Week 8: NanoTech + Art


When I saw the title of this week’s lecture, I was completely disinterested. However, after watching the lectures, I found myself intrigued with nanotechnology because it encompassed almost every aspect of what intrigued me, and Dr. Gimzewski covered a wide range of interesting topics. 
What came to mind first was a piece of art that went viral a few years ago, the world’s smallest movie: A Boy and HIs Atom. This movie was a stop motion made only using atoms. 



I was very interested in Dr. Gimzewski’s mentioning of Drexler’s belief that you could make a hamburger out of dirt, and I believe that this is where we are heading. When he mentioned stained glass windows as an example of nanotechnology, I got very excited. I did some more research and discovered that the gold painted on stand glass windows purifies the air. What was also interesting was his mention of quantum dots, I discovered that quantum dots are now used in television sets to create a better color quality using less light. 





What also stunned me was how many beauty labels use nanotechnology. I thought nanotechnology was just something that existed in a lab, but upon further research I learned that it was in sunscreen, anti-aging creams, moisturizers and made these cream capable of getting under the surface of your skin. Just like GMO, companies do not have to label if they use nanotechnology, which makes many consumers very uncomfortable, especially when these companies can control what goes into your skin. 

References
CNETTV. "What Is Quantum Dot?" YouTube. YouTube, 03 Feb. 2015. Web. 25 May 2017. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7aqJpKfPC0>.
Nanotech Jim pt1. Dir. James Gimzewski. Perf. Dr. James Gimzewski. Youtube.com. YouTube, 21 May 2012. Web. 25 May 2017. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7jM6-iqzzE&feature=youtu.be>.
Nanotech Jim pt3. Dir. James Gimzewski. Perf. Dr. James Gimzewski. Youtube.com. YouTube, 21 May 2012. Web. 25 May 2017. <https://youtu.be/X0HCNiU_108>.
Nanotech Jim pt4. Dir. James Gimzewski. Perf. Dr. James Gimzewski. Youtube.com. YouTube, 21 May 2012. Web. 25 May 2017. <https://youtu.be/yHCuZetAIhk>.
Raj, Silpa, Shoma Jose, U. S. Sumod, and M. Sabitha. "Nanotechnology in Cosmetics: Opportunities and Challenges." Journal of Pharmacy & Bioallied Sciences. Medknow Publications & Media Pvt Ltd, July-Aug. 2012. Web. 25 May 2017. <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3425166/>.
Queensland University of Technology. "Air-purifying Church Windows Early Nanotechnology." LabSpaces. LabSpaces, 21 Aug. 2008. Web. 25 May 2017. <http://www.labspaces.net/8666/Air_purifying_church_windows_early_nanotechnology>.


Pictures
A Boy and His Atom. Prod. IBM. Youtube.com. YouTube, 13 Apr. 2013. Web. 25 May 2017. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSCX78-8-q0>.
L'Oreal Revitalift Laser X3. YouTube. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 May 2017. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjaJiyHgWKU>.
Quantum Dots. Digital image. Trusted Reviews. Trusted Reviews, 7 Jan. 2016. Web. 25 May 2017. <http://www.trustedreviews.com/opinions/quantum-dots-explained-what-they-are-and-why-they-re-awesome>.

CNETTV. "What Is Quantum Dot?" YouTube. YouTube, 03 Feb. 2015. Web. 25 May 2017. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7aqJpKfPC0>.

Comments

  1. Parvaneh ShadkamMay 28, 2017 at 6:47 PM

    Wow! You provided a lot of insight throughout your blog. Interestingly, I also thought of "The Boy and His Atom!" I never knew that quantum dots were used for LED TV sets. I thought your blog built on a lot of the topics discussed but also managed to show your curiosity regarding specific topics.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Week 6: BioTech and Art

Image
In this blog I’ll be looking into BioTech and Art in relation to food. The conversation surrounding GMOs has been going on for years, and the consensus is divided between people who believe food should not be genetically modified, and food should be genetically modified in certain cases where it is for the benefit of humans and not of greed. A video that has been circulating for a few years shows McDonald’s food gathering mold next to normal food. The McDonald’s burgers mold slower than the regular burger, but the fries, after two months hadn’t molded at all. This raised questions about what McDonald’s puts in their fries so that they never mold.  Sometimes GMO food can be useful. Scientists have developed a ‘venomous cabbage’, a cabbage that is infused with scorpion poison which has been treated to not be poisonous to humans but only to animals and bugs. This is a more natural pesticide so that the cabbages will not be eaten by pests.  The Critical Art Ensemble, led
Read more

Week 2: Mathematics and Art

Image
In this week’s lesson, Victoria Vesna taught us about zero, perspective and the golden ratio/ golden section.  We learned that zero first appears in 650AD, and it was not until the 1600’s that it was used in the West. It was discovered by Brahmagupta. The ideas of perspective also existed in the East before it made its way to the West. It was discovered by al-Haytham. Giotto used an intuitive form of perspective, and the first painting showing true perspective was ‘Trinity’ by Massaccio. With the golden ratio, we learned it’s greek name phi, that the Egyptians used the the Golden ratio when building the Pyramids, the architects of the Parthenon used it, and Leonardo Da Vinci used it in his drawing of the Vitruvian Man. Mondrian and Le Corbusier also used the golden ratio. A piece that helped me understand more about Vanishing Points was Marc Frantz’ ‘Vanishing Points and Looking at Art’. I learned about how one-point perspective only has one vanishing point, and that where you view a
Read more

Week 9: Space + Art

Image
When Victoria Vesna mentioned the fact that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin spent 3 hours on the moon documenting, I was immediately reminded of Google Earth’s documentation of the Moon and Mars. Google Earth have also mapped the stars.  From a design standpoint, their map of the stars is very poorly designed. What also came to mind was Moon Museum, a small ceramic tile containing the artworks of Claes Oldenburg, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, and other. The tile was placed on the moon during the visit by Apollo 12.  I find it upsetting yet also comical that Warhol, when being able to draw the first piece to go on the moon, chose to draw a penis. An artwork that was referenced in our resources was Cosmic Dancer.  The piece, created by Arthur Woods, was a geometric piece of metal that danced in space, and signified the early beginning of art and space combining.   Another piece of artwork that i thought was absolutely beautiful was Azuma Makoto’s E
Read more