Title 6: “Humans are pattern-seeking animals and we are adept at finding patterns whether they exist or not” (adapted from Michael Shermer). Discuss knowledge questions raised by this idea in two areas of knowledge. As innately curious creatures, mankind often discovers methods in order to better comprehend the world and their place within it. One of these ways is through the recognition of patterns throughout the material and psychological world. This recognition, and how it functions to form knowledge, is the stem for a myriad of fields whether it be mathematics or the arts and raises the central question: “What role does the recognition of patterns play in the acquisition of knowledge?” First and foremost, patterns are undeniably an …show more content…
This new information then becomes the basis for further information and can thus be applied to the natural world as observed with the discovery of patterns coinciding with numbers of the golden ratio and the Fibonacci sequence. This comes to exemplify that patterns discovered in mathematics are paramount to the acquisition of knowledge, but the discovery of patterns would not be possible without intuition, which then stems another question: “To what extent are patterns dependent on intuition?” To a large extent, patterns exist as a product of one 's intuition. The instinctive and primordial nature of man’s ability to recognize patterns predates time itself and has been utilized to not only make sense of the world, but to allow man to thrive within it. For example, when researching the topic of evolution in my Higher Level Biology class, I recall reading an article by Dr. Brigitte Jordan, an anthropologist, who discusses a theory surrounding evolution coinciding with the adaptation to man 's ability to recognize patterns as a means to not only decipher the dangers and resources found within the environment, but also to adapt to utilize cognitive social skills with other humans. This usage of system one intuition is the basis for the innate pattern recognition within man. Furthermore, pattern recognition has evolved immensely through time and has allowed man to further understand
phenomenon, known as pareidolia, is the idea that humans are prone to find patterns in chaos. Similarly, as curious creatures, we strive to develop a guide in a life of uncertainty. An inherent aspect of human nature is the desire to establish a purpose for every action and a creed for existence. In addition, we remind ourselves of the flaws that we must abstain from. Such reminders are often found in religions such as Christianity and Hinduism and dystopian literature. Ursula Le
“Research studies show that when students discover mathematical ideas and invent mathematical procedures, they have a stronger conceptual understanding of connections between mathematical ideas” (Grouws & Cebulla, as cited in Quinnell, 2010, p.35)
Patterns are also a key point in self-organizing systems and are found in both the development of artificial intelligence and the traumatized brain through classical conditioning. Classical conditioning is a learning process in which two stimuli become associated with each other, causing a neutral stimulus, which is a stimulus normally not perceived as noteworthy, to be conditioned to cause an involuntary response. In order for the learning system of the AI to form, a pattern must first be set for the program to follow and build off of. Once the pattern has been
First, an innate craving for understanding is an important trait unique to humans. It is remarkable that Homo sapiens take time to just try and figure things out. This is something that has been apparent throughout the entirety of humans’ existence, and still is today. We try to conceive a way to make tasks easier, and we understand that the only method by which this can be done is to first have a total understanding of the mechanics of things. This desire for comprehension is reflected in humans’ gradual exodus from Africa. The most popular theory is that humans left Africa solely because they were instinctively curious about what lies beyond the environment they have become accustomed to (NOVA, episode 2). Humans have
Have you ever noticed the patterns in nature? Leaves alternating on a branch, or the stripes or spots on an animal? Scientists always look at our world and try to figure out how things come to be. Turns out, a 12th century mathematician taught scientists about the patterns in nature, while also making history with his numerical theories.
An abundance of research has been made to try to understand human behavior is specific event. This paper is takes the traditional methods of research through observation, and the new evolution of adapting math to make sense of the studies (Wolf, 1978, p. 205). Wolf (1978) goes into detail on how explaining people’s behavior is not valid enough for a study, but instead using measurable methods to support the finding (p. 207). To strengthen his argument Wolf (1978) uses a variety of studies that show the flaws in studies that do not use mathematics to explain their findings (pp. 205-208). As Wolf (1978) begins to use the research that did use math to explain their finding, he points out the importance of using math to defend what the research has found on explaining human behavior (pp. 212-213). The argument that Wolf makes to explain the method of conducting research demonstrates the new
Being able to rely on one’s own capabilities and judgements or resources is called self reliance. Self reliance was a key attribute to obtain during the Transcendentalism time period. This period was a direct reaction of the Age of Reason. The Transcendentalist era lasted from about 1826 to 1860 and also ran as a part of the Age of Romance. During this time, the primary beliefs were that people understood that God and everything going on was in direct correlation with nature. Another popular belief was that everything was connected by an oversoul. Passages that demonstrate self reliance perfectly are Self Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson and Walden, or Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau. Although inferior to Walden, or Life
Each individual reacts to an innumerable number of things daily in often hard to predict ways. This indicates that each human is intelligent and is capable of thinking through reactions to problems in front of them, often even doing so subconsciously while working on multiple problems at a time. Even difficult issues, such as social interaction, seem to prompt intelligent, complex reactions. The level of complexity involved in these reactions clearly necessitates intelligence. Humans also showcase intelligence in their ability to create. Since prehistoric times, humans have been creating things all the time. Each human is capable of producing never before seen art, tools, and technology. Even creations which seem to simply reuse, like collages, require creativity and intelligence. Lethem says of this reuse that “The demarcation between various possible uses is beautifully graded and hard to define, the more so as artifacts distill into and repercuss the realm of culture…” (219). Even reuse with slight modification or art heavily influenced by other art, each one of Lethem’s “possible uses”, requires complexity and creativity and therefore intelligence. Humans can also assemble complex ideas from simple concepts, leading to innovation. In science and technology creators are constantly assembling many ideas in complex ways to create even more complex ideas. This understanding of and creation of complex ideas requires
“Ideally an activity will also illuminate a problem-solving strategy or several strategies, so that kids begin to see connections among apparently diverse branches of mathematics, as for example when they use parity to win a game, to prove that a process eventually terminates, to show that a certain tiling is impossible, and to help assemble a geometric
An example is the caterpillar example which they used to show how instinct’s are patterns. The caterpillars goes through several stages of creating their hammock but if the hammock is destroyed they will just go through the same steps but if a done hammock was switched in they would go from their last step. This I believe
Much of what humans learn is a result of exposure to models performing a behavior or skill. King (2014) refers to this as observational learning, which "occurs through observing and imitating others Behavior" (p. 183). This powerful method of learning is employed as early as infancy.
T., & Freberg, L. A. (2013). The science of mind: the discipline of psychology. In C. Crabtree (Ed.), Discovering psychology: The science of mind (pp. 32-33). Belmont, CA:
In the novel To kill a Mockingbird the black community is rather idealized but is not unrealistic or unbelievable. To point out, Harper Lee always emphasizes life from the black community's perspective and their good qualities.However,she also points out the bad qualities of the black community from a white person's perspective. In Maycomb, the black community is segregated from the white community. They are thought to be very less and poor in Maycomb. The author uses many derogatory words against the black community to express the hatred the whites had towards the blacks.
There are only a handful of people who can truly say that they have never lost control or succumbed to their own anger. The deceptive relationship between us and this specific emotion has proven to be detrimental to the development of our character. As the famous G.M. Trevelyan once said, “Anger is a momentary madness, so control your passion or it will control you”(Trevelyan 1). We can all come to a consensus that we become prey to our own anger. Because anger is a strong emotion, people often find themselves surrendering their will to it. Speaking from personal experience, anger is prone to consume a person unless tamed by one’s own rationality.
Another occupation where pattern recognition is needed is when someone is a detective because when a crime happen either being small or big they need to associate another moment when they have came upon the same type of situation. If a detective has apperceptive agnosia they would have a difficult time doing their job. They would only be able to see images of objects for example if a police officer stopped someone and they had something that somewhat looked like a gun they mistake it and draw their weapon that’s on them. If they had associative agnosia they would have more difficulty in naming objects they are told to name or categorizing which would cause difficulty for their job