Week 1: Two Cultures

The idea of two cultures was first introduced by British chemist and novelist, Charles Percy Snow during his 1959 Rede Lecture. The lecture, later published as a book, describes the separation of intellectual life into the cultures of literary intellectuals and natural scientists. He accredited the failure of education system as the reason behind the divergence, and predicted that such separation would make it difficult to solve the world’s problem efficiently.

The separation described by Snow opened up the doors for discussion regarding the effect of two cultures and the possibility of a third culture emerging as a result. In his paper presented in 2000, Stephen Wilson expressed his vision of the future collaboration between science/technology and art, and envisions a future where science/technology and art begins to blend into one culture.

The merging of cultures that Wilson spoke of has begun, as evident in the involvement of art in some of the latest scientific breakthroughs.

One of the most significant collaborations between the two cultures came in the form of DNA Origami. While the design and manufacturing of DNA structures for technological usages was first proposed in the 1980s by Nadrian Seeman, the method used for DNA origami was only introduced about 10 years ago, where long viral strands of DNA are folded using staple strands to create structures. Aside from its usage in the biomedical field for drug delivery within the human body, the technique has been used to create art pieces that can be observed via microscopy. Starting with simple shapes, the creations became more complex as the technique matures. The most-sited of DNA origami creations is the smiley face, as seen on the cover of Nature.

A case where science and technology are not only involved but also helps pave the future of art creation is in virtual reality. Using Oculus Rift, a virtual reality headset, and Tilt Brush, a virtual reality sculpting and painting tool, users are able to paint in three-dimensional space. It is remarkable how technology can completely revolutionize art by introducing a whole new medium where users can step inside the painting and use materials that are previously impossible: fire, smoke, stars, etc.

As evident in the above examples, Art and Science/Technology are no longer completely separate cultures as many might think but ones that go hand in hand to create the best future for our society.

Citations:

Doronichev, Andrey. "Tilt Brush: Painting from a New Perspective." Official Google Blog. Google, 05 Apr. 2016. Web. 05 Apr. 2016.

"Nadrian Seeman: DNA Origami." The National Academics of Sciences Engineering Medicine. The National Academics of Sciences Engineering Medicine. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.

"Overview." Tilt Brush by Google. Google. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.

Smith, Lloyd M. "Nanostructures: The Manifold Faces of DNA." Nature 440.7082 (2006): 283-84. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.

Snow, C. P. “Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution.” Reading. 1959. New York: Cambridge UP, 1961. Print.

Wilson, Stephen D. “Myths and Confusions in Thinking about Art/Science/Technology.” College Art Association Meetings. New York, New York, 2000. Print