I agree with the first Theory of Reality, which is common sense realism. I believe that what you see is what you get. Nobody can deny what they are seeing. Seeing something is something that is for sure there, unless you're crazy. I think a good example is witnesses in court. Witnesses are used for proof or reassurance that something happened. People rely on what they see, and believe it is true.
Hilary Lawson writes about this man named John who suffers from visual agnosia. Visual agnosia is when a person is able to see something or anything, but not recognize what is the importance of it. For example, he can see his house but isn't able to recognize it as his own. I would hate to live like that. To just now know what anything is or what it's supposed to be used for. That brings up the question if I would rather be blind or have visual agnosia. That's a really hard question because if I were blind I wouldn't be able to see anyways, so I wouldn't be able to connect anything from sight. I would rather be blind because in visual agnosia the person won't be able to learn what anything is used for no matter how many times he sees it. If I'm blind at least I can learn of what things are through my other senses and still possibly be able to connect its uses. I feel so bad for all the people who have to suffer from this disease. I can't imagine what that would be like. I would feel so helpless, and never get used to it.
This infograph looks like it was created in a movie kind of design with a voice in the background that speaks according to what is going on in the movie. It is about infographs and explains why they are useful and how knowledge can be found and explained through them. It shows the benefits of visual aid and how the human brain perceives it. Basically talks about and gives reasons for why infographs are so great. 2. Why does it work? What are the design principles?
I think it works because it's very clear and has very good arguments or reasons for why infographs are a good representation of knowledge and information. It definitely made me think highly of infographs. The design principles are the use of color. For example, when the example of spotting the sevens were given, the 7's turned red. Also, size is a design principle. I noticed that zooming in and out added to this infograph. It is so smooth and flowing. 3. Describe how: appealing is it? user-friendly? useful? original/creative? informative? relevant?
I thought this infograph was very appealing. I loved how it was so smooth and transferred very nicely to the next topic or images. It also gave very good reasons and arguments in a visual way that was easy to understand. I found it very useful. Now, when I make an infograph I will know exactly what I am trying to do and how to use vision as a tool to get knowledge across. It was pretty original. Who would have thought to make an infograph about infographs? Very clever. I got a lot of informatioin out of and understand infographs much better I think. The whole time, it was on topic. 4. What are the implications of this knowledge?
This knowledge implies how amazing infographs are and how useful it is to get information out there and understood. It implies how visual representations actually aids the human brain in understanding what is trying to be said. 5. What might be some drawbacks of the presentation of knowledge?
Some drawbacks of this presentation of knowledge could be that there aren't many words and some people maybe need visual words on the screen, instead of all talk. It also looks very simple, and could even look bland.
1. How and why was it created?
This infograph was created like a movie, but I'm not exactly sure what program or anything. It is animated with a voice in the background. It was created as an advertisement to get people to buy eco friendly cars. It showed how much eco cars has helped and compared it to a regular car. 2. Why does it work? What are the design principles?
It works because it's interesting and keeps the attention of the watcher. I don't even have a car and am not even close to getting one, but I watched the whole thing with interest. Some design principles are the color of the words. It looked like the different color words were important, or it could just be so the watcher is able to see the words. Also the change in quantity is a design principle. The infograph seemed like it was continuously moving as well, just like how cars do. 3. Describe how: appealing is it? user-friendly? useful? original/creative? informative? relevant?
I thought this was extremely appealing. I love how it kept on moving, and also how there were words to aid the watcher, so not just talking and talking. It seemed user friendly enough, but it may not apply to everyone. Not everyone has a car or is buying one. It wasn't really useful, just more informational and attempting to be convincing. It wasn't that original, but that might be because I just watched one that seemed to be similar visually. However, the information and idea was original. At the end, the infograph said Ford so I'm assuming the eco cars are a part of Ford. I thought it was very informative, however it could have left out some of the cons because the purpose was to get people to buy it. The whole inforgraph stayed on topic well. 4. What are the implications of this knowledge?
The knowledge implies that the environment is not doing good at all. It needs help, and the eco cars would help. It implies that people should buy these cars in order to benefit the environment. 5. What might be some drawbacks of the presentation of knowledge?
Some drawbacks might be that since the infograph made it seem like you were continuously moving, it might distract from the information or message being given.
3. Why does man have an insatiable need for information and a drive to “share”? Is it true to say “We think because we share?”
4. Why and how has man attempted to archive all of humanity’s knowledge and what does the future hold?
11. How should schools/education (all levels) change to adapt to new technology? (think time, physical, and instructional)
“By doubting we are led to inquire and by inquiry we perceive the truth.” –Peter Abelard
The idea of knowledge brings up so many questions, theories, and doubts. Some of the many questions are why man feels the need for information, why man attempted to collect all of humanity’s knowledge, and how new technology should lead to the change in education.
Ever since the beginning of mankind, people have felt the need to find out information and explore. Christopher Columbus went out in an attempt to discover new land. Scientists continuously try to find new information to add to scientific discoveries. Even I occasionally search for some information that isn’t even for school! So why is it that information is always being searched for? An obvious reason would be curiosity. Maybe we just want to know for the sake of knowing. Obligation could be another reason. Maybe it’s for school or work. In other words, you had to find certain information, but didn’t necessarily want to. When the information that was being searched for is found, nobody just keeps it to themselves. They share it. Why do we have a drive to share? There could be many reasons for this as well. One could just want to get that information out there for the sake of others. They could have the mentality of why keep the information to themselves? It could help others if they are looking for the same or at least similar information. That would be a very selfless reason. Another motive for sharing information found could be the credit. I am sure that is the motive for many people. Some people just want the fame and be known.
As you can see in this blog post from my posterous, I believe that a lot of times, information from even a "higher authority" could be inaccurate. So even though people share their information all the time, always have the mentality that it could very easily be untrue. There is a quote saying “We think because we share.” I agree with this to some extent. For many people, the main motive for thinking is to be able to share their findings. However, I don’t think that is true for everyone. I do believe that there are many people who think for themselves and not to just share with the world. For example, reflection upon oneself is very deep thinking that is usually not something shared.
In the past, mankind has attempted to collect and archive all the knowledge known to mankind. One way this was attempted was through a program called True Knowledge. This search site attempts to allow users to access the world’s knowledge by just asking the way that they would ask.
This is a link to show how True Knowledge works. So a good question would be why would man even want to archive all of knowledge? Well, for True Knowledge, they want anyone to be able to have access to this large amount of information, which is why it is a search engine. Another way that knowledge is being digitalized from books is by recaptcha. Recaptcha is a technique of digitalizing all literature by asking people using computers to type in a series of letters, like you probably have seen before. The word typed is an actual word from a book that the person typing is putting onto the computer. So, basically we, as computer users, are digitalizing books.
This link is the creator of Recaptcha, Luis Van Ahn, talking about his creation. Literature is a huge part of the world’s knowledge, so this would be considered an attempt to archive and collect the knowledge known to mankind. A reason behind this new technique, recaptcha, might be that books are becoming less and less. Personally, I cannot remember the last time I have been to a public library, which is really sad. This is the digital age. Very few people get their information from literature anymore, even though literature is a large portion of knowledge. In the future, I do believe that recaptcha is going to eventually have a lot of literature digitalized, even though it may take awhile considering how many books there are to do. Also, new books are constantly coming out, so there is always going to be more recaptchaing to do. In the future, however, I don’t think we will have all of knowledge archived and collected because there is new knowledge being developed, and possible knowledge nobody knows about.
Technology has developed significantly since the beginning of schooling and educations. So why hasn’t schools changed their ways? Technology has taken over our generation. We have such distracting things all around us, usually having to do with technology, that school became unbearably boring. Why not use the technology that distracts us to get our attention in class? Schools should use the technology that is here now to its advantage. There are so many different programs on computers and such that could be educational. For example, skype is one of the many distractions a student may have in class. A teacher could use that to maybe have guest speakers? That would be very interesting and get the attention of the students for sure.
The link above is an example of a school that was designed differently than any other school. As you can see through the little tour they provide, it involves a lot of technology. I’m sure I am not the only student who finds this school appealing. Also, students have an issue nowadays with sleep. I know many students do not get enough sleep. School days should start later, and if necessary end later. More comfortable furniture would also be nice. However, it shouldn’t be too comfortable to the point where students fall asleep. The chairs and desks we have now are so uncomfortable that it’s almost just as difficult to stay awake. Schools have not changed significantly since the beginning of education, which just sounds wrong.
“By doubting we are led to inquire and by inquiry we perceive the truth.” This is a quote by Peter Abelard. I believe that even though many people may agree with this quote, they don’t follow it themselves. If someone looks something up on the internet, more often than not they automatically believe it. It seems as though nobody questions anything anymore. I think we should start doubting information. As the quote says, if we doubt what we are told, then we will question it and therefore try to find the truth. Knowledge is meant to be question and challenged. You learn that way.
1. Do you think we should respect the beliefs of a racist or sexist person? Provide reasons. If possible, find a recent article or video that could be used to question this (for example, the July massacre by Norwegian "racist" Anders Breivik.
I do think we should respect the beliefs of a racist or sexist person. Even though you may disagree with them, it is their belief. It may be wrong, but they need to be respected. We all have different beliefs and are free to choose what we believe. However, I think that the racist or sexist person should not push those beliefs too far because it could cause violence or hurt people. Just like the beliefs should be respected so should the people they are about.
2. Find some examples of beliefs (modern or throughout History) that you think are both misguided and dangerous.
For example, in history Hitler strongly believed that Jews were harmful to the world and that his race was superior. Obviously that belief was dangerous because of all the violence and even war it caused.
To what extent should we trust knowledge by authorities?
That is actually a very hard question to answer. On one hand, they are higher up and possibly know more. But on the other hand, does their position make them seem right when most of the time they really aren't?
I think you can trust people in higher authority to a point. They were given that position for a reason (in most cases), so hopefully the knowledge they put on us is trustworthy. I would listen to what they are saying, but keep in mind that it could be false. Maybe using common sense would help differ truth to lies. If something doesn't sound right you could do a little digging. But like doctors and dentists, they went to school for the knowledge that they have, so I would say they are educated and probably know what they are doing. Maybe there is the question that what they have been taught is actually wrong. Or like the lady who talked about experts was saying.
1. My group found the cards that named different situations that happen everyday to be the easiest to place. The one about the hostess with the fake smile didn't seem bad at all. It is her job after all. However, the more difficult cards to place were the severe ones which had many consequences, like lying under oath and taking steroids.
2. Our order was fairly similar to the other groups' orders. There were some surprises. There were comments about how some of the cards were miss placed. For example, the card about being asked to come in for coffee after one date had a lot of controversy. I noticed that most of the boys thought it was fine, while most of the girls didn't.
3. There were definitely some cases where more information was necessary. The one about ratting out a friend could really depend on the situation and all the different intentions. There is so many different perspectives to think about.
4. I did around 19 of those cards...
5. I think deception is unbelievably widespread. It's probably second nature in our world today. It is an everday occurence no matter how sad it is. Some people do it more than others, but we all do it. It's really sad but true.
6. A lie is any time you don't tell the truth. None of this "I just didn't tell the whole truth" crap. Either you told the truth or you didn't and either you lied or you didn't.
7. I don't think it's okay to deceive people. Maybe it would be okay if it wasn't a big deal. However, to a certain point, deception is not the right thing anymore.
I don't think that the color coded ID is an effective system at all. It might be motivating, but it's not the right kind of motivation. I would consider this segregation. No matter what anyone tries to argue, these cards place the students in a certain category.
I don't even understand who would think that this is a good idea. Even if I just heard the idea I would think there would be a bad outcome and many complaints. Can you imagine how the kids with the white cards felt? What if some of these students are already self counscious or are picked on already in school? Bullying is a huge problem in tons of schools all around the world. I know for a fact that this would have added to that problem.
I think this is definitely a violation of student privacy. Sure, some kids don't mind and are even proud of their edicational success, but they can choose to share that information themselves. Students should not have to let everybody know in what category of intelligence they fall in to. Like here at LeJardin Academy, we exercise the right to pass. This could apply to what went on here with the Color Coded ID.
Basically, I don't agree with this color coded card crap, and I'm glad that this system does not exist anymore. Some students who holds a white card could have tried as best as they could, and are being almost punished for doing their best.