Ellerbee Becket Optimal Healing Environments Lecture Series

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

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

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

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

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!

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

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