A LEGO Brickumentary Page #9

So, we thought, like,

if that's the truth,

why don't we make

this project an homage,

so we nicknamed the project

the LEGO Towers

and thought the best way

to communicate it

would be to build it out of LEGO.

And the idea became almost

like doing manmade mountains

that are pixilated,

like a sort of low resolution

alpine architecture.

To show the developer how easy

it was to build the project,

when we presented the project, we also

presented this LEGO model and sort of,

if you can build it out of LEGO,

it can't be that difficult, can it?

And sort of he...

He passed the LEGO model on to his son,

and we got the commission.

The project earned Bjarke's group

a lot of critical acclaim

and helped put him

on the international architecture map.

So, when the LEGO company

was looking for someone to design

their LEGO house in Billund,

Bjarke was the perfect choice.

Of course, we were incredibly

excited to get the job.

As all Danes know,

LEGO is a Danish product.

If BIG had been founded

with a single purpose,

it would be to be

the architects of the LEGO house.

In Cambridge, at MIT,

they're using LEGO elements

to visualize more than just buildings.

They're looking at how

entire cities work.

So, we're looking at a LEGO model

that has been constructed

to represent a square kilometer

of Kendall Square.

We're actually

in this building right here,

in the MIT Media Lab,

and overlaid on this,

you're actually seeing

a projection map of Google streets.

The MIT City Science Initiative

is using LEGO elements

to visualize wind patterns,

heat maps,

light studies, and traffic flow.

Want to see what happens

if this block gets more light?

Just pick that 10-story

building up and move it.

It all kind of highlights the complexity

of the organism that is the city.

You know, the city isn't just roads.

It's not just access to sun.

It's not just people moving,

within the transportation networks.

It's all of these things,

in the same place,

and that's incredibly hard to see.

It allows everyone, let's say,

non-expert and expert alike

to come together

on a simple platform, you know,

that's inviting, to be for engagement,

you know, in a meaningful conversation.

Huh, wow.

Turns out LEGO bricks might

solve our traffic problems.

In the favelas of Sao Paulo, Brazil,

they've taken this visualization tool

to the next level

by using it to discuss ideas,

abstract ideas

about community and class.

We challenged them to build

model cities in LEGOs,

and these constructions arise out of

the children's search for solutions

in the community in which they're living.

This is our community. Our space.

Every rotten thing that you can imagine

is in these rivers.

It was our friend who had the idea

to build a bridge

to show the difference in our society,

and it made us take

a bigger view of things.

It's showing them

that the power of change,

the power of an idea that begins small,

can sometimes have a large effect.

There's another way the LEGO

system is being used as a tool,

and perhaps the most profound of all.

Can a toy be therapeutic?

At the Yale School

in Cherry Hill New Jersey

kids are interacting with each other,

playing with LEGO bricks.

What seems ordinary

is actually quite extraordinary.

This school is for kids with autism,

and all of these kids have significant

neurodevelopmental disabilities.

They're part of a therapy developed

two decades ago by Dr. Dan Legoff.

And yeah, that's his real name.

I was looking for something else.

I wasn't happy with the outcomes

I was getting using standard methods.

And so I had, you know,

different stations in my playroom.

One of them, um, was LEGO.

And a lot of the kids, especially,

socially anxious, inhibited,

quiet, mildly autistic kind of kids,

gravitated to the LEGO area.

And it seemed like an anxiety-free zone.

The "a-ha" moment came one day

when I came out to the waiting room

and two kids that I had been seeing,

very similar personalities...

they were both bringing

LEGOs from home to show me.

And they had met in the waiting room,

and they were showing each other.

And their parents were excited.

You could tell, they were like,

"Whoa. Look at that.

They're communicating.

They're interacting. This is cool."

Dr. Legoff allowed the kids

to play with LEGO toys,

but only if they built together.

Working in groups of three,

one is the engineer,

one is the parts supplier,

and one is the builder.

Only by communicating

can they get to a finished product.

Good.

This is a good time to switch.

Anybody who hasn't done building yet

should take a turn now.

It's coming along real nice.

Making them do a systematic thing

in a social context is the trick.

Building LEGOs is cool,

but you know what's even better

is to do it with my friends.

It is so exciting

to see this thing working.

So I have one student

who interacts with other kids

in the LEGO club

much more just in that one day,

than he has interacted with kids outside

of LEGO club for the whole summer.

- Right.

- So that's a pretty big deal.

Parents were saying,

"Oh, my kid loves going to see Dr. Dan.

Isn't that great?

He finally has a therapy that he enjoys.

He seems to be getting better socially."

But there was no data on it.

Dr. Legoff conducted a scientific study

comparing the behavioral improvements

from his therapy

versus traditional therapy.

Now those kids did get better.

But the LEGO kids got

significantly better than they did.

One of the many kids who has benefitted

from this kind of therapy

is Adrian Pitt, of New York City.

LEGOs are usually

all about concentration.

And I need to concentrate

on something a bit more.

It helps me, like, focus.

Why don't you take off...

Adrian is... He's just a real nice kid

who wants to make friends

and wants to play.

He has speech and language delays,

and he has been in speech

and language therapy

since he was about three years old.

The great thing about LEGO,

and the reason

that I love it for him so much

is there's no words.

The instructions are the pictures.

So if you can see,

you know, you can follow directions

and you can complete LEGOs.

Some of these pieces

need to have measurements,

so this one needs to be

exactly seven millimeters.

This is how we measure.

Adrian's very proud of what he built.

There's a real sense of accomplishment

once he's finished something,

and that's a big deal for him.

I'm having a bit of trouble

attaching this part.

If I don't get it right,

then it's not going to work.

In a secret location in Long Island

the components

of the life-size X-Wing model

have arrived via freighter

from the Czech Republic.

The X-Wing must be fully assembled

then broken up

into five transportable pieces

to be brought to New York City

for its unveiling in Times Square.

There isn't much time.

We are finally in New York.

We are really near to final stage.

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