Category Archives: Film, Video & Music

Hallelujah, Detroit!

Posted on October 21, 2013 by cicada

Detroit-area musician Jeffrey Adam Gutt appeared on Simon Cowell’s talent show X-Factor last year, auditioning with a riveting version of Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” I don’t know if it’s better described as the broken howl of a faded rock star, or the … Continue reading →

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Are there moths in the Uncanny Valley?

Posted on October 20, 2013 by cicada

I love this meditative video. . . until the moth. It’s a skillful animation, but I feel like it’s going to start dancing with its little legs, singing “What the Moth Says.” Is this a case of insectoid Uncanny Valley? … Continue reading →

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“Meat the Future”: The In Vitro Meat Cookbook

Posted on September 22, 2013 by cicada

It’s a book of recipes that you can’t cook . . . yet! Those diehard dietary techno-optimists over at NextNature are preparing a speculative “In Vitro Meat Cookbook” to explore the outer bounds of what one might make from in … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists & Art, Biology, Books, Design, Film, Video & Music, Science in culture & policy, Yikes! | Comments Off

Weekend Mappy Links: Ancient Landscapes, A Map Library Speakeasy, Forensic Topology, Mapping Disasters, Cymatics

Posted on September 21, 2013 by cicada

An expert on mapping ancient landscapes explains why Big Oil is his biggest customer, among other things. (interview at BLDGBLOG) For bibliophiles: a ton of photos from a visit to the Prelinger Library (AKA the “speakeasy of [map] libraries”). (by … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogs and Blogging, Data Visualization, Ephemera, Film, Video & Music, Maps, Neuroscience | Comments Off

A Chemical Imbalance: Gender equity in STEM education

Posted on September 9, 2013 by cicada

A Chemical Imbalance is a documentary project about gender inequities in STEM and academia. It explores the reasons for gender disparities and the “leaky pipeline” – i.e., the gradual attrition of female scientists as their scientific careers progress. Today, only … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogs and Blogging, Education, Film, Video & Music, Gender Issues, History of Science, Science, Science in culture & policy | Comments Off

A Murmuration of Cheese Balls: when nature enters the Uncanny Valley

Posted on August 19, 2012 by cicada

Murmuration, in addition to being a perfectly lovely word, also captures one of the most wonderful phenomena one can encounter in nature. Behold, one of the loveliest viral videos of recent years: Did you get goosebumps? Thomas Jackson’s series “Emergent … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists & Art, Biology, Ephemera, Film, Video & Music, Neuroscience, Science, Web 2.0, New Media, and Gadgets, Wonder Cabinets, Yikes! | Comments Off

Is Starry Night the discovery, or the experiment?

Posted on May 16, 2012 by cicada

Maria Popova quotes Neil DeGrasse Tyson on the difference between originality in science and in art: If I discover a scientific idea, surely someone else would’ve discovered the same idea had I not done so. Whereas, look at Van Gogh’s … Continue reading →

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Elizabeth Turk’s marble sculpture

Posted on May 15, 2012 by cicada

Inspired by gravity, space, decay, and natural forms (from schools of fish to murmurations) sculptor Elizabeth Turk’s marble sculptures resemble skeletons or corals. They’re particularly lovely when she takes them to the shore and lets the waves crash on them. … Continue reading →

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Lunch Break: The Constructal Law

Posted on March 22, 2012 by cicada

I’ve been reading a book called Design in Nature, by Adrian Bejan and J. Peder Zane. It’s an extremely thought-provoking book and I haven’t fully decided what I want to say about it, so my review is still coming, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Book reviews, Books, Design, Education, Film, Video & Music, Science, Web 2.0, New Media, and Gadgets | Comments Off

I love it when Robert Krulwich agrees with me!

Posted on March 16, 2012 by cicada

NPR science correspondent Robert Krulwich, he of the oh-so-familiar voice, quoted me/BioE in a sciart blog post yesterday about “Magnetic Movie,” a short film by the artistic team of Ruth Jarman and Joseph Gerhardt. Here’s the original BioE post quoted … Continue reading →

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