The Structural Framework of Pictorial Balance

Perception ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 25 (12) ◽  
pp. 1419-1436 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Locher ◽  
Sharon Gray ◽  
Calvin Nodine

Two experiments were performed to examine how the subjective balance of a painting is created by its structural features and to determine if balance influences the way people look at paintings. Stimuli consisted of sixteen reproductions of twentieth-century paintings varying in artistic style and a reconstructed less-balanced version of each. Participants in experiment 1 determined the location of the balance center of each composition, assigned ‘weights’ to the pictorial features which contributed to the location of the balance center, and rated the picture for balance. It was found that design and museum professionals and individuals untrained in the visual arts were in good agreement as to the structural framework underlying the balance organization of a painting. For all participants, disruption of the balanced organizations of the original compositions led to reliable shifts in the location of the perceived balance centers of the originals compared with their less-balanced perturbations. Additionally, it was observed that particular features as such were not the origin of the balance phenomenon; rather, judgments concerning the balance structure and its center were dependent on the global integration of information across a wide area of the display field, but especially from its central region. Last, the subtle changes in balance structure between versions resulted in lower ratings of balance being assigned to the less-balanced perturbations by the design professionals only; the other two participant groups evaluated overall balance of the versions as comparable. In experiment 2, eye movements of a different group of untrained individuals were recorded as they performed similar tasks on the art stimuli. It was found that disruption of the balance structure of the original representational but not abstract compositions resulted in different regions of the original and perturbed versions being visually explored. Findings of both experiments are related to theoretical notions of balance.

2006 ◽  
Vol 51 (2) ◽  
pp. 52-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corina Caduff ◽  
Sabina Gebhardt Fink ◽  
Florian Keller ◽  
Steffen Schmidt

Intermedialität wird hier systematisch an Musik, Literatur, visuelle Kunst und Film dargestellt. Den Anfang machen allgemeine Überlegungen zu Materialität und Medium in diesen verschiedenen Künsten. Im Weiteren werden unter dem Aspekt ›Bimedialität‹ verschiedene Beispiele vorgestellt, die jeweils aus zwei Medien bestehen (z.B. Musikfilm, das Lied oder Schriftbilder). Dabei folgen wir der Frage, ob und wie jeweils eines der beiden Medien eine Vorrangstellung bekommt. Der abschließende Teil behandelt „intermediale Bezüge in Monomedialität“. Hier geht es um monomediale Darstellungen, denen aber eine Beschäftigung mit einem anderen Medium vorangegangen ist. Das ist etwa dann der Fall, wenn ein Schriftsteller über ein Bild schreibt, ohne daß dieses (im Text) zu sehen ist. In this article, we offer a systematic description of intermedia relations across music, literature, the visual arts, and film. Beginning with some general reflections on materiality and medium in these diverse fields of art, we then offer various examples consisting of two media (e.g. music film, song, images in writing). We pursue the question if, and how, one of the two media may take priority over the other. In our conclusion, we deal with „intermedia relations in monomediality“. This section focuses on artistic representations made in one medium, but based on reflections on another medium. For instance, this is the case when a novelist writes about a picture without having this picture reprinted in the text.


Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 499
Author(s):  
Caroline Bonazza ◽  
Jiao Zhu ◽  
Roger Hasler ◽  
Rosa Mastrogiacomo ◽  
Paolo Pelosi ◽  
...  

An electronic biosensor for odors was assembled by immobilizing the silk moth Bombyx mori pheromone binding protein (BmorPBP1) on a reduced graphene oxide surface of a field-effect transistor. At physiological pH, the sensor detects the B. mori pheromones, bombykol and bombykal, with good affinity and specificity. Among the other odorants tested, only eugenol elicited a strong signal, while terpenoids and other odorants (linalool, geraniol, isoamyl acetate, and 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine) produced only very weak responses. Parallel binding assays were performed with the same protein and the same ligands, using the common fluorescence approach adopted for similar proteins. The results are in good agreement with the sensor’s responses: bombykol and bombykal, together with eugenol, proved to be strong ligands, while the other compounds showed only poor affinity. When tested at pH 4, the protein failed to bind bombykol both in solution and when immobilized on the sensor. This result further indicates that the BmorPBP1 retains its full activity when immobilized on a surface, including the conformational change observed in acidic conditions. The good agreement between fluorescence assays and sensor responses suggests that ligand-binding assays in solution can be used to screen mutants of a binding protein when selecting the best form to be immobilized on a biosensor.


1989 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 175-183 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Chure

“Although I work a lot with fossils in my own research on fishes, I do not care to be called a paleontologist; and I am turned off by many aspects of the public-relations hoopla surrounding paleontology, especially dinosaurs…. One could easily argue that the schools' fascination with dinosaurs might also detract from the other aspects of earth science and biological science and, in the end, weaken paleontology's image as an activity for hard-nosed grown-ups.”K.S. Thomson, 1985: p. 73“Let dinosaurs be dinosaurs. Let the Dinosauria stand proudly alone, a Class by itself. They merit it. And let us squarely face the dinosaurness of birds and the birdness of the Dinosauria. When the Canada geese honk their way northward, we can say: “The dinosaurs are migrating, it must be spring!”R.T. Bakker, 1986: p. 462It is a now oft-repeated statement that we are in the Second Golden Age of dinosaur studies. This may at first seem to be yet another overstatement by dinosaur fanatics; in fact, it is substantiated on a number of fronts. Research activity is certainly at an all-time high, with resident dinosaur researchers on every continent (except Antarctica) and dinosaurs known from every continent (including Antarctica). This activity has resulted in a spate of discoveries, including not only new genera and species, but entirely new types of dinosaurs, such as the segnosaurs. Well-known groups are producing surprises, such as armored sauropods and sauropods bearing tail clubs. Good specimens of previously named genera are revealing unsuspected structural features that almost defy explanation, as in the skull of Oviraptor. However, dinosaur studies extend far beyond the traditional emphasis on dinosaur morphology, and encompass paleobiogeography, paleoecology, taphonomy, physiology, tracks, eggs, histology, and extinction, among others. In some cases, several of these studies can be applied to a single taxon or locality to give us a fairly detailed understanding of the paleobiology of some species.


2002 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 25-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan M. Allen

The Getty Research Institute (GRI) is one of four programs of the J. Paul Getty Trust, an international cultural and philanthropic institution devoted to the visual arts, all of which reside at the Getty Center situated high on a beautiful hilltop in Brentwood, California. (The other programs of the Getty Trust are the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Getty Conservation Institute, and the Getty Grant Program.) From the beginning it was understood that the GRI would develop a research program in the discipline of art history and more generally the humanities, and that a library would support its work. Since its founding the GRI has, in fact, developed a major library as one of its programs alongside those for scholars, publications, exhibitions and a multitude of lectures, workshops and symposia for scholars, students and the general public. What is now known as the Research Library at the GRI has grown to be a significant resource and this article focuses on its history, the building that houses it, its collections and databases, and access to them all.


Antibodies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrícia de Sousa-Pereira ◽  
Jenny M. Woof

Immunoglobulin A (IgA) plays a key role in defending mucosal surfaces against attack by infectious microorganisms. Such sites present a major site of susceptibility due to their vast surface area and their constant exposure to ingested and inhaled material. The importance of IgA to effective immune defence is signalled by the fact that more IgA is produced than all the other immunoglobulin classes combined. Indeed, IgA is not just the most prevalent antibody class at mucosal sites, but is also present at significant concentrations in serum. The unique structural features of the IgA heavy chain allow IgA to polymerise, resulting in mainly dimeric forms, along with some higher polymers, in secretions. Both serum IgA, which is principally monomeric, and secretory forms of IgA are capable of neutralising and removing pathogens through a range of mechanisms, including triggering the IgA Fc receptor known as FcαRI or CD89 on phagocytes. The effectiveness of these elimination processes is highlighted by the fact that various pathogens have evolved mechanisms to thwart such IgA-mediated clearance. As the structure–function relationships governing the varied capabilities of this immunoglobulin class come into increasingly clear focus, and means to circumvent any inherent limitations are developed, IgA-based monoclonal antibodies are set to emerge as new and potent options in the therapeutic arena.


2004 ◽  
Vol 18 (09) ◽  
pp. 1351-1368
Author(s):  
ANDREI DOLOCAN ◽  
VOICU OCTAVIAN DOLOCAN ◽  
VOICU DOLOCAN

Using a new Hamiltonian of interaction we have calculated the cohesive energy in three-dimensional structures. We have found the news dependences of this energy on the distance between the atoms. The obtained results are in a good agreement with experimental data in ionic, covalent and noble gases crystals. The coupling constant γ between the interacting field and the atoms is somewhat smaller than unity in ionic crystals and is some larger than unity in covalent and noble gases crystals. The formulae found by us are general and may be applied, also, to the other types of interactions, for example, gravitational interactions.


2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 169-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frederic Fol Leymarie ◽  
Prashant Aparajeya

In this article we explore the practical use of medialness informed by perception studies as a representation and processing layer for describing a class of works of visual art. Our focus is towards the description of 2D objects in visual art, such as found in drawings, paintings, calligraphy, graffiti writing, where approximate boundaries or lines delimit regions associated to recognizable objects or their constitutive parts. We motivate this exploration on the one hand by considering how ideas emerging from the visual arts, cartoon animation and general drawing practice point towards the likely importance of medialness in guiding the interaction of the traditionally trained artist with the artifact. On the other hand, we also consider recent studies and results in cognitive science which point in similar directions in emphasizing the likely importance of medialness, an extension of the abstract mathematical representation known as ‘medial axis’ or ‘Voronoi graphs’, as a core feature used by humans in perceiving shapes in static or dynamic scenarios. We illustrate the use of medialness in computations performed with finished artworks as well as artworks in the process of being created, modified, or evolved through iterations. Such computations may be used to guide an artificial arm in duplicating the human creative performance or used to study in greater depth the finished artworks. Our implementations represent a prototyping of such applications of computing to art analysis and creation and remain exploratory. Our method also provides a possible framework to compare similar artworks or to study iterations in the process of producing a final preferred depiction, as selected by the artist.


2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (20) ◽  
pp. 1750131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ming-Min Zhong ◽  
Cheng Huang ◽  
Chun-Ling Tian

First-principles investigations are employed to provide a fundamental understanding of the structural features, phase stability, mechanical properties, Debye temperature, and hardness of manganese tetraboride. Eight candidate structures of known transition-metal tetraborides are chosen to probe. The calculated lattice parameters, elastic properties, Poisson’s ratio, and [Formula: see text] ratio are derived. It is observed that the monoclinic structure with [Formula: see text] symmetry (MnB4–MnB4) is the most stable in energy. The mechanical and thermodynamic stabilities of seven possible phases are confirmed by the calculated elastic constants and formation enthalpy. Moreover, the analysis on density of states demonstrates semiconducting behavior of MnB4–MnB4 and different metallic behaviors of other phases. The estimated hardness of MnB4–MnB4 is 38.3 GPa, which is in good agreement with experimental value. Furthermore, the relationship between hardness and Debye temperature is investigated and verifies that MnB4–MnB4 is a newly potential semiconducting ultrahard material with high melting point. It provides a new perspective of searching for semiconducting superhard materials to be applied in extreme conditions.


Human Affairs ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Skowroński

AbstractIn the present paper, the author looks at the political dimension of some trends in the visual arts within twentieth-century avant-garde groups (cubism, expressionism, fauvism, Dada, abstractionism, surrealism) through George Santayana’s idea of vital liberty. Santayana accused the avant-gardists of social and political escapism, and of becoming unintentionally involved in secondary issues. In his view, the emphasis they placed on the medium (or diverse media) and on treating it as an aim in itself, not, as it should be, as a transmitter through which a stimulating relationship with the environment can be had, was accompanied by a focus on fragments of life and on parts of existence, and, on the other hand, by a de facto rejection of ontology and cosmology as being crucial to understanding life and the place of human beings in the universe. The avant-gardists became involved in political life by responding excessively to the events of the time, instead of to the everlasting problems that are the human lot.


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