joshua fost
Beauty and the Brain
What modern neuroscience has to say about aesthetic experience
Course Description
As individuals and cultures, we may differ in our judgments of what is beautiful, but we all share the same feeling subjective pleasure when presented with something visually, sonically, or cognitively aesthetic. The scientific worldview claims that this feeling, like any other mental experience, must have its roots in the brain. And yet, beauty has traditionally been the domain of art, seemingly too holistic to be profitably analyzed — indeed the mere idea is offensive to some. In this course, students will generalize their understanding of what it is to be "beautiful"–it’s not just faces and sunsets), considering mathematical, evolutionary, and psychological explanations of the aesthetic experience. Neuroscience, at both macroscopic and microscopic levels, will be a recurring and unifying theme throughout the course; while prior exposure would be helpful it is not required. At least one course in any area of cognitive science is, however, a prerequisite.
Course Objectives
The primary objectives of this course are (1) To stimulate student interest in neuroscience, especially its relevance to everyday life; and (2) To impart enough data and theory to change the way students see the human condition.
Evaluation Criteria
Students’ progress toward these objectives will be measured by several factors, including: (1) Participation in class or office-hour discussions. Perfect or near-perfect attendance is mandatory. If missing a session is unavoidable, students should schedule time with me to cover the material one-on-one. (2) Satisfactory and on-time completion of writing and other assignments. (3) Demonstration, through items 1-2 above, of understanding of key course concepts, and of having given careful consideration to the implications of these ideas and findings.
Assignments
Students will produce two short (5-7 pages each) papers on assigned topics, due in the first two-thirds of the course, and one final project, due near the end of the course. The final project may take many forms; examples include: (1) a work of art and an associated essay explaining how the newly-learned principles of aesthetics have been applied, (2) an analysis of something beautiful, (3) an experiment to test theories or replicate findings discussed in the course, (4) research and discussion of multicultural aesthetic norms. Proposals for final projects should be reviewed with me in early November.
Additional Info
Assigned readings cover a wide range of multidisciplinary materials. The only thing binding them together in a coherent conceptual structure is the discussion we will have in class. Thus, attendance is a vital component of successful course completion. Although verbal participation in class is not required, it is strongly encouraged, as effective semi-public speaking is a desired secondary objective.
Session Topics and Assigned Readings
The readings corresponding to each date will be discussed in that session, so they should be completed before the class meets that day. E.g. Zeki pp. 1-57 and Santayana pp. 3-33 should be read before coming to class on Mon-19-Sept.
|
Date |
Topic |
Readings |
|
12-Sept |
Introduction |
None |
|
19-Sept |
Qualia |
Zeki, pp.1-57; Santayana, pp.3-33 |
|
26-Sept |
Faces and Landscapes |
Rubenstein et al. (2001) |
|
03-Oct |
Neurobiology I: Perception & Cognition |
Zeki, pp.58-97 |
|
10-Oct |
BREAK |
|
|
17-Oct |
Prototypes and Caricatures |
Zeki, pp.99-165 |
|
24-Oct |
Neurobiology II: Emotion |
Davidson (1999); Baxter (2002) |
|
31-Oct |
Information Theory & Computational Measures |
Schneider (2005) |
|
7-Nov |
Language, Poetry, and Music |
Beer (1998); Wade (2003) |
|
14-Nov |
Fine Art: Painting |
Zeki, pp.167-219; Danto, pp.1-60 |
|
21-Nov |
Student Presentations |
n/a |
|
28-Nov |
Theories: Physics & Mathematics |
Danto, pp.61-102; Overbye (2002) |
|
5-Dec |
The Quest for Unity |
Danto, pp.102-160 |
References / Reading List
Primary Texts (can be purchased at the Hampshire College bookstore):
- Danto A (2003) The Abuse of Beauty (Chicago: Open Court Publishing)
- Santayana G (1896) The Sense of Beauty (New York: Dover Publications, Inc.)
- Zeki S (1999) Inner Vision: An exploration of art and the brain (New York: Oxford Univ. Press)
Other Readings (available on the course website):
- Baxter M & Murray E (2002) The amygdala and reward. Nature Reviews 3: 563-573.
- Beer (1998, unpublished). How do mathematics and music relate to each other? (Student essay written at East Coast College of English, Brisbane, Australia).
- Berns G (2004) Something funny happened to reward. Trends in the Cognitive Sciences 8(5): 193-194.
- Davidson R & Irwin I (1999) The functional neuroanatomy of emotion and affective style. Trends in the Cognitive Sciences 3(1): 11-21.
- Overbye D (2002) The Most Seductive Equation in Science: Beauty Equals Truth. The New York Times, March 26, 2002.
- Ramachandran V & Hirstein W (1999) The Science of Art: a neurological theory of aesthetic experience. J. Consciousness Studies 6(6): 15-51.
- Rubenstein AJ, Langlois JH, & Roggman LA (2001) What Makes a Face Attractive and Why: The Role of Averageness in Defining Facial Beauty. Invited Chapter. In G. Rhodes and L. Zebrowitz (Eds.), Advances in visual cognition. Vol. 1. Facial attractiveness. Westport, CT: Ablex.
- Schneider T (2005, unpublished). Information Theory Primer. http://www.lecb.ncifcrf.gov/~toms/paper/primer.
- Wade N (2003) We Got Rhythm: The mystery of music and evolution. New York Times, Tuesday, September 16, 2003, pp. D1-4.
