Looking inside July’s key real life situations
Our monthly presentation of TOK real life situations
For links to each story see the final slide, or use the newsletter
Introducing theoryofknowledge.net Members
Tips for using this presentation
(The Guardian)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
Steve Rathje, a Stanford psychologist, considers the effect of ‘framing’ an argument, which is the way we present our ideas, rather than the ideas themselves. He also looks at the role of metaphors in supporting key points, and how they activate an emotional response that can override our ability to reason effectively.
Analysing the story:
Do you agree with the article that humans are ‘consistently irrational’? How can we overcome our tendency to make mental shortcuts when we apply reasoning to understand the world?
What KQs can you identify?
How can our ability to reason be influenced by the way words and statements are ‘framed’? How susceptible are we to the power of metaphors?
2. Memory and identity
(Wired)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
Neil Stockton considers the difficulties of defining memory, and where the line exists between memories and physiological structure that creates them. As the title of the article exists, his conclusion is that memory is much more extensive than we might generally assume.
Analysing the story:
In what ways does the article reveal that this is completely the wrong way of conceiving of memory?
What KQs can you identify?
Are our identities based purely on memory?
3. Personality lens
(Big Think)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
Philip Perry examines the findings of a University of Melbourne research project on how our level of ‘open-mindedness’ affects the way we view the world. The results of the study indicated that there are tangible differences between open and closed-minded people in terms of the way they interpret information provided to them via the senses.
Analysing the story:
Can we categorise people into five personality types, and have they used a broad enough sample of data to arrive at their conclusions. If so, then there are big implications here - does it prove that reality is a subjective entity, or is there a way of getting beyond our personality type and accessing the objective truth about the world?
What KQs can you identify?
How can our personality traits influence the way we understand the world? Can people’s personalities be grouped into five categories?
4. Re-colouring the past (BBC)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
We looked last month at how colour can change our perception of the past; this video is a nice follow-up to that, examining the work of Marina Amaral, a Brazilian photo-colourist.
Analysing the story:
How do our reactions towards the past change when the images are recoloured, or when we learn the truth about when the photos were taken?
What KQs can you identify?
How does colour influence the way we interact with images about the past? Can we only relate to representations of reality similar to our own experiences? To what extent does our understanding of the past rely on images?
5. Questioning cancer
(Newsweek)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
Paul Davies is a theoretical physicist at Arizona State University. He’s used to asking questions on the origin of the universe; now he’s asking the same questions about cancer, and developing a new approach to gaining knowledge about the disease.
Analysing the story:
Can we, by asking a question about a scientific problem in a different way - arrive at a solution? The article seems to suggest that the answer is ‘yes’. However, read this blog afterwards, written by oncologist, David Gorski. Has Newsweek been too uncritical about praising Davies’s work? Should we, after all, leave the work of cancer specialists to cancer specialists? Is this an example of irresponsible scientific journalism?
What KQs can you identify?
Is the acquisition of knowledge undermined or aided by basing our ideas on assumptions? What are the implications of oversimplifying science by the popular press ?
6. Communicating science - revisited (The Conversation)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
John Cook and Sander van der Linden question whether ‘fact versus feeling’ is the problem with communicating scientific knowledge to mainstream society in this ‘post truth’ world.
Analysing the story:
In what ways does the article argue that this is an oversimplification of what’s going on? How do humans form judgements? And how should scientific ideas be communicated?
What KQs can you identify?
Which is more persuasive: scientific facts, or cultural values? When should we trust the consensus truth test?
7. Parent power
(Slate)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
This brief article looks at a new law that has been introduced into Florida, allowing any parent to query what is being taught in high school - including the evolution, and other scientific theories.
Analysing the story:
Will this make education (and knowledge) more democratic? Or will it undermine our ability to understand certain fundamental theories about the way the world works?
What KQs can you identify?
Should only ‘experts’ determine how science is taught in schools? Do our personal beliefs determine the way we understand the natural world?
8. Dino-art
(Wired)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
Victoria Turk presents a range of images from different cultures, and points in history, that show the diverse way in which artists have tried to represent the age of dinosaurs.
Analysing the story:
Reading through the article, how have the following affected the way dinosaurs are portrayed by artists - availability of evidence, artistic traditions, cultural and historical events, the influence of technology? What does this tell us about the way art develops?
What KQs can you identify?
Is artistic representation of the past based on present-day reality? What can the style, detail, and techniques of art tell us about society?
9. Dark Secrets
(The Guardian)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
Seth Stephens-Davidowitz argues that questionnaires are very unreliable in providing us with knowledge about human behaviour, because we often provide misleading answers. Instead, he argues that the best form of learning about ourselves is via Google data.
Analysing the story:
Does this mean that it’s impossible to objectively study human beings? Or is Google the answer to this challenge?
What KQs can you identify?
How can we avoid ‘social desirability bias’? What is the most effective way of finding out about people’s lives?
10. Objective ethics?
(Wired)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
Alexandra Simon-Lewis looks at the way in which algorithms underpin so many different aspects of modern life, and whether they should be used as the basis of ethical decision making.
Analysing the story:
Which approach to knowledge provides us with a more useful approach to ethical knowledge? Does ethics need to be approached in a less or more partisan (/human) way?
What KQs can you identify?
How should we approach ethical decision-making - via mathematical formulae, or human feelings?
11. The placebo effect
(Vox)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
Brian Resnick considers why the ‘placebo effect’ is becoming more potent over time, and the line between what our minds think is real, and what is actually real.
Analysing the story:
What does this article reveal about the way our minds create reality? Does it suggest that medicine only effective if we believe it is?
What KQs can you identify?
What are the implications of the placebo effect on how we understand the natural world? What role does faith play determining the effectiveness of medicine?
12. Andrew Wyeth
(The Conversation
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
Henry Adams looks at the reasons why artists’ reputations rise, fall, and rise again, by focusing on the work of Andrew Wyeth. He considers factors such as technical ability, fashion, prevalent ideas in society, jealousy, and revenge.
Analysing the story:
What does the article say about whether we can make objective judgements about art? Is art only ever an expression of a particular moment in time? Is Wyeth a ‘great’ artist?
What KQs can you identify?
How does an artist’s work get judged? Can the ability of an artist be evaluated objectively?
13. Beautiful maths
(New Humanist)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
Cal Flynn discusses why certain mathematical solutions can be regarded as ‘beautiful’, and what the implications of this are on how we acquire and use mathematical knowledge.
Analysing the story:
Does the article prove that mathematical knowledge is most effectively accessed via an aesthetically pleasing method? Is the same the case in other areas of knowledge? Consider also what Vicky Neale says - does the impact of mathematical knowledge also have to be taken into account when making a judgement about its beauty?
What KQs can you identify?
What is the relationship between knowledge that is aesthetically pleasing, and knowledge that is true? Can the beauty of mathematics be judged in the same way as art or literature?
14. Imagination and reality
(Big Think)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
In this video, Jordan Greenhall discusses the way in which the line between reality and imagination is becoming increasingly blurred with of the rise of virtual reality.
Analysing the story:
In terms of our ability to make sense of the world, what does Greenhall say are the positive and the negative implications of this situation?
What KQs can you identify?
How can we tell where the line between reality and imagination lies?
15. Potterism (Washington Post)
Looking inside
What’s the story about?
The article looks at the rise of groups that consider the Harry Potter books to be ‘sacred’, and offering a source of solace and spirituality.
Analysing the story:
First of all, what is it about these particular books that makes people view them as a source of moral guidance - is it their popularity, or something inherent within them? Second, why do people seem to need a moral system based on more than reason and evidence? Third, what does that word ‘spiritual’ actually mean - is is akin to religious awareness? Is it faith-based?
What KQs can you identify?
Can religious knowledge be acquired via fictional literature? Who defines what ‘sacred’ means? Why is knowledge based on reason alone considered insufficient for some people?
Sources
All images are taken from pixabay (https://pixabay.com/)