Bionics in the Fine Arts
The students from grades 10/1 through 10/5 were given the task to make a collage on the subject of bionics as part of the interdisciplinary lessons. They were supposed to create a human-like being with elements of nature and technology.
Friday:
As an inspiration we got copies from magazines on bionics and we watched some movie clips. We could choose between a black and white layout or one that included elements of color. We were also allowed to add something in writing, e. g. a quotation. The results were supposed to be looked at in a humorous way.
Monday:
Today we had the chance to finish the projects that we had started on Friday. Some of us already finished them before breakfast; they could switch to physics and learn something about ‘convolutions’.
With the architect after breakfast:
“Very cool!”, “Fascinating!”, “Chaotic and yet interesting!” This is what the students from Schillergymnasium Pirna said about the topic of bionics. Mr. Mildner gave a somewhat different lesson as part of the interdisciplinary lessons. The students got to know the meaning of bionics in the fine arts through interesting and yet simple exercises and experiments. The architect and philosopher was able to give us a deeper insight into nature. An interesting and entertaining way that opened new doors for us and that gave us something to think about.
Tuesday:
We started today’s field trip at 11:00 AM at the station in Pirna. We went to Dresden by train and walked to the Botanical Garden through the Grand Garden. Having arrived we were led into a seminar room where we were split into the following groups according to the main topics: ‘the stability of trees and column cacti’, ‘the stability of leaves and blossoms’, ‘the stability of bamboo and giant canes’ and ‘thinking in cords’. We got a worksheet and walked the bionics trail where we solved the tasks with the help of the display boards.
After that, we got involved with the special topic and worked out individual concepts, e. g. of the structural characteristics, the functional principle and existing technical applications and possible uses for the prospective economical tower.
We compared all the results and the individual groups introduced their special topic. Again, an interesting enhancement of our knowledge of the topic.
Wednesday:
Today we focused on the topic of “swarm intelligence”. At the beginning, an experiment took place in the gym. It was our job to find out if something like swarm intelligence and swarm behavior also occurs in humans. The challenge was that we hadn’t been informed about this at first; everything we had been given were some instructions on little sheets and some rules to follow. In several rounds of 60 seconds that all contained slight alterations in the content of the sheets, the teachers observed our behavior and filmed it, so that we could evaluate it afterwards.
Then we met in a classroom and listened to some presentations about what swarm behavior and swarm intelligence are and what purpose they serve in nature. Then we evaluated the videos and in fact found swarm behavior and swarm intelligence in us. Between the presentations we watched clips from documentaries and movies on the topic of swarm intelligence.
