2 Cultures
Science and art were once regarded as separate
components of live. Especially during C.P. Snow’s time, thus he used the term, “two
cultures”(1). However separable and unrelated they may be, according to Snow,
these two “galaxies” will always have a, “clashing point” (17). Like the photo
on the left, although there is a distinct boundary between the Baltic Sea and North
Sea, taking a photo of it then explain it with science is a perfect illustration
of the joint power of the two cultures. 
Indeed, art and science meet at our daily
lives. As students at UCLA, regardless of our major, we are forced to take the
numerous General Education courses which are designed to expose us to the different
aspects of our world. Although we have the North and South campus saying, all
students have been to both side of campus for various class. Also, in Victoria
Vesna’s article Towards a Third Culture
and Kevin Kelly’s article The Third
Culture, they introduced technology as the “in-between” that is the common
basis of the two culture(121). With better technology, both scientists and
artist benefits. Just think of Internet, a game changing tool for scientists
and artists. To the scientists, it is a huge data base. To the artist, it is
where arts are "created, produced, distributed, marketed, preserved and supported"(BBC.com).
Art
and science have so much in common and become so interlinked in our lives. So should
we not specialize in one area? Even Snow was concerned with specialization that
lead to the cultural segregation(18). However, specialization had brought so
much benefit to us that we cannot overlook. Economically, it brings more welfare
for the economy according to N. Gregory Mankiw(50-54); academically, we have
those scientists in Snow’s interviews(12) and outstanding artists like Shakespeare.
Such specialization in their specialties takes years of experience. Imagine all
the great names you know have spent half their time on areas you can barely
relate them to, could they still achieve the same reputation?
My
last question is if we achieved specialization in one, what is the role of the
other one? Well, this question can only be answered by you. Art and science are more closely related than
many believed, but they mean differently to different people. To Leonardo DaVinci, "Art is the queen of all sciences communicating knowledge to all the generations of the world." You may completely disagree and it is up to you to find out for yourself.
REFERENCES:
Gever, Eyal. “Technology
and Art: Engineering the Future”. BBC. http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-19576763
Accessed Apr 9 2017
Bornstein, Mark. Business2Community. “The Art and Science Of Driving Webinar Registration”.
http://www.business2community.com/online-marketing/the-art-and-science-of-driving-webinar-registration-01247280#dzZKrqyMwOxPAyJ4.97
Accessed Apr 9 2017
Snow, C.P. “Two Cultures and
the Scientific Revolution”. New York: Cambridge UP, 1959. Print.
Stack Exchange. “Is
there a place in the world where two oceans meet and they don’t mix?” http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/7748/is-there-a-place-in-the-world-where-two-oceans-meet-and-they-dont-mix./
Accessed Apr 9 2017
Toonpool. https://www.toonpool.com/cartoons/The%20internet_6569.
Accessed Apr 9 2017
Vesna, Victoria. “Toward a Third
Culture: Being In Between”. Leonardo. 34 (2001): 121-125. Print.
Hi! I think its very interesting that you draw the idea of "General Education" courses in here to explain how UCLA combines the two cultures and shows the significance of both.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I have the same question as you in the last part, sometimes it seems that if we specialize in one filed, its hard to reach the other, especially in the case of art and science. For me personally, its the kind of questions like this that help me choose a major that is more "interdisciplinary", Psychology in my case. Still, im sure you'll get a different answer from each person in this class!
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