[Madelyn Masterson]

The content from this five-week course has been very eye-opening. There is plenty of material I can use in my biology classes during the fall semester. We spend the majority of our time in our Ecology units during the fall semester. The topics I will be sure to apply in my classroom include our discussions regarding sustainability, land scarcity, adapting to overpopulation, and the social dynamics represented within the architecture. One concept that I found particularly fascinating was the immense symbolism of culture and social hierarchies that inspire many architectural designs. For one, the Yoyogi stadium was a design rooted in Japanese culture as it mirrors the shape of a samurai hat. Additionally, the layout of a traditional Beijing courtyard represents social dynamics with those of higher social status further in the courtyard. I can use the approaches behind these designs to support our lessons regarding the social dynamics and interactions between organisms. 

 

The different attitudes of Japanese architecture can help my students practice identifying patterns and, ideally, they will be able to point out the common themes such as wood building material, columns, and beams. I found it fascinating that many Asian architectural designs, just like the Isle Shrine,  involved the natural world around it which highlighted the respect and honor of nature. During our upcoming lessons on population density and human impact on climate change, I will mention how much land pressure there is on Tokyo regarding their adaptation to potential natural disasters. This can often limit the involvement and consideration of the surrounding nature and I can push students to think of sustainable approaches to urbanism. Overall, this course has provided many opportunities for me to involve east Asian culture and history in my biology class. I look forward to seeing how my students apply these topics to their learning.

 

[Madelyn Masterson]

The critique of American architect, Charles Moore, in The Western Genome in Japanese Architecture reading is very intriguing. His critique points out the loss of traditional Japanese architecture through the overpopulation in Japan. I can see how this resembles what is happening in the west. I live in Santa Clarita, a suburb within Los Angeles County. There are many homes and apartment buildings that display a repetitive architectural style. These “cookie-cutter” style neighborhoods are often sought after in Santa Clarita. Charles Moore points out a resemblance of “scattered mass” that is taking away from the peace of Japanese gardens. This reminds me of the topic of carrying capacity within overpopulation in my biology classroom. As populations get closer to reaching the carrying capacity, resources including land become scarce and competition increases. I can use the example of the hillside terrace complex and its reflection of the suburbs in the west to explain the results of overpopulation and competition for land in my Ecology unit.

[Madelyn Masterson]

In class, we talked about the uniqueness of street vendors and how it is a way of preserving culture. Dr. Bharne mentioned that some of the street vendors sell recipes that may be centuries old because it was passed down from their families. These recipes have had less opportunity to be changed by modernism. Dr. Bharne also mentioned that there are joint partnerships that prevent gentrification in certain areas. I wish we could see more of this within cities to preserve the heritage. We also talked about the environmental ramifications of cityscapes and street vendors, and how to make them more environmentally sound. My students complete a final project on the ecological effects of a lake, Lake Grace. We talk about the effects coming from designing new buildings and farms. Students are often unsure about how these actions can affect the environment and the lake. Students assume that just because large buildings are introduced into the area, there is an increase in the human population. Dr. Bharne explained that this is not the case. I will be sure to bring this perspective to my students when we are approaching this unit.

[Madelyn Masterson]

 Hi Candace, I like your idea of introducing the ecological impact of tourism to our students. I feel we always encourage students to travel and immerse themselves in various cultures. However, we don't often take a moment to consider the impact r the benefit we are bringing by visiting other countries. Some of the poorest countries tend to be popular vacation destinations. It may even be that not all of these countries benefit from tourism. There are travel companies, including hotels and cruises, that promote inclusive packages limited to what they offer as opposed to what the cities have to offer. The towns may not always receive the money from visitors' stay. To your question, I hesitate to think that the environmental drawbacks of tourism outweigh the benefits.

[Madelyn Masterson]

The patterns of heritage lecture in Dr. Bharne’s second video was a fascinating perspective that shows how much culture can be found beyond architectural design. Public hawker centers sell for such low prices and they make a profit because of the large volumes that are sold. This is ironic as some of the hawker centers are within cities that cost a lot of money to live in. I feel this is representative of the vertical urbanism and horizontal urbanity symbolism. The hawker centers are so rich in culture and there is some concern as to whether or not hawker centers will last. Many people who run these hawker centers are of older generations and younger generations may not want to take on this type of work and want to live in bigger cities. Some of these centers have become travel destinations for tourists. I wonder what can be done to preserve these centers in various cities. I will be sure to bring this discussion up with my students when we go over Human Impact on the environment. What are some things we can do to not only preserve the environment but also the culture within? Should we prioritize one over the other?

[Madelyn Masterson]

Hi Betsy, I feel western society is starting to value more interaction within the home as opposed to out in the community. It seems it is common to look for an “open concept kitchen or living room” when searching for a house or apartment. This encourages interaction within those invited to the home. The walls between kitchen, living rooms, and dining rooms are beginning to be taken down. This can definitely minimize privacy within the home but prioritize entertainment. Whereas, the traditional asian design has the sliding doors that enables the ability to provide privacy but also the option to open and encourage interaction within the house. I feel western society is slowly adopting this because many doors to the backyard are becoming large french doors that take up the entire size of the wall. 

[Madelyn Masterson]

Hi Lauren,

I was wondering the same thing in regards to the effects of COVID19 and the cultural interactions within urban cities of Tokyo and Hong Kong. I feel cities in Tokyo and Hong Kong encourage public interaction. For example, I feel public transportation is more advanced compared to American cities. I feel there is such limited public transportation to visit other cities or states. As mentioned in Dr. Bharne’s second video, Tokyo has comparatively smaller housing or apartment units to that of urban living in America. Tokyo also has public locations including karaoke and bath houses that are a part of the culture. Even within urban cities in America I feel many look for housing units with as much space as possible to encourage interaction with individuals within the home.  

 

[Madelyn Masterson]

In class we discussed how dense urbanization was designed to be ready for a crisis. I never realized how much land pressure there is on Tokyo regarding potential natural disasters. I was wondering why there was not as much nature or land space within urban cities in Asia. For example, we have cities like New York city with famous public locations such as Central Park. However, the second lecture video mentions how “Land scarcity became an emblem of urbanization that the western world has never seen”. This reminds me of the country of Singapore. I know Singapore is more southeast Asia but I feel Singapore is famous for their sustainability efforts in introducing nature into their high-rise buildings. Their airport has many features of nature including a waterfall. Are there any particular influences that brought this style of architecture into Singapore or if there is in relation to the urban design in Singapore to Hong Kong or Japan?

[Madelyn Masterson]

 Hello Nia,

I found the discussion on technology fascinating as well. We often forget thehinderens technology has placed on us at times. In STEM we have a variety of tools that classify as technology outside of online resources (microscopes, pipettes, Gel electrophoresis). I feel I always have to teach my students how to use technology appropriately in the classroom meaning, how to find and cite credible sources. At the same time, many teachers are working towards moving al class materials online where students only need a device for the class period. A community college by me has a new science center on campus that offers a microbiology course where students only use their ipad. The microscopes have a built in camera so students can record videos or pictures for assignments. I remember having to draw them when I took this course! My students struggle drawing what they see under a microscope so much that I have required them to take pictures. This feels more of a hindrance in ability than a step forward.

[Madelyn Masterson]

Hello Nia,

In biology, we have a unit on human impact and its effects on climate change. I was unaware of the 3 different worldviews you mentioned and I definitely want to incorporate that into my lesson. The unit is our closing unit for the fall semester so we will be having a final project. I think it is a fantastic idea to teach my students about the different world views and include both Japanese and American artwork in my teachings. This way, my students can differentiate between the perspectives and gain ideas on what to research for their project.

[Madelyn Masterson]

I find it interesting how the Great Buddha was originally placed inside. When you consider the idea of Zen, it is to be in balance with nature and open spaces often with meditation. However, the Great Buddha in Kamakura, Japan was placed indoors and then moved outdoors. What was the original intent behind this? Was it solely to preserve the bronze? Originally, Buddha did not want there to be a statue or icon in his representation. It is interesting how as soon as an Icon was created, it continued to grow in size and expanded into tall structures. What was the spark that ignited the idea of building whole city scapes around Buddhist ideals?

This reminds me of one I try to encourage my students to be created with projects or models. I often try to push them to create something that represents a concept rather than design the literal concept itself. For example, I would prefer students to use a house or amusement park as an analogy as to how an animal cell functions as opposed to building an identical model to an animal cell. 

 

[Madelyn Masterson]

In class we discussed how nature was brought into spatial compounds. The beauty of architecture was found outside in the open as opposed to enclosed spaces. As I collaborated with fellow science teachers in my department, we discussed the goal of taking our students out of the classroom more often. The pandemic has secluded us from being indoors so often and it has been a difficult adjustment for our students. As science teachers we have so much opportunity to interact with our natural world. We will be in our Ecology unit this coming fall. When we discuss biodiversity and interactions between various species, I will be sure to take my students outside to physically interact with nature.

[Madelyn Masterson]

It is fascinating to compare interior functionality from Chinese to western ideals. Western ideals hold the functionality of a home to how well you can interact with everyone inside. The ideal is usually  to have an open space for everyone to share, entertain, and interact with one another. The concept of Feng-Shui on the other hand holds value in the balance of humans with nature. The focus shifts from person to person interaction towards person to nature interaction. The second reading,"Feng-Shui" Models Structured Traditional Beijing Courtyard Houses” ,mentions that ancient Beijing used to hold ideals of the house capturing “social control within the family”. I feel this is the desire in western homes. Having an “open concept” kitchen or living room is what often holds value. Whereas now, in Beijing tradition, the ideal is to unite heaven, earth, and people. This reminds me of the human body systems unit I have with my students. One of the foundational concepts I teach during this unit is that each of the cells, tissues, organs, and body systems are organized to interact with one another. One cannot exist without the other. This concept of balance and humans with nature is definitely something I can bring up with my students so that they can understand the importance of balance within the human body.

[Madelyn Masterson]

I found the intentionality behind the design of shrines very interesting. In the first read, Between Use and Katsuya, the term Ise Shrine describes a form of architecture that involves the natural world around it. There are many open spaces with also many individual sacred elements within. Architecture on sacred places outside of Asia often share a focus of detail from within or exterior of the building. The Ise shrine definitely represents the honor and respect the Japanese hold to their deities of nature. It is fascinating that although Japan has major consistencies within their architecture through the use of wood as building material along with columns and beams, Japanese architecture developed multiple themes over time. The austere and eclectic attitudes show influences from various themes but hold the distinguishing attributes of Japanese architecture. In our science standards, NGSS, we have cross cutting concepts which are core ideas that our students need to practice. One of the cross cutting concepts is the ability to recognize patterns. I can share the different attitudes of Japanese architecture with my students in order to practice identifying patterns and, ideally, they will be able to point out the common themes such as wood building material, columns, and beams.

[Madelyn Masterson]

Hi Niya, 

Urban living definitely has a focus of open spaces within the home to encourage interaction with individuals. Also, I feel it may be difficult to adopt the Zen home concept in urban cities where streets, cars, and sky rise buildings are the prominent forms of view. For someone living in a big city, they are more likely to open their window to traffic when they want to "let nature in". This is why I try my best to bring in plants to my classroom and my apartment. I try to invite nature in other ways. The Zen home is definitely fascinating and an opportunity to find ways to respect and balance home and nature.

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