idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Symmetry is one of the key factors in a variety of sciences and humanities subjects. Equations must be symmetrical; in architecture symmetry is a basic design feature; linguists discover iconic and symmetrical relationships in their objects of study; in chemistry and physics symmetrical and asymmetrical designs play an important role; in music and all the arts symmetry is often considered the basis of aesthetic quality. There are also several types of symmetry that one might want to distinguish. Symmetry can be set off against, but also paired with, two other features that play a similar role in the sciences and the arts: proportion and seriality. Exact symmetry in some instances is too neat, too boring, or simply not possible, yet a set of proportional relationships may be deemed crucial to a particular effect. Proportion can thus be regarded as a more general framework that allows one to set items in relationships to one another, with symmetry being the most perfect of these relationships. The visual arts, especially film and dance, employ proportion and symmetry as kinetic rather than merely static modes. As regards seriality, it is a recursive application of symmetry and repetition, but also a type of design that operates dynamically rather than statically. Besides its obvious relevance to the arts in experiments in seriality in (post)modernist painting, music and literature, seriality plays a central role in mathematics and physics.
The high-profile speakers at this conference come from a wide range of discipline and they share a commitment to cross-disciplinary dialogue. They will compare concepts of symmetry, proportion and seriality across the humanities-sciences divide; they will explore the historical dimensions and changes in taste that affect the understanding of these terms and concepts; they will discuss them as culture-specific phenomena, comparing ideas of symmetry and proportion across different global cultures; finally, they will explore why it is that symmetry is so important to our minds and our language, indeed to the design of our bodies and brains.
The conference is organized into three sections, each starting off with a plenary lecture and extended plenary discussions between speakers from different disciplines. Speakers at this conference include scholars from the fields of musicology, theoretical physics, literary studies, art history, neuroscience, and theatre and performance studies. Please see the space below for the full conference programme.
Information on participating / attending:
If you would like to participate in the conference, please register by 15 March 2016. You can download the registration form on the website. Attention: The conference fee for delegates not listed on the programme is €150. The fee can be paid in cash or by wire transfer. The participation for journalists is free.
Date:
05/26/2016 12:30 - 05/28/2016 14:00
Registration deadline:
03/15/2016
Event venue:
Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies (FRIAS)
Albertstraße 19
79104 Freiburg im Breisgau
Baden-Württemberg
Germany
Target group:
Scientists and scholars
Email address:
Relevance:
transregional, national
Subject areas:
interdisciplinary
Types of events:
Conference / symposium / (annual) conference
Entry:
01/25/2016
Sender/author:
Rudolf-Werner Dreier
Department:
Presse- und Öffentlichkeitsarbeit
Event is free:
no
Language of the text:
English
URL of this event: http://idw-online.de/en/event53138
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