The document discusses information as a material for design. It notes that modern microcontrollers are inexpensive, powerful, and can automatically sense the world, act autonomously, remember, repeat tasks exactly, and communicate. This allows the creation of complex behaviors. The document then discusses using information and microcontrollers as materials for object-oriented hardware designs, smart things that interact with the physical world, and information being used for decoration, heirloom electronics, service avatars, and intelligent environments. It concludes by stating that all design involves negotiation with materials.