Week 3: MedTech+Art

This week's topic of medical technologies influence art concepts really interested me, because it allowed me to see things in my own major that I was never able to reflect on before. For example, being a science major, I never appreciated the connection there is between art and the chemistry problems that I had to do and understand. Donald E. Ingber's "The Architecture of Life" allowed me to see this connection because he talks about organic structures of chemicals and how the concept of self-assembly allows the study of a chemical's real three dimensional shape. Here we see art and science coming together because the discoveries of science can lead to artwork created and inspired to give precise images of what a chemical's structure is.

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQgbBHvx2VWESfKzowzf9AbLXDR0zh5WZkIFGIOuvc8YmQMlLu66g

Medical technologies have influenced this type of art because it can give more advanced images of a chemical's structure, which can allow scientists and doctors to do further studies. The advances in medical technologies has also helped me personally as a student because things such as the microscope has allowed me to view certain species in my biology labs, which helped me to illustrate my own perception of them. This is helpful in small species because it allows one to draw details that others may not be able to see, which could also lead to more studies on various subjects.

http://www.colourbox.com/image/scientist-looking-through-a-microscope-in-a-laboratory-image-4409597?ver=a&utm_expid=22365066-12&utm_referrer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Furl%3Fsa%3Di%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds%26source%3Dimages%26cd%3D%26docid%3DjEHCKeolLP6JsM%26tbnid%3D9ja6HezfSDrpzM%3A%26ved%3D0CAEQjxw%26url%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.colourbox.com%252Fimage%252Fscientist-looking-through-a-microscope-in-a-laboratory-image-4409597%26ei%3DZkXeUbr-GaOXiAKp84DADA%26bvm%3Dbv.48705608%2Cd.cGE%26psig%3DAFQjCNHO2BKEln-fy5fhFVA5uq0jWz-3vw%26ust%3D1373607645992406

As Professor Vesna discussed in lecture, using art can lead to a better understanding and knowledge of studies in science. For example, she talked about how drawing the human body in a very detailed manner helped her to understand the more advanced art created from medical technology. The video below shows how medical technology has allowed scientists to study processes that go on in our bodies, in this example, the process of mitosis. Thus, medical technology influenced art in inspiring the creation of videos to be made to explain these processes. This video helped me to understand our topic this week because I actually use this form of art to help me understand science ideas that I cannot visualize on my own.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6hn3sA0ip0

Citations:

• Ingber, Donald E. "The Architecture of Life." Scientific American, Inc., 1997. Web. 11 July 2013.
•  Ndsuvirtualcell. "Mitosis." YouTube. YouTube, 04 Aug. 2011. Web. 11 July 2013. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6hn3sA0ip0>.
• "Rob Garrod's Astrochemistry Pages." Rob Garrods Astrochemistry Pages. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 July 2013. <http://www.astro.cornell.edu/~rgarrod/research/complex-organic-molecules/>.
• "Scientist Looking through a Microscope in a Laboratory." Image of '' N.p., n.d. Web. 11 July 2013.
• Vesna, Victoria. “Medicine and Art: Part 2.” YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 25 Oct. 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded>.