IB Theory of Knowledge - an ongoing list of interesting finds

Elizabeth Loftus, a professor at the University of California, Irvine, is the most influential female psychologist of the twentieth century ( New Yorker feature article ) "Her work helped usher in a paradigm shift, rendering obsolete the archival model of memory—the idea, dominant for much of the twentieth century, that our memories exist in some sort of mental library, as literal representations of past events. According to Loftus, who has published twenty-four books and more than six hundred papers, memories are reconstructed, not replayed." Also, check out this interview with Loftus from the American Psychological Association, where Loftus discusses  how our recollections of events and experiences may be subject to manipulation. 

The Smithsonian published this engaging review of a recent publication entitled  Women and Other Monsters: Building a New Mythology .  Explore the myths surrounding many female monsters from ancient Greek and Roman tradition.  "M onsters reveal more about humans than one might think. As figments of the imagination, the alien, creepy-crawly, fanged, winged and otherwise-terrifying creatures that populate myths have long helped societies define cultural boundaries and answer an age-old question: What counts as human, and what counts as monstrous?" Caravaggio,  Medusa , 1595  

A feature article on how one particular group is mitigating the ongoing natural crises of flooding and fires throughout Australia.  "What’s the solution to mitigating these disasters? More technology, more fire fighters, more flood-proofing? Those may sound like reasonable, modern fixes, but many believe the answer really lies in the past. Indigenous communities in Australia have dealt with wildfires for millennia using natural technology, namely fire itself." Photographed by Talei Elu.

"Tank Man" by Jeff Widener, 1989. On the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests (1989), authorities in China continue to go to great lengths to censor knowledge of what happened that day, where "hundreds, possibly thousands, had been shot dead."  To test the extent of the censorship, here is a video of a BBC reporter walking the streets of Beijing to find out how many people recognize the most iconic image of the protests, that of "Tank Man" - a lone man standing in front of a line of tanks a day after the massacre at Tiananmen Square.  In a testament to the strength of censorship in China, most of those interviewed claimed not to recognize the image, even if they were old enough to remember the tragic outcome of the protests.

For those who have enjoyed some of the discussion of art as representational of history and of the attempt to convey history when it is out of living memory, here is a focused piece that explores exactly that - how we can continue to "experience" history via the arts, even when we cannot have experienced it ourselves. This would link quite well to the controversial "Ada.Stories" narrative being released on Instagram - a Holocaust narrative that tells the events to a social media generation.

"Letting an athlete compete with too much of an inbuilt biological advantage feels unfair to their rivals; stopping someone competing as the woman she naturally is feels monumentally unfair to her. There is no way of resolving the moral dilemma without someone ending up wronged." There is much to debate in terms of the ongoing controversy surrounding 800m Olympic champion  Caster Semenya's high testosterone levels and apparent unfair advantage in her race category.  Here is an opinion column that looks at the ethics behind the decision-making process , weighing the various perspectives (utilitarian, consequentialist, relativist, etc.) that are at the core of this RLS. Public opinion is quite divided, with many suggesting this is a gross injustice while others argue the ruling is necessary to preserve the integrity of the sport.

The idea of a "mind's eye," or powerful visualization skills, is often seen as being at the centre of artistic creativity and can lead to a misconception that, without this ability, one cannot be creative. What happens, then, when some of the most creative minds in film today suffer from a condition called Aphantasia - the inability to visualize mental images? How can some of the chief artists and animators in the Pixar / Disney franchise create such powerful works of art with "blind mind's eye"?

"(A)s artificial intelligence evolves and eventually perhaps reaches or surpasses human level intelligence, what will this mean for human artists and the creative industries in general?"   Through discussions of creativity, artificial intelligence and expressions of human experience, the article questions whether works of art produced by AIs are more than just "creative problem-solving" and the mimicking of patterns. 

For those interested in the "anti-vaxxer" debate, here is an article about parents in Ontario who have received judicial support to refuse immunization , even citing an anti-vaccination 'expert.' And in an ironic twist, the subheading reads:  "While the case was being heard, both children contracted whooping cough, one of the diseases covered by standard childhood vaccinations."  The article also contains a comprehensive infographic illustrating vaccination trends in Canada as well as comparative immunization rates against other countries. 

Languages around the world are dying, and dying fast .  "The grimmest predictions have 90 percent of the world's languages dying out by the end of this century. Although this might not seem important in the day-to-day life of an English speaker with no personal ties to the culture in which they’re spoken, language loss matters." National Geographic's page entitled " Enduring Voices " is a great resource to learn more about endangered languages.

The death blow preserved at one particular site.  EXCERPT:  "New research released Friday captures a fossilized snapshot of the day nearly 66 million years ago when an asteroid smacked Earth, fire rained from the sky and the ground shook far worse than any modern earthquake. It was the day that nearly all life on Earth went extinct, including the dinosaurs. The researchers say they found evidence in North Dakota of the asteroid hit in Mexico, including fish with hot glass in their gills from flaming debris that showered back down on Earth. They also reported the discovery of charred trees, evidence of an inland tsunami and melted amber." Current controversy stems from the fact that access to the site is highly restricted and that, aside from the current researchers, the knowledge discovered has not and cannot be verified by other scientists or other experts.

Why we have to forget to remember "When we forget something, it often feels like a failure. But according to psychologist Oliver Hardt, if we lost the ability to forget, we might also lose the ability to remember."

"Scientists in India have hit out at speakers at a major conference for making irrational claims, including that ancient Hindus invented stem cell research. Some academics at the annual Indian Science Congress dismissed the findings of Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein. Hindu mythology and religion-based theories have increasingly become part of the Indian Science Congress agenda. But experts said remarks at this year's summit were especially ludicrous...." An Indian scientist said that Albert Einstein (pictured) was wrong and that gravitational waves should be renamed "Narendra Modi Waves"

Obviously still a highly contested concept, the idea that our genetics do not support common perceptions of race or racial divides is one that can be uncomfortable on various levels.  Geneticist and author Adam Rutherford tackles the science behind "race" in his 2015 article " Why racism is not backed by science " - touching also on issues of evolution of language and controversial theories on race.  He acknowledges in another piece, " Why scientific truth may hurt ," that his ideas on the biological non-existence of “race” prompted anger and online abuse from readers, however continued to focus on the idea that: Modern genetics has unearthed a treasure trove of information about humans that was previously veiled or indecipherable, one of which is that some sets of genetic signatures broadly correlate with large land masses, especially ones bound by oceans. But these are neither exclusive nor essential associations with the way we use the term “ra...

We should all know that memory can be unreliable - influenced by our own perspectives, selection, interpretation and emotions, it can be difficult to be "certain" of our powers of recollection.  But "false memory"? Delve briefly into this concept via the links below to explore the ways in which memory can not only be problematic , but also wrong.  Resources : Bryce, Emma. " False memories and false confessions: the psychology of imagined crimes ." WIRED.  July 22, 2017.  " False memory syndrome ." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. July 18, 2013. " Elizabeth Loftus and Eye Witness Testimony ."  BBC Sounds. Interview. Web. April 17, 2011. Fraser, Scott.  " Why eyewitnesses get it wrong ."  TEDxUSC. TED. May 2012. Hogenboom, Melissa.  " Why does the human brain create false memories? "  BBC Science & Environment.  September 29, 2013. Loftus, Elizabeth. " How reliable is your ...

It sounds a bit like a fairy tale, when you think about it.  The idea that in today's world, there would still be areas that believe in the likes of elves, or as they are called in Iceland,  huldufólk .  Have a look at how the "hidden people" of Iceland have influenced construction, roadworks and a deep regard for the natural world.

Crossinng the TOK / Lang & Lit boundary - a  different perspective on "beauty" and how our own preferences/standards not only change, but might be shifted for us  as the brain processes new information and patterns. 

Interestingly, following our discussion last class about the ethics surrounding the "study" of nomadic tribes, National Geographic has published a feature article this month addressing some of the same difficult topics raised. The feature presents quite a detailed look at the influence of modern societies/technology on indigenous tribes in both Peru and Brasil, delving into where the two worlds either overlap or collide.  The pictures in the piece show a very rural, indigenous lifestyle, but the feature also makes mention of tribes having access to smartphones and guns, or offering their expertise as armed "guardians" of their territory. Quite an engaging look at a very complex ongoing controversy.

A viral photo of a crying Honduran girl didn't tell the whole story. Does it matter? A powerful image of a young Honduran girl detained at the U.S.-Mexico border has come to symbolize the separation of families by border officials. But the girl and her mother were not separated, as many came to believe.  A look at the powerful effects of media images and how the narrative can shift or change in meaning or context because of the "viral" nature of the web.

No one told James Fallon he was a psychopath.  Or maybe they had. When he was young, he'd heard again and again from people in positions of authority – a priest, a professor, a friend's father – that there was something off about him. Something dark that they couldn't quite name. But Fallon brushed it off each time. Many years later, as a professor of psychiatry at the medical school of the University of California, Irvine, Fallon discovered his psychopathic mind for himself.  James Fallon, a professor at the University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine, describes himself as a ‘pro-social’ psychopath. (Daniel Anderson) A witty and light look at one man's path to self-discovery and self-control, one that also delves into the nature versus nurture debate , looking at whether   we are a product of our environments. Are we subject to imbalance due to our biological makeup?  Where do the lines between the natural sciences and the human sciences blur...