Dissertation Abstract

Using embodied cognition instrumentation how can ones mental state alter Immersive media artwork?

How does the mental realm affect the physical realm? Can conscious thoughts, emotional states and reactions be quantified, and if so what instrumentation is used to quantify such things. How can it be visualised within immersive cinema. I want to investigate developments in neuroscience technology and technologies within immersive environments. How vection and perception have a vital role in immersive theatre.

Ramachandran (2004) argues that “your concious life in short, is nothing but a post-hoc rationalization of things you really do for other reasons”

So to what extent may your reaction be of your own choosing? I am interested in the variables that may affect someone’s mental state and ultimately affect artwork visualised using their brain power and reaction.

Embodied cognition is interdisciplinary research that can include neuroscience, philosophy, social science and technology. With my main focus on technology I wish to look at how it may be used in an artistic context. There are many arguments in philosophy about “the self” and free will, how much is physical and how much is “metaphysical”, the idea that emotions like happiness or love could be compartmentalised within neuroscience to be a quantifiable increase in serotonin or endorphins etc… This begs the question: “what is physical?”.

I would like to investigate the subconscious mind, and how this relates to our conscious decisions and reactions. I wish to develop my research within a phycological and perhaps sociological context, including the different variables that may lead to changing the visualisations up on screen, such as a crowd in the dome at one time, or a single user un-influenced by anyone around them. Using this space as one form of interactive architecture I am interested in the user unique user experience…how certain elements may lead to a different visualisation and then will the altered visualisation produce further brain activity and reactions that will change the look once again.

The Immersive media and embodied cognition are moving forward very rapidly, with a lot of research being conducted and a lot of developments are being made. I am going to also try and explain why how progress had been made over time and investigate behaviours and reactions to different types of media throughout history and why these technological advances have lead to the demand for immersive theatres and imax’s etc… Also what further implications   combining these technological advancements my have within art, immersive cinema and interactive architecture.