This is your brain on art (and food!):
- “Researchers Observe Effects of Art on the Brain” and
- “Please Eat the Artwork: Rise of the Multisensory Museum” both from the Wall Street Journal
The most powerfully engaging works of art appeared to trigger brain regions in the frontal cortex that are involved in introspective thought, as well as nearby regions usually directed at more outward matters. The two areas usually don’t activate simultaneously. “That is a very rare state,” Dr. Vessel said. “It resonates in the shape of your mind.”
Storytelling and STEM:
- “Could Storytelling be the secret sauce to STEM education?” from KQED’s Mind/Shift blog
“When you can call a line of code a spell, then you are getting somewhere,” Fruchter said. After all, isn’t computer code basically modern magic?
- ‘Ultrahaptics’ and interactive digital displays that go beyond screens: “Manipulate and Tug On a 3D Interactive Display With Your Hands” from PSFK Ideas for Innovation
- Smell-able symphonies from Osmodrama
Fingertips to fossils or the Mona Lisa’s face:
- “The new tech allowing blind people to ‘see’ art” from Dazed
- “New Zealand Scientists bring back extinct birds through 3D scanning” from 3Dprint.com
- British Geological Service launches database of printable fossils, from The Atlantic
Beyond their beauty, fossils are also physical objects, with heft and depth, contours and textures. These qualities are not easily conveyed across the Internet, which tends to resolve on screens, brightly colored and flat.