NEURO-ARCHITECTURE

Ellerbee Becket Optimal Healing Environments Lecture Series

2008-08-21T11:30:00.000-07:00

The Minneapolis office of the architecture firm Ellerbe Becket and the Center for Spirituality and Healing at the University of Minnesota have teamed up to host a lecture series on healing spaces -- Ellerbee Becket Optimal Healing Environments Lecture Series. Geared towards architecture students and professionals as well as health professionals, the lecture series is intended to address the creation of optimal spaces for healing. The first lecture was given by Dr. Eve Edelstein in May 2008. A video of her presentation titled "Creating Healing Spaces: Neuroscience and Architecture" can be seen on the Center's website. The next lecture is scheduled for October and will feature Craig Zimring from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

The Center has hosted an impressive list of speakers including Dr. Richard Davidson ("Buddha's Brain"), Dr. Esther Sternberg ("Brain Immune Interactions"), and Dr. Matthieu Ricard ("Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain: Cultivating Inner Conditions for Genuine Happiness"). Their presentations are also available online along with other resources -- here.

Paralyzed man takes a walk in virtual world

2008-08-13T11:34:00.000-07:00

As a follow-up to my post on Spatial Cognition in Virtual Worlds, researchers at Keio University have enabled a paralyzed man to control an avatar in the 3D virtual world of Second Life using a brain-computer interface (BCI). Three electrodes mounted on headgear monitor brain waves presumably from motor cortex, which is the area of the brain that is involved in the control of movement and is located close to the surface of the skull. The data is analysed, interpreted by computer algorithms, and then converted into real time movement of the avatar.

The implications of this proof-of-concept study in paralysis patients is great. A BCI application such as this one could be used in therapy, rehabilitation, and training interventions, which in turn could greatly improve the quality of life for these patients.

AFP (Agence France-Presse) -- Paralysed man takes a walk in virtual world

Pink Tentacle -- Brain-computer interface for Second Life

New World Notes -- The Second Life of the Mind: The story behind the brain-to-SL interface

Inquiry By Design: A Blog

2008-08-06T11:45:00.000-07:00

I recently came across a blog by Molly Yee at the University of Minnesota called Inquiry by Design. The name and premise of the blog is inspired by John Zeisel's book of the same name (incidentally an updated and revised version of Zeisel's book came out in 2006 with a chapter on neuroscience and architecture).

'Inquiry By Design' is characterized by the notion of asking, examining, investigating, questioning and therefore learning through design. It involves observing behavior, interviewing, analyzing... effective researching to enhance design. Research doesn't have to be scientific, just exloratory [sic]. How can we make design better? By learning from what has already been accomplished, by measuring the qualities and analyzing impact. That is 'Inquiry By Design'. -- Molly Yee, "Inquiry By Design"

While it looks like Yee's blog is no longer active, there are several posts that are promising starts to addressing the thesis of her blog. It appears as if her blog is in response to a class assignment in that the posts seem to have a forced direction. But all in all it is more theoretical and asks more questions than it answers.

Neuroscience and Poverty

2008-07-27T18:07:00.000-07:00

Research presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science indicated that children growing up in families with low socioeconomic status experience high levels of stress hormones. These stress hormones in turn affect neural development, specifically language and memory development. What is even more compelling is that this effect is independent of the damage already done by exposure to environmental toxins and inadequate nutrition. Another research group at University of Oregon tested the effect of a training intervention that taught parents how to minimize stress at the home. Initial results found that the training results in large reductions of stress and brain imaging confirmed improvements in the children.

Poverty mars formation of infant brains by Clive Cookson, The Financial Times

"Poverty is Poison" by Paul Krugman, The New York Times

Neuroscience and Poverty, Trinifar blog

Martha J. Farah, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at University of Pennsylvania

Jack P. Shonkoff, Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University

Augmented Reality

2008-07-20T22:00:00.000-07:00

This image is from the ARTHUR project (Augmented Round Table for Architecture and Urban Planning) that uses an augmented reality interface for round table design meetings.

Augmented reality (AR), or augmented vision, is the use of virtual reality technology such as virtual text or graphics superimposed on the real world. The article "Reality, Only Better" in The Economist describes the promise of AR in multiple applications including psychotherapy, entertainment, and discrepancy-checking software in the building fields.

"Reality, Only Better" - The Economist (06 December 2007)

Arakawa and Gins is at it again!

2008-07-13T13:22:00.000-07:00

Arakawa and Gins is at it again! They recently completed their first project in the United States - a house subscribing to their Reversible Destiny philosophy. Reversible Destiny is Arakawa and Gins statement against aging and death. The concept for the spaces that have been built based on this idea, such as the Reversible Destiny Apartments, could be seen as the architectural manifestation of research done on neural plasticity and enriched environments in animal models.

But this is perhaps an extreme example of what architects/artists do when they make certain assumptions about the effect of their work. While designers have to make assumptions on a smaller scale, they are not usually basing the whole concept of a space on an unfounded idea (or at least an unfounded scientific idea in humans). Still it is incredibly fascinating to see something like this built in the US and I certainly would be one of the first to line up to do the research on one of these spaces.

Neuroscience and Courthouse Design Workshop

2008-07-02T12:03:00.000-07:00

ANFA hosted a Neuroscience and Courthouse Design Workshop last year. ANFA has hosted several workshops over the years to bring neuroscientists, architects, and specialists together to think about problems faced by specific architectural program types. Past workshops have focused on healthcare facilities, sacred spaces, elementary schools, facilities for the aging, and laboratories.

This workshop focused on exploring different architectural interventions for reducing stress for jurors. An article about the workshop can be found here:

"Neuroscience and Courthouse Design Workshop: Understanding Cognitive Processes in the Courthouse" By Christina Noble, Assoc AIA, LEED AP

Architecture and the Brain

2008-03-17T17:05:00.000-07:00

John Eberhard, who is the founding president of the Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture, recently wrote a book on neuroscience and architecture intended for architects. The book is titled, Architecture and the Brain: A New Knowledge Base from Neuroscience. I am really curious to hear what people think about the book.

Neuro-architecture: One Person's View

2008-03-06T14:32:00.000-08:00

Forward is the quarterly journal of the American Institute of Architects National Associates Committee. In the October 2006 issue on technology in architecture, there was an article on the neuroscience and architecture initiative titled, "A Legacy of Service." With such an unassuming title, one would not immediately make the connection between neuro-architecture and service (to the architecture profession and society), but the content tells a different story. It is one person's perspective on neuro-architecture.

SfN "Science and Society"

2007-12-27T13:55:00.000-08:00

In the SfN's 2007 Annual Report, they featured an article titled, "Form Follows Function The Fusion of Neuroscience and Architecture". It is nice to see the neuroscience community acknowledging this initiative!
http://cognitionbaseddesign.googlepages.com/home

Spatial Cognition in Virtual Worlds

2007-12-10T23:00:00.000-08:00

The article from Thought Capital talked about the importance of spatial cognition research in virtual worlds. But virtual worlds can also inform our understanding of spatial cognition. More on that in another post.

But this brings up the idea of virtual environments and neuroscience. Recently an article appeared in USA Today about the application of brain electrodes in virtual reality. The applications are very interesting beyond improving navigation in virtual worlds.

USA Today - Japanese researchers make 'Second Life' more like real life

Keio University graduate student Yasunari Hashimoto wears electrodes on his scalp to control the movements of his online character, or avatar, in the "Second Life" virtual reality world at the Laboratory for Biomedical Engineering, Department of Biosciences and Informatics, Faculty of Science and Technology of Keio University in Tokyo November 22, 2007. People with severe paralysis could find new opportunities from shopping to doing business or making new friends in the virtual world of Second Life by just thinking about it, if experiments being conducted by a Japanese university bear fruit.

Questioning Neuro-architecture

2007-12-01T15:01:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the hiatus. But the holidays were busy.

So once again we find another blog posting about the ceiling height study proclaiming the rise of neuro-architecture. Thinking about it, it makes sense that everyone has been citing this article. This is mostly because there are no other obvious neuro-architecture research.

This blog post is interesting because it uses the ceiling height study as a segue to the architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright. It goes on to suggest relevant research related to the architecture of schools and its effect on learning, and the architecture of courthouses and its effect on verdicts.

Thought Capital - Architecture, meet Neuroscience

Adaptive Environments

2007-11-20T23:57:00.000-08:00

There is an interesting organization that is dedicated to universal design called Adaptive Environments. Their website is a great resource for articles, documents, and links on human centered design.

Last week in conjunction with Build Boston, Adaptive Environments sponsored a Universal Design Symposium. John Zeisel, PhD and John Eberhard both gave presentations on neuroscience and architecture. Here is the description of their talks from the program:

B05 Neuroscience and Design
Designing for the Healthy Brain – The neurosciences now tell us that our environments do, in fact, affect our brains; how they develop and function over time – knowledge that architects can mine. Zeisel will explore some of these opportunities and discuss the role neuroscience can play in design process and practice.
John Zeisel, Ph.D., Board of Directors, AIA Academy on Neuroscience and Architecture

Consciousness and Experiences with Architecture – Every waking moment we form, remember, recall and respond to conscious experiences, ninety percent of which take place in buildings. Neuroscience research is on the verge of a new knowledge base about such experiences that will provide the architectural profession with evidence to examine, and in many cases, support their intuitive process.
John Eberhard, FAIA, AIA Director of Research
Moderator: Barbara E. Knecht, RA, Director of Design, Adaptive Environments

How We Choose to Live

2007-11-17T11:22:00.000-08:00

There is a lecture series at the La Jolla Athenaeum Music & Arts Library in California titled "Dialogues in Art & Architecture 2007-08: How We Choose To Live." There are several interesting lectures slated for next spring. So if you happen to be in the San Diego area, you should check it out. You can find more information here:

http://www.ljathenaeum.org/lectures.html

And here is a description of the lecture series:

The theme for this year’s series is: How We Choose to Live. In our daily lives, with awareness or not, we experience the consequences of a changing natural environment and of public policies and economic and bureaucratic decisions about art, architecture and land use in the public realm. Our daily lives are also shaped by discoveries in science and technological innovations across disciplines. Our panelists will address our potential to be effective participants in shaping our social and cultural realm. The series is coordinated by the Athenaeum with artist and environmental sculptor Joyce Cutler-Shaw. The programs will be co-sponsored by the San Diego New School of Architecture (affiliated to the Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture, promoting links between Neuroscience research and human responses to the built environment), as well as the San Diego Council of Design Professionals, and the San Diego Architectural Foundation.

"The Rise of Neuro-Architecture"

2007-11-16T17:10:00.000-08:00

The concept of neuro-architecture is really taking flight. If you search goggle for "neuroscience and architecture" you will find pages upon pages of relevant links.

I found this article in d|visible magazine to be particularly well written, even though this perpetuates the recurring references to neurogenesis and the ceiling height study, and frames neuro-architecture as a way to manipulate people.

d|visible - The Rise of Neuro-Architecture

"Smart" Environments

2007-11-14T17:15:00.000-08:00

If we combine our knowledge on how people behave, why they behave and how they perceive their environments with artificial intelligence which can detect when people deviate from their normal behaviors in their customary environments, we can create "smart" environments... in this instance, potentially capable of alerting us to early stages of dementia:

"Tiny motion sensors are attached to the walls, doorways and even the refrigerator of Elaine Bloomquist’s home, tracking the seemingly healthy 86-year-old’s daily activity.

It’s like spying in the name of science — with her permission — to see if round-the-clock tracking of elderly people’s movements can provide early clues of impending Alzheimer's disease." - Associated Press, June 18, 2007.

Sensors could help catch first signs of dementia

The Alzheimer House

Ceiling Height and Information Processing

2007-11-14T14:38:00.000-08:00

This past spring, there was a widely circulated article on research by marketing professor Joan Meyers-Levy at the University of Minnesota and Rui (Juliet) Zhu at the University of British Columbia. Meyers-Levy and Zhu studied the effect of ceiling height on how people think and act. Their argument is that ceiling height influences how people process information using a priming task. They associated high ceilings (10') with the concept of "freedom" and low ceilings (8') with the concept of "confinement."

“When a person is in a space with a 10-foot ceiling, they will tend to think more freely, more abstractly,” said Meyers-Levy. “They might process more abstract connections between objects in a room, whereas a person in a room with an 8-foot ceiling will be more likely to focus on specifics.”

Press Release: U of M Researchers Find that Ceiling Height can Affect How a Person Thinks, Feels, and Acts

Science Daily - Ceiling Height Can Affect How A Person Thinks, Feels And Acts

The Influence of Ceiling Height: The Effect of Priming on the Type of Processing That People Use - Article PDF

Making money by tapping into the unconscious

2007-11-13T15:01:00.000-08:00

fathom is a company that was established as an offshoot of the architecture practice Astorino in partnership with the research and consulting firm, Olson Zaltman Associates. Based on the idea that people can only consciously articulate 5% of their thoughts and feelings, fathom uses a menu of "psychology, neuroscience, anthropology, and architecture" methodologies to illicit the subconscious thoughts and feelings of their clients. One method that they utilize is visual metaphor. They then interpret and translate these subconscious expressions into design principles to produce "more meaningful design."

US News and World Report - Mysteries of the Mind

Powerful New Architectural Design Method Debutes

All in the Mind?

2007-11-12T09:15:00.000-08:00

There was a semi-recent article in the Financial Times in what they dub as "emotionally intelligent design." It pieced together several streams of thought and work. The mind and brain blog, MindHacks had an interesting and valid critique of this article. MindHacks also recommended what they considered a better article on the link of psychology and architecture.

Relevant Links:
Financial Times - All in the Mind

MindHacks - Building on Brain Cliches

The Psychologist - Is there a psychologist in the building?

The Purpose

2007-11-11T23:43:00.000-08:00

I wanted to start a blog that was a repository for everything that I thought, directly or indirectly, had to do with understanding how architecture affects human experience. It could manifest as articles that inspire new thought about the relationship, or images that make people rethink their own perceptions.

It is NOT intended to "prove" the connection of neuroscience and architecture, but promote that there is something worth pursuing in this possible relationship.