| GE 71C
(Biotechnology & Society)- Seminar 3 |
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Genetics
and Culture: From Molecular Music to Transgenic Art |
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| Day |
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Thursday |
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3:00 PM to 5:50 PM |
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| Location |
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2278 Public Policy |
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| Instructor |
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Ruth West |
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| Office
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| E-mail |
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ruth.west6@verizon.net |
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Description |
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Is creating
a glow-in-the-dark transgenic rabbit art, or is it science?
What is the potential impact of listening to molecular music
or creating artificial life? Are artists adding something to
our understanding of life that scientists are not or simply
cannot? Do these interdisciplinary efforts give us keys to achieving
the leading edge in any field? The goal of this course is to
introduce students to innovative art practices that have scientific
concepts at their core. This course will encourage students
to imagine disciplinary connections, building bridges between
the arts and genetics while exploring the emerging field of
Genomic Arts. We will enter the dialog between the arts and
sciences through the work of contemporary artists, discussions,
readings, research, creative projects and writing. |
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Syllabus |
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Assignments/Evaluation |
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Download Acrobat Reader: |
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html |
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There are several
items on this syllabus in PDF format. They are indicated as
(PDF) after the title/link to the materials. You can
either set your borwser preferences to use Acrobat Reader as
the helper application and view them in the browser, or you
can save them to disk and read them locally using Acrobat Reader. |
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| April
3, 2003 |
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1 |
Genomic
Art: Overview |
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- Course
overview
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Genomic Art - overview
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Interactive arts: Media Arts Video segment, Design
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Arts, Rhizome
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Genetics: The basics about DNA and the genetic code.
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Sampling of online resources for artists and genetics.
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| Reading/Surfing |
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Assignment |
| Reading:
- McCloud, Scott, “Art
as I see it…” Understanding Comics: The
Invisible Art, Harper Perennial, 1993, pp.164-171.
Course Reader
Surfing:
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Generating
ideas:
- Do a net/library search on
"art" combined with each of the following:
science, genetics, technology, biology. Feel free
to do more searches with different terms. These are
just to start the process.
- Record the exact search terms
you used and note what you found interesting at each
site you visit in your Ideas Journal, include links
and notes.
- From the above, select 5 references/links
about genomic art, genetics, science as culture, or
a related topic.
- Cite
each reference in MLA citation format.
- http://www.english.uiuc.edu/cws/wworkshop
/MLA/bibliographymla.htm
- http://www.mla.org/www_mla_org/style/
style_main.asp?level=2&mode=page&page=
1&link=sty72800121438§ion=sty51800124510
- Annotate each reference using
2 – 3 sentences explaining why your chose this
source, include the key ideas of interest.
Send by e-mail to instructor:
Due Wednesday,
April 9, 2003, by 12 NOON.
- Be prepared to discuss these
ideas, links and the readings in class.
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| April
10, 2003 |
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2 |
Art
of the Gene |
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- Art
& Science?
- Paradise
Now: Picturing the Genetic Revolution
- Aziz+Cucher,
Eduardo Kac, Heather Acroyd and Dan Harvey, George Gessert,
Alexis Rockman, Laura Stein, The Tissue Culture Project
- Paradise
Now: Video screening
- Genome
Project : online and video
- Discussion
of our collective surfing/research/reading
- Working
definitions: culture, art, science, memes
- Project
Assigned: Design by Sequence -- See Assignments
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| Reading/Surfing |
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Assignment |
- Sturken
and Cartwright, "Practices of Looking: Images,
Power and Politics" pp.10-44: course reader
- Sturken
and Cartwright, Practices of Looking: Glossary, OUP,
2001, pp. 349-370, course reader
- Byrne,
John Life Science: A
Review of Ars Electronica '99 Third Text, No.
49, Winter 1999, pp. 93-97.
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Review writing process guidelines
- The
Tissue Culture Project (Ars Electronica 2000) http://www.tca.uwa.edu.au/
- Be prepared to discuss
the reading next week in class.
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Generating
ideas:
Using
the Ideas Journal format:
- Find 10
references/links of interest to you about genomic
art, genetics, science as culture, or a related topic.
- Record the exact search terms
you used.
- Cite each reference in MLA
citation format.
- Annotate each reference: Write
a brief list of key ideas from each reference and
your thoughts about them in your ideas journal. A
couple of sentences that are precise, complete and
brief is what you are striving for here.
Send
by e-mail to instructor.
Due Wednesday,
April 16, 2003 by 12 NOON.
Reading
response:
Complete the reading/surfing and write a one page Reading
Response.
Due week 3 in class,
April 17, 2003.
Design
by Sequence: Assigned today. This project is
due/ you will present your work, Week 7 in class. Be
prepared to present your project proposal week 4 in
class to the group.
- Be prepared to discuss
your ideas, links and the readings in class next week.
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| April
17, 2003 |
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3
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Organisms
as Art |
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- Transgenic
Art: Eduaro Kac
- The
work of Joe Davis
- Ars
Electronica 1999, 2000
- Biotechnology:
a primer, GMOs, Terminator seeds, Monsanto
- Eduardo
Kac: Video
- Generating
ideas: Discussion of our collective surfing/research/reading.
- Projects
Assigned: Final project/paper
- Resources:
UCLA Genetics & Art research sources
- Artist
presentation: http://www.desertspace.org/
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| Reading/Surfing |
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Assignment |
- Sturken
and Cartwright, "Scientific Looking, Looking
at Science" pp.279-314: course reader
- Gibbs,
Wayt,W. Art
as a Form of Life, Scientific American, April
2001
- MIT
Media Lab
http://www.media.mit.edu/
- Delany,
Ben, Art
Is Where You Grow It,
IEEE Multimedia, 2001 (PDF)
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Generating
ideas:
This week you will
be coming up with ideas to research for your final project/paper.
Using the Ideas Journal format:
- Cite
10 references
in MLA format that support/expand a
few key ideas from
the research you’ve done over the past weeks
and which you could want for your final project.
- Record the exact search terms you used.
- Annotate each reference:
Write a brief list of key ideas from each reference
and your thoughts about them in your Ideas journal.
Send by e-mail to instructor.
Due Wednesday, April
23, 2003 by 12 NOON.
Design by Sequence:
Continue working.
Be prepared to present your project proposal week 4,
(April 24, 2003)
in class to the group. |
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| April
24, 2003 |
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4 |
Organisms
as Art - Continued |
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- In class student presentations of
Design By Sequence proposals
- Eduardo Kac: Video
- Artist presentation: http://www.desertspace.org/
- Brandon Balangee, and others.
- Symbiotica
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| Reading/Surfing |
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Assignment |
- Turkle,
Sherry, "The Quality of Emergence,"
Life On The Screen: Identity in the Age of the Internet,
Touchstone/Simon and Schuster, 1995, pp. 125 - 14
- Sommerer
Christa, Mignonneau, Laurent, "Art as a Living
System," Art@Science, 1998, pp. 148-161:
course reade
- Virtual
Fishtank - AI online interactive
and onsite exhibition:
http://www.VirtualFishtank.com/
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Generating
ideas:
This week you will be refining
ideas for your final project/paper.
Using the Ideas Journal format:
- Cite 10
references in MLA
format that support/expand a few key ideas from the
research you’ve done over the past weeks and
which you want to refine for your final project.
- Record the exact
search terms you used.
- Annotate each reference:
Write a brief list of key ideas from each reference
and your thoughts about them in your ideas journal.
Send
by e-mail to instructor.
Due Wednesday,
April 30, 2003 by 12 NOON. |
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| May
1, 2003 |
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5 |
A-Life
and Genomic Arts |
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- Christa
Sommerer and Laurent Mignonneau
- Harold
Cohen (AARON)
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Digital Biota
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Art and Aesthetics of Artificial Life
- AI
& Art Site
- A-Life/Interactive
Arts: Video
- Guest
Speaker: Artificial Intelligence/Artificial Life
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| Reading/Surfing |
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Assignment |
| No
reading/surfing assignment this week so you can focus
on your Design by Sequence that is due next week. :)
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Design
by Sequence:
Due 5/8/2003 in class.
Bring the following to class
on the due date:
- The "original sequence"
version of your project.
- The "mutated" version
of your project.
- Your "Artist Statement"
which includes
- Your name
- Title of your artwork
- Dimensions
- Medium/materials used
- Legend: what are your
A, C, T & G
- The ideas/concepts that
motivated the work.
- A description of your
creative process. E.g. how you made the music
structure etc.
- Reflections on your artwork,
such as: Your thoughts about the use of genetic
information as a structure to guide what you are
designing, or any other reflections you have about
your creative process in the making of this work.
Some things to think about: Is the "mutated"
design different in what it evokes than the "original?"
Does it convey the same meaning you originally
intended? What was it like to have this kind of
preexisting structure determine you creative direction?
- The original sequence
you based your artwork on (the actual bases you
used) and the BLAST information you originally
got about the entire sequence.
- The mutated sequence you
used for your mutated artwork.
- The Artist Statement should
be typed, single spaced with 1 inch margins. BRING
THIS WITH YOU TO CLASS.
- Send the Artist Statement
as a MS-word file via e-mail to instructor by May
8, 2003 so that it can be placed on your project web
page.
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| May
8, 2003 |
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6 |
Design By Sequence: In Class Presentations |
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- In
class presentations: Design By Sequence projects
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| Reading/Surfing |
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Assignment |
- Turkle,
Sherry "Artificial Life as the New Frontier,"
Life on the Screen, 1995, 1997,
pp.149-174: course reader
- Be prepared to discuss
the reading in class next week with our guest speaker,
Dr. Gessler.
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Due
today - Design by Sequence
Final project/Research paper
topics: Select a
final project/paper option (see
assignments) and then from your Ideas Journal, Generating
ideas notes, reading, or other research, decide on a
final project/research topic for your final paper. Bring
typed topic paragraph to class. It should be no longer
than well written half page, double spaced.
Due May 22, 2003 - NOTE
DATE CHANGE
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| May
15, 2003 |
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7 |
A-Life,
Simulations, Games and Evolution |
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- Guest
speaker: Simulation and evolution - Dr. Nick Gessler
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Tom Ray, Karl Sims, Michael Joacquin Grey, Gordon Selly
(Technosphere), Santa Fe Institute, Creatures,
- Computational
evolution
- Genetic
programming
- Gordon
Selly: Video
- Karl
Sims: Video
- Student final project/paper topics: in
class presentations
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| Reading/Surfing |
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Assignment |
| No
additional reading/surfing assignment this week so you
can focus on the rough draft for your final project
that is due next week. :)
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Topic
proposal: write a
well-written paragraph (about half page) topic proposal
for your final project/paper.
Bring
to class in printed format next week, May 22, 2003.
-- NOTE THIS IS A DATE CHANGE
Be ready to present this
to the group at the beginning of class.
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| May
22, 2003 |
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8 |
Creative
Cloning |
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- Continue with AI/A-Life
- Nancy
Burson, Natalie Jeremijenko, Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle
- Natalie
Jeremijenko: Video
- Cloning:
Nightline video or Artificial Life video or Ethics of Cloning
video
- Molecular
music: DNA music, Nanotech video section
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| Reading/Surfing |
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Assignment |
- Dawkins, Richard, “Memes:
The New Replicators,” The Selfish Gene, Oxford
University Press, 1976, pp. 203-216
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Final
Project/Paper - Rough Draft:
Complete a 2 page rough draft
of final project/paper.
Bring in typed
format to class next week, 5/29/03.
Note: We will be doing an in-class
exercise with these rough drafts.
Due May 29, 2003 in class.
- NOTE THIS IS A DATE CHANGE
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| May29,
2003 |
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9 |
Artists
Survey |
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- Gene(sis) Contemporary Art Explores
Human Genomics
- ASCI.org (Art Science Collaborations)
- Others...
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| Reading/Surfing |
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Assignment |
| No
additional reading/surfing assignment this week so you
can focus on your final project that is due next week.
:)
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Final
project/research paper & presentation.
Complete your paper/project/presentation.
- Prepare a 5-minute
in-class presentation of your final project/paper
in PowerPoint format.
- Turn in both the paper in
MS-word format and the PowerPoint presentation file
on a ZIP disk at the beginning of class.
- Label the ZIP disk with your NAME, UID, and
paper/project title and the date.
- Bring the
typed paper to class.
- Be ready to present your powerpoint
presentation of your project to the group in class.
Due in class, June 5, 2003. |
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| June
5, 2003 |
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Synthesis |
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- Course
synthesis
- Final
project presentations
- Celebration!
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| Reading/Surfing |
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Assignment |
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Due
today: Final project/paper
- Turn in both the paper in
MS-word format and the PowerPoint presentation file
on a ZIP disk at the beginning of class.
- Label the ZIP disk with your NAME, UID, and
paper/project title and the date.
- Bring the
typed paper to class.
- Be ready to present your powerpoint
presentation of your project to the group in class
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Resources |
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Glossary |
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Practitioners |
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Media
Arts |
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Genetics/Science |
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