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Showing posts from April, 2017

MedTech + Art

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Listening and reading of the different medical technologies and procedures I am familiar with hearing about on a daily basis, I was quite surprised to learn there is an artistic perspective behind the medical field.  For instance, dissection is one that is no stranger to the arts because both medicine and art are important for one another when viewing anatomy.  As stated by Professor Vesna, the Renaissance period was when art became most important for dissection.   (Image: Wikipedia/Anatomy) Artists could depict what was discovered through dissection by doctors or anatomists. According to Peter Tyson’s, “The Hippocratic Oath Today”, he mentions how the Hippocratic Oath states that doctors must “teach the secrets of medicine to the next generation”.  It is evident through the artwork of dissection and anatomy research that the next generation is learning from past discoveries about the body to further advance research of the body. The best example of this passing on of rese

Event 1 Post

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Attending my first event, “Eco-Centric Art + Science: Prophesies and Predictions”, for this class actually taught me many exciting ideas, concepts, and objects I have not known of before.  The first speaker I heard from was a woman named Linda Weintraub who taught me the incredible power of artwork in the scientific world.  For instance, she provided us a story about a female artist who was eager to spread awareness for the harmful effects taking prescription medication has on the animals in the environment because we release them into waterways through our toilets.  To help spread the awareness, she decided to have her artwork posted within bathroom stalls of an art exhibit so women could see the effects of their taking prescription medication go straight down the pipes to other species homes. I found her message of scientific research to be very effective due to her usage of her artwork and placement of it for the public to see.  Another speaker named James Gimzewski discussed the

Week 3 Blog Post

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Growing up in a world full of fast growing technology, I was very fascinated to learn of Professor Vesna’s claim of how art is influencing these new electronic advancements.  Stated in Walter Benjamin’s article “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction”, he states how the nature of the repercussions that these two different manifestations—the reproduction of works of art and the art of the film have had on art in its traditional form”, meaning the two entities of film, and other forms of technology, have had an impact on art and art has influenced the development of electronics.  A movie in which technology has influenced society and the way artists create their work is Passengers with Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence as the main actors.  The movie focuses greatly on the expansion of humanity on another planet with the use of a spaceship that can transport individuals lightyears into the universe without aging. Many creative, non-existent technologies were shown within t

Unit 2 Blog Assignment

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My views between mathematics and art have always been quite different from one another, similarly to how many other people who do not know the deep roots about each subject, according to the lecture for this week’s topic.  Professor Vesna mentions how individuals who favor art over mathematics or vice versa comes from the sad truth that they were not given proper instructors or teachers of either of the subjects, which I find myself quite relatable to.  However, I have learned that the two subjects, despite their obvious differences, have many relations connecting them both.  For instance, in the article, “The Mathematical Art of M.C. Escher” about the artist Maurissa Cornelis Escher, the article discusses how he incorporated mathematical principles in his artwork even though he had not been expert of mathematics.  Incredibly, mathematics can play a part in re-creating simple objects we see exist in our world today.  For example, the practice of origami is a very extraordinary case of

Unit 1 Assignment

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Madilyn Nickles Desma9 Week 1 Blog Assignment In the article, “Toward a Third Culture: Being in between” by Victoria Vesna, the author discusses how the backgrounds of literary/philosophical studies and scientific concepts should be joined in a way to develop a stronger way of thinking for research about things humanity does not know.  The article gives a more opinionated and researched perspective about the topic of “two cultures”.  However, in the article, “The Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution” by C. P. Snow comes from a more personal perspective of the concept of “two cultures” in that the author discusses his personal life of being involved in the scientific research at Cambridge University, but being equally involved with friends who focused on literary.  The author discusses, much similarly to the first article, of how the gap between both the literary culture and scientific culture must be shortened or be rid of in order for our future intelligence to thrive.