Abstract

2 2 Marci S. Uihlein, Issue Editor In his reflection on “The Nature of Research,” L. Bruce Archer, the late mechanical engi- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign neer and professor of design research at the Royal College of Art, argued that “Research is a systemic inquiry whose goal is communicable knowledge. . . .” Knowledge is not made in isolation, but within a context of previous work; it resides in a discipline which has a value system in both methodological approaches and in evaluation. Research is not only the act of investigation but one of communication, where the results are for- malized, reviewed, and disseminated. Simply put, research has criteria and a system. As one observes architectural research, it is clear that there is not a single system but many. Archer’s primary objective was to provide guidance on the difference between practice, research, and practice-based research. This delineation resonates with architectural research. As it is a field rooted in practice, there is a pull between design practice and academic traditions. In addition, the tools of architecture—drawing, modeling, simula- tion—are means of investigation alongside methodologies from history, social sciences, and science itself. A further tension can be felt with the