Dear Space Travelers, Meet SEED. SEED has the smell of the soil, the touch of the forest. SEED remembers gravity. SEED longs for the Earth. Let it keep you company during your journey into the ultra space. Let it guide you home. SEED went on a Zero-G Flight with Aurelia Institute, MIT Media Lab on May 19th, 2024. The intricate internal structure, almost a miniature spacecraft, is hidden by the wood acorn shell. In Zero Gravity, no matter how it’s repositioned, SEED will always rotate itself to fall towards the Earth. For the first generation of space dwellers, SEED encapsulates memories of the Earth and empathizes with their experiences – leaving home, missing feeling grounded, going on a journey of the unknown. For the future generations of space dwellers, SEED is a mechanical artifact passing on stories, memories, and the identity of Earth humans.

Kaifeng Wu is a a collaborator who provided significant assistance in fabricating the camphor wood enclosure and other earlier fabrication processes.