What is the Mind? No matter. What is matter? Never mind.

There are more connections in one human brain than there are galaxies in the known universe.  Each human brain has trillions of electro-chemical connections in its neural network (while the galactic count still numbers only in the billions).  Moreover, the structure of these networks is set up so that there are specific regions handling different functions.  Generally speaking, the hippocampus is known to be the center for declarative memory (being able to recall specific information, versus procedural memory, which is more a form of conditioning), while the amygdala regulates emotion.  The question that continues to baffle scientists and philosophers alike is this: What is the relationship between the physical brain and the conscious mind?  “The external physical causes of such experiences, the behavioral responses associated with them, or the neural impulses in the brain…seem to be only accidentally connected with the experiences themselves.”  The qualia, or basic sensory components of an experience, are what we use to define our perceptions.  The way we see, feel, or hear our surrounding environment is subjective and different for every person.

Thresholds, Beetles, Clockwork.  More on Monday!

Response 5

Weekly Response: Atmospheres

1.    Body of architecture:

To design a building; pulling from many sources into one coherent thing.  Learn from the way an actual body is put together—many different bits and pieces (walls and floors and whatever else the user might bring to a space) all come together to function as one entity.

2.    Material compatibility

Involve the users of the building.  Choose materials that react well with each other as well as the inhabitants of the space.  How can I best choose materials that would be good for a sort of general purpose space, and yet still be beautiful?  I would love to use wood paneling, with some other “soft” material, which also ties to…

3.    Sounds of a Space

I love the way wood has its own set of sounds, for settling, expanding, creaking, squeaking.  I also love the way people sound when they walk across a wood floor.  They can glide through as quiet as can be, or they can march around making a cacophony of echoes.  And then maybe the movable walls will be paneled with something that absorbs sound, depending on the space defined.

4.    Temperature of a space

How to design a building that can adjust to different temperature (as related to interior use as well as exterior conditions)?

5.    Surrounding Objects

I’d love my building to become one of the surrounding objects.  Not only would the users be able to bring in their own belongings, but the way they arrange them in their own spaces becomes very interesting.  There are literally an infinite number of possibilities!  I like the phrase “a future without me.”

6.    Between composure and seduction

“Architecture as spatial and temporal art.”  Both Zumthor and Alexander (in A Pattern Language) make a special note about the importance of flow.  Personal spaces should be designed in such a way as to make people want to stay there (seduction), rather than just using space as a way to direct movement (composure).

7.    Tension between interior and exterior

This is a concept I’d really love to explore, as well.  There are countless buildings that play with thresholds, either spatially or through the use of materials (i.e. a large window or door next to a wall that starts outside, and is continued in as an interior wall).  There is a fine play between the levels of enclosure, between being “inside” or “outside.”

8.    Levels of intimacy

This is another topic that Zumthor and Alexander both find relevant.  However, while Alexander focuses on the hierarchy of the interior, Zumthor is (avoiding) calling it “scale.”  I think both elements are important, from social organization of interior spaces, to how the actual architecture relates to the user. 

9.    The light on things

How can I use materials in such a way to manipulate light?  And I know that “manipulate” has negative connotations.  But it is a challenge to try to use more traditional methods of lighting (natural lighting, at any rate), when I am not designing the final layout of the space.