also stated that amateurs have the ability to see through dominant paradigms, are more free to recombine elements of paradigms thought long dead, and can apply everyday life experience to their deliberations. Most important, however, amateurs are not invested in institutional systems of knowledge production and policy construction, and hence do not have irresistible forces guiding the outcome of their process…'. Future projects 'Since 2006, CAE has changed the focus of its work towards a critique of US defense policy, and has moved away from its interrogation of biotechnology'. Controversy Steve Kurtz's Trial In 2004, one of its founders, Steve Kurtz, was arrested on suspicion of bioterrorism. On the morning of 11 May 2004, he woke to find that his wife Hope had died in her sleep. He called 911. Police became suspicious after noticing his biology lab which he kept in his own home. They contacted the FBI and Kurtz was detained for 24 hours before being interrogated and his house searched for biohazardous materials. The house was given the all clear, yet a week later, Kurtz's CAE collaborators were ordered to appear before a grand jury to investigate possible violations of the law regarding biological weapons. The jury met in July 2004 and cleared Kurtz of all "bioterrorism" charges, however the FBI continued to press charges against the artist and the case dragged on for four years. The case was widely covered in the US and international press, and sparked outrage among artists and scientists worldwide. A website was created for people to donate money to help Kurtz pay his mounting legal fees. The case was dismissed in 2008. According to Nicola Triscott, the FBI 'thought they had a situation out of which they could manufacture a terrorism case, which potentially brought great personal rewards', based upon the 'Lackawanna Six Sleeper Cell' case where six Yemeni Americans were convicted of supporting al-Qaeda Awards Critical Art Ensemble is the recipient of awards, including the 2007 Andy Warhol Foundation Wynn Kramarsky Freedom of Artistic Expression Grant UB Art Professor "Strange Culture" Case Goes to Court | WBFO, the 2004 John Lansdown Award for Multimedia , and the 2004 Leonardo New Horizons Award for Innovation. Rhizome | [Leonardo/ISAST Network] Leonardo/ISAST gives New Horizons Award for Innovation to Critical Art Ensemble (Leonardo/ISAST) CAE's work has been covered by art journals, including Artforum, Kunstforum, and The Drama Review. Calendar | The Humanities Project