Week 7: Neuroscience + Art

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For this week's lecture, we turn our attention inward to the human mind and its connection to art. This intersection prompts the question of what it means to be conscious and unconscious as well as other topics. According to Professor Vesna's lecture, consciousness is "a sense of one's personal or collective identity, including the attitudes, beliefs, and sensitivities held by or considered characteristic of an individual or group" (Vesna). 

 Professor Vesna also defines unconsciousness which is "all the processes of the mind which are not available to consciousness" (Vesna). Some of these processes include perceptions, thoughts, hidden phobias, repressed feelings, and dreams. Like many artists, I find it so interesting that 95% of our dreams are forgotten and possibly stored in our subconscious. The concept of unconsciousness and the unconscious mind was developed by Freud and Jung.

 I was also really interested in the use of Franz Joseph Gall's phrenology to identify criminals covered in Professor Mark Cohen's lecture. The theory is that different parts of the brain might emphasize different pieces of behavior and when a certain part is used more, it becomes larger. The larger, more active parts of the brain would cause bumps to form on the surface of the head. Gall conducted an experiment on several criminals and mapped the grooves and crevices of their brains. Professor Mark Cohen also conducted an interesting experiment with inverted goggles which combined science and art to demonstrate the brain's ability to adapt to unusual circumstances and then store the information within the brain. 

References
Koch, C. (2018, June 01). What Is Consciousness? Retrieved from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-is-consciousness/

Vesna, Victoria. “Neuroscience-pt1.Mov.” YouTube, 17 May 2012, youtu.be/TzXjNbKDkYI.

Vesna, Victoria. “Neuroscience-pt2.Mov.” YouTube, 17 May 2012, youtu.be/TFv4owX3MZo.

Vesna, Victoria. “Neuroscience pt3.” YouTube, 16 May 2012, youtu.be/E5EX75xoBJ0.

Vesna, V. (2012, May 12). Neuroscience-Mark Cohen.mov. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=59&v=eDq8uTROeXU

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