Synesthesia

Synesthesia is a phenomenon in which the senses are crossed or combined in different ways. For example, someone might taste blueberries whenever they hear words that have lots of “s” sounds. Another person might see the color green whenever they hear trumpets playing. While there was plenty of skepticism about synethesia in the past, brain scans have now shown real differences in synesthetes. In fact, some researchers believe that we are all born with extra sensory pathways in our brains and that, for most of us, those pathways are pruned away when we’re very young.

In this studio, we will meet a woman with synesthesia and hear about her particular sensory experiences. Next, we will began to develop ways of simulating synesthesia, using a variety of tools that can help people experience their senses in new ways. Students will collect sensory data with everything from microphones to Kinect motion sensors and learn to write computer programs for converting that data into other forms.

Sean Stevens

Alternative Energy Artist, Scientist

Since Sean was six years old, he has always taken things apart to see how they worked. This innate curiosity about how things work lead him to explore computer programming, human perception, robotics, alternative energy, Sound, lighting, LASERs, Interactivity, the internet, and how it can all tie into community. He discovered that most complex systems can be considered to be made of modules. With the right input and output, these modules can be made to act independently. Recombined in new ways, the modules can create new and interesting things. Working with systems in this way allows us to create faster, since we don’t necessarily have to understand the modules on every level to use them. Sean is currently working on lowRes, a primarily human powered, large scale, mobile, modular, interactive art piece. With lowRes, Sean hopes to create something that is enjoyable, but when you think about it really makes a statement.

Links:
Sean Stevens
Sustainable Sound

Rob MacDonald

Head of Math Department, Beaver Country Day School

Rob MacDonald has been teaching at Beaver Country Day School since 1998. While he is the head of the math department, he has also been given opportunities to teach courses in writing, visual art, music and film. As an undergraduate at Wesleyan University, he was able to take classes in which he explored connections among a wide range of disciplines–concepts from Chaotical Dynamical Systems, for example, were applicable in both Electroacoustic Music and Poetry Writing. Teaching at Beaver has allowed Rob to continue to explore those interdisciplinary links, and he’s been proud to serve as Beaver’s NuVu coordinator. Outside of school, he writes poetry and publishes Sixth Finch, an online journal of poetry and art.

Links:
Sixth Finch

Image Credit:
Terri Timely’s Synesthesia