Beth Ames

I build systems that teach taste.

I research how experts learn to perceive what the rest of us miss — in flavor, in materials, in problem definitions, in environments — and build systems that make those invisible patterns visible and teachable. Through edible installations, notation systems, data art, and design education.

Currently: finishing Flavor Fluency (Penguin, 2027) · NCEAS residency · teaching at Dartmouth

Taste & Perception

Translating perceptual learning into systems we can study, teach, and compose with.

Design Education

Teaching designers and engineers to notice, think iteratively through building, and collaborate across disciplines.

Design & Industry

Bringing design research into organizations — from robotics to luxury to museums, remote work, disaster relief, and more.

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Education

Postdoc MIT · Visiting Scholar Stanford · PhD Univ of Cambridge · MPhil Univ of Cape Town · Diplomado PUC Chile · BS & BA ASU Barrett Honors College

Recognition

Thinkers50 Emerging Thinker · Harvard Crimson Top 15 Professor · Artist in Residence, National Center for Ecological Analysis & Synthesis · Vermont Studio Center Residency · Fulbright Scholar (Spain)

Clients

Gucci · Kering · Uber · IKEA · Disney · Microsoft · Google · Intel · IDEO · General Mills · Bosch · PWC · Swarovski · Tesco · SAB Miller · Dandelion · Expedia

Press

CNN · Wall Street Journal · Boston Magazine · Forbes · Kinfolk Magazine · VentureBeat · Independent · Outside · Adweek · Fortune · HBR