Assignment # 2
Alfredo Davila - EDCI 6304 – spring 2009 - Dr. Michael Sullivan
1. We look back to the roots of Western civilization to see the initial development of the
“mind body” dichotomy towards knowledge. Find the online version of Raphael’s, “The
school of Athens”. What is the significance of that portrait from the perspective of a student
in master’s course in learning and cognition?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/94/Sanzio_01.jpg
The School of Athens
Paint elaborated by Raphael in 1510 – 1511, currently located at the Stanze di Raphaello at the
Apostolic Palace in the Vatican.
This painting, according to different analysts and historians represents the rational investigation
of the truth. It includes most famous philosophers and sages of that time. The 2 main figures
represent the two biggest philosophers of that time Platon and Aristoteles (his student).
Philosophers have their book, Platon represent the knowledge of the Christian Theology or the
world of the ideas; and Aristoteles the Pagan Philosophy is more realistic, that’s why he points
to the ground with his finger. Experts say that this painting is trying to show harmony between
the pagan philosophy and Christian theology.
It’s very important for us as students, to understand, the meaning of this famous painting,
because that’s the way we should get our knowledge, no matter the source of the data. It is
more important the procedure or the “rational investigation” that should be supported in any
research.
2. Our western Culture, particularly our conception of science, uses the concept of the
“scientific method” as a foundational, philosophical approach. Who is Francis Bacon and how
his work entitled “Novum Organum” influence the concept of the “scientific method”?
www.listverse.com
Sir Francis Bacon
(1561-1626)
He was a Philosopher, born in England and practiced Parliamentarian Attorney General.
He wrote several philosophical works, where the most important part of those is: “The Novum
Organum” (the new Instrument or true directions concerning the interpretation of nature). It
was published in 1620, four years before he die.
How “The Novum Organum” influenced what we know as “scientific method”
He discards their ancient reliance on pure deductive reasoning, Bacon went so far and he
invented a scientific method based on observation and experience.
He imagined a new world of culture and leisure that could be gained by inquiry into the laws
and processes of nature.
Bacon’s scientific method consisted of three steps:



Purge your mind of prejudices—what Bacon called “superstition.”
Collect observations and experiences systematically.
Stop, survey what you have seen, and draw initial conclusions (the “first vintage”).
3. John Locke wrote a seminal essay entitled On Human Understanding. The phrase, “tabula
rasa” comes from this essay and is in direct opposition to the prevailing notion of the time,
“Cognito, ergo sum’ famously postulated by Descartes. How are these two expressions in
opposition? How does this dichotomy reflect Raphael’s portrayal in the School of Athens of
Plato and Aristotle?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/JohnLocke.png
John Locke
“Tabula rasa” John Locke (Blank slate) vs. “Cognito, ergo sum” – Descartes (I think, therefore I am)
Locke postulated that the mind was a "blank slate" or "tabula rasa"; that is, contrary to
Cartesian or Christian philosophy, Locke maintained that people are born without innate
ideas.
Descartes arrives at only a single principle (the opposite): thought exists. Thought cannot be
separated from me, therefore, I exist. Since we are born we have ideas and feelings.
How does this dichotomy reflect Raphael’s portrayal in the School of Athens of Plato and
Aristotle?
Basically we can say that John Locke agrees with the philosophy of Aristoteles (student of Platon), on the
other hand, Descartes as Christian Philosopher agrees with the ideas of Platon, who is more idealistic.
4. The scientific method is predicated upon theorizing and verifying the accuracy of the
theory being postulated. What value(s) does a theory have, generally speaking and for this
type of course in particular?
I think a theory in this course is a good beginning to try to understand how a human behaves or
to analyze how the person gets/develops knowledge. In my opinion, even if you can “proof” a
theory it could be very easy to find another hypothesis, completely opposite. Due to the
different behavioral depending on the variables like, the culture, the background, and the time
in which you live in.
Every human being has a different behavior, unique to their personality, this will continue to
change.
5. Who is Thomas Kuhn and what is a “paradigm shift”? How does that concept have any
bearing on this type of course?
www.enc.hu
1922-1996
American Intellectual, born in Cincinnati, Ohio.
He obtained his bachelor's degree in physics from Harvard University in 1943, his master's
degree in 1946, and PhD in physics in 1949.
His main book published in 1962: The Structure of Scientific Revolutions is where he defines the
“paradigm shift”.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/Duck-Rabbit_illusion.jpg
Duck or Rabbit?
He uses this painting to explain that there are always at least two points of view.
He mentioned that when a significant doubt occurs about a current paradigm, the scientific
discipline begins with problems to understand/explain an event or theory; so they end up in a
state of “crisis”. What happens is that NEW ideas come and the previous are discarded.
Eventually a new paradigm is formed and an intellectual battle is expected, each group
defending the old/new paradigm.
In my opinion it is very important for us to understand this phenomenon; in order to keep our
mind open to new opportunities, ideas and theories which could change our current paradigms.
Bonus points
www.philosophyprofessor.com
1905-1997
What is Hempel’s “nomological-deductive” model for science?
It is a model which provides a scientific explanation in natural language.
The model has 2 different components:
a) The explanadum: that which is to be explained
b) The explanans: that which explains “By the explanadum, we understand the sentence
describing the phenomenon to be explained (not that phenomenon itself); by the
explanans, the class of those sentences which are adduced to account for the
phenomenon.”
Can learning theory meet the standards of that model?
The learning theory attempts to describe how people and animals learn; thereby helping us
understand the inherently complex process of learning. In my opinion, I believe that the
learning theory meets the D-E model because they are both trying to explain or proof a
theory following a method/procedure. If we define “learning” as a process it focuses on what
happens when the learning takes place. Both models have the same objectives.
Can Newton’s model for planetary motion meet those standards?
Newton was able to make a mathematical model that encompassed both objects falling
because of gravity on Earth, and the motion of heavenly bodies in the skies.
I believe Newton’s model met the standards by the observation of natural events such as
gravity. He created mathematical formulas to explain natural facts.
Can theories in psychology and the “soft sciences” be labeled as sciences at all? Why or why not?
I believe it could be labeled as science because the theories in psychology try to explain human
behaviors, using observations as a tool, to proof a hypothesis. In general other sciences
including the “hard sciences” basically try to proof a hypothesis with mathematical formulas or
similar ways.
For project #2, you will be looking at learning activities in DE environments. Find the
online link to Keirsey’s please Understand Me Temperament sorter. Spend the 12 or
so bucks and take this form of online assessment, and you will be amazed at how well
you can quickly and easily find out some valuable insights into yourself (or better yet,
get your significant other to do so. It will be an eye opener). Does this type of tool
have a place in the business sector? Why or why not?
I did it (just the mini-report) and this is my result so far:
Custom Keirsey Temperament Report for: Alfredo Davila
Your Keirsey Temperament Sorter Results indicates that your personality type is that of the
I think this test could be a great tool to be used in the Human Resources Department as a
complementary tool to analyze an applicant, particularly for critical or sensitive positions.
AND FINALLY…
I’d like you to find out something about the following topics. The first goes back to the initial
Western attempts to actually quantify perception and involves the works of Ernst Weber and
Gustav Fechner. Both derived methodologies for quantifying perception, and replicating their
work would make an excellent science fair type exercise for 5-12th grades. Find out what these
two men did for this field.
it.wikipedia.org
Ernst Weber
www.nationmaster.com
Gustav Fechner
Around 1860 Weber worked with Gustav Fechner on psychophysics, during the time they
formulated the Weber's Law.
These two great scientists discovered a physical phenomenon which is resumed in this
mathematical formula.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/math/2/a/4/2a4138a40b364c97243be4802e9cd8a4.png
They conducted an experiment with people with their eyes blindfolded, to see their reaction
when they receive a physical stimulus (weigh for example), in summary they discover that:
Based in the experiment they did they concluded that if you are receiving increasing physical
stimulus the perception of that stimulus received, does not grow at the same rhythm, it is
always less.
Yes, I am agreeing it could be interesting and fun for kids in the 5th to 12th grades in order to
prove this by themselves.