PSYC1001 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Primitive Reflexes, Monism, Psycholinguistics
2 Jul 2018
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12/03/2018 How do we Gain Knowledge of the World?
Typical Exam Question: Why is neuro-imaging sometimes criticised as modern-day-
phrenology?
a) Gall & Spurzheim discovered neuro-imaging
b) Identifying highly specialised areas is nothing new
c) Identifying highly specialised areas doesn’t tell us much about how the brain works
d) Phrenology was wrong and so is neuro-imaging
The nature (most knowledge is present at birth) vs. nurture (you learn in your environment)
debate – these are extremes of a continuum
Noam Chomsky – “language is an innate faculty of the human mind” – nature argument, but
we have a language acquisition device that is innate
Adopted children still pick up language just as easy
There is a sensitive period/time span for language acquisition
William Molyneux asked to John Locke, “whether a man who has been born blind and who
has learnt to distinguish and name a globe and a cube by touch, would be able to distinguish
and name these objects simply by sight, once he had been enabled to see” – no, they have a
representation of touch but not sight, you need both!
You must build up a concept – e.g. hidden images (splotches)
Materialism: everything is tissue (reductionism). There is only the body, all reality is of a
physical nature. Only the body exists. The ‘mind’ can be explained/reduced to biology and
biochemical activity
A common materialist – Ludwig Feuerbach “You are what you eat”
Subjective idealism: the world only exists in my mind (mentalism). Reality only exists in the
mind. Without the mind, reality might not even exist (so the physical world would be
irrelevant)
A common immaterialist – Bishop George Berkeley “To be is to be perceived” (objects
cannot exist without being perceived)
Dualism: both mind and body exist, need to talk to each other (interactionism)
A common dualist – Descartes – the soul is unitary, and unlike many other structures in the
brain, the pineal gland was like that (this is wrong). It was close to the ventricles, the
cerebrospinal fluid delivered messages to the nerves that resulted in behaviour
Tabula Rasa = blank slate, is our brain empty? No knowledge, no ideas. We have to learn
everything! No conscious idea of anything
Aristotle had the idea of knowledge through ‘perception’
Plato had more of an idea of rationalism, it is not just passive registering but an act!
Perception actually doesn’t help to find ‘real’ knowledge about the world
All knowledge is delivered by our senses, so experience derived from perception, “nothing is
in the mind which was not first in the senses”- John Locke, similar ideas to Aristotle
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
The nature (most knowledge is present at birth) vs. nurture (you learn in your environment) debate these are extremes of a continuum. Noam chomsky language is an innate faculty of the human mind nature argument, but we have a language acquisition device that is innate. Adopted children still pick up language just as easy. There is a sensitive period/time span for language acquisition. You must build up a concept e. g. hidden images (splotches) There is only the body, all reality is of a physical nature. The mind" can be explained/reduced to biology and biochemical activity. A common materialist ludwig feuerbach you are what you eat . Subjective idealism: the world only exists in my mind (mentalism). Without the mind, reality might not even exist (so the physical world would be irrelevant) A common immaterialist bishop george berkeley to be is to be perceived (objects cannot exist without being perceived)
