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The NYTs reports that famed neurologist and writer, Dr. Oliver Sacks, will start a new job this week as Columbia University's first ever "artist." The position will allow him to teach across disciplines from the hard sciences to fine arts. The motivations for creating this position are best described by Columbia president Lee C. Bollinger:

Lee C. Bollinger, president of Columbia, said Dr. Sacks's appointment exemplified the university's effort to bridge the gap between the study of neuroscience and other disciplines in which scholars work to understand human behavior, including economics, law and art history.

Dr. Sacks's appointment is "a commitment both to having one of the great clinical neuroscientists in our midst and one of the great writers about this subject, but also a commitment to try to take that and reach out to other fields and human activities," Mr. Bollinger said.

Finally, the ivy league is catching up with what designers have known for years. The age of silo thinking is over. It's time to reach across fences, pick out the finest ingredients, and mix up something entirely new.

Read the full article here.

and

Sacks's recommended reading list (includes all of his books plus many titles from a range of disciplines).