Week 1: Two Cultures


  The “Changing Education Paradigm” video, by Sir Ken Robinson, comprehensively illustrates the unnatural separation of the two cultures––science and art––and its negative impact on the education system. Sir Ken Robinson argues that within the education system, the divergence of smart and non-smart people is a result of  individual’s concentration in either the science or the art.
"Changing Education Paradigm"
https://youtu.be/zDZFcDGpL4U
Although this may appear to be a radical perspective, but in reality, many stereotypes, especially in college setting, originate from this divergence. As a senior at UCLA, I can attest that stereotypes about the contrasting personalities between a North campus major (humanities/arts) and a South campus major (natural/hard science) are apparent throughout my four years here. North campus major students seem to perceive south campus major students to lack communication skills, not know how to enjoy their youth, and appear to be too intense in academic. On the other hand, South campus major students seem to perceive north campus major students to be too carefree about their future, only live in the moment rather than plan for the future. Similar to how Steven Pinker highlights that humanities, science, and philosophy shed light on the human predicament, the stereotypes seen at UCLA  serve as evidence for two cultures’ negative impact on the education system. Students from either parts of campus are molded to think unfavorable of one another as a result of being in a poorly 19th-century-designed education system to obtain their degrees in the 21st century. Overall, today education system is one of human many predicaments, mainly resulting from the limited interactions between the two cultures of science and art.
Art and Science: Two Separate Entities
https://pxhere.com/en/photo/810136

Drawing from Professor Vesna’s paper, “Toward a Third Culture: Being in Between,” and C.P. Snow’s lecture, “The Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution,” I am aware of the limitations in societal advancement when the two cultures work as separate entities yet am optimistic about the new innovations that can be made when bridging the two cultures. Although my undergraduate years have been heavily devoted to the hard sciences where we have been shaped to think binary––being right or wrong, I am enthusiastic to discover how I can be a part of the third culture in dental school in a few months. I believe that dentistry will remain to be a growing field that will not only contribute to improving preventative health care but also medium where art and science intersect.

Dentistry: third culture
https://www.istockphoto.com/mx/vector/tratamiento-odontológico-conjunto-de-iconos-de-vector-de-de-doodle-niños-de-atención-gm537643582-95437867

Sources: 
Pinker, Steven. "SEEDMAGAZINE.COM Two Cultures Steven Pinker". Youtube, 2010, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1BUbVc7qVpg. Accessed 9 Apr 2018.
Robinson, Ken. "RSA ANIMATE: Changing Education Paradigms". Youtube, 2010, https://youtu.be/zDZFcDGpL4U. Accessed 9 Apr 2018.
Snow, C. P., and Roman Smoluchowski. "The Two Cultures And The Scientific Revolution". Physics Today, vol 14, no. 9, 1961, pp. 1-51. AIP Publishing, doi:10.1063/1.3057748. Accessed 8 Apr 2018.
Vesna, Victoria. "Toward A Third Culture: Being In Between". Leonardo, vol 34, no. 2, 2001, pp. 121-125. MIT Press - Journals, doi:10.1162/002409401750184672. Accessed 8 Apr 2018.
Vesna, Victoria. "Twocultures Pt2". Youtube, 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUr4xxZ_0gw. Accessed 9 Apr 2018.

Comments

  1. UnknownApril 13, 2018 at 1:36 PM

    It is very interesting how you see dentistry as a "third culture". It certainly does have aspects which make seem to make it both scientific and artistic: the science is invested in the technology needed to work on teeth while the dentists need to be well versed in aesthetics so each patient can get the perfect smile. However, I'm interested in what type of "third culture" do you believe dentists are? John Brockman describes the third culture as scientists who dabble in the arts like Steven Pinker or Brian Goodwin and communicate their findings directly with the public while Kevin Kelly characterizes the "third culture" as people who focus less on the "truth" and "expression" (as more traditional scientists and artists would respectively) and more on "novelty" and "experience". I'm inclined to believe that dentists can fit into both categories, but may fit that of Brockman's better as, although dentists may or may not focus more on novelty or experience, they definitely are involved in both the sciences and the arts. I'm interested to hear your opinion.

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  2. andrewsdesma9April 13, 2018 at 8:26 PM

    Hi Alivia, something that really resonated with me is that you noticed how hard-wired South campus majors are to view solutions in a very binary manner. As a bioengineering major, this was something I only learned this about myself after I took my first philosophy class. It was refreshing to see that when we discussed topics in class, opinions or analyses that I formed, regardless of whether or not they agreed with other students’ opinions, would be valid (I use this term "valid" instead of "correct" intentionally here). I had gotten so used to only raising my hand to answer a question if I was 100% confident in the answer, so I was shocked when other student’s so easily spoke up in discussion. In terms of south campus classes, I find it hard to think of examples where this type of divergent thinking, as Sir Ken Robinson calls it in the “Changing Education Paradigm” video, is applied. I’m unsure if your major required this, but synthesis problems in organic chemistry courses allowed for some freedom in how you solve the problem, but even then, the final answer had to be correct. I look forward to a career in engineering working with people from all disciplines and getting a chance to meet people of many different thinking processes. Hopefully, the merging of these disciplines will allow me to break free from this binary thinking the education system has trained me to think in. Best of luck in dental school!

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