1. A method for determining an optimal placement of a network of actuators for actively shaping an elastically deformable material into a desired target shape, the method comprising acts of: obtaining a placement location of the network of actuators by evolving a set of actuator parameters associated with the network of actuators using a particle swam optimization algorithm; sensing, with a sparse sensor network having a plurality of sensors fastened to the elastically deformable material, a local actual shape of the elastically deformable material, wherein at least some of the plurality of sensors are separate and distinct from the network of actuators such that they do not share a common placement location; and determining, based upon a discrepancy between the local actual shape of the elastically deformable material associated with a selected placement of the plurality of actuators and the desired target shape, whether the obtained placement location of the network of actuators is an optimal placement location.