Week 10 - Christopher Flannery - Space

Though I was interested in a lot of what the guest lecturer Geckelman had to say, I found it very hard to follow his points. I am a music major and a lot of the terminology and comparisons he made went over my head. However when I did understand something, it was extremely interesting; such as using plasma lasers to break down waste to an atomic level, mixing plasma, and plasma’s effect on different material. I remember at one point he described “plasma” as having memory because when they sent a charge through it, it would react in one way for the first time, and then in a completely different manner when they executed the same exact charge. I found it hard to characterize a material as being conscious and thought that there must be a difference that they are unable to detect. It seems like there are many examples of unknowns and inconsistencies in scientific knowledge and particularly space, that there is mostly likely a mistake in a basic concept, such as gravity. Even when something is “proved” it is likely that it will later be expanded on with exceptions or disproved completely in the relatively near future. I think that an art piece could play on the fact that people are willing to trust science wholeheartedly and quickly despite the fact that it is mostly likely flawed.
I enjoyed when the guest lecturers made a direct connection to art and Geckelman did not do this at all. During other weeks, the connection and interplay was more obvious because the guest lecturer or Professor Vesna provided a lot of names and examples of collaborations between science and art. We discussed the effect that space exploration had on popular culture and world politics, however I didn’t form a strong reference to and effect on art during the lectures.
My favorite part of the week was The Powers of Ten video. I had seen this as a young child, but I don’t think that I grasped the concept firmly then. This video, which should be considered a work of art in itself, conveys one of the most important messages the study of space has to offer; our insignificance in relation to the rest of the universe.
Earlier this quarter we discussed using models of biological systems, such as a sunflower, to create a new system. From my knowledge of space, I know that there are complicated structures that we could also learn from. The visuals are absolutely breathtaking. I would not be surprised there were many examples of the buckyball structure in outer space, or if there are disturbing similarities between atomic and galaxy structure. There is a universal synergy on all scales. Beyond the design of the structures, the satellite images we have are works of art on their own. I found an amazing collection here: http://www.space.com/amazingimages/