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Yaghi Laboratory, Week 1

The Yaghi Laboratory is a truly fascinating laboratory here at UCLA. It is part of the department of chemistry and biochemistry. An amazing aspect of this laboratory is that they create metal organic frameworks (MOFs) which are used to store gases such as carbon dioxide and hydrogen. This lab designs crystalline extended structures which are geometrically beautiful.

The lab has constructed various forms of crystalline frameworks made from metal oxides that can be used to capture gases. This in turn has the potential for storing a variety of gases without having to apply pressure or change the state they are in. More interesting is the beauty in the structure of these compounds. The geometric and symmetrical orientation of these molecules show the artistic side of science and it is amazing that such variety of research occurs here at UCLA.

I also wanted to mention that I am doing SRP research at the Laboratory of Neuro Imaging (LONI) and the first time I entered this lab I was fascinated by how aesthetically beautiful the lab was set up and it looked so modern. This lab deals with neuroimaging of the brain and so there are various images of the brain all over the lab. These images are so alike yet so different that it is very artistic. I am helping with the ADNI initiative which is Alzheimer's research. In addition to the ADNI initiative the LONI lab is also working on Schizophrenia research and many other neurologically related research.

What is Art is Science- Rozalin Week2

Both art and science are forms of creative expression. Although we have been accustomed to thinking of art and science as total opposites and parts of different spectrums, the fact of the matter is that they have more in common and are more similar than we think.

Art is creativity in its rawest form. Art has no boundary and is a limitless form of expression that can encompass anything the human eye finds beautiful. It is malleable and can be transformed in many different ways. Art can range from beautiful paintings such as those created by Monet, to the creative expressions of Picasso to today’s modern art which has encompassed technology as a form of expression. Art has no beginning and no end. At a point that something is defined artistic and possibly pushing the limits of art, it can be said that there exists something even more extreme that can be considered art. You may then ask “how is art similar to science?”

Science is also creativity in its rawest form. It is creativity of the mind that leads scientists to ask the questions they ask and it is creativity that allows them to figure out and design experiments. Even more compelling is that science also encompasses aesthetic beauty, because it is nature. What we often forget is that art is just as much part of nature is as science. Evolution, in some ways is a result of the desire of beauty, the desire of symmetry. Science is used to explain evolution which in turn is tied to beauty and therefore art and science are in fact more relatable than thought before. Science too, just like art, is limitless. There isn’t a beginning and an end. It’s a continues flow of information and no matter how much is learned or discovered there is always more to add to it. Art and science are both forms of creative expression that although are thought to be different are in fact more similar than thought before.

Genetically Engineered Foods and Art- Rozalin Week 3

I believe that in many ways art is nature. The beauty that we see in nature is what is used in art. Art is derived from nature’s diversity, whether it be the wide array of colors to the variety of organisms out there. The environment is in itself a form of art and it is something that art is derived from. It is sad how the human race is, in effect, destroying the beauty of nature. From a scientific standpoint we have evolved to live harmoniously with our environment. It is ironic that it is science that has contributed to the environmental destruction where genetically modification of crops have had dire consequences and the technology that has allowed the industrialization of farms has led to overconsumption and unnecessary overproduction.

The way we have moved from living “naturally” to the industrial form of life of today, has resulted in grim consequences. We have damaged our environment and continue to do so. Our overt consumption of nutrition-less and unnatural foods has led to the downward spiral of overconsumption and destruction of our environment. Not to say that I don’t consume the processed products Mark Bittman was talking about, because I do, however I try as much as possible to consume as much natural foods as I can. After all, that is what nature has intended and in modifying our food source we are introducing unknown consequences. I moved to the U.S. when I was eight, and I was fascinated by the fact that there were strawberries in the fall and winter. Prior to that fruits had their associated seasons. There is something artistic to not seeing a peach or strawberry all the time. To having the opportunity to see it for a couple of months out of the year allowed you to enjoy that fruit so much more. The fruit also tasted so much better there than it does here in the U.S. It is most likely because the fruit and other foods were grown locally. Being a locavore has its advantages and in a way it is artistic because one gets to

experience what nature offers and more importantly one can see the artistic and aesthetic side of nature: seeing fruits growing on trees the variety of vegetables out there, etc.

In the paper by George Gessert, I found the discussion of animal domestication as art very interesting. If we think about it the dogs that we humans own as pets are not the dogs that existed a couple of hundred years ago. Dogs have been bred to look a certain way either big or small, long or short, with long straight hair or curly fluffy hair. The diversity of dogs we have is a result of human play with dog genes. We have over the years bred dogs to look a certain way such as the Labrador or the German Sheppard.

Transgenic Animals and Drugs- Rozalin Week 4

Our curiosity and desire to lead longer lives has led us to tamper with nature in the quest of possibly finding that perfect cure. In regards to plants and our foods we have created genetically engineered fruits that can withstand really cold weather or rice that is enriched with vitamin A to help those who live in areas lacking proper nutrition. Learning about animals, though I must say, has been quite interesting but at the same time somewhat creepy.

I think our desires to mess with the genetic codes of animals come from a good place. Most transgenic experiments with animals are done in order to produce medications we humans direly need. More importantly through trangenics the production of medication can become less expensive and thus available to those who need it most. A pharmaceutical company named Genzyme Transgenics is in the process of developing transgenic animals for the production of anticlotting agents from goat’s milk. Although this is a noble idea and one which can save hundreds of lives, I wonder what the repercussions are if this does get passed by the FDA and comes into production.

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Use of transgenic can be dangerous; we don’t know what the effects will be on the animals producing the milk and protein. If there are mutations then it would be possible to create viruses or people may have allergic reactions to a product made to save lives. However, we have lived thus far with many genetic modifications in our environment and seem to be doing ok.

When I googled for transgenic animals I came across this picture by Patricia Piccinini who focuses a great deal on transgenic animals and what they look like and the outcomes

their existence has. I found this picture quite astounding and thought I would share it with you all.

By Patricia Piccinini. This sculpture was sort of the face of the 'Becoming Animal' exhibition at Mass MoCA.. it was on a lot of their publications and posters about the show

Midterm Review: Rozalin Week 5

I was truly entertained and educated by the projects our class presented. They were so creative and original and at times controversial or at least they made us think outside the box. There was a trend among the projects that, even though the topic of this class is quite broad: science and art, it seems that many of us gravitated towards focusing on our health and how we interact with our world, whether it is through food or with our environment or through others. The projects had a lot of similarities and differences. We focused extremely on our health and how interacting with our environment affects us. There was also a theme of our interaction with technology and that was also used to explore the previously stated theme.

It was fascinating to me to see how each of us interpreted what art and science can encompass, how we utilized our definitions to come up with our projects, and how we processed those ideas. Some of our projects were more science oriented but still had artistic aspects and some of the projects were more focused on the artistic and aesthetic aspects but they still found a way to be defined through science and technology.

Viewing these presentations, especially the ones about the invisible faces, got me thinking what would happen to evolution, because evolution is the survival of superior genes and those that promote survival and adaptability. The reason we are attracted to beautiful faces is that they represent symmetry and it has been shown that people who have symmetrical faces have a better survival chance. Also, the reason men are more attracted to an hourglass figure in women is because that ratio of waste to hip is proportional to fertility rate. Therefore, I wonder when we mask our identities are we also creating weaknesses in our genes and not allowing for the most diverse influence? On the other hand, the project that dealt with dating that was associated with the MHC complex in the blood was more in tune with evolution. The higher the degree of difference between MHC complexes of people, the better the chances of fighting off illnesses which results in higher survival rates. It seems that there is a conflict. On one hand science has shown the importance of evolution and survival of the fittest but on the other hand human thought and morals has tried to create a place of equality and sameness. The trick is trying to find a balance between the two.

Looking back at my project I received some really good feed back and I realize that I need to do more research so I can better refine my project. A lot of the advice that was given in regards to the museum and the TV shows that I did not know existed, shows that I need to learn more about what is out there. Therefore, I need to look into those aspects and develop my ideas much better and incorporate something new in order to take it a step further.

Body and Art- Rozalin Week 6

This week in class we learned about body, art and science. As I think about it, there is a huge emphasis on body image here in America. Anorexia and bulimia are diseases that have resulted from this obsession. American’s are obsessed with how they look and through science we have provided the option of changing how we look through plastic surgery. We have been able to modify how our nose looks, we have then progressed to breast augmentation, tummy tucks, cheek implants, calve implants and so on. It seems that there is no limit on how we can modify our body image and plastic surgery is an example of that. There even those who modify their image, making themselves seem more feline like or seem like some other type of animal. Here are a few pictures of people who have modified their image through plastic surgery and in a way have created art.

I found the eye tattoo as one of the most interesting art pieces we saw in class. I had never even thought of the possibility that we could tattoo the eye. On Ripley’s Believe it or not, a couple of years ago I had seen a woman who had tattooed her body from head to toe and I had thought that that was the limit, there wasn’t anything left to be tattooed. But seeing the guy with the blue eye tattoo I was stunned. I had heard about tooth tattoos and that was pretty cool and now eyes are a part of it? I wonder if you can tattoo the tongue or your gums, that would be excruciatingly painful and quite interesting.

I was volunteering at the hospital during the Natalie Jeremijenko lecture. Coincidentally, I was volunteering for an event “The Heart of Cedars Sinai” which was hosted by the he Board of Governor's which featured a collection of world-renowned physicians and healthcare experts providing the latest information on the heart. One of the topics of discussion was about stem cell research and the heart. This reminded me of the man whose finger was able to regenerate based on technology developed by the army. In class we were debating the validity of such technology and surprisingly enough at one of the lectures at Cedar’s Sinai the doctor was talking about re-growing damaged heart tissue from stem cells derived from the patient's own heart cells. The lecture touched base on how a heart attack damages heart tissue and by taking some cells from that person’s heart, they can modify those cells and grow stem cells in a lab. After four weeks those stem cells are transferred back into the patients heart at the cite of tissue damage. They are then allowed to regroup and grow. This was amazing to me to actually hear a credible institution talk about such advanced technology.

Gil Kuno and Final Proposal-Rozalin week 7

Through out this course we have been able to watch many different art works and biotech related pieces. This time we were able to see the art work presented by the artist himself, which was such an amazing opportunity. Having the artist present his own art work gave us a different point of view and made us better understand what the he was trying to get across and why he did what he did. We were able to get a better understanding of the purpose of the art work and why the artist made it. Gil's art work was so dynamic and diverse yet graspable. I loved his recreation of the guitar and his vision of changing something old, and turning it into something new, recreating it.

Another piece of his art work that was visually stunning was his work on the dome. I am sure in person the piece must have been even more extraordinary. The way the colors changed on the dome and each new idea and picture was created, came off as very realistic. One more thing I truly enjoyed was his website and the creativity with which he had designed it. The fact that I was able to move things around and make music just browsing his website, “unsound”, was really amusing and entertaining. It gives us a chance to explore our own creativity which we sometimes forget in our busy and hectic lives.

In relating to the final I have decided to start another project focusing on a biotech pill that would target certain memories that a patient would want erased. Through PET and MRIs we would pin point those memories and then create the pill to delete that memory so that patients who are suffering with phobias or panic attacks can finally have a much better solution to their problems. This would be a little bit controversial since if it got into the wrong hands, who knows what could happen with this technology. So I will work on creating safety mechanisms on such pills and technology to prevent misuse and abuse.

Nanotech and Medicine-week 8 Rozalin

Throughout this quarter we have been exposed to a wide array of scientific and artistic information. With each topic we have discussed thus far, I have had some familiarity with before being exposed to it more in depth in class. However, when we started discussing nanotechnology I realized how little I knew about the topic and was really happy that we had the opportunity to have Jason Reed, who is an expert in the field, discuss this topic with us.

Nanotechnology has had so many applications in different fields. Thus far, nanotechnology has mostly been used in computers and other electronic devices. I was most fascinated with the application of nanotechnology in medicine. As someone who will be working in the field of medicine, it gives me such hope and happiness to know that nanotechnology has led to the advancement of medicine and better therapies for illnesses. I came across various inventions for medicinal nanotechnology one which, if approved by the FDA can be another tool in protecting women from contracting herpes and the HIV virus. At UCSF they have designed a gel, Vivagel, whose active ingredient, a dendrimire ( a nano molecule), is created through nanotechnology. The dendrimire attaches to the HIV virus and prevents it from being able to enter the T-cells, thus preventing infection. It is amazing that there are endless possibilities with nanotechnology and that we are able to improve our way of life through it.

Another invention as a result of nanotechnology has been the use of nanoemulsions to help treat cystic fibrosis. Those who suffer with cystic fibrosis get bacterial infections in their lungs and through the use of these nanoemulsions these bacteria can be killed thus leading to an improved way of life. Here is a picture of how those nanemulsions would be directed to the lungs.

Going through pictures and illustrations of nanotechnology I can’t help to notice the aesthetic beauty of these images and how in a way nanotechnology is art because it is a form of expression and a form through which change is brought about. Having Dr. Reed in our class last week was such an amazing opportunity to learn more about nanotechnology and his discussion on the advancement of nanotech in medicine was very interesting. The fact that we have been able to invent pacemakers that can transmit information about the heart to a computer is truly amazing.

Here are some pictures related to nanotech that I found very artistic: