Sandro Botticelli’s Primavera, or Allegory of Spring, is a famous large (over 6 x 8 feet) 15th century artwork commissioned by the Medici family, Botticelli’s common patron and the major patron and influence of Florence Italy’s Renaissance art. Botticelli’s work falls into the early Renaissance period and he was a pioneer in the use of … Continue reading Sandro Botticelli’s Primavera
Author: David Cycleback
Swarm Intelligence
Swarm intelligence is where large groups of animals exhibit a group intelligence and capability much larger than any of the individual animals exhibit or are even aware of. Examples include small fish and birds that unconsciously and instinctually form large groups that protect themselves from predators (essentially forming one large animal), ant groups that gather … Continue reading Swarm Intelligence
The Unique Subjective Experience
(Excerpted from the book Noise Music: Cognitive Psychology, Aesthetics and Epistemology) Subjectivity is a constant and integral part of the human experience. Love, lust, like, dislike, taste, smell, views about beauty and ugliness and art. How you view this paragraph and this book involves subjectivity— your taste about the writing style, word choice, chapter subjects … Continue reading The Unique Subjective Experience
Numeration Systems and Psychology
Looking at different historical numeration systems demonstrates how language and grouping systems profoundly effect human thinking, perception and function, and how the the system you 'naturally' use to perceive the universe isn't the only way. * * * * In some Western Hemisphere high rise buildings there are no thirteenth floors. Well, there are thirteenth … Continue reading Numeration Systems and Psychology
Cognitive Dissonance
COGNITIVE DISSONANCE The theory developed by famous American psychologist Leon Festinger, cognitive dissonance is the mental discomfort experienced by a person who has conflicts or contradictions between ideas, values, behavior and/or information at the same time. An example of this dissonance is if after deciding to go on a diet you eat a fried chicken … Continue reading Cognitive Dissonance
Mirages: Not Incorrect Views of Reality, Just Different
Commonly associated with nature, mirages are visual illusions where what we see is correct, but abnormal. Mirages in nature are most commonly caused by unusual bending of light under unusual air conditions. The view can be so abnormal that the viewer 'can't believe his eyes.’ The most famous mirage is when it erroneously appears as … Continue reading Mirages: Not Incorrect Views of Reality, Just Different
Uncorrectable illusions
Click on the below images to get larger views" Even after you learn how they work, there are many visual illusions that still fool you. If you returned and look again at the visual illusions shown and explained above, many will still fool your eyes. The mind contains compartments that perform specific tasks. For example, … Continue reading Uncorrectable illusions
Cognitive Psychology: Perceptions and Visual Illusions via Imagination
When looking at a scene or graphic, all humans have the natural and subconscious ability to extrapolate beyond what is visible. In other words, when information is hidden or assumed to be hidden, humans make it up in their minds. This ability to mentally extrapolate beyond the known is essential to normal living. We regularly … Continue reading Cognitive Psychology: Perceptions and Visual Illusions via Imagination
A Few Notes on Artificial Intelligence
No matter how advanced it gets and what form(s) it takes, artificial intelligence will have the same types of philosophic and cognitive limits, margins of error, paradoxes, irreconcilable conflicts, catch-22s and unanswerable questions as the human mind. (Several examples are shown here: how humans use false information and made up beliefs to produce personal achievement, … Continue reading A Few Notes on Artificial Intelligence
Art and the the manipulation of the mind
Art artificially manipulates the mind. The artist uses symbols, colors, shapes, timing, angles, sounds, word play and other techniques to play on the audience's psychology, subconscious, emotions, audio and optical physiology and internal sensory processing systems. One significant point about this is that it shows that the mind can be artificially manipulated. That humans can … Continue reading Art and the the manipulation of the mind
Looking at Artifacts and Ideas 