Marys Knowledge Acquisition

Table of Contents Background Knowledge Acquisition Physicalism versus Sensory Perception Conclusion Mary is unique because she grew up in a laboratory-like atmosphere. She was confined in a room that has no colors. It was all black-and-white for her. This includes not only the environment but also her education. She was educated using black-and-white materials only, no color was allowed to enter her dreary world.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Mary’s Knowledge Acquisition specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The moment of truth came when she was finally allowed to leave her black-and-white room, and in the outside world she saw a plump ripe red tomato. It was her first time to see one but back in her black-and-white world she was taught that a ripe tomato is red. The question that confounds resesearchers is this: Did she learn new facts or is it merely the acquisition of a new ability to imagine? Backgrou nd A lady confined in a room all by herself is a strange thing unless she was imprisoned since birth. However, this study is not interested to know why Mary was forced to be in a situation that seems inhumane at first glance. It has to be made clear that aside from the extreme seclusion that she had to go through, Mary was never given a mirror and she was in a sterile environment that prevented her from injuring herself such as being bruised or cut. If this is part of a human experiment then the authorities had to be contacted to put an end to this madness. Another way to deal with it is to go along with the discussion. Pretend for instance that there is nothing wrong with this picture and the most important thing is that scientists and psychologists are given the opportunity to study how a human being the process of learning. The question raised earlier can only be answered with a clear understanding of physicalism and how a person learns or acquire knowledge. An assertion was made that if physicalism is true then Mary need not leave her prison cell or laboratory in order to know that a ripe tomato has a color and not just black-and-white. It seems to sugggest that physicalism is the phenomonon of knowng something based on the power of suggestion or teaching. Thus, if someone says that a delectable banana when ripe manifests a yellow color then automatically the mind can see the ripe banana in all its glory as a beautiful yellow fruit.Advertising Looking for essay on psychology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Knowledge Acquisition Based on the case study there is proof to discredit the claim of physicalists. They contended that everything that can be known about the physical world is achievable through teaching and this includes teaching students using abstact concepts. For instance the color red can be taught. But in the experience of Mary, she had no idea about the concept of â€Å"red† as a c olor. It was her first time to see a ripe tomato, it was her first time to know that the sky is blue etc. If physicalism is based on the idea that knowledge acquisition about the world and everything it contains can be achieved by simply understanding the three-dimensional attributes of an object then this theory is severely limited. The counter-argument to physicalism is easily rendered in the contention that not everythig can be learned by reading and listening to lectures. There are many things in this world that has to be experienced in order to be understood and appreciated in its totality. This simply means that knowledge acquisition is not only done in the abstract realms but also in the sensory level. There are things that has to be processed by the five sense in order to be imbibed and made part of the conscious mind. Physicalism as a theory has to be modified to include the other facets of the physical world. It is not just about shapes and sizes but also about color, text ure, and even movement. A car can be perfectly described by a gifted speaker and Mary could listen to a speech about cars and leave the room with the full conviction that she knows more about cars than the average person. Mary can walk out of that room with the confidence of a scholar convinced that everthing that can be studied about cars was already covered in the lecture. All of a sudden Mary is led outside the courtyard and right before her eyes is a gleaming red sports car with a galloping horse logo on the hood. She is invited to ride with a race car driver and as a passenger she was taught the use of a seatbelt and instructed to sit back and enjoy the ride. The engine was fired up and in a few seconds the car went from zero acceleration to 60 miles per hour. Mary was convinced that there is more about cars than what she read in a magazine. Physicalism versus Sensory Perception Based on the idea of physicalism it has to be assumed that color and other attributes that can be ob served in the physical world are excluded in the knowledge acquisition process. Thus, this is the main weakness of physicalism because it does not include the reality of sensory perception.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Mary’s Knowledge Acquisition specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It makes one wonder why color is not part of the physical feature of an object. If this was included in the theory of physicalism then Mary’s knowledge acquisiotion experience, while she was confined in the black-and-white room should have been judged as imperfect and incomplete. In other words the researchers should have immediately discovered the flaw in their methodology because it is not possible to teach someone about the truth concerning an object without allowing her senses to become a part of the learning process. The abstact terms that were thrown at her was inadequate for Mary to have a clear and complete gras p of what a ripe tomato means. Her teachers could have used all the teaching techniques available to man and indoctrinate her about the wonderful qualities of a tomato but if she was never given the chance to hold one in her hands, to touch it, smell it, and finally to taste it then her learning experience is incomplete. It should not be a surprise for researchers to realize that her idea of what comprises a ripe tomato is different or lacking in details when compared to other people’s knowledge level regarding the said fruit. A more complicated way to deal with this issue is to assess it using Leibniz’s Law. According to this law, two identical things posses the same qualities. Using this argument, sensations and the knowledge gleaned from using it is very much different from the knowledge acquired using mental cognition. It leads back to the argument that merely describing an object is an incomplete step towards total understanding and complete appreciation of the th ing described. It is therefore easy to make the conclusion that Mary learned something new. It was not a technique of imagining things. She could not imagine something that she is ignorant of. For instance, a student can be taught to imagine riding an airplane. Now, it is not important for a student to have had an experience riding airplanes. But at least he or she has a similar experience such as riding a bus. But more importantly this student should have an acceptable knowledge base about airplanes and how it functions. For example the child had seen a real airplane flying on air. He or she could have had an experience watching an airplane take off on TV and at the same time saw some footages of what it was like inside the cabin. The feeling and idea of riding an airplane can therefore be imagined without a prior experience. But a zero knowledge of related information makes it impossible for a student to imagine what it means to ride an airplane. More importantly the basic knowled ge required must include knowledge gained trhough the use of the senses.Advertising Looking for essay on psychology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The same thing can be said of Mary. No matter how hard the teachers tried to teach her about the concept of â€Å"red† as a color, that it is diferent from yellow, blue, orange, and green, then nothing will register. For Mary, color is an abstract concept that is like a variable wherein one can associate different values. She can imagine color but only as far as the scale of black and white because this is the limit of her knowledge when it comes to the physical world. In fact, her mind was conditioned to think that everything comes in black and white. Conclusion Mary learned something new. She was able to acquire new facts. Her undestanding of a tomato was limited and so when she came out of her black-and-white room, her knowledge about a red tomato was upgraded. Before there was no color but now she can distinguish that in the phsycial realm, living and non-living things are imbued with color. This is a dramatic proof that learning is not limited to imbibing facts about an object or a phenomenon but it also requires the learner to experience it using the sense of smell, touch, sight, hearing, and taste. This essay on Mary’s Knowledge Acquisition was written and submitted by user Damar1 to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

We Ask Admissions Officers Whats the #1 Fact You Wish Applicants Knew

We Ask Admissions Officers What's the #1 Fact You Wish Applicants Knew SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips College admissions can be confusing, with a lot of contradictory information thrown around. It's hard to separate fact from fiction, which is frustrating since the stakes are high and you may not realize you made mistakes until it's far too late. In this exclusive article, we decided to consult university admissions officers and counselors around the country to break through the noise. We asked them a simple question: "What's the #1 fact you wish college applicants knew about admissions?" The results might surprise you. #1: We Want a Well-Rounded Class, Not Well-Rounded Students We've all heard the adage of schools liking well-rounded students, so many hopeful applicants try to do a little bit of everything at once. This might be a huge mistake. Jeannine Lalonde, Senior Assistant Dean of Admission at University of Virginia, tells us: The area that students seem to divert so much applicant time and energy away from more important things is the extracurricular section of the application.When I was in school, someone came up with the phrase "the well-rounded student" and I fear that term has become and albatross that hangs around everyone high school student's neck. They think there's a check list that we use as we read and we want to see leadership, athletics, community service, something creative, something academic, etc. They think that if they don't do everything, then they must be an expert in one thing. So either be a jack of all trades, or headed to the Olympics. The fact is that the philosophy at my school and many others has evolved. We're looking to build a well-rounded class. A well-rounded class has all kinds of students in it. Really, though, academics will always come first. So amount of community service will make an admission officer forget that a student didn't challenge themselves in high school. When I read a file, most of my time is spend analyzing the transcript, reading the recommendations, and reading essays. Extracurricular activities are...extra! #2: Demonstrate Your Character - Be Someone Colleges Want In Their Community Applications aren't just about your test results and achievements. Colleges want you to be someone they're comfortable accepting in their community. Your job is to demonstrate that you have the character to be this person. Carol Barash, former English professor and admissions counselor at U Michigan, Rutgers, and Douglass College, writes: The thing that matters mostthe one thing you can control in the admissions process and for the rest of your lifeis your character. When you show up, what can people count on you for? This is really what colleges want to know. Colleges are communities, and admissions officers are building diverse communities of individuals who will coalesce and work togetherin classrooms, dorm rooms, and across the broad range of activities that make up the college community. Use the college process to explore your character: what are your strengths, your passions, and especially your commitments? Once you have a sense of where you are going, look back into your life experience and uncover the stories that are connected to that place you are going. Where are the moments when you changed, grew or made a difference? Those defining moments are the cauldron of character; those are the moments you want to write about in your college admission and scholarship essays. #3: Use the Admissions Office to Your Advantage Admissions offices seem daunting - they can decide your fate and thousands of other students in a single stroke. But you should realize that the office is made up of people who care about the school and about their students. Jeff Knox, former Admissions Officer at University of Pittsburgh, advises: The average college admissions professional is young, usually in her 20s. Students tend to think admissions committees are made up of a bunch of older curmudgeons perusing their applications and essays over bifocals.Don’t be afraid to call or email the admissions offices. They are (almost always) super nice and helpful. In my experience, I deal with a lot of students stressing out over pretty simple questions that could easily be answered with a simple phone call. Especially because colleges have different policies and preferences and because student questions are often so specific, it’s important to go to the source with many questions. Rather than guessing or trying to figure it out on your own, just contact the admissions office directly. #4: Maximize the Effectiveness ofthe Supplemental Essay Private admissions counselor and Harvard PhD Robert Kohenbelieves that students underestimate the value of the supplemental essay. Treating this as an afterthought is a big mistake: Students dedicate so much time to perfecting their personal essay that they often forget to leave adequate time for the smaller, supplemental questions that most colleges ask on the application. These essays usually ask about why the student wants to attend a particular school. It's imperative that students both spend adequate time researching the college and fine-tuning these essays. The most common mistake students make is simply repeating generic information about the university: it's in a great city, its academics are spectacular, and the campus is beautiful to boot. Instead, students should write about specific details that align with their own interests and show they've done their homework. For example, does the university offer a particular type of student group unique to that school? Does it have a particular professor the student is interested in working with, or a special research institute that speaks to the student's academic interests? It's critical that students include these types of details in their supplemental essays in order to stand out from the crowd. What's Next? Is there a burning question you want answered by college admissions officers? We'll reach out to our network. Just leave a comment below about what you want us to ask. Want to excel on the SAT or ACT? Read our famous guides to scoring a perfect SAT score or a perfect ACT score. How good of an SAT/ACT score do you need to get into your target college? Calculate your target score for the SAT or the ACT. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Beauty and Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Beauty and Art - Essay Example The thing may not necessarily be beautiful, but the individual’s point of view is indeed, beautiful! On the other hand, culture is the general way of living of a nation which signifies its trends, traditions, norms, values, moral standards, ethics and common practices. Culture of a nation is essentially its identity. Different nations are identified by their individualistic cultures. Like the difference of their meanings, beauty and culture both have their own individualistic uses. It is hard to identify particular uses of beauty since it is required in everything. It is used everywhere. Crockery is made beautiful to increase its market value. Makeup is worn to look beautiful and presentable so that a woman can work. The fundamental use of culture is that it lends identity to the people who belong to that culture. Culture is used to benchmark ethical standards which can be used to compare an individual’s performance against. Owing to their common identity ingrained in t heir culture, people of one nation become united and a strong force.