Art & Science

In 1957, when the Soviet Union tossed Sputnik around the globe, some U.S. Military scientists figured it would probably be giving off a signal. Within a few minutes they were able to receive Sputnik’s transmission. Then they figured they should be able to figure out how to track it using nothing but a radio signal and some math. When they were successful, they showed their work to their boss. A little while later, the U.S. Government asked: if we can track a moving object in space from a fixed location on earth, could we also find a fixed location on earth from a moving satellite in space?

The answer was yes. Roughly 30 years after this idea germinated, GPS became a handheld, inexpensive household (or car-hold) device. In fact, much of our technology today is based on the creativity and ingenuity of the past: DVD burners, flat screen tvs, 3D weaving, etc.

We seem to be losing an essential part of ingenuity in America: the integration of art and science. More and more, it seems, education is teaching subjects in isolation, and Americans are buying it. We now have the idea that we are either left-brained or right-brained and that art and science should be separate. We live in a world now where it is common to believe that Scientists are not creative and Artists are not analytical or logical. Apparently, we can’t be creative and logical at the same time.

If we give in to this—if we let this kind of thinking underlie our decision-making—then we are setting ourselves up for a system of limited innovation. And it doesn’t have to be this way.

“The difference between science and the arts is not that they are different sides of the same coin even, or even different parts of the same continuum, but rather, they are manifestations of the same thing. The arts and sciences are avatars of human creativity. It’s our attempt as humans to build an understanding of the universe, the world around us.” (Mae Jemison - Astronaut)

As we set up our STEM lab, you’ll notice it is designed to foster thinking in all its forms, analytical and creative. Also, literacy is thinking. When we are reading, writing, creating a video, we are exercising high orders of thinking. Our STEM lab is not just about Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math; it’s about thinking, communicating, problem-solving, learning, exploring, creating, asking.

Who knows what future innovations are being set in motion right now?