Theory of sense Perception

Guess: I think the theory of sense perception explains that all of us see the same things because we all have the same senses, because of evolution.

Standard Theories of sense perception:

1. Direct Realism: Perception is reality, and it is directed through sensory organs

    Problem: variation among individual and in self

2. Indirect Realism: Brain is processing your information. There is a real world and mind independent objects (doesn't depend on your mind). It is mediated through sense. So sometimes these effects are different from reality. The veil perception is basically saying that we see the world differently because our sense can not be brought out perfectly and therefore it may seem that our 'veil' can not be taken off.

3.Idealism (Berkley) "Any of various systems of thought in which the object of knowledge are held to be in some way dependent on the activity of mind".

To what degree is sense perception reliable?

Epistemology is the study of knowing.  It deals with the nature of knowledge, how do we know things, what do we know, why we know, is what we know true, and what are the limits of knowledge.

From experience, from learning or reading about it. From our brain receptors.

Our sense perception is selective, it can be misleading and we can connect it to memory.

we need it so we are conscious of our surroundings, 

We know about 

Homework: Learn the Ways of Knowing and the Areas of Knowledge for a quiz next class

Ways of Knowing (flimsier)

• Faith: 
• Language
• Imagination
• Memory
• Sense Perception
• Intuition
• Emotion
• Reason

Areas of Knowledge (HH Marine)

• History
• Human Science
• Math
• Arts
• Religious Knowledge
• Indigenous Knowledge
• Natural Science
• Ethics

In 2015 the TOK syllabus aded to areas of knowledge, indigenous and religious knowledge, why would they? 

TOK is a great class to be able to be open minded and explore and learn about things happening all over the world. In addition, all areas of knowledge could be connected to people and the way they live, from the past until today. It would only make sense to also mention where they come from and religion has a large portion to do with why people act the way they do. So it may supply or provide an explanation for why people are who they are and what has formed their way of thinking. In addition, these two topics are quite philosophical and have may dimensions to them and much that can be discussed. Lots of things in these two new areas can deal a lot with imagination and allow for one to understand more about a person and our worlds history. All other topics are quite straight forward and are typical things we study in class, however these two new additions are what are going to drive our discussion and require a bit more thinking as we are not as familiar with the two new topic.

Sense Perseption

Types of sense perseptions

1. Itching
2. Sweating
3. Shivering
4. Pain
5. Soreness
6. Goose-bumps
7. Breathing
8. Wetness
9. Stress
10. Hunger
11. Thirst
12. Tears
13. Yawning
14. Cramps
15. Nausea
16. Blinking
17. Fever
18. Soreness
19. Numbness
20. Stiffness
21. Balance
22. Proprioception

When we see something, it can affect what we hear. Our senses are greatly affected by what we can interpret and also what we can see and even things we are just used to seeing. Our mind can not switch something like a face because we wouldn't be able to identify it. In addition, our minds can be fooled by what we see such as levels, distance, etc.

January 16, 2016:

Now that I have been in the TOK class for more than a month, I can say we continue to use our sense perception in our class and exploring the topic.For example last class we were looking at a chair. In light it is clear that it is dark blue, however once put into the dark, the color started looking different and darker. I have also become a lot more aware of my sense perceptions in my daily life and what it really means which is interesting to see how something I has completely ignored before has developed into something I try and take notice in today.

We also have continued to explore the idea of optical illusions. When we see one thing, it may be tricked by our minds. What we might see, is not necessarily what is happening, and there is where the question arises if our minds can be so easily tricked how can we be sure of what we know or think to know?

An example is in the picture below. The picture is a still picture, however when looking at it, the image seems to be moving.

Profile of You as a Knower

Profile of You as a Knower

How old are you? How might your age affect both what you know and your attitude toward gaining knowledge?

I am 17, and this might effect me as a learner because I do not have the experience that older people might have, however I do have a fresh mind set that will allow me to open up, and not have such a strict view or such a large influence from other people.

What is your mother tongue? What other languages do you speak? How might your particular language(s) affect your knowledge?

My mother tongue is Spanish however Ive been speaking English more often, since I studied it since I was in Kindergarten. English has also become my common household language, as we all speak it fluently and it's easier for both my sister and I since our whole life is revolved around an English speaking community? However, as my father is Hungarian I will understand a lot of things. This will affect my knowledge because I know a lot about two completely different cultures.

What sex are you? Does your gender role affect how you see the world? Does it influence your expectations of what knowledge you should gain in your education?

Female. Since there are still different gender stereotypes, means that we might grow up in a different way and that we will have different opportunities and possibilities. I live surrounded by a society and community where they don't treat me differently for the way I look and the gender I am, so in my daily life it probably does not really effect the way I see the world, however when I travel, I sometimes feel a bit out of my comfort zone, and they do treat me a bit differently. So it in some way has been able to help me see the world in different ways as I see and experience some major world problems, such as gender inequality, first hand.

Did you grow up in an urban area or a rural one? How might living in the countryside affect what and how you know?

I grew up in both urban and rural. When I was younger i lived in Tokyo and therefore grew up in a very busy city. I now however, don't live completely in the countryside however I study in the countryside. It doesn't effect me too much as I still have a high quality lifestyle and keep old traditions I learned in Tokyo even though I don't live in the city. But it does effect what I know because I have been part of two different lifestyles, so I see how differently some people live and I also have gotten used to living in different circumstances. For example in the city it was easy for me to go out because it would take two minutes to get to the city, as i lived right in the heart of Tokyo. However living in Nagykovacsi since I'm quite far from the city I have to rely more on my parents and it's harder to be as independent. This is because of the transport, and the amount of tine it would take me to get home. So, where I live has very much effected my independence and my knowledge as I living in two places where there are a bunch of foreigners has really open my mind and allowed me to meet people from all over the world.

Have you always had enough to eat, felt safe and been able to get an education? How do you think that having these needs met – or not met – affect your present knowledge?

Yes, I have always had everything I needed, and even more then  need. These privileges allow me to not only travel and experience different cultures but also they allow me to have unique experiences and try new things. These needs might effect my knowledge as they do show that I come from a privileged household and we have the extra income to experience things many people would never have the chance to and meet people from all around thew world. Things that any other kid would learn about in their textbook and only have the pictures provided for them to imagine what it looks like, I have seen and been there. For example in History we were studying La Guernica by Pablo Picasso and I had already seen the image in person. 

How would you describe your spiritual worldview? How might following a religion, or not doing so, affect your knowledge?

I don't believe in anything at all. Unlike some religions, that have a constriction on what you can and can not do and what you can/ can not eat, I am able to do whatever I feel like. This will give me a different viewpoint on life because I Believe each person paths their own life, and there is nothing to specifically live for, i don't believe in afterlife so my behavior and viewpoints are not influence in order to achieve anything. I live my life pretty freely with no rules or restrictions. This effects my knowledge as I am a very open minded person, and I can see the world in a different perspective as I don't mind to open my mind up to try new things and meet new people.

How do cultural influences affect how you see the world? Do you identify with a particular culture?

Personally, since both my parents come from two completely different worlds and grew  to identify with a cultures and worlds. My mom grew up in the busy city at an all girls, private school and spoke only Spanish. My dad on the other hand, he grew up in the country side,, during communism, and went to a public Hungarian school, speaking only Hungarian. Therefore I have a mix of different traditions, beliefs and a cross between both cultures. This has allowed me to see the world In a different way. As I am interested in learning about different cultures and in school I am surrounded by multiple nationalities and cultures. Therefore this allows me to see the world in a different way as I have meet people from various cultures and they have effected my knowledge about the world and thought me to open my mind and be respective of everyones differences.

Are there any particular field of knowledge appeal to you strongly? Does your interest affect your current knowledge and your knowledge goals for the future?

There is no particular field of knowledge that does interest me too much, but I wouldn't mind to explore the different type of fields and go more in depth on each one. For the future I would like ti increase my knowledge in writing or in fashion, as those are the two aspects I would be interested in going into after I finish high school.

Is there any relation between all that was stated above and the way you look at topics in TOK? 

Yes there is because as I am open-minded, and have expirenced and grown up in a very privileged way I have a good foundation of what we have studied in the TOK class. I have been able to travel and study topics in other classes, or by traveling. Also I am able to think of the topic in an open way. I have been able to offer my input in topics we have studied with a fresh perspective. As everyone in my TOK Class will answer the above questions in a different way it will greatly effect the types of discussions we have in TOK and also it will help by allowing me to see different dimensions of the different topics. 

What is TOK?

What is epistemology?

It’s a class that teaches common knowledge with a background of philosophy. It allows students to open up their mind, and to explore subjects or topics with multiple perspectives. It's a class that challenges what you know, and how you know it. It also deals with questioning your thoughts and exploring your mind.

We will probably have debates and class discussions dealing with the subjects or topics we are studying.

January 16, 2016

Now that I have been in TOK for more than a month, I would like to add on to my response. During my time in this TOK class I have really learned to open up my mind, and start thinking in a more critical way. We take common knowledge or topic everyone has studied and we begin to tear what we know apart. We explore topics and ideas and think about them in a more critical way. TOK is a class that for me is truly interesting as I challenge my thoughts and ideas, and I especially enjoy that there is no one right answer, rather each idea is accounted for. The topics we learn or explore are also quite interesting as we learn about the same thing in other classes, and it's interesting to see how differently it can be interpreted, and with more thought and analyzing you are really able to get rid of what you thought you knew, and be left with a whole different way of looking at things or of an idea.

As for how we learn, we look at various sources, such as books, videos, pictures and movies, and after have a class discussion over what we saw.