In this wide ranging conversation we discuss the varying roots of contemporary computer language, from medieval Arabic phiosophy and divination machines, via the religious search for a universal language, to punch cards in 19th century industry. We talk about Babbage and Lovelace's work on mathematical and reasoning engines and their link to Turing's universal machine in the 1940s. Dennis describes little studied literary templates in the late 19th century before moving to Propp's 'morphology of folk tales' in the Soviet era and how that impacted aviation safety in later years. We conclude with a discussion of the impossibility of an 'ethical AI', drawing comparison to corporate ethics.

Dennis Yi Tenen, Associate Professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia University, New York. https://dennistenen.com/

Ken Barrett visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

The book discussed: 'Literary Theory for Robots'

https://wwnorton.com/books/9780393882186

Opening and closing music: Prelude to Brainland the opera by Stephen Brown.

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

Follow us us on Instagram:#brainlandcollective

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In this podcast philosopher Perry Zurn discusses ‘Curious Minds’, the book he wrote with his twin Danni Bassett. We talk about their unusual upbinging, home schooled in a large family that encouraged curiosity, then negotiating the more restrictive world of academia. They view curiosity as ‘edgework’, an exploration of connections between ‘nodes’ of information. We discuss ‘busybodies’,’ hunters’ and ‘dancers’. three curious behaviours they identified, and research evidence that supports them. The effect of language on curiosity gets a mention (Eg differences between First Nation and modern languages), and how curiosity plays out in non-verbal domains (such a sport and visual art) with a diversion into the role of the hippocampus in remembering both physical and conceptual space (such as between related words). After an appreciation of Virginia Woolf, we touch on possible dangers of curiosity, such as supporting the idea of alternative realities and the fake news that builds them, before talking about curious animals.

Participants:

Perry Zane is Visiting Associate Professor of Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Cornell University and Provost Associate Professor of Philosophy at American University

 https://www.perryzurn.com/projects

 Ken Barrett visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

The book discussed:

https://www.amazon.com/Curious-Minds-Connection-Perry-Zurn/dp/0262047039

Opening and closing music: Prelude to Brainland the opera by Stephen Brown.

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

Follow us us on Instagram:#brainlandcollective

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This is part 2 of the conversation with Russell Kilbourn on memory and movies. In part 1 we talked about the way memory is treated in literature and movies but we didn't have time to discuss memory in sci-fi movies so Russ agreed to return. In this podcast we discuss the varying treatment of memory in the genre. Eg: removing memories (Total Recall, Severance and particularly Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind); inserting false memories (Blade Runner); repurposing memories (Strange Days, and particularly Solaris and La Jetee). La Jetée led to an interesting discussion about the strange and interesting Canadian film My Winnipeg. We close by returning to literature, in the science fiction genre.

Participants:

Russell J Kilbourn is Professor of Literature and Film, Dept of English and Film Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario, Canada. http://rjakilbourn.com/

Ken Barrett, visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

Sci fi movies discussed (Russ's 'must sees' in bold):

Blade Runner (Ridley Scott, 1982) and BR 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017)

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Michel Gondry, 2004)

La Jetée (Chris Marker, 1962)

Solaris (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1972)

Oblivion (Joseph Kosinski, 2013)

2046 (Kar-wai Wong, 2004) (lost memories)

After Life (Hirokazu Koreeda, 1998)

Minority Report (Steven Spielberg, 2002)

Source Code (Duncan Jones, 2011)

Strange Days (Kathryn Bigelow, 1995)

Total Recall (Paul Verhoeven, 1990)

Upstream Color (Shane Carruth, 2013)

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

Follow us us on Instagram: #brainlandcollective

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In this podcast Veronica O'Keane and Ken Barrett share cases and discuss some of the themes explored in Veronica's book 'A Sense of Self'. We explore the various structures in the brain essential for memory to function, talk about the importance of place to memory (we often remember where we where if not when) and recent findings on how our brain does that, the role of the frontal lobes and the hidden area of cortext called the insula, before with interesting detours into nostalgia and memory in the work of Irish writer Samuel Beckett.

Veronica O' Keane, Professor of Psychiatry, Trinity Centre for Health Sciences, Tallaght Hospital, Dublin.

Ken Barrett, artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

Veronica's book 'A Sense of Self: Memory, the brain and who we are':https://wwnorton.com/books/9781324021834

Opening and closing music: Prelude to Brainland the opera by Stephen Brown.

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

Follow us us on Instagram: #brainlandcollective

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In this podcast puppeteer and academic Cariad Astles talks about how she got interested and trained in puppetry, before discussing her experience of puppetry in China and Africa. We explore why puppetry tends to be viewed as a practice for children in the UK (Cariad blames protestantism) before talking about a number of healthcare applications of puppetry including training medical students and nurses, in psychotherapy (citing an especially powerful project in Chile), health education including promoting empathy, in dementia and autism. Cariad concludes by speculating on how robotics and AI may impact puppetry and its applications in the future and shares her hope that its' value should be more widely recognised in the west, not least in ritual.

Participants:

Cariad Astles, Lecturer at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and at Exeter University. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Cariad-Astles

Ken Barrett, artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

Cariad's paper 'the Art of Puppetry Practice: Embodiment, Enchantment, Memory History' can be downloaded here:https://www.academia.edu/83808501/Puppetry_The_Art_of_Puppetry_Practice_Embodiment_Enchantment_Memory_History

Opening and closing music: Prelude to Brainland the opera by Stephen Brown

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

Follow us us on Instagram: @brainlandcollective

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In this conversation we talk about the earliest representations of memory in classical, latin, literature (the original 'art of memory') then move, via St Augustine, to Proust and his madeleine. Russell describes how the representaion of memory, the 'flash back', appeared in the first years of film-making but identifies the real innovations in Casablanca (1942) and Citizen Kane (1941). We move on to what made Fellini and Bergan masters in the use of memory before coming up to date with last year's excellent 'All of Us Strangers' . We end with an extended discussion of the ethics of memory in film, in particular the way the Holocaust has been depicted, and give the views of Goddard and Deleuze an airing.

Participants:

Russell J Kilbourn is Professor in the Dept of English and Film Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario, Canada. http://rjakilbourn.com/

Ken Barrett is an artist, writer and former neuropsychiatristhttp://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

Some of the films discussed:

Curtiz - Casablanca: : https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0034583/videogallery/

Wells - Citzen Kane: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0033467/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_5_nm_3_in_0_q_citizen%2520

Bergman - Wild Strawberries: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050986/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_8_nm_0_in_0_q_wild%2520strawberies

Fellini - 8 1/2:  https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056801/

Haigh - 'All of Us Strangers': https://www.imdb.com/title/tt21192142/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

Opening and closing music: Prelude to Brainland the opera by Stephen Brown

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

Instagram: #brainlandcollective

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In this extended podcast Stephen Johnson shares his experience of the healing effects of Shostakovich’s music during dark periods in his life, both as a youth and later when coping with depression. He recalls his often solitary teenage years, when his passion for the music of Shostakovich took root, fueled by a prodigious ability to recall music, and text. He goes on to discuss the composer’s life, music and unlikely survival during the Stalin purges. Stephen also describes interviewing people who knew the composer, for a BBC documentary, including a member of the orchestra during the famous performance of his 7th symphony during the Leningrad siege. We conclude with an in depth discussion of the specific therapeutic effects of music.

Participants.

 Stephen Johnson, Broadcaster, writer and composer https://www.stephen-johnson.co.uk/

 Andy Platman, writer and former GP.

 Ken Barrett, artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

Stephen’s documentary on Shostakovitch: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b007g7hp

His book: https://www.stephen-johnson.co.uk/publications/how-shostakovich-changed-my-mind/

Opening and closing music: Prelude to Brainland the opera by Stephen Brown

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

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In this conversation we discuss Stephen's ideas about the evolution of imagination and improvisation. After defining terms Stephen's talks about his idea of the 'second universe', the link between dreams and storytelling and his view that drawing, dance and gesture preceded language in evolution. We talk about the difference between 'hot' and 'cold' cognition and explore the necessary conditions for improvisation then end with a discussion of cultural differences in the importance attached to improvisation, contrasting particularly the USA and China.

Participants:

Stephen Asma, Professor of Philosophy, Columbia College, Chicago, USA. www.stephenasma.com

Ken Barrett, artist, writer, retired neuropsychiatrist http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

Stephen's Book, The Evol;ution of Imagination': https://www.amazon.com/Evolution-Imagination-Stephen-T-Asma-ebook/dp/B06WWJC8JX/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=p7r7l&content-id=amzn1.sym.f911c8db-3a2b-4b3e-952f-b80fdcee83f4&pf_rd_p=f911c8db-3a2b-4b3e-952f-b80fdcee83f4&pf_rd_r=131-8110503-3306616&pd_rd_wg=A284i&pd_rd_r=b4eef1a3-7076-4640-9f69-d105cfccb0e7&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk

Stephen's podcast, “Chinwag”, cohosted with Paul Giamatti

https://www.treefort.fm/series/chinwag

Opening and closing music: 'Improvisation for Brainland' by Stephen Asma.

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

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In this wide ranging conversation Anna outlines the particular difficulties involved in researching the psychology and neuroscience of creativity. We talk about the popular idea that the right hemisphere is the creative brain (it isn't), links between mental health and psychedelics to creativity, and the possible contribution of the default mode network. We also discuss the special quality of creativity in the context of humour. In an afterword we talk about some of the problems involved in research that engages the popular press, bypassing peer review, but also the 'status bias' that can colour even peer review.

Participants:

Anna Abraham PhD, E. Paul Torrance Professor, Department of Educational Psychology, Director, Torrance Center for Creativity and Talent Development, Mary Frances Early College of Education, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA. http://www.anna-abraham.com/

Ken Barrett, artist, writer, retired neuropsychiatrist http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

Anna's Books: The Creative Brain: Myths and Truths: https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262548007/the-creative-brain/

The Neuroscience of Creativity:http://www.anna-abraham.com/book-the-neuroscience-of-creativity-2018.html

Opening music: Prelude to Brainland Act 1, composed by Stephen Brown.

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

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In this podcast Hayley talks us through the early history of puppets in opera, including the eighteenth century fashion for opera composed specifically for puppets. She goes on to describe the conclusions reached in her doctoral research, applying musicological thinking to marionette operas in our era, conclusions she considers applicable more widely to cinema and animation. These include her theory 'performance networks and poetic synchronicity. She talks about her experience of various performances and her conviction that the movement of puppets, expertly 'played', are inherently musical. 

Participants:

Hayley Burton Richards, musicologist, musician, educator, Head of Music, Wilson's School.

Ken Barrett, artist, writer, retired neuropsychiatrist http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

Hayley"s beautifully written Harvard PhD thesi. 'Breath, Gravity and Death' can be accessed here:  https://dash.lib.harvard.edu/handle/1/37372118?show=full

Some of the performances discussed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWi-7aTW_po

https://www.kentridge.studio/projects/wozzeck/

Richard Teschner: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JY38P-6TYQM

Lotte Reiniger: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-TJvNBO1fw

Opening music: extract from scene 2 of Brainland composed by Stephen Brown.

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

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