Week 4, Neuroscience + Art

Phrenology

Though we have barely scratched the surface of the true nature of the human brain, studies have uncovered a massive amount of information regarding the way in which the brain works in connection with the lives we live. Of course, with such a fascinating subject, we notice the many ways in which our brains are played with, studied, and altered to experiment and discover what we do not know. During this week's lecture, we learned about phrenology, the study of the localized functions of the brain with their specific functions. I find it fascinating that we can pinpoint the part of our internal organs that causes us to form acute desires toward certain subjects like music genres.

Neuroscience is especially interesting to me because it involves areas of our life that are not only fantastical but uncontrollable as well, such as with our dreams. With dreams, people have tried to consciously control their not-so-conscious fantasies while sleeping with lucid dreaming, as seen in the movie Inception.

Inception Lucid Dream

LSD Projection

Limitless

Alongside the attempt to control the unconscious with lucid dreaming, the more common form of brain altering is seen with psychedelic and mind-enhancing drugs, specifically with LSD, acid, and cocaine. As professor Vesna discussed in lecture, there was a time when these drugs were legal for recreational use. Though these hard drugs are illegal today due to their detrimental effects of the drugs, famous intellectuals such as Aldous Huxley have published multiple writings regarding the mind, psyche, and various philosophical ideas which were to some level spurred by hallucinogenic drugs. Users claim to experience an extraordinary experience or "trip" of remarkable imagination capacity to enhance their artistic abilities to think outside their everyday box. While I learned about the history behind some of these drugs' use, it made me wonder at the possibility of more purposeful drugs to be created, as seen in the movie Limitless with Bradley Cooper. This might be an exceptional combination of neuroscience and art that could be used to positively assist society.

Greg Dunn Microetching: Brainbow Hippocampus

I find it fascinating that we have been able to analyze the workings of the brain on a microscopic level to discover in detail the way in which we think, a concept we do not normally conceive to become visual. Dr. Greg Dunn, a scientific art designer, has devoted much of his time to visually depicting the neural landscape of the human brain with handmade lithographs he and his friend, Dr. Brian Edwards, have invented, called microetchings.




These images are brilliant, yet it makes us wonder how much we will know in ten years, since scientists say we truly know nothing about the brain's nature. David Deutsch reveals this in his lecture on the history of how societies have evolved in the way they have perceived knowledge and how we form our beliefs and convictions. Art has been integrated with science, especially over the past few centuries, to derive our assertions and factual discoveries about the world around us.

Works Cited

David Deutsch: A New Way to Explain Explanation. YouTube. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. .

Dunn, Greg. "Brainbow Hippocampus." Greg A Dunn. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. .

"Limitless." Generation Film. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. .

"LSD Forest." Deviant Art. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. .

"Lucid Dreamer Controls Dream." Google Images. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. .

"Phrenology." Google Images. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. .