An initial exploration into "How do we know what we know?". For the 101 experience, we will view the video
"What the Bleep do we know?" and then review it from a skeptical perspective. This movie presents a discussion of the nature of reality with a thin veneer of story to exemplify the concepts. Narrated by a number of well known, and less well known pundits, some of whom may actually know what they are talking about. See (this) Syllabus at: http://is.gd/Bafflegab This class begs for ongoing dialog, to join this activity go to: https://is.gd/PlatosCampfire
Bafflegab inspired by a Michael Shemer column in Scientific American, which also references "Truthiness", and quotes Harry Frankfurt who observed: "It is impossible for someone to lie unless he thinks he knows the truth." Shemer makes it a point that "skepticism is an approach to claims, not a position". Note that sometimes the critical first question is not "is this true", but "how would I decide?"
2017 4 Tuesdays: 3/28-4/18; 12:30-3:00 PM; Granite State College Concord, 25 Hall Street, Concord
2016 Fall: Manchester OLLI - (Mondays: 11/21-12/12 10:00 AM- Noon)
2+ Hour class sessions to permit the viewing of videos and discussion
- Week 1 (2 hrs) - View What the Bleep video
- A few Questions
- "What is the One Thing do you know for sure?"
- (corollary: how do you know it?)
- Imagine a robot transports (think Star Trek) into your living room and has the answers to all possible knowledge,
- it allows you one question: what do you ask?
- Week 2 - Some Rabbit-hole*, some discussion -- Science/Religion; scale; time/causation;
- powers of ten video (1977 9 minutes)
- double slit experiment
- Week 3 - Some Rabbit-hole, some discussion
- Entanglement, Superposition
- intention imprinting
- Water
- Week 4 - Some Rabbit-hole, some discussion
- Brain, peptides, emotions, plasticity
- flow, meditation, in-the-moment
- free will
- Flatland
* rabbit hole -- you can go to various level's of depth in the discussion of the topics arising in this class, so the "rabbit hole" (taken from the movie) reflects this digging into things deeper.
Relevant Resources:
- Movie: "What the Bleep do We Know!?" (2004) - Quantum Physics meets Meta Physics with a dose of spiritualism
- Institute of Noetic Studies: http://noetic.org/
- Emoto, Masaru; The Hidden Messages in Water (2004)
- Shermer, Michael; Editor The Skeptic magazine, and regular columnist in Scientific American
- Bruce, Alexandra; Beyond the Bleep: the Definitive Unauthorized Guide to What the Bleep Do We Know?; 2015 (The Disinformation Company, Ltd)
- Perciving reality: NPR Ted Radio Isaac Lidsky, and TED Talk "What Reality are you Creating for Yourself?"
- Donald Hoffman, recent neruoscientist, proposing a theory of consciousness that generates reality including quantum mechanics
- Closer to Truth PBS TV series and web site
- Weinbert, Harry; Levels of Knowing and Existence; Harper & Row, 1959
- Feynman, RIchard; The Meaning of It All; Perseus Book; 1998
- Browne, Keeley; Asking the Right Questions: a Guide to Critical Thinking; Pearson Edu; 1994-2007
- Rovelli, Carlo; Seven Brief Lessons on Physics; Riverhead Books; 2014
- Sagan, Carl; The Demon-Haunted World :Science as a Candle in the Dark; 1995
- Schumacher, Benjamin; Quantum Mechanics: The Physics of the Microscopic World; Great Courses video, The Teaching Company, 2009
- (a fairly non-mathematical introduction to quantum mechanics: history, concepts, characteristics and some implications)
- Shane Carrol, The Big Picture,
- Knight, J.Z.-- "the sole legal channel-er of the entity Ramtha"
- A Private Universe - Initial Video & project at Harvard Smithsonian -- explores student mis-understandings of science & how to overcome these
- FactCheck.org
- Selective attention, Daniel Simons (Additional examples)
- Double Slit Experiment
- Koch, Christof; God, Death and Francis Crick; Moth Radio Hour, 2016
- Bach, Richard; Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah (Downloadable PDF), 1989
- Adam Ruins Everything, an odd Comedy-Documentary "Tru"TV show that combines diverse experts to dispel various beliefs from sports and salaries to funeral homes.
- http://www.eternea.org - an online organization seeking to promote the common ground between science & spirituality
- founded by Eban Alexander, neurosurgon author of "Proof of Heaven" related to his experience in a coma, and subsequent transformation
- TED videos that keep comming up
Some interesting terms
- Notic - of or relating to mental activity or the intellect
- Gnosis - Greek noun for knowledge In mystic systems, gnosis generally signifies a spiritual knowledge or "religion of knowledge"- mystical enlightenment
- Shaman - synonyms: priest, therapist, healer, kahuna, - intermediary between the natural and supernatural -- "One who knows"
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