Art of Neuroscience 2014 speakers
Register for our symposium on March 11th 2014 at the Eye Film Institute
Submissions to the Art of Neuroscience competition will be projected in the foyer of Cinema 1 of Eye (floorplan).
Programme:
- 15:00-15:15 Introduction by Theo Mulder, Director Institutes KNAW
- 15:15-15:35 Monika Auch - Stitch your Brain
- 15:40-16:00 Peter Meijer - The vOICe
- 16:05-16:35 Intermission / Exhibit
- 16:35-17:05 Announcement winners Art of Neuroscience 2014
- 17:05-17:25 Rodrigo Quian Quiroga - Borges and Memory
- 17:30-17:40 Closing remarks and acknowledgments
- 17:40-17:50 Short movie
- 17:50-18:30 Exhibit
Monika Auch - Stitch_Your_Brain
Monika Auch is a visual artist and MD. Her initiative "Stitch_Your_Brain" is a project at the interface of Art and Science with as central questions how hand-brain cooperation triggers creativity and "creating by hand" could affect our health and well-being. In collaboration with the Netherlands Institute of Neuroscience Auch collected registrations of specific tactile stimuli in her brain which inspired a series of artprints "Stitch_My_Brain". "Stitch_My_Brain" developed into a long term project: "Stitch_Your_Brain", asking the same questions but this time inviting the general public to participate. What is the importance of tactility, dexterity and material-based making in a contemporary culture dominated by digital tools? What are the effects of creative making on well-being and health? Conceived as an open, interactive project "Stitch_Your_Brain" invites out-of-the-box-thinking and cross-disciplinary exchanges between Art and Science. More info : Monika Auch and Stich_Your_Brain.
Peter Meijer - The vOICe
The vOICe (capitals OIC? Oh, I see!) is a sensory substitution technology aimed at letting blind people "see" with sound. In addition it serves as a research vehicle for neuroscience research on crossmodal plasticity, and brings together research on new man-machine interfaces, visual prostheses, computer vision,brain plasticity, synesthesia, esthetics, and even contemporary philosophy. I will in my talk discuss a selection of these topics, and touch upon trade-offs between esthetics and function.
Rodrigo Quian Quiroga - Borges and Memory
In the 1940's, Jorge Luis Borges, the brilliant Argentine writer, described a fictional character who could not forget. How would it be to remember absolutely everything? Starting from Borges' story, I will discuss some very basic principles of brain function, particularly about perception and memory, and the importance of abstractions and forgetting. This will lead onto the finding of concept cells (a.k.a. Jennifer Aniston neurons) in the human brain, who I will argue are the key neural substrate for the formation of declarative memories.
Competition
- The Intergalactic Brain by Sjoerd Vos, 2013 winner in the category Videos
- Space and Memory by Annelene Dahl, 2013 Winner in the category Images
Every year we look for spectacular images and videos that capture the beauty of the brain. Submissions can consist of raw data, processed data, or visualizations of concepts in neuroscience. A jury consisting of artists and scientists judges the submissions on aesthetic and scientific value, but also originality and reproduction quality. Two winners and four honorable mentions will be selected and announced at our annual symposium in the Eye Film institute in Amsterdam on the 11th of March 2014.
Jury
