge the gap between science and design with these materials, she develops accessible biofabrication tools that empower engineers, designers, and artists to create with biology.

Beyond the lab, Ren shares the craft of bioengineering through workshops at places like the MIT Museum, LIST Center, or Harvard SysBio. She brings biology to life in unexpected ways, from traditional Choctaw necklaces woven with DNA to a 600-year-long living Doom playthrough, inspiring thousands to see biology as a medium for creativity. At the intersection of biology and design, she is building a world where nature and innovation are one and the same.

Ganit Goldstein is a computation textile and 3D fashion designer specializing in the development of smart fabric systems. Her work primarily focuses on developing customized apparel utilizing parametric modeling and digital simulations, and programmable textiles using body scans and multimaterial 3D printing.

Ganit is a student in the MIT Master of Science in Architecture Studies in Computation program and a research assistant at the Self-Assembly Lab. She graduated with distinction with a BA in fashion design from Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem, and completed her master’s degree in Soft Systems Textiles at the Royal College of Art in London. 

Ganit’s collections have received significant attention and won several prestigious prizes and press recognition. In 2019, she was awarded the Re-FREAM Horizon 2020 grant to reimagine the manufacturing process of textiles, working with a community of scientists and leading companies in Europe.

Her projects have been presented at exhibitions and museums globally, including Milan Design Week, New York Textile Month, Munich Jewelry Week, Ars Electronica, TLV Biennale of Crafts & Design, Cheongju Craft Biennale, and many more.

Ganit believes in an interdisciplinary approach to design, mixing tradition and futuristic techniques to emphasize the relationship between craft, technology, science, and arts through pioneering research and international partnerships. Her amazing work can be seen here!

As a PhD candidate in Urban Studies and Planning at MIT, Dení studies the intricacies of disaster risk planning and governance across different scales, focusing on areas facing recurring socio-environmental challenges. Her research emphasizes participatory action research (PAR) and design as crucial tools for engaging with and addressing the needs of communities at the edge of policy and geography, fostering both immediate solutions and long-term disaster resilience.

Her work, underpinned by a belief in design as a bridge between academic theory and actionable policy, has been recognized in publications by The Plan Journal, Harvard University's Graduate School of Design, and MIT's School of Architecture and Planning.

Dení holds a Master in Design Studies (Risk and Resilience) and a Master of Architecture in Urban Design from Harvard University, complemented by a Bachelor of Architecture from the National Autonomous University of Mexico. In addition to her academic pursuits, she has also collaborated with renowned architectural firms such as Estudio Lamela and JSa in Mexico City.

Dení’s journey reflects a deep commitment to using design for social justice, leveraging her diverse roles as an educator, advocate, architect, urban planner, and researcher to create meaningful change. Through the lens of design-enhanced PAR, Dení aims to reimagine disaster risk management and build equitable resilience. Moving forward, her unwavering goal is to deepen her collaboration with the Zapotec communities in Oaxaca, a partnership rooted in mutual respect and learning since the aftermath of the 2017 Mexican earthquakes.

Zane Schemmer is a 2nd year PhD student in Josephine Carstensen’s group studying topology optimization. His research focuses on developing integer programming algorithms that minimize the embodied carbon of a structure while ensuring the design remains manufacturable. Zane enjoys being an active member of the MIT community.

He serves as the President of the MIT Club Golf team, a Grad Diversity Ambassador for the Office of Graduate Education, and a Board Member of CEE GradCom.

Before his time at MIT, Zane completed his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in civil and environmental engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. There, his studies focused on the seismic design of structures. Raised in the mountains of Park City, Utah, Zane has a great appreciation for nature. While he enjoys a variety of outdoor activities, he has a strong passion for golfing, skiing, and hiking.

Roi Salgueiro Barrio is an architect and urbanist whose work focuses on the interrelations between architecture, systems of territorial organization, and globalization. He is the founder of design practice RSAU, a lecturer at MIT Department of Architecture and the curator-director of the MIT Morningside Academy for Design.

Salgueiro Barrio is the author, with Hashim Sarkis and Gabriel Kozlowski, of “The World as an Architectural Project” (2020). His research has been widely published in academic journals (New Geographies, Log, The Journal of Architectural Education, San Rocco, Architecture, City and Environment, and CARTHA), and featured in The Washington Post, ArchDaily, Abitare, Metropolis Magazine, World-Architecture, among other publications. He is a member of Actar Publishers scientific committee, and a founding member of the research collaborative ASIDE.

He was the principal assistant curator of the 17th Venice Architecture Biennale (2021). His work has been internationally exhibited at the Lisbon Triennale, the Shenzen and Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism, Museum of Contemporary Art of Chile University, the ETH Zurich, Yale School of Architecture, and Sao Paolo Faculty of Architecture.

Salgueiro Barrio holds a Master in Architecture, with distinction, from the University of Navarra, a Master in Design Studies, with distinction, from Harvard University, and he graduated summa cum laude with a PhD in architectural design, international, from the Polytechnical University of Barcelona.