Plant Facts and Plant Fiction, Weeping Thief (Ficus lacrima)

At once visionary and weird, the multidisciplinary designers of Troika have imagined a world in the near future in which bioengineered plants achieve a variety of unusual capabilities. Mushrooms can “hush rooms” by providing insulation and sound dampening in a crowded apartment building. The Self Eater is designed to break down into pure ethanol fuel, while the Weeping Thief excretes a special liquid that acts as a security device for computers and smartphones. Although they are heavily inspired by science fiction, Troika’s hybrid plant-machines reflect questions asked in cutting-edge research today about the environmental and humanitarian implications of future designs.