Bucky

R. Buckminster Fuller
"For the first time in history it is now possible to take care of everybody at a higher standard of living than any have ever known. Only ten years agao the 'more with less' technology reached the point where this could be done. All humanity now has the option of becoming enduringly successful." - Buckminster Fuller, 1980.

R. Buckminster Fuller, known by his friends as "Bucky", has undeniably been one of the key innovators in the 20th century. He is known as a philosopher, thinker, visionary, inventor, architect, engineer, mathematician, poet, cosmologist, and more.

Buckminster Fuller was probably one of the first futurists and global thinkers. He is the one who coined the term "Spaceship Earth", and his work has inspired and paved the way for many who came after him.

This is the Dymaxion Map of the world, developed by Fuller as the first world projection to show the continents on a flat surface without visible distortion. Furthermore, this view shows the earth as being essentially one island in one ocean.

Bucky was the person most responsible for making Synergy a common term. Much of his work was about exploring and creating synergy. He found synergy to be a basic principle of all interactive systems. He developed a subject called Synergetics, a "Geometry of Thinking".

Fuller is the inventor of the Geodesic dome, and was a pioneer in utilizing basic geometical shapes in design.

A key goal for Buckminster Fuller was the development of what he called "Comprehensive Anticipatory Design Science", which is the attempt to anticipate and solve humanity's major problems by providing "more and more life support for everybody, with less and less resources."

Fuller routinely demonstrated his ideas in what he called "artifacts", tangible prototypes or models of designs and principles.

The Buckminster Fuller Institute located in Santa Barbara is a repository and resource concerning his work. It can be contacted at: bfi@aol.com

These are a couple of sites with more Fuller information:


Buckminster Fuller FAQ
Bucky pictures
Synergetics
Bucky Collection
List of Books by Buckminster Fuller
A good place to start would be either "Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth" or "Critical Path". But here is the full list:

"4-D Timelock", 1928.
"And It Came to Pass - Not to Stay", 1976.
"Earth, Inc.", 1973
"Education Automation", 1962
"Grunch of Giants", 1983
"Humans in Universe", 1983
"Ideas and Integrities". 1963
"Intuition", 1972
"Nine Chains to the Moon", 1963
"No More Second Hand God", 1963
"Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth", 1963.
"Synergetics: Explorations in the Geometry of Thinking", 1975.
"Synergetics 2: Futher Explorations in the Geometry of Thinking", 1979.
"Synergetic Stew: Explorations in Dymaxion Dining", 1982.
"Tetrascroll", 1975.
"Utopia or Oblivion: The Prospects of Humanity", 1969.
Other books and materials
"A Fuller Explanation" by Amy Edmonson, 1987.
"Artifacts of R.Buckminster Fuller" edited by James Ward, 1985.
"Buckminster Fuller: An autobiographic Monologue" by Robert Snyder, 1980.
"Bucky for Beginners" by Mary Laycock, 1984
"Cosmic Fishing: an Account of Writing Synergetics with Buckminster Fuller" by E.J. Applewhite, 1977.
"Fuller's Earth: A Day With Bucky and the Kids", edite by Richard Brenneman, 1984.
"Inventions: the patented works of R.Buckminster Fuller", 1983
"Synergetica Journal, Vol 1", Buckminster Fuller Institute, 1991.
"Synergetics Dictionary" compiled by E.J.Applewhite, 1986.
"I Seem To Be A Verb", 1970