Marissa Bennett's blog

Week 8: Final Project Update

So far, I've gotten pretty far on executing my final project. Not only am I raising a bunch of ladybugs currently in my apartment, but I also released 4500 ladybugs that I ordered online. I've been documenting the process throughout, and am beginning to compile these images into book form currently.

 

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Week 3: Mushrooms & Plastics

During the lectures during Week 3, we discussed the roles of mushrooms and plastics. Our mushroom day consisted of cooking mushrooms and discussing their roles within various ecosystems. Before this class, the most I’ve ever eaten mushrooms before was strictly on pizza. I’m really happy that I got to try so many new types of mushrooms and will definitely be incorporating them into my diet more often here on out. The mushroom species that stood out to me the most, however, was mycelium.

Week 5: Midterm Proposals

During Week 5, we listened to our classmates’ midterm presentations for both Monday and Wednesday classes. It was really interesting to see the diverse range of projects within the biotech design realm presented. It truly shows how explorative the department of Design Media Arts can be, and I’m very excited to see everyone’s final projects.

Week 4: Biomedical Library + Midterm Ideas

Last week, I really enjoyed my experience at the UCLA Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library. It actually wasn’t my first time visiting their special collections—I had also visited this hidden gem of UCLA during my sophomore year. As a Global Studies minor, I’m required to take several history courses, one of which being a course called The History of Stuff, basically an object-based history throughout modern time.

Week 2: Biotech + Art

For last Monday’s lecture, we focused on the intersection between Biotech and Art, specifically noting artists who were in attendance at the UCLA Art Sci Symposium on April 5, 2019, titled Work Out / Tune-Up / Turn On -- What’s Next? Eco Materialism & Contemporary Art. The topic of e-waste stood out ot me the most out of all of the presented topics, specifically how it can negatively affect our environment even after we think it’s long gone.

Week 2: Genetic Engineering + Animals

In regards to Wednesday’s lecture, something that really stood out to me was the poor treatment of animals. Firstly, animals such as rats and rabbits are used for a variety of testing reasons against their will. What was the most shocking to me was that animal testing still occurs, even if a cosmetic company’s packaging and messaging says that they aren’t, due to a legal loophole.

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