Week 1: Two Cultures
Two cultures
The core readings "Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution” and “Third Culture: Being in Between” felt a both eye opening and slightly repetitive in a since that everyone is already aware of the dynamic between the two cultures. As someone with a sibling, from a young age it is apparent who has what strengths and who does not. My brother had an easier time with spelling than I had, yet I picked up sheet music with much less effort. I think that children in a subtle way digest the concept of strengths and weaknesses, which are seeds for "Two Cultures".
As someone who is interested in education, I have thought a
lot about schools’ role in developing these strengths and weaknesses, so to read
Snows interpretation on how universities should handle this divide of culture
is interesting.
When I read Mr. Brockman say, "scientists are communication directly with the general public." in his interview I got excited. I am interested in scientific articles and like to stay updated in the science community but too often they are written at such a technical level it is hard to understand even a rough idea without having google terms and read a whole separate article. One of my goals at UCLA is to find a way to write truly informative pieces that are technical enough properly display the findings but in a way that does not require a degree in the subject.
The main reason that I am interested in both my major and
this class is summed up by Bohm when he says, "Creativity of some kind may
be possible in almost any conceivable field". I chose material science
because I fell it is a field which requires creativity and has a lot of room
for artistic implantation. For instance, I find old paints and pigments
interesting.
References
Snow, C. P. “Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution.” Reading. 1959. New York: Cambridge UP, 1961.
Print.
Vesna, Victoria. “Toward a Third Culture: Being in Between.” Leonardo 34.2 (2001): 121-25. Web.
Brockman, John. The Third Culture. N.p.: n.p., 1995. Print.
D. Bohm Leonardo, Vol. 1, No. 2. (Apr., 1968), pp. 137-149
Wilson, Stephen D. “Myths and Confusions in Thinking about Art/Science/Technology.” College Art Association Meetings. New York, New York, 2000. Print
posted by Carson Bissey @ April 02, 2021
1 Comments
1 Comments:
I completely relate to how you and your sibling found separate paths from early on in life. I also have a sibling who was more on the "art side" and I was on the "science side." And I also think you make a great point about the need for understandable scientific articles. I think a main role of the scientific community is to communicate complex ideas to the public—this is something we are seeing so often now with the COVID-19 pandemic—but it is very common for scientists to make no attempt to share their knowledge in an easily-digestible way. Scientists like Neil deGrasse Tyson are doing a great job, though. I agree that universities should prepare future scientists to bridge the gap between the two cultures, as college is where many of these habits are formed, whether they be good or bad.
-Dwight Bumgarner
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home