NeuroArchitecture: What happens in the Brain

inside the artificially created environment?

KAIST 바이오 및 뇌공학과

정재승

Jonas Salk (1914 – 1995):

The discovery of vaccine for po-

liomyelitis

For more creativity, Raise the roof

• Meyers-Levy et al. The Influence of Ceiling Height: The Effect of Priming on the Type of Processing People Use, Journal of Consumer Behavior (2007)

What is NeuroArchitecture?

• Neuroarchitecture is a discipline that seeks to explore the relationship between neuroscience and the design of buildings and other man made structures that make up the artificially created environment that most human beings live within.

• The underlying purpose is to assess the impact that various structures have on the human nervous sys-tem and brain.

• More specifically, ‘neuroarchitecture’ addresses the level of human response to the components that make up this sort of built environment.

The premise of Neuroarchitec-ture

• Neuroarchitecture is based on the premise that artifi-cial elements added by humanity have a significant impact on the function of the brain and nervous sys-tem.

• In some cases, the impact may be beneficial, while in other situations the form and structure of the build-ing may create a negative reaction on some level.

• It is understood that the impact may not be overt at first, and could in fact affect changes to the way the nervous system functions over an extended period of time.

Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture (ANFA)

• In operation since the 2003, the Academy actively en-courages research that seeks to employ the tools of neuroscience study to the impact that humanly con-structed elements have on the function of the nervous system and what type of brain activity occurs as a re-sult of the stimulation to the senses.

• The Academy has sponsored and been actively in-volved with studies that included investigating the neuroarchitectural impact of homes, office spaces, manufacturing spaces, houses of worship, and sports arenas.

Era of Mind-Reading Technol-ogy

functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging

– developed in the early 90s

– It measures the hemodynamic

response (change in blood

flow) related to neural activity

in the brain or spinal cord of

humans or other animals.

– 3D-Encode: activated regions

appear in multiple colour

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

Eye-tracking technique

• Eye tracking is the process of measuring either the point of gaze ("where we are looking") or the motion of an eye relative to the head.

• An eye tracker is a device for measuring eye positions and eye movement, particularly rotations of the eyes.

Neurotransmitter monitoring

NIH-supported Neuroarchitecture studies

• In 2003, AIA (American Institute of Architects) helped two unprecedented research initiatives, one with the Salk Institute and the other with the U.S. General Services Administration and the National Institutes of Health.

• They are intended to show empirically that different physical environments affect brain activity and even change brain structure.

• The projects, though in their infancy, could have a major impact on how the workplace, buildings and even towns and cities are planned, designed and retrofitted, say sources.

Frank Gehry visited Society for Neuroscience in 2006

“Architecture & Perception”

• Gehry will discuss the ideas and as-sumptions about how people per-ceive and interact with architectural spaces that inform his work....

• He will also discuss architectural el-ements such as shapes, colors, and textures as examples of areas where a better scientific understanding of how and why the human brain re-acts positively or negatively could help architects to design better buildings and spaces. (2006, SfN)

Frank Gehry’s in MIT

What did we learn from Neuro-science (and psychology) research

for architecture?

The Influence of Ceiling Height

• When people are in a room with high ceilings, it activates sections of ‘the right brain’ associated with freedom and abstract thinking.

• In low-ceilinged rooms, ‘more constrained thinking’ is brought to the fore.

• “There’s a preference in terms of real estate for high ceil-ings and it‚ and not only the sense of power and wealth that conveys but also vertical space could have a beneficial mental influence,” she says.

• Many experiments have been made demonstrating that ‘colored walls’ impact on physiology and specially in stress mecha-nisms (Nicholas Humphrey, Colour and brightness preferences in monkeys. Nature, 229, 615-617, 1971.)

Neuroarchitecture: Blue Engenders Creativity

• The New York Times reports on how color can influence creativity based on a Science article about researchers at the University of British Columbia who conducted tests with 600 people to see how cognitive performance varies when people see red or blue.

Sharp Corners

• Items with sharp angles are less preferred by subjects and actu-ally stimulate a mild fear reaction in the brain:

• Neuroscientist Moshe Bar provided some support for this theory in his 2007 study in which subjects again viewed a series of neu-tral objects this time, while their brains were scanned using func-tional magnetic resonance imaging.

• They found that the amygdala, which is involved in fear pro-cessing and emotional arousal, was more active when people were looking at objects with sharp angles.

• “Very basic visual properties convey to us some higher-level in-formation such as ‘Red alert!’ or ‘Relax, it’s all smooth; there’s no threat in the area.’ ”

• The relationship with our surroundings is hardly new, as evident by the fact that we tend to gravitate to more inviting and pleas-ing spaces, especially where natural settings (i.e., trees, grass and streams) are involved. Furthermore, it is a gener-ally accepted fact that our exposure to light, especially sunlight, can have a profound influence on our state of mind.

Green design: Biophilia hy-pothesis

• Research shows that more green space and natural views help concentration:

• Such findings may be the result of a restorative effect on the mind of gazing on natural scenes, according to an idea devel-oped by psychologists Stephen Kaplan and Rachel Kaplan, both at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.

• By this theory, the tasks of the modern world can engender mental fatigue, whereas looking out at a natural setting is rela-tively effortless and can give the mind a much needed rest.

• “A number of studies have shown that when people look at na-ture views, whether they’re real or projected on a screen, their ability to focus improves,” Stephen Kaplan says.

• The “biophilia hypothesis” suggests that humans are pre-disposed to function better in green spaces. (See “An-other Kind of Green Marketing”.)

• Humans are genetically predisposed to feel relaxed around flowers, the hearth and food, and that homes need to be designed to release certain neurotransmitters.

• In the end, the overall goal here is to encourage design-ers to take into account the emotional needs of their clients rather than simply focusing all their attention on functionality and design. A large part of this simply boils down to maximizing the visual cues that confer a sense of place and ultimately bestow a building with the impor-tant qualities that make it more than just a house, but a home.

• Take our desire for eye contact with others as an example. • “A couple of million kitchens are planned each year and probably only

about 5 per cent obey the most basic principles for human communi-cation”

• In most, the person preparing the food at the sink, stove or counter has to face away from his or her family or guests, decreasing socia-bility in what should be a social zone.

• “As a result the brain continues to produce adrenalin and cortisol, the hormones associated with fear and anxiety,”

• “Whereas if they are facing into the room then oxytocin, the bonding hormone, and serotonin, associated with relaxation and enjoyment, are released.”

Endorphin-releasing home design

• Endorphins are the brain’s natural opioids and are released in a wide variety of situations. They are indeed released when we feel pleasure, but are also released when we feel stress or pain.

• So designing homes to maximize the release of endorphins will just as likely lead to ‘uncomfortable, stressful hell-holes’.

• Then oxytocin, the bonding hormone, and serotonin, associated with relaxation and enjoyment, have a greater chance of being released.”

• Other features that help: big windows or a balcony for seeing the weather; curvy edges instead of hard ones on counter, furniture and cabinets to feel more con-tent; original art and sculpture to convey a sense of au-thenticity and trust; privacy via a room of your own away from the noise.

Leon Festinger: Social Psychology studies

Leon Festinger was, in the 1950s and 1960s, one of the most influential social psy-chologists in the world.

Leon Festinger is best known for his theory of cognitive dissonance, which has generated more research than almost any other concept in social psychology. His social comparison theory has also been widely influential, and has helped to solidify his reputation as one of social psychology’s foremost theorists.

Festinger’s MIT dorm analysis

• He investigated MIT students lived in campus Dorm. • He found that the structure of the dorm building (the lo-

cation of room and distance between rooms) affects the friendship of the students.

• Students who have the rooms close to stairs or mailbox have many friends.

In 1961, Newcomb in Michigan also investigated the students in Dorm.

• Though its initial focus was on schools, hospitals, and pris-ons, experts in the field have become increasingly inter-ested in the artificial environment that we spend most of our time in: our homes.

• It is here that the overall design can have a significant ef-fect on our moods and by extension, our health. In fact, at-tention to these details has been found to have a positive impact on patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease.

• We need to explain how Alzheimer’s patients need visual clues like pictures and objects to connect them with their lives, and the same clues aid the average homeowner in feeling grounded. These might include family photos or books you’ve read and enjoyed.

• Rearranging one’s decor is actually a healthy habit that keeps your environs from going stale.

Group Genius

Collective Intelligence

Workplace for Creativity?

Inquiry By Design: Environment Behavior/Neuroscience in Architecture, Interiors, Landscape and

Planning

• His book covers the new field of neuroscience for design by describing the creative de-sign process, how buildings and spaces work, and obser-vations of behavior in the physical environment.

• We’ve seem a similar collabo-rative direction in green de-sign as visionaries from vari-ous areas of expertise band together to work towards the common goal of sustainabil-ity.

Creativity resides in between.