Week 4 post

When you think of medicine and art one does not usually draw a correlation between the two. But this week after watching professor Vesna’s lectures, she brought up several examples of art and medicine working together in unison. For example she brought up a German scientist named Gunther van Hagens who developed a procedure called plastination that replaces the water in deceased human bodies with plastic in order to preserve them. The bodies are displayed in an exhibit in an artistic manner in order to display human anatomy permanently. Its fascinating to observe these bodies, not only to learn about anatomy, but also to appreciate the artistic portrait that the scientist has conveyed.

            Other recent advances in medical technology that portray the human body in artistic fashion would be the MRI and x-ray machines. Instead of the ultra-invasive form of viewing the interior of the body, these machines were developed to create  “portrait” of the inside of the body without actually going inside.

            The most relevant example of the marriage of art and medicine would have to be plastic surgery. Before this week I was under the impression that plastic surgery was a recent discovery, but in fact it was invented over 4000 years ago. Plastic surgery became important in World War 2 when faces started to become disfigured from the new types of weapons. In this case the body is the canvas, and the doctor is the artist. It does worry me though that people push the limits of their own safety in order to change their appearance. I believe the only real reason for plastic surgery is a medical condition, such as breast cancer or cleft lip, in order for the person to feel comfortable in their own body.

"Medical Devices." Risks of Breast Implants. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

Vesna, Victoria. “Medicine Parts 1-3.” Lecture. Web. 26 Oct. 2013.

"Plastination." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 08 Aug. 2013. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

"Plastic Surgeons Build Back the Person after Breast Cancer." Http://www.pjstar.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

"Bodies© INCorporated." Bodies© INCorporated. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

Week 3 post

Since the creation of robots society has continually evolved. When I refer to robots though I am not talking about the ones that walk around and look like humans, those are commonly referred to as cyborgs as professor Vesna points out. The word robot, in context of our society, refers to any automated device that replaces human effort. These are the kind of robots that affected society and provoked industrialization.

One of the great creations of robots and technology was the assembly line, originally created by Gerald Ford making cars. Another one of the great creations was the computer. Both of these provoked industrialization, and society in return became more efficient. Society was now able to do more with less, for example less hours worked and more product being circulated in the economy. Charlie Chaplin made a movie called “Modern Times” which showed how the assembly line had started to make people feel as if they were robots themselves, or cogs in the machine.

Right now we are on the brink of another robotic breakthrough as cyborgs are starting to be created that show emotion. They’re still in the early stages of evolution as explained by David Hanson in TED talks, but it kind of makes you think about the future. For me I start to think of the movie iRobot and how robots began to develop their own emotion and were able to make their own decisions and turn on us. So is there ever a point in time when the progression brings about danger to our society?

http://www.ted.com/talks/david_hanson_robots_that_relate_to_you.html

http://www.ted.com/talks/rodney_brooks_on_robots.html

http://www.ted.com/talks/hod_lipson_builds_self_aware_robots.html

"Robot." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 19 Oct. 2013. Web. 20 Oct. 2013.

"Charles Chaplin." IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2013.

Week 2 post

Mathematics and art are usually thought to be two opposite ends of the spectrum in regards to the mind and how it functions differently. Relating it back to last weeks post, math and art reside on opposite ends of the campus at UCLA. But this week I learned how math has been incorporated into art throughout history. One of the most prominently used terms was the golden ratio. The golden ratio was a term coined by Martin Ohm in 1835, which was originally called the “golden section.” The golden ratio is generally used in art to create perfect symmetry. Examples of this golden ratio can be seen in the pyramids of Giza, the Parthenon of Athens, and the famous piece of artwork “The Vitruvian Man.” The golden ratio has aided artists in making the proportions of their artwork more realistic.

Another example of mathematics in science and art is the Fibonacci sequence. The Fibonacci sequence is a sequence of numbers that creates a spiral which shows itself everywhere in nature. For example this spiral manifests itself as the ideal growth of a stock, or in the growth of a tree.  Another example would be the use of vanishing points, which is an invisible point where parallel lines in artwork appear to converge. These were used to create realistic depth in paintings and artwork.

         M.C. Escher was one artist that used mathematics in a lot of his artwork. For example he would create tessellations, which was an arrangement of geographical figures that completely cover a page with no gaps. He also liked to use math, and such things as vanishing points to create paradoxes, which were impossible in real life.

         From this weeks readings and videos I learned that art and mathematics are like peanut butter and jelly contrary to popular belief. Math has influenced art from early on and has helped create more realistic artwork. Things such as vanishing points and the golden ratio show up all over the art world all throughout time. Nature also shows signs of math with the Fibonacci sequence. Natural growth tends to follow the sequence for whatever reason in everything from trees to the stock market. 

"Golden Ratio." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 10 Oct. 2013. Web. 13 Oct. 2013.

"Fibonacci, Fractals, and Financial Markets." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2013.

"INTRODUCTION." Mathematical Art of M.C. Escher. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2013.

"Vanishing Point." N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2013    

 "Golden Ratio." N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2013.

week 1 post

In the society that we live in, the population can be more or less split down the middle into two different cultures. There is a lot of gray area to this statement, but for the most part the individual tends to lean either toward the arts or the sciences. I understand that there are millions of people in the world that will identify with both cultures, but what I am saying is that there are two clear-cut cultures in our society and the majority of society will classify themselves in at least one category. The artists tend to have a more abstract and linear way of thought, whereas the scientists have a very rigid, definite approach in their line of work.

Snow, in "Two Cultures", explains that the two cultures have very skewed views of their counterparts. “The non-scientists have a rooted impression that the scientists are shallowly optimistic, unaware of man’s condition. On the other hand, the scientists believe that the literary intellectuals are totally lacking in foresight, peculiarly unconcerned with their brother men…” (5, Two Cultures and Scientific Revolution)

            At UCLA, there is a perfect example of the subtle differences between the two cultures right on campus. The disconnect between south campus and north campus at UCLA is noticeable. South campus is home to the science majors, and north campus is home to the artistic and abstract majors. The south campus is lined with a lot of right angle architecture, making it seem very rigid similar to the majors that study there. The North campus has a number of abstract pieces of art, including quite a few sculptures on its grounds.

            As a 3^rd year at UCLA I have taken at least one class from both points of view, and from my experience there is a noticeable difference between the two. The south campus classes tend to study concepts and questions that will have a well-defined answer. The north campus class will be more open to personal opinion and creativity. 

"The Implicate Order." YouTube. YouTube, 07 July 2008. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.

                                        Bohm, D. JSTOR. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2013. 

"Academy EBriefings." A Dangerous Divide. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.

                           "The Third Culture." The Third Culture. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.

"University of California, Los Angeles." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 10 May 2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.