Nanotech +Art

Glue is everywhere. We use it for art projects, bumper stickers, tape, making furniture more secure, etc.

The sole purpose of glue is to hold things together, hopefully forever. Nanotechnology is playing a significant role to make this happen.

Researchers are currently working with Geckos to find the best adhesive using nanotechnology.

http://robotics.eecs.berkeley.edu/~ronf/Gecko/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/09/how-do-geckos-feet-work_n_1761839.html

"Geckos have the remarkable ability to run at any orientation on just about any smooth or rough, wet or dry, clean or dirty surface" (Gecko Adhesion Project) The basis of the geckos' adhesive properties are the millions of micron-scale setae (hair-like structures) that are on each of its toes which form a self-cleaning dry adhesive. Biologists and engineers at Berkeley are developing a nanofabrication process which will allow large amounts of setae to be economically fabricated.

The 7 Key properties of Gecko Adhesion are:
1. Anistropic attachment
2. High Pulloff to preload ratio
3. Low detachment force
4. Material independence
5. Self-cleaning
6. Anti-self matting
7. Non-sticky default state

http://robotics.eecs.berkeley.edu/~ronf/Gecko/gecko-facts.html

My favorite property is the non-sticky default state. I find it very frustrating when super glue won't come off my fingers.

http://www.wired.com/medtech/health/news/2005/08/68639

Researchers from Polytechnic Institute and the University of Akron have also created a carpet of super-stick carbon nanotubes that could form the basis for future type of adhesives. They have produced nanotubes with an adhesive power 200 times greater than the gecko foot hairs. These nanotubes are special because they form unique structures that are relatively defect-free.

Researchers are now working toward building a nanotube carpet on a larger scale-- 1 centimeter square.

The technology can be used to stick a 700lb object to glass without leaving a smear: It can also stick a 42-inch television to a wall, release it with a gentle tug and then restick it firmly - and it remains sticky after hundreds of uses

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120216165500.htm

Gecko Adhesives would have been impossible without the advancement of nanotechnology and is open a wide array of projects. Nanoglue may even allow humans to do the impossible: walk and climb on walls.

Works Cited:

Dalton, Aaron. "Nanoglue Stickier Than Gecko Toes." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, 8 Aug. 2005. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. 

"Gecko Feet Inspire Amazing Glue That Can Hold 700 Pounds On Smooth Wall." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 16 Feb. 2012. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. 

"Gecko Project." Gecko Project. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <http://robotics.eecs.berkeley.edu/~ronf/Gecko/>.

"Interesting Gecko Adhesion Facts." Interesting Gecko Adhesion Facts. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <http://robotics.eecs.berkeley.edu/~ronf/Gecko/gecko-facts.html>.

Korte, Travis. "How Do Geckos' Feet Work?" The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 09 Aug. 2012. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. 

Images:

Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013

          <http://robotics.eecs.berkeley.edu/~ronf/Gecko/Hierarchy3.jpg>

Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. 

          <http://robotics.eecs.berkeley.edu/~ronf/Gecko/anolis-pi.jpg>.

Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. 

          <https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images q=tbn:ANd9GcRRZrFpfq9GxUUTPdlmnp9UuTvx98SWwmhwUAR1fEGA1ugP2UZV>.
Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <http://images.sciencedaily.com/2012/02/120216165500.jpg>.

Neuroscience + Art

Throughout the years, the representation of the brain has transformed and many ideas have developed about how the brain really works.

Aristotle, the father of psychology, believed that thought process occurred in the heart. We now know that it really occurs in the inner workings of the brain. Not only do we know how the brain functions, but researchers have devised a method to look inside of it through a method called Brainbow.

http://www.ted.com/talks/carl_schoonover_how_to_look_inside_the_brain.html

Before Brainbow, neurons could only be highlighted up to 2 colors. One common method even launched the modern neuroscience known as the Golgi method. It was discovered by Italian physician and scientist Camillo Golgi. It is a silver staining technique that was used to visualize tissue under light microscopy. The Golgi method, stained about 1% of the cells in the brain tissue.

Santiago Ramon y Cajal applied Golgi science and gave the modern nerve cell of a neuron. He demonstrated that neurons don't operate alone; they make connections with other neurons that form circuits. Today, when researchers want to visualize neurons they light them up from the inside.

http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Santiago_Ram%C3%B3n_y_Cajal



Brainbow was first developed by Jeff W. Lichtman and Joshua R. Sanes. The technique would borrow genes from bacteria, coral and jellyfish that made mice brains glow in a variety of colors. Brainbow is the process by which individual neurons in the brain can be distinguished through the use of fluorescent protein; there are roughly 90 distinct colors.

http://www.nature.com/nmeth/journal/v10/n6/full/nmeth.2450.html

Using genetic recombination techniques, researchers inserted gene pigments into the genomes of developing mice. As the mice developed, the gene pigments got divided between the mice cells.
http://cbs.fas.harvard.edu/science/connectome-project/brainbow



One disadvantage for the Brainbow is that it can only be seen under fluorescent microscopes. It also only works with genetically modified animals, which at the moment are only mice. On the other hand, Brainbow has allowed scientists a more complete view of the brain. Instead of just being able to view one cell within a circuit, you can view the circuit itself.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/3312331/Brainbows-offer-unique-colour-brain-map.html

Litchman states that Brainbow will reveal the miswirings in certain mental disorders. These include neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Brainbow is not only beautiful, also powerful.


Works Cited:

"Brainbow." Center for Brain Science. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. 

Cai, Dawen, Kimberly B. Cohen, Tuanlian Luo, Jeff W. Lichtman, and Joshua R. Sanes. "Improved Tools for the Brainbow Toolbox." Nature Methods 10.6 (2013): 540-47. 05 May 2013. Web. 17 Nov. 2013.
Highfield, Roger. "Brainbows Offer Unique Colour Brain Map." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 30 Oct. 2007. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. 

Nemri, Abdellatif. "Santiago Ramon Y Cajal." Scholarpedia. N.p., 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. <http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Santiago_Ramón_y_Cajal>.

Schoonover, Carl. "Carl Schoonover: How to Look inside the Brain." TED: Ideas worth Spreading. TED: Ideas worth Spreading, May 2012. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. 

Images:

Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. <http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l4w35jR2891qb6etto1_500.jpg.>

Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. 
        <http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Society/Pix/pictures/2008/05/27/Brain460.jpg>.
Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. <http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/kammer/files/2010/09/ramon-y-cajal.jpg>.
Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. <http://www.cs.utexas.edu/~novak/ramon.gif>.
Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. <http://cbs.fas.harvard.edu/usr/connectome/brainbow/brainbow7.jpg>.
Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. <http://download.cell.com/images/edimages/Cell/picshow/images/full/338.jpg>.

BioTech + Art

Butterfly patterns are very unique because their pattern of stripes and spots occurs in  exactly the same location in all individuals of a species. A given spot or stripe can also be traced from species to species. The elements of the butterfly pattern are individuated which allows for the tracing of species across families. This allows the ability to study diversification and evolution of a species. The three main basic wing pattern of butterflies are: the basal symmetry system, the central symmetry system, and the border symmetry system. Butterflies have symmetrical wings that make each species unique, but not necessarily the individual butterfly unique.

              

http://biology.duke.edu/nijhout/images/PatternElements.pdf

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22943780

With the purpose of creating unique art, Marta de Menzes, modified the wing patterns on butterflies. While the butterflies were still in their cocoon stages, she used a thin needle and heat generator to change one of their wing design through a technique called microcautery. She had the ability to create or delete eyespots on the wings.

  

For her project, Nature, she would alter one of the butterfly's wing and let the second wing develop normally. These modified butterflies were no different from their counterparts except for the unique wing pattern. It is important to note that they still had the same life span and mating behavior.

Her idea for Nature started from an article about scientists who modified the wing patterns of butterflies for research purposes. "I found it amazing that those butterflies’ wing patterns had been modified by scientists, and yet were exclusively made of normal cells, creating a tension between the natural and the artificial" - De Menzes.

http://www.genomenewsnetwork.org/articles/2004/05/28/butterflywings.php

http://www.transgenesis.cz/archive/2007/artists/MartaMenezes.pdf

In my opinion, de Menedez had done exactly that. She had created a design that was natural because it was still made up of normal cells, but had been modified by the human touch.

What I found most unique about her project, was that her purpose was to bring individuality to species that were not seen as individuals due to their exterior appearance. When Professor Vesna first mentioned Nature in her lecture video I thought the project was inhumane and I didn't understand De Meneze's purpose. It is easier to accept researchers manipulating living organisms rather than artists.

http://www.artnews.com/2013/03/18/biotechnology-as-art-form/

Society always hears about the advances in medicine and technology. They test their experiments on animals and to some it is inhumane, but to others it is the only way to get ahead. When artists start modifying species to make art, it is harder to see the significance in their work. However, its significance and purpose is still present.

I think before an artist can take on a project, they should do as much research and have the qualifications to work with biotechnology. I think that if an artist is going to use biotechnology, they shouldn't harm or make the species any different from their counterparts. Specifically, they should still be able to live a normal life. Research and art is very unique in its own way and mixing the two should be done with caution.

Works Cited

Brown Butterfly. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.genomenewsnetwork.org/articles/2004/05/28/butterflywings2.jpg>.

"Marta De Menezes." Transgenesis. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.transgenesis.cz/archive/2007/artists/MartaMenezes.pdf>.

Miranda, Carolina A. "Weird Science: Biotechnology as Art Form." ARTnews. N.p., 18 Mar. 2013. Web. 10 Nov. 2013. <http://www.artnews.com/2013/03/18/biotechnology-as-art-form/>.

Nijhout, H.F. "Elements of Butterfly Wing Patterns." Journal of Experimental Zoology 291.3 (2001): 213-25. Web. <http://biology.duke.edu/nijhout/images/PatternElements.pdf>.

Otaki, J. "Color Pattern Analysis of Nymphalid Butterfly Wings: Revision of the Nymphalid Groundplan." NCBI. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 29 Sept. 2012. Web. 10 Nov. 2013. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22943780>.

Purple Butterfly. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://gardeningwithconfidence.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Purple-butterfly.jpg>.

Red and Black Butterfly. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://artplusscience.free.fr/art/05/nature04.jpg>.

Reinert, Birgit. "Asymmetrical Butterfly Wings." Genome News Network. N.p., 28 May 2004. Web. 10 Nov. 2013. <http://www.genomenewsnetwork.org/articles/2004/05/28/butterflywings.php>.

Symmetry. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://biology.duke.edu/nijhout/images/NGPSDS.jpg>.

Desma 9 Midterm Project

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B26s5_rP8WCYVWk3c043eUkxemc/edit?usp=sharing