Event 1: UCLA Meteorite Gallery

For my first event I attended the meteorite gallery on the UCLA campus located in the geology building. I had heard about this previously from my oceanography teacher so when I saw it in this class I knew it must be worth a visit. Although it isn't a very big space, they fit a lot of information into one space. In this small area I was truly able to see the two cultures of science and art collide. We had learned about this separation in the first week but quickly realized there was nothing separate about the two. With art comes science and with science comes art.

One of the pieces that stood out the most to me was the "old woman iron meteorite". It is the second largest meteorite from the USA with a mass of 2753 kg. The mass of the slab shown was only 80.5 mg. With this piece of art being on long-term loan from the Smithsonian it is something special. To think that the slab being shown is only a small part of what was found is incredible. Know it is on display for students to observe and learn from. Nature and science can be turned into art just by the display and perspective. The unusual structure occurs from the slow cooling of metal with 5.5% Ni followed by shock alteration and recrystallization.

I would recommend this gallery to any UCLA student. This combination of the two cultures of art and science is right under our noses. It doesn't take long to even poke your head in and see what beauty these meteorites have to offer. Next time you are near the geology building, take the extra time to go. I promise it is worth your time.

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Week 2: Math + Art

After watching and reading this weeks material I was surprised by the information that I had learned. I had been aware that math had been included in art but I wasn't sure to what extent. It started as early as 200 B.C. with the use of zero and in the 13th century with Giotto using linear perspective to create depth. Although it wasn't an exact mathematic formula it still embraced the basic concept. More than anything geometry is used in order to create the basic formulas and changes in perspectives for paintings and drawings. The geometry can be seen in something as simple as a tile floor, the entire image can shift just depending on the observers perspective. The golden ratio can be seen in art ranging from buildings to portraits and is a key formula to artists. One image I found particularly interesting was Piet Mondrian and his use of only lines to create a beautiful painting. He portrayed how simple mathematics and geometric shapes could be put together to form somethi

week 6: Biotech + Art

In this weeks lecture we learned about biotechnology and the hybrid that scientists are creating between animals. I found this week to be extremely interesting as I had taken a biotechnology class in high school. My class focused on the scientific aspect rather than the art aspect and I never considered the two to be connected. With biotechnology there comes a lot of issues including the debate of morals and ethics. There is a large controversy over artists using animals as test subjects and genetically modifying them. Artists have entered into these laboratories and work directly with biologists, neuroscientists, geneticists and nanotechnologists to create their own type of artwork. Joe Davis walked into a laboratory of MIT in 1982 and immediately made an impact in the world of bioart. He already had an idea of how genomes could contribute to art he just needed someone to teach him how to synthesize DNA in order to modify organisms on a molecular level. He was almost immediately

Week 7: Neuroscience + Art

In this weeks lecture videos professor Vesna describes the fairly new fascination of artists with the brain. She explores the idea of the conscious and unconscious and how our brains behave differently in each of these states. Scientists have been intrigued by the thought of consciousness and how long we as humans have been living a conscious life. Ramon Y. Cajal and Franz Joseph Gall were critical in showing us how the brain looked. Gall created the idea of phrenology and that the shape of someone skull indicated which part of your brain was working the hardest. The idea was later disproven but did provide a basis for future studies. Joseph Gall was credited with understanding the microscopic nature of investigation of the transmission of neural signals and of neuronal degeneration and regeneration. The tree like connection patterns he found are not only beautiful but are also extremely important. 95% of what we dream is forgotten, you dream every single night yet only some nig

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