Month: March 2018

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Amazon Unveils Biophilic Workspace

Posted on by Agnieszka Olszewska-Guizzo

Would you like to work in a place like this?

Amazon has unveiled its newest workplace that's all about the biophilia. The structure calls to mind the domed gardens at Gardens by the Bay in Singapore, but this is a place for brainstorming and meetings instead of tourism.

“We need to overcome this sense that you should just get out in nature once or twice a year on a holiday.”

We couldn't agree more.

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/urban-expeditions/green-buildings/amazon-glass-forest-office-seattle/

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Green Exercise Partnership, NHS Scotland

Posted on by Agnieszka Olszewska-Guizzo

Scotland gets the importance of green space for health.

Their National Health Service has teamed up with the Forestry Commission Scotland and Scottish Natural Heritage Heritage to create the NHS Greenspace Demonstration Project to ensure the inclusion of green space at health facilities around the country. They've even gone a step further with the Green Exercise Partnership to promote the importance of outdoor activity for mental and physical health. Here are some interesting takeaways from their latest promotional video:

For every pound that we spend on green space, we're actually realizing over four pounds of social and economic benefits from the wider range of sustainability gains. —Susan Grant, NHS Scotland

There’s now compelling evidence that green exercise improves not only your physical health, but also emotional and mental health as well. —Dr Gregor Smith, Deputy Chief Medical Officer for Scotland

Source: http://www.paha.org.uk/Feature/nhs-greenspace

therapeutic horticulture

Volunteering Opportunity in Singapore – Communications

Posted on by Agnieszka Olszewska-Guizzo

Our NGO is looking for a volunteer who will take care of our PR and Communications in Singapore.

JOB DESCRIPTION & SCOPE

We would like to especially invite students or graduates from the appropriate university course, however, we are open for offers from other people too. 
The selected person will help us build the NeuroLandscape communications strategy and launch the platforms of networking with the international organizations and academics.We are looking for passionate, kind, easy-going and responsible person with strong command in English.

BENEFITS  

In reward for his or her contribution, we would like to offer the priceless experience from work in the international NGO for research and development, interesting fulfilling work and opportunity to extend their service on a full contract basis with our Singapore branch in the future. 

COMMITMENT LEVEL

We estimate the volunteer commitment at min. 10% of FTE, with weekly report meetings with the board. 

If you think you would be a good fit, please send your resume to: info@neurolandscape.org

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Colour-blindness and appreciation of green landscape?

Posted on by Agnieszka Olszewska-Guizzo

This might be a very pertinent question… If contact with nature and the visual stimuli from being surrounded by predominantly GREEN environment is so beneficial for our overall wellbeing… what about colour-blind people? Of course researchers have already asked similar questions and we now know that some types of colour-blindness can even have their advantages. 

The most common form of colour blindness makes it difficult for those with the condition to distinguish between red and green. About six percent of men, and a much smaller fraction of women, have deuteranomaly, commonly known as red-green colour blindness. It is caused by a genetic mutation that affects one of the three pigments found in the cone-shaped cells in the retina that respond to different colours of light.This mutation alters the pigment that responds to green light so that it behaves more like the red-sensitive pigment. Therefore, the two colours produce almost identical responses in the eye. This means that people with deuteranomaly often cannot see differences between shades of red and green on test cards used by scientists to investigate the disorder.

But researchers based at the University of Cambridge, UK, and the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, have turned the tables. They designed test cards that deliberately favoured people with deuteranomaly to show that these individuals can spot differences between up to 15 shades of khaki that look identical to those with normal vision. 

The images below demonstrate the difference between normal vision and with deutreranopia. 

Some researchers hypothesise that the gene responsible for deuteranomaly may have once provided an evolutionary benefit. For example, it may have helped them spot potential food items in complicated environments such as grass or foliage. We could also wonder whether this hightened perception of different shades of green could be beneficial in terms of appreciating contemplative landscapes resulting in higher levels of relaxation and long-term overall health improvement. Now here is a great idea for a research study… 

Full article available @ nature.com (http://www.nature.com/news/2005/051205/full/news051205-1.html) 

Scientific article: Bosten, J M, Robinson, J D, Jordan, G and Mollon, J D (2005) "Multidimensional scaling reveals a color dimension unique to 'color-deficient' observer", Current Biology, 15 (23).  Online access:  http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/52520/4/Bosten05CurrentBiologyFinalAccepted.pdf 

To learn about colour blindness and use a simulator visit: www.colourblindawareness.org 

Both images from wikimedia commons.