|
How does my dance training make me a better scientist?
How does my scientific training make me a better dancer?  Figure from my paper on adult neurogenesis [3].
How I engage with dance as a scientist, and with science as a dancer  Dancing at the RING Garden in uptown Manhattan. In episode 1 of Vichaar, I gave an overview of the project, and in episode 2, we saw how movement relates to dance, and how the brain enables and perceives movement. While the production brings together my professional identities, this work is also a deeply personal one. In the next two posts, we will look at how science makes me a better dancer, and how dance makes me a better scientist. At first glance, it may seem that there is nothing in common between art and science. The scientist's life consists of developing hypotheses, finding ways to address them, and communicating these results to the scientific community and ideally, to those outside the scientific community. Could there be any points of convergence? My experience as a practitioner of Bharatanatyam and neuroscience convinces me that there are! While not all the points may resonate exactly this way with all of you, I think there is soemthing deep and meaningful about artistic expression as it relates to our lives. What are some ways in which art enriches your life? Movement and mobility for survival
I find that animals and wildlife around me inspire to think about movement in a different way. Are there animal movement patterns that inspire you? Citations:
Stillness in saccades In Episode 2 of Vichaar, we talked about movement in the brain and movement in Bharatanatyam. In the last post, we looked at stillness, and saw that the neural mechanisms of stopping movement are just as complex as those initiating and sustaining movement. As a way of providing the contrast between stillness and movement, I would like to talk about saccades. Saccades are quick movements of the eyes between one fixed point to another [1], and are used in Bharatanatyam as a way to provide a nuanced and subtle movement pattern in response to rhythm. I feel that saccades are like lightning bugs - their movement is so subtle and so precise, that if you blink, you miss it! In future posts, we will look at how the brain makes saccades possible [2], and how saccadic movements of the eyes can be used to diagnose movement disorders [3]. Citations:
Stay still! The neural mechanisms underlying stillness Why talk about stillness while talking about movement? As I was teaching my pup to "stay", I was thinking about how much of our lives we spend not moving. We reach towards our phone and stop moving, we walk to a location and stop, a cat stops moving while looking for its prey, a squirrel hops and jumps around, and then sits still on a brach, and the turtle stays absolutely still while sunning itself.
What does stopping of movement mean in terms of brain functioning? The neural mechanisms of stillness are complex [1]. In the next few posts, I will look at how we stop moving, the neural mechanisms involved, and how this plays out in dance. In the meantime, check out Episode 2 of Vichaar where I talk about movement in dance, and movement in the brain. Citation:
My Pup's movement and Episode 2 of Vichaar
Movement in Bharatanatyam, and movement in the brain: Episode 2 of Vichaar In this episode, I give a glimpse of the movement patterns in Bharatanatyam, talk about the complexity of movement, and see how the brain ascribes meaning to movement. A transcript of the episode can be found here. Movement in Bharatanatyam, and movement in the brain: A preview to episode 2 of Vichaar  To celebrate 20 years of innovative community programming, Dance for PD is hosting the Dance for PD Community Festival: Around the World, Around the Clock, a FREE 24-hour virtual celebration featuring classes, panel discussions, and film screenings that highlight the diversity and breadth of the Dance for PD family. I am so excited to demonstrate Bharatanatyam for PD on Friday, April 29th at 6 to 6:30 pm EST. You can register here. Since Parkinson's Disease is condition where movement is impacted, the PD community event dovetails really well with Episode 2 of Vichaar. In this episode, I will cover:
|
About SlokaMy name is Sloka. I am a neuroscientist and dancer; you can find more about me here. 
Geese babies
Archives
October 2022
|
