Twelve Days of Popcorn (Day 2): Underwater Art
December 10, 2010 at 12:51 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 1 CommentTags: art, biology, environment, ocean
It’s far too nippy here in New England to dig out the SCUBA gear, but a girl can dream, especially when faced with some truly beautiful marine-inspired artworks.
British sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor creates artificial coral reefs, not by submerging old train cars, buses, and other mechanical detritus as is often done elsewhere, but instead by creating beautiful sculptures which evolve over time as they are colonized by marine creatures. These underwater sculptures can be beautiful, spooky, or strange, but are always compelling, from their pristine state to their eventual end as the heart of a new kind of natural beauty.
The Dream Collector, by Jason deCaires Taylor. Click for link to original image.
And for those of you who prefer to keep your feet dry while checking out marine art, there is the incredibly cool collaborative crafting of the Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef, currently on display at the Smithsonian. Based on the brain child of mathematician/professor/artist Daina Taimina, who first figured out how to use crochet to create this kind of mathematical form, others have gone on to build huge reefs including the Smithsonian’s Community Reef, which took contributions from interested participants in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia area.
On the second day of popcorn, these ideas gave me glee — two coral reefs and a pop-up folding snow-bedecked tree…
Cool and Creepy Archaeology in October
October 25, 2010 at 3:27 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: archaeology, art, biology, food, history, humor, massachusetts, multicultural
The month is almost over, but I can’t let it go completely by without tipping my hat to Massachusetts Archaeology Month.
Since life here at PEM has been very focused on the amazing Emperor’s Private Paradise exhibit, I have to admit I’ve been more tuned to archaeology stories from that corner of the world recently, including this incredibly cool discovery which may make people reevaluate historical trade routes: Could a Rusty Coin Re-Write Chinese-African History?
In celebration of which I give you Mint Your Own Coin from the American Museum of Natural History’s OLogy page, which also features fun interviews with archaeologists, make-your-own archaeological stationery, artifact features, and more.
If you’re looking for other online archaeology interactives, check out the extensive list at Fun Archaeology For Kids. The list includes lots of different cultures and time periods, with a great many of the interactives created by museums and other reputable sources.
And now for the creepy. (It is, after all, the week before Halloween, and I’m not entirely immune to the Salem atmosphere.)
Royal blood may be hidden inside decorated gourd. (eeurgh!) An intricately decorated gourd bears traces of blood which may very well have come from a handkerchief soaked in the blood of the beheaded King Louis XVI of France.
Personally, I prefer my blood 100% Pure Fake, as in the book reviewed by exhibit interactive wizard Paul Orselli. And if that’s not enough gross and gucky exploration for you, check out Wastewater: Sewage in your face! from the San Diego department of public works, which, among other more educationally rewarding activities, has recipes for making soda and cake that look like sludge.
All creeped out? Build an Egyptian tomb, uncover a prehistoric burial, or just make a pasta skeleton, courtesy of artist Kathy Barbro, directions here (or click the picture).
Pasta skeleton designed and photographed by Kathy Barbro. Click for link.
Art, Astronomy, and Alien Adaptations
September 16, 2010 at 12:11 am | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: art, astronomy, biology, design, ecology, poetry
On my recent vacation in Maine, I spent a mesmerizing half hour or longer on the dock in front of our cabin, head tipped all the way back to take in the wealth of stars and splash of Milky Way, unsure whether I was feeling dizzy because of the depth over my head or the lake under my feet. Add in the fact that it was during the Perseid meteor shower, and you had the recipe for perfect wonder that reminded me why I spent several years growing up convinced I was going to be an astronaut.
Fortunately for those of us who are sadly earthbound, there are folks up there willing to share the wealth: Twitpics from Space. Not to mention NASA Spots Signs of Life…On Earth, in which some of those nifty NASA folks have figured out how to search for bacteria trapped in ice by satellite. Next stop, Mars!
I love reading stories about what life is actually like on the International Space Station or for astronauts in general, but I get an almost equal amusement and fascination out of what people *thought* life in space could be…and how many of those ideas are still around in slightly altered forms, like eco-designer Vincent Callebaut’s floating water-purifying resort and eco-refuges for when we lose the battle with climate change (dystopic design at its prettiest).
Hear Auden read “The More Loving One” and read the text of the poem at NPR’s 100th anniversary article on Auden’s birth here.
The night sky has a kind of mystery that sometimes only artists and poets seem to be able to capture…and sometimes science helps solve those mysteries, more than a hundred years later! Forensic astronomer solves Walt Whitman mystery (Always nice to see those interdisciplinary learners in action!)
Feeling inspired to do some stargazing? Keep your eyes open and antennae out…the BBC reports that “Alien hunters ‘should look for artificial intelligence’” while scanning the sky. While you wait for ET to ring the doorbell, bring the search for alien life to your classroom with the web-quest Design a Space Alien, designed for middle school students, and give your studies of earth science and evolutionary biology an extraterrestrial twist.
Passing along a Job Opportunity
February 25, 2010 at 9:01 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: biology, job, professional development
I’m not usually in a position to help pass such things along, but a friend asked me to share this one, and it does sound pretty darn cool. Plus, the folks I met from ECHO at last year’s NEMA conference were awesome.
ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center, located at the Leahy Center for Lake Champlain on Burlington’s waterfront, seeks a creative, upbeat individual to serve as its Public Education Coordinator. The Public Education Coordinator has primary responsibility for designing and
coordinating the delivery of exceptional daily experiences and programs to ECHO’s family and public audiences.The position includes performing regularly for large public audiences, training and supervising volunteer, intern and staff educational interpreters, and managing systems and materials related to public programming. The public education coordinator is required to work regular weekend and holiday shifts as part of a 40-hour/week schedule.The ideal candidate will have strong stage presence, experience using technology to enhance educational programming, and experience supervising educational interpreters. The successful candidate must have a bachelor’s degree in ecology, biology, science education or a related field, minimum 3 years experience designing and implementing educational programs and strong public speaking and communication skills.To apply, e-mail a cover letter and resume to: jobs@echovermont.org with Public Education Coordinator in the subject field. You also can apply via “snail” mail at ECHO – Public Education Coordinator Job Search, One College St., Burlington, VT 05401. For a detailed job description, visit our website at http://www.echovermont.org/visitors/jobs.html. The deadline for applications is March 8, 2010.
More ‘Brain Art’
January 27, 2010 at 6:45 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: art, biology, history, massachusetts, photography
Susan Aldworth (British, b. 1955) Brainscape 18, 2006
Yes, there are more fun and fabulous examples of brain-inspired art coming to a Massachusetts museum! Landscapes of the Mind: Contemporary Artists Contemplate the Brain is running at the Williams College Museum of Art from January 30–May 2, 2010. (See the full press release here.) Being who I am, I’m particularly excited about their family day with student-led tours and art making activities in March, as well as intrigued by the fact that this exhibit, which is all about what is literally inside your head and therefore something we never see of ourselves, is tying in with the museum’s ‘year-long focus on art and landscape.’ I think there are a lot of fun parallels people could draw with other ways artists, writers, and scientists have imagined, described, and mapped what goes on in the brainscape.
Historically, for instance, there’s all the wackiness associated with phrenology, (very popular in Victorian times). Art-historically there are those fabulous surrealists (or insert adjective of choice depending on your own opinion) like Salvador Dali. Scientifically we have all those brain-mapping studies, and virtual reconstructions through forensic anthropology, and Einstein’s brain in a jar (more than one jar, apparently).
Persistence of Memory by Salvadore Dali
Back to Lunar New Year and other fun multicultural stuff in the next post, I promise!
Just for Fun: What’s in your brain?
November 6, 2009 at 8:24 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: art, biology, humor
It’s not every day that one comes across art that so perfectly ties in with a blog named “Brain Popcorn.” However, thanks to a tweet from Paul Orselli, I wandered over to Behance Network to discover “What have you got in your head?“
(My personal favorite is this brain made of star-shaped pasta. Fabulous. Even if today, my brain is made of chocolate wrapped in a to-do list.)
Credit goes to Sara Asnaghi. Click the picture to see the rest of her brain-art.
So much cooler than the brain-shaped jello-mold we had hanging around the ed office for a while. (I wonder what I did with that? I’m feeling inspired.)
Looking for further brain art? Check out “The Museum of Scientifically Accurate Fabric Brain Art.” It’s a stitch.
And, just to make me feel better about the whole brain-of-chocolate business:
Chocolate, Wine, and Tea Improve Brain Performance
A blog about interdisciplinary thinking, museum education, and hands on activities. To get to Meg's creative writing, click on the above picture for "Sea Dreams and Time Machines."Popcorn Delivery: Feed your brain by remote
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