Mathematics, Robots, and Art

Don't tell my engineering professors, but I have secretly never liked math. With that said, professor Vesna's lecture this week certainly was a breath of fresh air. After having dry mathematics thrown at me for over 10 years, her lecture reminded me of the fascination that I had with mathematical art as a child.

As a child my mind was frequently boggled by the paintings by MC Escher

Often times, math classes leave students lost in formulas and numbers and leaves out the beauty that mathematics can reveal. The idea of the "Golden Ratio", certainly reminded me of this. I had no idea that so many great landmarks of the ancient world, such as the Great Pyramids and the Parthenon were created using the ratio. Also, after further research I uncovered that as well as being a number important in civil engineering, the Golden Ratio is also important in relation to physical beauty.

Megan Fox isn't attractive until it's been proven by science

I also found the novel Flatland, by Edwin Abbott to be a fascinating way to incorporate elements of mind-boggling theories of physics into something much more accessible. Certainly, the novel made the think about the possibility of multiple dimensions and also made the incomprehensible notion of additional dimensions paradoxically somehow comprehensible. The novel reminded me once again of the interesting implications of mathematics in philosophy as well as expanded my imagination. One interesting revelation I had during reading the book was the notion that the universe could circle around on itself, and thereby be inescapable, just like how an ant can never escape a mobius strip.

Imagine a 3-dimensional version of this. Is your mind blown? Mine too.

In Professor Vesna's Robotics + Art lecture, it was made clear the profound effects that the printing press and the rise of the internet have had on society. The printing press made possible the rapid dispersion of knowledge for the first time in history, and the internet, as Marshall McLuhan argued, created the first global culture.

I must admit, I was aware of many of the drastic changes brought about by the rise of the printing press and the internet, however, I never before considered that the rise of technology brought about new forms of interdisciplinary art. Previously, I would have thought that the rise of technology would reduce the emphasis on the arts and increase the emphasis on science, but in reality, as the creation of the "Leanardo" journal and also the creation of E.A.T. suggests, the rise of information technology merely serves as a larger platform on which to deliver art.

Websites such a deviantArt provide distribution of art on a scale never before seen

This week, I was also intrigued by Machiko Kusahara's lecture that discussed the differences between how cultures viewed robots and the reasons for those differences. I had always assumed humans feared robots because they inherently dislike things that are different from themselves. I had never considered that monotheistic religions conflicted with the idea of a humanoid robot, whereas polytheistic religions such as Shintoism did not. Also, it is very interesting how the isolation of Japan caused it to be sheltered from many of the changes during the Industrial Revolution, and Japanese people therefore did not resent machinery for causing a loss of farmland.

Hal-9000, the classic robot antagonist from 2001: A Space Odyssey

OBEY, represents the culmination of mathematics and industrialization in art. The creation of this image using photoshop helps me understand how mathematics and technology are becoming an integral part of modern art. The fact that Shepard Fairey was able to successfully market his art by taking advantage of mass production by printing his large posters at Kinko's, and was eventually able to monetize his brand through the mass production of clothing shows how industrialization opens new avenues for artists to gain exposure.

OBEY, street art by Shepard Fairey, and now a mass produced clothing brand

As the example of Shepard Fairey shows, I think that contrary to many people's beliefs, art and science are actually more intertwined today than ever before. With the rise of the internet, technology, and mass production, artists are able to have more artistic freedom than ever before while reaching a wider audience than was ever possible in human history. 

As a child, the first connection I made between math and art occurred after I made a noise after blowing across the top of a glass bottle and asked my dad what causes the noise. Being an engineer, my father explained to me that by blowing across the bottle I was creating a standing wave inside the bottle, and that I could even raise the pitch of the note by adding water and thereby reducing the wavelength inside the bottle.

An example of the music you can create with an understanding of wavelengths and water.

The further along I go in my engineering studies, the more I realize that the arts and science are often times describing the same things, but with different intent. Science means to explain the phenomena, whereas art, as Aldous Huxley said, seeks to "express the inexpressible."

Ty


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Banksy, , comp. "Exit Through the Gift Shop." Banksy, 16 Apr 2010. web. 1 Jul 2013.

Escher Waterfall. N.d. Photograph. WikipediaWeb. 7 Jul 2013. <http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/e8/Escher_Waterfall.jpg/250px-Escher_Waterfall.jpg>.

perf. "グラスハープでマリオ Mario GlassHarp." murayu74, 8 Dec 2008. web. 7 Jul 2013. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7YKjGvapps>.

Abbott, Edwin. Flatland. 1884. Web. <http://www.ibiblio.org/eldritch/eaa/FL.HTM>.

Britton, Jill, comp. "Mobius Strip II Animated Movie." N.p., 5 Jan 2012. web. 7 Jul 2013. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGy-WxLaKl8&noredirect=1>.

OBEY. 2012. Photograph. n.p. Web. 7 Jul 2013. <http://www.rexmonkey.com/RMblog/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Street-art-8-obey-rexmonkey.jpg>.

Artush, . DeviantART. 2012. Photograph. deviantARTWeb. 7 Jul 2013. <https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOAUX-d42aNT1XdkNjZ5kK7TsF-HKCfdqX749tL4uPEFvGRlMnjp_tmTuPbBTtB_vq0TBiR1wDcc7KSwoPXxKWL5ptTQc8OGhEabRneGVvgRDLK_C2VI3LftiKqDTwCAKTGGTEtCwJSQc/s320/DeviantART_wall_by_Artush.png>.