Mbpatel

Milap Patel

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Overview

The paragraph should give a three to five sentence abstract about your entire London HUA experience including 1) a summary of the aims of your project, 2) your prior experience with humanities and arts courses and disciplines, and 3) your major takeaways from the experience.

Milestone 1

Europe's Culture
Objective: Understanding how Aristotle influenced Europe.

Below the objective statement, Insert a one or two paragraph summary of your findings from having reached this milestone. Edit the link below to link to your milestone page.
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Milestone 2

Art in Europe
Objective: Understanding how Albert Einstein influenced Europe.

Below the objective statement, Insert a one or two paragraph summary of your findings from having reached this milestone. Edit the link below to link to your milestone page.
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Milestone 3

European Music
Objective: Determining the influence of philosophy and religion on music in Europe.

Below the objective statement, Insert a one or two paragraph summary of your findings from having reached this milestone. If this milestone, for you, represents a humanities and arts capstone, please indicate so. Edit the link below to link to your milestone page.
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Activity Journal (5/6/2017 - 6/24/2017)

The activity journal represents an ongoing log of reflections gained through each and every project activity on the calendar.

Week One (5/8 - 5/14)

Activity #1 Westminster Abbey and Tower of London (5/8)

Westminster Abbey was our first stop. In Westminster Abbey, I toured the cathedral and learned about its history. I learned that it was originally founded by an early British king who wanted a private church for him and his royal family. The church, to this day, is still under the direct authority of the leading royal family, the queen, as a result. Because of the establishment and royal ties to this church, the royal family usually gets married in this church along with being barred here after death. This church also houses the grave sites for many well achieved people such as Albert Einstein. The first unknown soldier grave is located in this church which honored the unknown soldiers who died in world war one.
Tower of London is the next place I went to. Here we toured the royal jewels building, the tower, and the wall. The royal jewels buildings displayed the jewels that were created for the family over the centuries. It also displayed their decorations and clothing. I particularly remember all the golden utensils and the 530 karat diamond that were displayed. The tower, on the other hand, exhibited the aspects of war such as displaying weapons and armor used by the royal family and soldiers.

Activity #2 The National Gallery (5/9)

The British National Gallery was the first art gallery that I toured. I was astonished at the fact that admission was free to the public. I was also amazed at the size of the gallery with rooms after rooms cascading back to infinity. My initial tour started with viewing 13th to 14th century paintings. These paintings mostly showed scenes of mythical Greek mythology or depicted aspects of Christ's divinity. The Greek style painting seem to have a central theme of nudity, angle, love and divinity. The "Immortality" was one of the paintings that I found particularity interesting where it depicted a child being carried by angles to his mother so he can drink her milk to become an immortal. That theme seem to repeat in multiple painting with different backgrounds and intentions. Another major trend I saw during that time period was the virgin mother and child which also seem to show divinity. This type of paintings were not as mythical as Greek style but still had the aspect of divinity among it. Portraits were another style of painting that were displayed in that time period. There were only a few of these types of painting but they all seemed to be common with a serious face, or if women, with some nudity. Moving towards the modern era, the paintings started to blend in common day to day life of average citizens, depicting landscapes, and more focus on detailed objects and portraits. The modern paintings showed barely any divinity unless it was related to religion. This tour helped me realize that there is a direct relationship between religious philosophical mindset and early art that can still be seen today.

Activity #3 British Museum (5/10)

British museum's glass roof was the first aspect of the museum that caught my eye. Warm morning light bleeding through the roof made me feel welcome into the main white marble hall. The hall's dome sharped architecture was another aspect that woke me up for the adventure that awaited. I still remember my initial pause as I entered the museum. All white marble walls and floor with a massive column in the middle gave me a sense of power emanating from this place and it forced me to acknowledge its beauty. This column, marble, dome and glass roof architecture aroused a question about whether it represent's Greek, Roman and modern styles.
Moving on, I begin my journey in the history of Africa section. The first piece I saw, centered at the entrance, was a chair crafted from pieces of guns used in world war two. This chair was called "the thrown of guns". It gave me a sense of violence in African history which they are trying to rebuild from. This theme of violence continued to seen throughout the African exhibit as it showcased weapons and war tactics used by the people through the history of Africa. Clock room was another exhibit I enjoyed exploring. In the center of the initial room was one of the first advanced clocks created with weights that drove mechanical gears used to keep time. I was intrigued by how heavy the hanging weights seemed which drove the second's gear precisely. Surrounding the main mechanical clock were a series of clock that showed the progression overtime. The clock exhibit ended with an visually pleasing mechanical clock that kept time by having a metal ball roll from one side to the other every thirty seconds followed by a showcase of modern 20th century pocket watches. Currency room was another exhibit that intrigued me. The money printing machine was the first thing that caught my eye. It was a large steel machine that had a long bar attached to a screw. The screw would twist and press down, printing the coins with correct features according to the printing plate attached. Moving on, the currency showcase of coins used in Europe over time was another feature that caught my eye. Examining the coins up close, I saw a common resemblance between most of the coins of having a face printed on it. Remembering the miniature portraits on round half dollar sized platform from another room made me question if that is how currency came about having faces on it.
Other notable exhibits that I explored were the Egyptian exhibit and Greek and Roman exhibit. I didn't find much interest in the Egyptian exhibit as I found it a bit boring to see mummy, tombs, poetry, and wall engravings over and over again. I did find the Rosetta Stone to be quite interesting thought as it was a stone with ten different languages engraved into it. The Roman and Greek exhibit, on the other hand, was quite fascinating. The Roman sculptures, war gear and currency showed prosperity and rich culture with Greek theme. This many future prove my theory of Greek culture and philosophy having an influence on historical Europe.

Activity #4 St. Paul's Cathedral (5/11)

I found the dome roofs and the quire of the Cathedral to be the most interesting. The main dome roof had eight black and white painting of Saint Paul created by James Thornhill. These paintings dictated Saint Paul's major accomplishments such as his explanation of Christian religion to the roman emperor. There were three other smaller domes located above the Quire. These domes also had paintings engraved on them. These paintings, however, were made from different colored rocks aliened at different angles. The setup of these paintings caused them to shimmer as light hit it. Directly below the domes, there were more paintings in color and statues that had a Greek cultural feel to them.
The quire was the area where the songs are sung and where the organ pipes are located. Originally, this area was concealed by a wall of organ pipes located in the middle between the nave and the quire, but in the resent years, the organ was cut symmetrically in half and placed on either sides of the quire entrance. The intent of this was to open of the quire to the public as they came in to the nave for service. I found it quite interesting that the organ itself can remotely be played from a different location. It also has enough organ pipes to imitate a full orchestra.
The last place I found interesting was the whisper gallery. This was located along the walls of the main dome far above the ground floor. I was able to see each of Saint Paul's paints up close and study the statues directly below them from this location. I also found it interesting to see how the windows, located along the main dome, made the dome itself feel divine looking up at it from the ground.
This Cathedral also housed modern arts for the first time. I distinctly remember the plasma TV's that depicted four people being martyred by the four classical elements. It was said that it may represent how people were crucified in the past. There was also a modern art statue of Virgin Mary and Child that had no distinctive features. It was a carving of basic shapes so it could represent Virgin Mary and Child for Christians and the intimate relationship mother and child for other believes. These displays of modern art are great examples of evolving philosophical mind set of modern era that shows the changed, acceptance and tolerance of other religions along with a changed style of art.

Activity #5 Natural History Museum (5/12)

Natural History Museum housed mostly geological and biological exhibits of earth. The entering exhibit was a volcanic rock and earthquake exhibit. In this exhibit I found the rock formation machine to be interesting. This machine showed the type of rock formed based on the choice selected, between pressure or heat, at different stages of the formation. The earthquake room and earthquake resistant building models were fascinating as well. The earthquake room simulates an earthquake in a department store while having spectators located in it. This allowed me to feel a notable earthquake for the first time. To counter the destruction of earthquakes, building are built with pistons in the wall that absorb vibrations. This technology reduce's violent shaking, as showed by the models, that can stop buildings from collapsing at lower magnitude earthquakes. I also learned that the density of earth and composition of it were determined by recording vibrations of earthquakes at different location on earth in this exhibit.
Moving on, I entered the history of earth, solar system, and earth's weather exhibit. Here I found the erosion and sand machine to be fascination. The erosion machine showed how rivers are carved by moving water. The sand machine showed how fluctuating water, known as ocean waves, causes displacement of minerals and ripples along the ground. These discoveries changed my perception of water from being gentle to something more. This theory was further reinforced after viewing spectacular rock structures formed by eroding water. The weather wheel was another machine I enjoyed viewing. The wheel was filled with water that rotated along with the direction of pin. This dictated how weather moves along with the spinning of earth. Lastly, I enjoyed viewing the planetary display wall in this exhibit. The wall showed all the planets in our galaxy along with their related gravity and temperature compared to earth.
The last few exhibits were earth resources and biology on earth. I found Pyrite, also known as fool's gold, to be the most interesting to look at. Pyrite had cubic perfect structures growing on top of each other at different angles. I found this to be fascinating as it made me ponder and appreciate the power of nature.
Unfortunately, this activity did not particularly add to my research, but I did appreciate learning about the workings of earth.

Week Two (5/15 - 5/21)

Activity #6 Victoria and Albert Museum (5/15)

Today's museum tour was quite interesting. There were exhibits that showcased regional cultural objects aside from just displaying sculptures and arts. Of these kind, I found the Asian exhibit to be the most interesting. Asian exhibit started in Korean gallery where decorative pottery from that region dominated the displays. Among them, I found the hanji paper collage to be the most interesting piece. It was a collage of paper twisted together in 3D. Another gallery I enjoyed in the Asian exhibit was the pre-Mughal India gallery. In this gallery there were ancient Indian architectures on display along with furnishing and daily necessities, I found the decorative window screens to be fascinating. I also found the carpets and instruments to be interesting as well. Looking at the instruments, I wonder if modern western instruments are related to them.
Rest of the tour was kind of boring with viewing repetitive western sculptures, arts, and architecture. I, however, did enjoy viewing historical furnished rooms such as bedrooms from England.

Activity #7 Tate Modern (5/16)

I found this activity to be boring. Aside from a few exceptions, most of the modern art I saw seemed too random for me to enjoy. Among those exceptions, I loved viewing 2D and 3D allusion paintings. My favorite was a 2D allusion painting with different colored horizontal lines. The longer I looked at that painting, the more I seemed to get sucked into it with the lines moving and changing colors. There other were slimier painting that I appreciated in 3D as well.
Aside from looking at the art, my most fond memory from this site was viewing London from the tenth floor. From that level I was able to see most of London. I particularly remember viewing the shard and being amazed at the beauty of it from this high angle.
This activity seemed boring but it will be a great source of information for my third intended milestone. It will be a good place for me to learn how culture and philosophy evolved into the modern era.

Activity #8 Museum of London (5/17)

I found this museum to be enjoyable. Unlike the previous museums, this museum focused on the technological and cultural development of London. The memorable aspect of this museum was the chronological pathway through the exhibits. Entering the museum I was first encountered with the early formation of London. There, I was amazed to learn that London was only composed of few zones found today including West Minster. Another aspect of that particular exhibit was trade. I was amazed to see and learn how some of the trade building operated in that age such as trade ports and markets. I also learned that trade with Asia and rest of Europe influenced the life of London. This is particularly interesting because this can give me insight on how philosophy emerged in London.
Another exhibit I enjoyed was the modern city exhibit. There, I was amazed to see how classic transportation looked such as the classic London taxi. I also enjoyed learning about the classic printing press and about the impact of world war two on London life. Walking through 20th century London streets with recreated shops was the best part of that exhibit among all.

Activity #9 Tate Britain (5/19)

Today was another art galley tour. Like other galleries, this gallery specialized in displaying paintings and sculptures. My personal favorite paintings were of horses. I found different themed paintings such as a Greek painting that portraying a horse fighting a shake. This particular theme of animals fighting was further seen in sculptures and divine modern classical paintings where god like creatures and humans defended other weaker people form them.
One thing I did find different about this gallery, however, was that it displayed modern art along side "classical" art. This was quit interesting as it showed me how art progressed over time into what we now call modern art. Comparing classical and modern art, I found that both had themes of nudity and angles among them. Nudity, particularly females, seems to occur frequently in almost all the eras, post Greek, which poses a question of whether that is the reason we relate beauty with female.
This tour does not directly relate to any of my milestones but it could potentially explain the methodology between classical and modern art.

Week Three (5/22 - 5/28)

Activity #5 Name

A paragraph for your personal reflection for another activity on our calendar goes here, just it was outlined in the previous example. Repeat this same process for the remaining activities. Whenever there's an activity on the calendar, complete an activity journal reflection. You can make it easy for your advisors to give you a high grade for your journal entries by ensuring that they are thoughtful and reflective with regard to your project milestones. Don't make the mistake of assuming that your activity and your milestone are automatically unrelated just because one relates to art or music (for example) and one relates to another theater or history; part of the activity immersion as to experience the overlap of London-based culture. There are numerous ways that specific elements of one discipline influence elements in another. In your journal entries, note these connections as best as you can be explicit when mentioning articles that you contribute to and create.

Activity #5 Name

A paragraph for your personal reflection for another activity on our calendar goes here, just it was outlined in the previous example. Repeat this same process for the remaining activities. Whenever there's an activity on the calendar, complete an activity journal reflection. You can make it easy for your advisors to give you a high grade for your journal entries by ensuring that they are thoughtful and reflective with regard to your project milestones. Don't make the mistake of assuming that your activity and your milestone are automatically unrelated just because one relates to art or music (for example) and one relates to another theater or history; part of the activity immersion as to experience the overlap of London-based culture. There are numerous ways that specific elements of one discipline influence elements in another. In your journal entries, note these connections as best as you can be explicit when mentioning articles that you contribute to and create.

Activity #5 Name

A paragraph for your personal reflection for another activity on our calendar goes here, just it was outlined in the previous example. Repeat this same process for the remaining activities. Whenever there's an activity on the calendar, complete an activity journal reflection. You can make it easy for your advisors to give you a high grade for your journal entries by ensuring that they are thoughtful and reflective with regard to your project milestones. Don't make the mistake of assuming that your activity and your milestone are automatically unrelated just because one relates to art or music (for example) and one relates to another theater or history; part of the activity immersion as to experience the overlap of London-based culture. There are numerous ways that specific elements of one discipline influence elements in another. In your journal entries, note these connections as best as you can be explicit when mentioning articles that you contribute to and create.

Activity #5 Name

A paragraph for your personal reflection for another activity on our calendar goes here, just it was outlined in the previous example. Repeat this same process for the remaining activities. Whenever there's an activity on the calendar, complete an activity journal reflection. You can make it easy for your advisors to give you a high grade for your journal entries by ensuring that they are thoughtful and reflective with regard to your project milestones. Don't make the mistake of assuming that your activity and your milestone are automatically unrelated just because one relates to art or music (for example) and one relates to another theater or history; part of the activity immersion as to experience the overlap of London-based culture. There are numerous ways that specific elements of one discipline influence elements in another. In your journal entries, note these connections as best as you can be explicit when mentioning articles that you contribute to and create.

Activity Template

Add a paragraph about this experience noting the ways in which it related to one or more of your milestone aims. Did this experience directly relate to your milestones, or was the relation more indirect? In what ways did this experience cause you to think differently about your milestone aims? What were some of your other takeaways from the experience? For each site-specific term that you enter, check to see if there is a page in this wiki that exists and link to it. For example, if your reflection mentions William Shakespeare, check to see if William Shakespeare exists on this site. If an article page does exist, 1) link to it here, and 2) edit the page with a section or just a few sentences to ensure that the content on that page relates to this activity journal entry. For example, if while writing your activity journal reflection about your trip to Westminster Abbey, you recall seeing the headstone of William Shakespeare, note it in your reflection, and then edit the William Shakespeare with, at least, a sentence or two in an appropriate section about having a memorial site in Westminster Abbey. While your at it, edit the entry for Westminster Abbey with the relevant information. Did you take some interesting pictures or videos at those sites? Add those to the relevant pages. If an article page does not exist, create the page for the missing topic (Create Page link from main menu) and add some information using this article template as a starting point. For each activity scheduled on our calendar, you should 1) create an Active Journal Entry here, and 2) create one new article of substantial quality or edit and contribute to at least three related articles. The tone of this journal entry can be personal, but still quality professional writing; the tone of article pages that you create and edit should be objective, professional, referenced writing.

Links to my Pages

Aristotle
Aristotle's Ethics

Delete

Europe's Culture