https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jsOllD-lwL7mSnCvmAQa9zSNXt0S_mJ4X3WvTD-vjdM/edit

Man is the Measure

7. What does Abel mean when he says "to perceive is to solve a problem"?

Abel is saying that when we perceive things, we have to figure out what it means. Figuring out what it means is kind of like solving a jigsaw puzzle.

8. What is the role of social conditioning in determining how things "naturally look?"

The culture that one lives in helps determine how things naturally look. One example of this is Japanese art. Japanese are is often flat, but is still seen as realistic. However, somethings, like Egyptian art aren't perceived as realistic because of the way that the eyes are positioned.

9. What is the significance of the Durer rhinoceros story? How was the influence of convention demonstrated when some tribes were given the photograph?

The Durer rhinoceros story tells us that people's perceptions have a strong basis on what they have been told or seen prior, even if their original perceptions have been changed. The tribes were confused by what was going on, because they had no idea what it was.

11. What does Abel mean when he writes: believing is seeing? How might this point been seen in the study of natural and social sciences.

Abel is saying that when people see things, they believe them. This could be used in the studies of natural and social sciences by showing people things that are not real ans seeing if they believe them.

Truth and Deception

One way that deception is necessary to knowing is in art. This is escpecially seen in Salvador Dali's Persistence of Memory. Dali did not paint this painting from real life, but instead, he painted it from his mind. Dali painted something that was not real but from his memory probably because he felt that real-life could not express his feelings, but his imagination could. By painting something that looks as if it could be real, but having it not be real, Dali used deception, but his deception was used to convey knowledge. By painting clocks that are easily bent and molded, Dali seems to be trying to say that time can be easily bent. Dali seems to be saying that time can be deceiving. While deception is not always a good thing, Salvador Dali shows us that in art, deception can be used to increase knowledge.

Image Credit: http://salvadordalipaintings.org/

Hidden Assumptions

1. I was surprised by my results for the first test I took. I was a little upset, but I felt that I was confused enough by the directions that I felt that that had an effect on my score. for my second test, I was surprised with my results, but I agreed with them.
2. I don't think that my test results say too much that I should pay attention to. While I think that there might be a littler truth in them, I think that as I said before, I was confused by the instructions enough that it affected my test score
3. I think that these test are valid, but they have a few exceptions. Some people that that take this test may not have used a computer before, and have no idea as to what is going on. There is also some right/left favoritism. Also, I found the directions slightly confusing.
4. To be honest, I had to think for a while before I could come up with an answer to this question. One big example of "good" versus "bad" in dominant group in the United States, is how successful a person can be. Sometimes it seems as though white people are expected to better in life than black people. I would say that this could be considered a stereotype. Generalizations tend to be what one person thinks, while stereotypes are what a whole group of people think.
5. To combat jumping to false conclusions, I think that we need to be taught otherwise form childhood. People learn the best when they are young, and they would understand that no one person is better or worse then them.

Why ToK

Why do we study ToK? It is so that we can get to know ourselves, other, and the ideas surrounding us. * We study Tok to connect ourselves with the rest of the world. We live in one small part of the world, and what we know is minute. We study tok so that we can attempt to understand what is going on in the world.

Reading Reflection: "What Every Baby Knows"

1. An "inferential learning mechanism" is the ability to change and rework initial ideas based on experience form the beginning of life. This is really an amazing thing to consider, however much sense it makes. It is basically saying that babies change their thoughts and theories about the world based on their experiences.

2. Within a few days of a baby's birth, they can recognize the faces, voices and smells of those that are close to them. Within the first 9 months, babies can tell the difference in emotion in someone's voice. Within 3 years, babies can recognize that people have different beliefs. These too, are amazing when thinking about the psychology of children. These developments are essential to becoming an adult, and it is amazing that they stat to develop so early.

3. The article states that "Babies are like little scientists continually overthrowing theories that no longer fit the evidence." This statement make complete sense with what the article was saying. According to the article, babies have an idea about what the world will be like as soon as they are born. However, as they grow and begin to have experiences, they add to those theories, and are constantly adapting them based on what they have seen and experienced.

What is TOK anyway?

TOK is how we know what we know. It is how we perceive ourselves and each other. IT is an exploration of other religions yourself, and everything around you. It makes you think, beyond the abstract.

Who I am

I would describe myself as a mathematical reasoner.

Math is my favorite subject, and I think it is what I am really good at. I would call myself a reasoner because I think about everything before I make a decision. Sometimes, I think so much that it becomes overwhelming and I can't make up my mind. I think that these two go together very well because to me, mathematics is reason.

Picture credit: http://www.gifbin.com/984087