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Though I settled with a course in cognitive psychology, I had initially hoped to get into the Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) laboratory class this quarter, therefore I am utilizing this week's blog post as a supplement. Finding the respective professor's lectures online, I have been able to learn a thing or two about how magnetic resonance imaging works [1]. For our purposes, nearly all forms of neuroimaging are related to the art of photography: light reaches the target object, is manipulated by the objects' varying densities, captured by a plate in the imaging device, and processed for the clearest picture. [2] I n summary of how MRIs work, a magnetic field is created by reorienting a field of protons and measuring the energy that is emitted by the associated nuclei via a series of pulsating coils, before combining these into one resolute image of brain structure or function. At broad, neuroimaging techniques are used in the medical field to examine anatomical structure...

Tonight, Wednesday the 20th of April, I visited the Murphy Sculpture Garden in order to enjoy the presentation of UCLA lecturer and alumnus of the Department of Design Media, Refik Anadol. UCLA's Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden is a collection of over 70 sculpture spanning 5 acres. [1] Anadol heads his own studio and lab in Los Angeles where he is invested in the process of "discovering and developing trailblazing approaches to data narratives and artificial intelligence"[2]. Anadol's artwork contains the general theme of understanding humanity in an age where AI is just as prevalent as natural intelligence and is able to augment our perception of time and space. For this reason, I feel that Anadol's work is a gentle reminder of the content covered in last week's lecture, where we were introduced to the decades-long attempt of scientists, technologists, and artists coming together to re-present our information-based world [3]. Indeed, in reading the explan...

Both science and art are cumulative processes of knowledge production, with scientists attempting to explain the physical universe and artists attempting to display the cultural world [1]. "Everything we know and do is rendered through shared and transforming intelligence," states the author. In this week's lecture, we observed the scope of progress become increasingly narrow over time as information-processing capabilities have grown exponentially efficient. In supplement, I unapolegetically drew from my favorite YouTube channel, "Crash Course". In video 6 of the series titled Big History , I was first drawn to the notion of collective learning, the ability of a species to transfer knowledge across generations [2]. In the innovative, interdependent social world that we reside, knowledge is power, power is money, and capital has driven every industrial revolution thus far, with post-industrial societies appearing to replace human labor with computing power [3]. ...

My innate repulsion towards math would have become total disregard at this point if I had not once been directed toward a list of quotes exclaiming the beauty of mathematics, among them the recurring theme that humans did not artificially create math, but discovered it. Among these quotes [1] is an admonition from Leonardo Da Vinci to acknowledge the wisdom that threads both artists and scientists obtain when employing mathematics into their designs. While it could be assumed from last week's lecture that modern artists, by using calculation-driven technologies, must posess a modest command of mathematics, in this week's lecture I was astonished to learn that Renaissance artists like Da Vinci (nevermind Old Kingdom Egyptian and Mediterranean architects [2]!) had long adopted reliable techniques. Keeping with the religious theme that I had mentioned in my previous post, I revisited one of his most famous paintings that I had numerously seen in Catholic sanctuaries, "The Las...

In today's event, part of a series titled Forces to Forms that partners UCLA with Pratt Manhattan Galery, we explored the creativity of a handful of artists who explored form generation from the micro to the macro level [1].  Addressing laws of nature through physical structures and philosophical debate was first examined by Bob Root-Bernstein, a biogeneticist and artist himself, whose work was a tribute to the famous Miller-Urey experiment of recreating primitive Earthly conditions.  [2] In collaboration with Adam Brown, another researcher at Michigan State, Root-Bernstein's "ReBioGeneSys" (2021) is literally capable of producing living molecules and cells! Janet Echelman also demonstrated the third culture by portraying how physical systems interact over time. Her work has touched nearly every continent, representing culture and climate through fabric and mist architectures [3], with her current display depicting high waves and hurricane winds among Pacific and Euro...

Following my existentialist breakdowns as a teenager, I came into college wanting to study the human belief system, so it seemed that the most logical route was to major in psychology and minor in religious studies. However, over the past year I have felt that I should have picked a different minor, specifically computer science or brain and behavioral health, which would allow me exposure to the neurotechnologies and healthcare routines that supposedly mark the peak of human civilization. Although I continue to read up on metaphysics and self-transcendence in my own time, I have deeply wished that I allowed the word "applicable" to guide my choice of curricula instead of "interesting". (Besides, dropping religious studies for a more science-y department would provide escape from the lackluster, outdated humanities buildings [1] and give me access to the state-of-the-art life sciences buildings[2]!) [1] The  humanities buildings  tend to be farther away from campus,...