Microscopic Investigation on Human Body and Mind in Action

Microscopic Investigation on Human Body and Mind in Action is a series of workshops exploring human cognition and behaviour with its underlying neural basis, while providing an explorative way to think about the human body and mind which may be applied during creative processes (e.g., performance making, designing, problem solving, researching, etc.) for students in higher education. The workshops will combine findings from cognitive neuroscience and performance making - primarily focusing on the phenomenological experiencing through one's own body in action while applying the information about underlying neural processes. This opens up an opportunity for students to expand their understanding on how one's brain and body functions, how humans make sense and interact with one’s surroundings, and explore such relationships in an embodied investigation. Students will also learn how to reflect one’s bodily explorations through different documentation medium, and apply into their design or artistic practices.

Intended Learning Outcomes

- Learn basic concepts and neural underpinnings of human cognition, and how they relate to your actions and movement
- Learn basic paradigms involving human mind and body in action
- Explore different ways of investigating with one’s body while moving
- Learn how to self-reflect adopting various documentation methods
- Develop methods on applying such practice to one’s own creative or artistic research and practice

Workshop Overview

#0 | Human mind and brain, embodied cognition and body in action
The first workshop of Microscopic Investigation on Human Body and Mind in Action will be an introduction to the backgrounds of this lecture series, covering:
- Basic concepts of human brain and its functions
- Basic concepts of embodied cognition
- Basic concepts of somaesthetics - soma as the living, sentient, purposive body



#1  | Understanding and exploring visual perception
In this workshop participants will performatively explore ways of seeing, paired with learning basic concepts of human visual pathway – how colour, shapes and motions are processed in the brain.

#2  | Sense making
This workshop will focus on the basic building blocks of human cognition in situ – how do people navigate their surroundings, as a living organism interacting with numerous layers of information? How can we acknowledge and question such steps as we move our bodies? What are the neurobiological findings behind such sense-making process?

#3  | Somatic Memory
In this workshop, participants will focus on the five different innate bodily memories conceptualised by Shusterman (2012) and learn about the process of memory formation in the brain.  

#4  | Inter-somatic investigation: how do we relate to other humans?
What happens in your brain, when you are watching another human in action?
What happens when you interact with someone, somatically?
Can we use imagination to heighten such interaction?

#5  | Formation, De-formation – plasticity 
How does the brain develop and re-develop? How does it learn new information, deal with drastic shifts in your body and your surroundings?

#6  | Introduction to Neuroaesthetics: aesthetic appreciation
In this workshop, participants will be introduced to the overview of the academic field of Neuroaesthetics, while thinking about the underlying processes of aesthetic appreciation.

Concept & development
Hennie Lee

Participants 
Students from Goldsmiths:
MA Design (Expanded Practice), MA Performance Making, PhD Visual Sociology, PhD Psychology
Students from Trinity Laban:
MSc Dance Science

Click to read Handouts