My project shows, through art, how the mind of human beings deal with the passage of time as a result of living the pandemic COVID-19. Isolation, as we are living, was not a choice we made to slow down our intense pace of life. With the virus we lose power to decide, to perform tasks. Our mind addicted to the need to understand everything in order to have illusion of control, seeks answers, yearns for certainties, but they do not arrive. Social distance forces us to be more patient, to control our anxieties and so we live one day at a time, without knowing what will happen tomorrow. Using Computational Modeling, Graphite Drawing Techniques, Data and Resources of NASA, this project developed a drawing (painting) to show how the COVID-19 pandemic affects the human brain. My work of art shows that the passage of time is something that is directly connected with brain aspects. The brain is affected by isolation in several ways. The notion of time, symbolized by the deformed clock connected with the human brain, is somewhat distorted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Uncertainties about the future make the perception of time relative and collapse, forming a conflict between what is uncertain and our notions of a fixed cosmic order. The COVID-19 pandemic brought negative points to people's minds. The real world has been replaced by questions about the future and distorted views about time. Regardless of time, it is necessary for the human mind to reconstruct the connection between what is real symbolized by the planet earth in the work of art. To overcome and adapt to the passage of time distorted by the social isolation caused by the pandemic, it is necessary to reflect, reinvent, renew, raise your head and face problems with patience and willpower every day.
Using Computational Modeling, Graphite Drawing Techniques, Data and Resources of NASA, this project developed a drawing (painting) to show how the COVID-19 pandemic affects the human brain.
Art is one of the ways to express feelings, emotions and realities based on countless aspects and visions. My work of art shows that the passage of time is something that is directly connected with brain aspects. The brain is affected by isolation in several ways. The notion of time, symbolized by the deformed clock connected with the human brain, is somewhat distorted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Uncertainties about the future make the perception of time relative and collapse, forming a conflict between what is uncertain and our notions of a fixed cosmic order. The COVID-19 pandemic brought negative points to people's minds. The real world has been replaced by questions about the future and distorted views about time. Regardless of time, it is necessary for the human mind to reconstruct the connection between what is real symbolized by the planet earth in the work of art.
Data and Resources of NASA: Data and resources of NASA were the basis for the development of the project. Based on resources of NASA, it was possible to analyze and understand social changes in different environmental contexts. In addition, it was possible to understand which changes and aspects of the human being are involved with the theme of social isolation in the COVID-19 pandemic. Images of NASA, as listed in the references, were the basis for the realization of the artwork for this project. The vivid colors of the figures as well as the artistic basis for the construction of the drawing referring to the planet Earth were based on NASA resources.
Computational Modeling: Based on NASA resources and data regarding the changes that the COVID-19 pandemic has made to the planet and on the scientific articles listed in the references of this work, my project carried out computer simulations. Considering the psychological effects as well as the hormonal disorders associated with emotional factors (sadness ...), computational modeling was performed to study the biochemical structure of neurotransmitters related to emotional aspects and which are directly linked to the psychological, social and emotional findings of individuals more sensitive to the COVID-19 pandemic. Structural properties of serotonin, noradrenaline, melatonin, orexin and dopamine have been determined using both density-based and wave-function-based electronic structure methods in order to assess the ability of ab initio “force fields” to retain the properties described by experimental structures measured with crystallography or nuclear magnetic resonance. Using Molecular Dynamics (MD) and Monte-Carlo simulations, the chemical structures above were analyzed. The computational simulations and analyzes of this scientific work were elaborated with the use of software: ACD/ChemSketch, Swiss-PdbViewer, ABCpred, BepiPred-2.0, ElliPro, DEseq, GOseq, FunRich, Cytoscape, BiNGO, PepSurf, AxonDeepSeg, AxonSeg, PyMol, ICM-Browser, LAMMPS, Gaussian,Visual Molecular Dynamics (VMD), Cell Illustrator, GENESIS, NEURON, NeuronStudio and ChemDraw. Java and Python languages were also used during computational modeling in previous software. The synthesis of these chemical structures is affected in a very sensitive way to simple changes in habits (routine) of life of individuals. Social isolation and other changes originating from the COVID-19 pandemic can disrupt human body homeostasis. In a virtual biological environment carried out by this project in the previously mentioned software, simulated changes were made in the metabolism and synthesis of the chemical structures described above. These changes (example: indications about local phi -φ- and psi -ψ- torsion angle fluctuations; change in Local Field Potential - LFP- oscillation) pointed to abnormal neural oscillations using Stuttgart Neural Network Simulator (SNSS), NEST, Brian, Emergent and Neural Lab software. Neural oscillations are involved in many different processes such as memory, perception of time and space and brain integration or neural communication in general. Computational modeling confirms that there is a direct relationship between temporal perception, neurochemical changes and possible psychological changes.
Graphite Drawing Techniques: To represent the results obtained based on the analysis of NASA resources and computational modeling as well as to answer the challenge proposed by this event, my project developed a work of art using graphite drawing techniques. The following materials were used to make the drawing (painting): A4 (210mm x 297mm); number two, HB and 2B pencil; eraser; 10 Colored Eco Pencils. The main combined techniques used were the line, hatching, smudging, washes, combined techniques and sgraffito.
In addition to obtaining a work of art that meets the challenge, computational modeling of my project may help developing new studies and approaches to understand how changes in habits affect the central nervous system.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ukz3gMH0wAWohYVEt3EoD4WZUxepI8VQ/view?usp=sharing
1. NASA, “Social Isolation and Space”: https://www.nasa.gov/hrp/social-isolation
2. NASA, “Social Isolation in Context”: https://www.nasa.gov/hrp/social-isolation/in-context
3. Hazards of Human Spaceflight | Hazard 2: Isolation & Confinement:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPinASEKA_I&feature=youtu.be
4. Interview with Tom Williams, Ph.D.: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1FYk1lkdh4
5. The risks of social isolation: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2019/05/ce-corner-isolation
6. Examining social isolation and loneliness in combination in relation to social support and psychological distress using Canadian Longitudinal Study of Aging (CLSA) data: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0230673
7. COVID-19 and the consequences of isolating the elderly: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(20)30061-X/fulltext
8. Earth: A System of Systems (updated): https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/31139
9. Earth As Art: https://eros.usgs.gov/image-gallery/earth-as-art
10. COVID-19 Data Pathfinder: https://earthdata.nasa.gov/learn/pathfinders/covid-19
11. Find Environmental Impacts Data: https://earthdata.nasa.gov/learn/pathfinders/covid-19/environmental-impacts
12. SEDAC Global COVID-19 Viewer: https://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/mapping/popest/covid-19/