Journey into the life and work of the defining figure in Scandic design and one of the greatest modern architects, Alvar Aalto. Recounting the intimate yet tragic love story he shared with his architect wife, Aino, the film provides a cinematic tour of their creative process and iconic buildings all over the world. Narrated by experts in the field and featuring never-before-seen archival footage, AALTO reveals unique insight into an extraordinary couple whose profoundly humanist vision put people at the center of design.

To compensate for our environmental disorientation, we use technology – paper maps, signposts, & smartphones. Perhaps we jump in a taxi. We use devices to essentially teleport us from one place to another, paying little attention to our surroundings and losing connection with the in-between. Because we often don’t really “know” where we are, we navigate inefficiently. Worse, our travel experience is often poor. This disconnection from our surroundings causes people-jams in crowded spaces, but it also has another consequence: it separates us from our planet, such that we’ve stopped caring about it. Dr. Jeffery is a medical graduate and Professor of Behavioural Neuroscience at UCL. Her research involves recording of neurons in the rodent brain during navigation, to understand how the brain represents complex environments. She aims to bring emerging knowledge about the cognitive neuroscience of navigation to the outside world to influence the design of cities and of navigation technology. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Prof Kate Jeffery is a neuroscientist researching how the brain makes an internal representation of space. Kate founded the Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience at UCL, a laboratory comprising several researchers who use physiological methods to study cognition. She studies how spatially sensitive neurons encode complex spaces, with a particular focus on two main issues: three dimensional space, and the internal “sense of direction”. --- Event: Sensing Space - Behavioural Science for The Built Environment Alongside visual tools, architects use intuition and a well-developed sense of empathy to imagine the experience of another within the environment being created. However, not only are these understandings limited by our subjective disposition, they are also difficult to express to others effectively. Increasingly so, science is creating insights that can augment the architect’s ability to curate an experience. The adoption of new tools from psychology and neuroscience into the architect’s creative process is now a viable and promising opportunity. Conscious Cities, The Bartlett School of Architecture, and the Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience host a series of short talks and a panel debate with researchers at the forefront of creating behavioural insights. --- Conscious Cities Festival 2018 The Conscious Cities Festival gathers those interested in the creation of human-centred environments. Research and practice using the conscious cities approach explores how architecture and urban design can better consider and respond to human needs through science informed design, data analysis and new technology. Website: http://www.ccities.org Twitter: @ConsciousCities Video: http://www.veritefilms.co.uk

Lesson zero of the Master Degree in Architectural Design and History

Prof Kate Jeffery is a neuroscientist researching how the brain makes an internal representation of space. Kate founded the “Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience” at UCL, a laboratory comprising several researchers who use physiological methods to study cognition. She studies how spatially sensitive neurons encode complex spaces, with a particular focus on two main issues: three dimensional space, and the internal “sense of direction”. CONSCIOUS CITIES FESTIVAL 2018 The Conscious Cities Festival gathers those interested in the creation of human-centred environments. Research and practice using the conscious cities approach explores how architecture and urban design can better consider and respond to human needs through science informed design, data analysis and new technology. Website:  http://www.theccd.org Twitter: @TheCCDesign Video: http://www.veritefilms.co.uk