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Curated by Abbey Dethlefs.

Founded by Maria Popova, editor of Brain Pickings.

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In Sitting Still, A Bench Press For The Brain

Excerpts:

The role that meditation plays in brain development has been the subject of several theories and a number of studies. One of them, conducted at the Laboratory of Neuro Imaging at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that long-term meditators like Ms. Splain had greater gyrification — a term that describes the folding of the cerebral cortex, the outermost part of the brain.

The U.C.L.A. study, like previous ones, is inconclusive but intriguing. “You could argue that more folds mean more neurons,” said Dr. Eileen Luders, the recent study’s lead author, who practices meditation herself. “These are the processing units of the brain, and so having more might mean that you have greater cognitive capacities.”

“We used to believe that when you were born, your brain would grow and reach a peak in the early 20s and then start shrinking,” Dr. Luders said. “It was thought there was nothing we could do to change that.” Her research suggests that there might be. As a meditator for four years, Dr. Luders understands the degree of mental discipline involved. “People ask, ‘What do you do? Just sit there with your eyes closed?’ It’s actually hard work, because you have to make a constant mental effort.”

Read full article.

Tags New York Times Meditation Brain Neuroscience Medicine health

Gorgeous creation from the simple elements of soap, water and an entrancing take on gravity by artist Nicky Assman.

As explained by Fast Co Design, “Solace exploits the effect of gravity on soap films. Most soap bubbles are made up of a mixture of glycerol and water, which have different levels of viscosity. That means that water and soap are affected by gravity at different rates. The swirling patterns you see in the film, after a few seconds held in a vertical position, is light refracting off of the film as water is pulled down more quickly than the rest of the soap film.” Scientific and spell-binding. 

Most artists loathe dust and consider it a threat to their work — but painter Scott Wade is not one of those artists. In fact, he owes his popularity to it. Wade is known for his skill of turning the dust of his native Texas into the ideal material to depict detailed scenes using the rear windows of automobiles as his canvas. Impressive, innovative and gives a legitimate example to those whose cars that could use a little sprucing up.  (via)

Most artists loathe dust and consider it a threat to their work — but painter Scott Wade is not one of those artists. In fact, he owes his popularity to it. Wade is known for his skill of turning the dust of his native Texas into the ideal material to depict detailed scenes using the rear windows of automobiles as his canvas.

Impressive, innovative and gives a legitimate example to those whose cars that could use a little sprucing up. 

(via)

Tags Art Cars Texas

Heart Drawn: Leonardo da Vinci’s Intricate Anatomy


From the collection Leonardo da Vinci: Anatomist, Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace, London, 4 May to 7 October 2012. It’s mind-boggling how ahead of his time he was.

Excerpt: 
AROUND 1513, Leonardo da Vinci made detailed drawings of the heart and wrote nearly 2000 words of notes on the organ in his characteristic mirror handwriting. Intrigued by the way the aortic valve opens and closes to ensure blood flows in only one direction, he set about constructing a model.

“First pour wax into the gate of an ox’s heart so that you may see the true shape of the gate,” he wrote. With hardened wax as a template, he recreated the structure in glass. By pumping a mixture of water and grass seed through the glass he was able to observe how the widening at the base of the aorta caused swirls of seeds. These eddies, he believed, helped to close “the little doors of the heart” - the three cusps of the valve.

These studies are among 87 original drawings on display in Leonardo da Vinci: Anatomist, the largest ever exhibition of his anatomical works. According to curator Martin Clayton, it is time da Vinci was celebrated as a scientist. “Many of Leonardo’s drawings have been regarded as science in the service of art,” he says. “I want to make the point that this is proper science.”

(via)

Tags Science Anatomy Biology Leonardo DaVinci Medicine

Submerged glasses and decanters by fine crystalware makers Lobmeyr, Baccarat and Saint Louis are animated with billows of color in this short by Parisian art director William Snieg. Collaborating with set designer Marcel van Doorn—who devised the formula for the multihued injections—and interior stylist and regular Wallpaper* contributor Leila Latchin, Snieg aimed to capture the elegant movements of the mixed-liquid clouds as if a magical ballet. “I wanted to transcribe the grace of these figures, that look sometimes like fine silk, sometimes like a smoky mist, against a pure base—crystal,” explains Snieg, who art directs campaigns and short films for Louis Vuitton and Dior.

(via)

Tags Smoke Glass Design Art Interior Design Clouds Louis Vuitton Dior Art Direction

Neil DeGrasse Tyson Gets Distracted While Singing Children’s Songs by Michaelanne Petrella

The wheels on the bus go round and round,
Round and round
Round and round
The wheels on the bus…

Actually, some might call the wheels on the bus a “discovery” more than an invention, as most things in this world are a discovery of invention, rather than a fabrication out of nothing. This brings up something I want to discuss briefly here, if you will allow, because I think the misconception that a lot of people have, uh, concerning, concerning SCIENTISTS. Oooo, “Scientists.” That word. Strikes fear into the heart of some, and amazement into the heart of, well, me. And probably you, since you are here today in this planetarium, listening to me go on and on about my love for this… hang on a sec, let me… okay, so, we often find people BLAMING scientists for, for, for, these discoveries and inventions… being misused or being funded for misuse. We must remember that the discovery itself is not moral or immoral, it is the application of said discovery that is required to be held to that standard. Also, how cool are wheels on busses, right? And circles, in general. The fact that you can take a circle and divide it by its radius and you get pi, everytime, is astounding to me. Gives me chills every time.

Delightful! Read more here.

Tags Neil DeGrasse Tyson Science astrophysics Astronomy PBS NOVA NASA Planetarium

“As children develop cognitively, they begin to understand that the threat of death lurks behind their early fears of big dogs, monsters, the dark, and so forth. Their basis of security shifts from the parents to large cultural concepts, such as deities, their nation, and cultural ideals. That is, from being good little boys and girls in the eyes of their parents to being good, valued Christians or atheists, Americans or Germans, artists or scientists. The result of this socialization process is fully enculturated adults who sustain psychological security, despite knowing how vulnerable and mortal they are, by maintaining two psychological constructs: our faith in our worldview and our sense of self-worth.”

How The Unrelenting Threat Of Death Shapes Our Behavior
The Atlantic | Hans Villarica 

Tags Psychology Behavior Sociology Culture Society Death Trends