Week 1: Two Cultures

     The idea of art and science as separate fields is encouraged and not questioned due to the nature of economic specialization in contemporary society.  The ideal blend between artist and scientist is perfectly exemplified by outstanding individuals such as Leonardo da Vinci and Galileo Galilei. The great divide is driven further and further apart with every graduating class of college seniors by the educational system's goal: to place every individual into a specific niche within society. Every person is another cog in the system. It is no longer financially feasible or logical to provide an education that reinforces the Renaissance ideal of the polymath.

The Apple iMac G3. A blend of engineering and art. The computer that helped save Apple. 

(www.stevesonian.com)

     It starts with elementary school. Children are asked to write down what they want to be. Most children will pick one of the following: astronaut, superhero, soldier, athlete, movie star, scientist, writer. The keyword is "one." When I turned in my paper and the teacher saw that I had written down more than five things she told me that I had done the assignment incorrectly and needed to redo it for credit. At the time I didn't know what to say so I returned to my seat and ignored it. This was a significant event because it was a clear exemplification of one of the core problems with the education system: single-area emphasis. Foundational multi-subject knowledge must be established first.
     I agree with C.P. Snow's criticism of specialization in the education system and also agree with him on his stance regarding scientific literacy. In order to gain the support and understanding of the general populace, it's important that individuals who practice and research in natural science areas and engineering maintain the ability to properly communicate their findings and the importance of their work. Without this medium of communication the divide remains. Also, Snow does point out an aspect that challenges the merging of this gap: the humanities based individuals are concentrated more on the past rather than the present by nature of their subjects and the scientists are the opposite. The time periods are different and thus the medium that must connect the two groups is language and thought.

     I think Apple Inc. is a perfect example of a company that has bridged this divide. Apple's engineers work with designers to create products that almost every PC manufacturer attempts to copy. The unibody Macbook is a perfect example. The anodized aluminum exterior isn't flashy and is very elegant. From a design perspective it's marvelous because there are fewer parts and thus less failure points. It's also strong. Take a look at the LED sleep light indicator shown below in each of its states:

(source: anandtech; see works cited)

The top picture shows the Macbook in a powered on state. The sleep light (left of the black infrared sensor) is off because it is not needed. The appearance remains as clean as possible. The bottom picture shows the Macbook in sleep mode. The light appears because it's needed. The aluminum in this location was cut thin enough so that the light could still shine through with current is sent to the LED. Had just a team of engineers designed this, there would just be a spot for an LED. Had just a team of artists designed this, there would be no functionality and just a pretty case. The combination yields a computer that other vendors seek to copy. An example from Lenovo is shown below:

Vendors copy Apple because it is the only company that puts artists and engineers on the same level in designing a product. The results speak for themselves. 

Works cited:

Ferris, Timothy. "The World of the Intellectual vs. The World of the Engineer | Business | WIRED." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, 11 Oct. 0011. Web. 24 June 2014.

Frost, Martin. "Polymath: "A Renaissance Man"" N.p., n.d. Web.

www.anandtech.com

Snow, C.P. “Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution.” Cambridge University, Cambridge. 1959.

Vesna, Victoria. "Toward a Third Culture: Being in Between." Web.