Reality and the Philosophical Framing of the Truth | Dr. Stephen Hicks | EP 501

Coming up 0s

• Narratives are used to perceive reality, and they can be accurate or wildly off-base at times 0s.
• The concept of narratives is related to the idea of competition across time 12s.
• Narratives can be seen as tools, representing a state of our psychological conscious apparatus 22s.
• When used correctly, narratives are not obstacles or intermediaries, but rather a means to understand reality 19s.
• However, if narratives are flawed, they can become a problematic intermediary through which we try to perceive reality 38s.

Intro 39s

• Dr. Stephen Hicks, a philosopher with a stellar academic career and a good author, was interviewed about his contributions to Peterson Academy, an online university where he has taught five courses. 52s
• The discussion covered the structure of the courses and the rationale for studying philosophy, given Dr. Hicks' background as a professor and professional philosopher. 1m17s
• The importance of a philosophical education and the nature of the philosophical endeavor over the last 300-400 years were discussed, including the shift from modernism to postmodernism and the emerging new age. 1m33s
• The conversation aimed to encourage interest in philosophical education, suggesting that those who are not interested may be unconsciously influenced by skeptical philosophers. 1m56s
• Dr. Hicks was welcomed to the discussion, and he expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to participate. 2m13s

Lecturing for Peterson Academy 2m19s

• The Peterson Academy has been involved in creating lectures, with the goal of making philosophical education more accessible to a wider audience through better production values and new technologies 2m21s.
• The experience of lecturing for Peterson Academy is seen as an opportunity to experiment with new ways of teaching philosophy, making it more engaging and accessible to a broader audience 2m33s.
• The mission of Peterson Academy is understood as being highly entrepreneurial, aiming to revolutionize traditional and backward-minded education through the use of new technologies 3m18s.
• The next generation of good philosophy teaching is expected to be shaped by technological revolutions, allowing for more innovative and effective ways of learning 2m51s.
• Philosophical education is considered essential, as it helps individuals understand their beliefs, values, and the philosophical ideas that shape politics, economics, business, family, and religion 4m16s.
• The goal of philosophy is seen as a quest for coming to know true reality, with great philosophers such as John Locke, Francis Bacon, René Descartes, Karl Marx, and Friedrich Nietzsche having made significant contributions to shaping the modern world 4m59s.
• The Peterson Academy lectures aim to provide a more careful and nuanced approach to philosophical education, moving beyond abstract principles and general ideas 4m36s.
• The use of new technologies in education allows for the possibility of learning without the physical presence of a professor, making high-quality educational content more widely accessible 3m40s.

The giants of philosophy each shook the earth — learn why 5m16s

• Modern philosophy and postmodern philosophy have been the focus of two courses, covering the last 500 years, which has been a period of extraordinary revolution in philosophy, religion, science, and other areas 5m18s.
• The modern era began with giants such as René Descartes, Francis Bacon, and John Locke, who laid a new foundation and overturned medieval philosophy, transforming intellectual and cultural frameworks in the 1500s and 1600s 6m27s.
• A course on modern philosophy covers the period from 1500 to 1900, integrating philosophers with historical events, as they either made historical revolutions happen or responded to cultural and historical changes 7m3s.
• Postmodern philosophy, on the other hand, started to react against the modern era, with thinkers radicalizing or wanting to overturn what had occurred intellectually and culturally, leading to a more skeptical and relativized perspective 7m41s.
• Postmodern thinkers, such as Bertrand Russell, John Dewey, and Martin Heidegger, set the stage for this shift, culminating in thinkers like Michel Foucault and Jacques Derrida, who argued that philosophy had become impotent and should disintegrate 8m47s.
• However, some philosophers believe that earlier traditions, such as premodern or religious traditions, still have value and can be repackaged for the postmodern era, while others think the Enlightenment project has been a success and can be continued with tweaks 9m31s.
• Thinkers like Karl Popper, Ayn Rand, and Philip Foot are examples of those who carry on the modern Enlightenment tradition and are not as skeptical as postmodern thinkers 9m57s.
• The intellectual landscape of our time is characterized as a three-way debate between moderns, premoderns, and postmoderns, with self-conscious and articulate representatives of all traditions operating in our generation 10m19s.
• This debate is seen as a positive development, as we have never lived in better times philosophically, with a wide range of perspectives and traditions available 10m30s.

The case for philosophy on the practical level 10m54s

• It is essential for everyone to understand the nuances of great thinkers and philosophers, regardless of whether philosophy can address life's larger questions, as the thoughts people think are theirs are often actually those of others 10m55s.
• Studying history and philosophy can help individuals avoid repeating catastrophic elements of the past and understand why they think the way they do, as well as the consequences of those thoughts 11m41s.
• Great philosophers have shaped the conceptual and perceptual universe people live in, influencing the way they see the world, and not understanding this can make individuals puppets of forces beyond their comprehension 12m15s.
• Even active-minded people can benefit from realizing that smart individuals have thought of and integrated ideas before them, and learning from philosophers can accelerate their process of thinking through issues 13m1s.
• Not thinking about philosophical ideas can lead to being unconsciously guided in certain directions, similar to how infrastructure systems can guide people's actions without them realizing it 13m32s.
• Recognizing the influence of philosophical ideas and infrastructure systems can help individuals step back, think critically, and make improvements to these systems 14m2s.

Narrative, weighting facts, and how various philosophies reconcile perception versus reality 14m24s

• A philosophical and possibly theological revolution is on the horizon, partly due to postmodernists identifying flaws in Enlightenment thinking 14m56s.
• Postmodernists insist that people inevitably see the world through a story, and this concept has been explored with the help of large language models 15m21s.
• The rationalist presumption is that people see the world through a framework, while the empiricist presumption is that knowledge is derived from self-evident facts in the domain of perception 15m40s.
• However, the nature of the rationalist framework is not precisely specified, and it is unclear if there is a level of self-evident fact, with scientific data indicating that perception cannot be separated from motivation and action 15m59s.
• The idea that there is no base level of sense data could lead to a nihilistic or relativistic morass, but this is not considered a tenable solution 16m36s.
• Large language models establish a weighting system between conceptions, associating words, phrases, and sentences with each other at certain levels of probability 17m1s.
• These models have mapped out the weight of data points, showing that even with multiple facts at hand, they must be weighted to guide perception or action 17m36s.
• A story is considered a description of the structure used to weight facts, and this does not mean that perceptions have no structure or that everything is subjective 18m14s.
• The concept of reality and how we perceive it is complex, with different philosophical perspectives such as empiricism and rationalism offering varying explanations 18m33s.
• Empiricists believe that knowledge comes from sense experience, while behaviorists argue that there is a stimulus and an automatic response 18m35s.
• The idea that we see the world through a story is also proposed, with biblical stories being a fundamental rock upon which true civilization is built 18m52s.
• The postmodern and Neo-Marxist perspectives view stories as a means of exerting power, which can be a dangerous narrative 19m8s.
• The scientific project involves analyzing and sorting out various elements to understand reality, but this process is not without its problems 19m41s.
• Traditional empiricism and rationalism have had their own set of problems, and it is challenging to accept that all elements can be sorted out post-analysis 19m56s.
• Defending empiricism, the example of smacking a table is given, which provides sense data without any motivational set or story in mind 20m34s.
• The empiricist commitment is to acknowledge that there are direct experiences, such as the table-smacking, that provide a residual contact with empirical reality 21m8s.
• However, even in laboratory settings, language becomes crucial in describing these experiences, and care must be taken to avoid subjectivism 21m32s.
• In epistemology, subjectivism refers to the idea that the terms for knowledge or belief are set by the subject, regardless of external reality 22m0s.
• The opposite position is a revelatory model, where the subject has no role, and reality is imposed upon them 22m10s.
• A proper starting point for any good epistemology is understanding consciousness as a response mechanism to reality, which is an inherently relational phenomenon that always involves talking about reality and the conscious response to it 22m29s.
• Many philosophies struggle with the involvement of the subject in understanding reality, often retreating to representationalist models or focusing on internal motivations and theory-laden beliefs, which creates a divide that makes it difficult to get back to reality 22m52s.
• On the other hand, trying to erase the subject or pretend it doesn't exist is also an impossible model, as it would require turning the subject into a perfect mirror that reflects reality without any influence 23m27s.
• The empiricist commitment is to argue that there is a residual, base-level contact with reality that can serve as the basis for knowledge, and this claim must work with an understanding of philosophy of mind, neuroscience, and psychology 24m19s.
• Consciousness should be seen as a relational phenomenon, not a pre-existing entity that makes up its own nature, but rather a response mechanism to reality 25m3s.
• The empiricist project is to work out a strong account of sense perception and the relationship between the mind, body, and reality, which is an ongoing project that has been struggled with historically 23m47s.
• Postmodernism is seen as the end result of teasing out the weaknesses in early modern empiricist models, which had weak accounts of sense perception 24m4s.
• A good epistemology must consider the relationship between the mind, body, and reality, and cannot be done entirely in abstraction from neuroscience, psychology, and philosophy of mind 24m40s.

Epistemology (the theory of knowledge), how you know that you really know something 25m24s

• Epistemology is the theory of knowledge that aims to figure out when one really knows something, and it has dominated modern philosophy, psychology, and the scientific project 25m25s.
• Epistemology involves giving an account or explanation of knowledge, derived from the Greek word "epistem," and it seeks to distinguish between imagination, fantasy, perception, falsehood, and other forms of beliefs 25m42s.
• The main concern of epistemology is to determine the standards for good knowledge, which requires self-conscious reflection on sense perception, language, grammar, logic, and the role of narrative in informing us about the world 26m5s.
• Developing a proper epistemological framework involves understanding the place of narrative in informing us and learning about the world through stories, as well as recognizing when one should say they don't really know something 26m25s.
• Epistemology is a systematic approach to understanding knowledge, and it involves thinking through various aspects of knowledge acquisition and validation 26m31s.

You cannot do epistemology in isolation, you need metaphysics 26m35s

• The language of empiricism, rationalism, synthesis, and skepticism is epistemological, but it cannot be discussed in isolation without considering metaphysics, which deals with the nature of reality and what exists 26m37s.
• To make a claim about reality, one must also justify that claim, which involves both metaphysics and epistemology, as reality is the subject of the claim, and epistemology is the justification for knowing that claim 27m16s.
• Metaphysics involves studying the universe as a whole, including questions about space, time, eternity, infinity, and the existence of God, which are distinct from the special sciences like physics, chemistry, and biology 27m34s.
• All discussions about sense perception, concept formation, grammar, logic, stories, and statistics must be grounded in a philosophy of mind, which considers the nature of the mind and its relationship to the body 28m8s.
• The understanding of the human being, particularly the relationship between the body and the soul or spiritual element, has significant implications for epistemology, as it shapes how one thinks about knowledge and reality 28m26s.
• A dualistic understanding of the human being, which posits the existence of a physical body and a non-physical soul, raises questions about how these two entities interact and fit together, which has implications for both metaphysics and epistemology 28m34s.
• The metaphysical understanding of the human being influences epistemological theories, such as empiricism, which must account for how the physical world interacts with the non-physical mind or soul 29m12s.
• The inability to bridge the metaphysical gap between the physical and spiritual realms can lead to epistemological problems, which may have contributed to the development of postmodernism 29m56s.
• The Mind-Body problem, which questions how non-physical realities or ideas relate to the physical world, has been a long-standing issue in philosophy, with various approaches leading to dead ends 30m26s.
• Professional Psychology emerged in the late 1800s, with early Freudians and behaviorists attempting to study the mind scientifically, reacting against the idea that the mind was an extra-natural entity that didn't fit into nature 31m7s.
• The early psychologists were influenced by Darwin's naturalistic understanding of humans, viewing the mind as an emergent phenomenon rather than a ghost in the machine 31m52s.
• The 4ans and behaviorists, despite being considered disasters in some ways, marked the beginning of a more naturalistic approach to studying the human being, integrating it into the natural world 32m30s.
• Psychology, as a relatively new science, has made progress in the past century, but its findings need to be integrated with newer and better epistemology, combining the best from empiricist and rationalist traditions 33m12s.
• A thoroughgoing skeptic approach is not warranted, as the study of the mind and human behavior is an ongoing scientific project, with many fundamental questions still unasked 33m45s.
• Organizations like Pre-born Ministry are making a difference in critical societal moments, such as providing clarity and support to mothers facing decisions about their unborn children through free ultrasounds and other services 33m56s.
• Receiving an ultrasound and witnessing a child's development firsthand has a remarkable impact on mothers, with the majority choosing life after the experience 34m25s.
• Providing women with necessary information enables them to make truly informed decisions about their choices 34m32s.
• A donation of $28 can provide one ultrasound, and 140 sponsors can support five ultrasounds 34m35s.
• Through a special matching campaign, contributions will be doubled, potentially helping more mothers and unborn children 34m42s.
• To support this work, donations can be made by dialing #250 and saying the keyword "baby" or by visiting preborn.org 34m52s.
• Pre-born maintains a four-star charity rating, and all gifts are tax deductible 35m0s.

The hierarchy of neurological responses: perception, stimuli, and response 35m9s

• The Peterson Academy aims to integrate various fields of study, with John Vervaeke being at the forefront of this effort on the psychological and neuroscience side 35m10s.
• The process of perceiving, evaluating, thinking, and acting is not a linear causal chain, but rather a complex hierarchy of neurological responses that operate simultaneously 35m56s.
• When responding to a primary stimulus, such as a loud noise, the nervous system detects a patterned waveform that propagates through the air and is assessed simultaneously by multiple levels of the nervous system 36m19s.
• The most primary level of response is spinal, with few connections between the auditory system and the spinal response system, which can lead to a startle reflex in response to unexpected stimuli 37m46s.
• The startle reflex is a preconscious and pre-emotional response to a perceived threat, such as a predator, and is triggered by an auditory signal mapping onto the spinal cord 38m14s.
• This reflex is faster than the time it takes for the signal to propagate to the emotions, allowing for a rapid response to potential threats, such as a snake, before the brain has time to fully process the information 38m33s.
• The peripheral vision detectors in the bottom part of the visual field are more sensitive to detecting snakes, allowing for a quicker response to potential threats 38m53s.
• The startle reflex is an example of how the nervous system can respond to stimuli before conscious awareness, highlighting the complex and multifaceted nature of human perception and response 38m27s.
• Humans have a fast response system, although not as fast as cats, which allows them to often escape from snakes, and this first response is almost entirely reflexive, discovered by early behaviorists as a stimulus-response system with a one-to-one mapping of sensory patterns onto behavioral output with very few neural interconnections 39m37s.
• This reflexive response system has the disadvantage of being a rather fixed response pattern but the advantage of being super fast, and it propagates up to the auditory cortex or visual cortex, which can be dissociable, as seen in people with the condition called Blindside 40m19s.
• People with Blindside cannot see but can still respond well to visual stimuli, such as guessing which hand is up with more than 90% accuracy, due to their visual cortex being damaged but not their retina, and they still have kinetic perception with their eyes 40m24s.
• The visual pathways into the brain are still intact, but not the one that mediates conscious vision, which is dependent on the visual cortex, and people with Blindside can still read off body positions and respond differentially to emotional faces, even though they don't know they're seeing them 40m48s.
• When a person hears or sees something, the pattern is being assessed at multiple levels of a very complex hierarchy, and it's not just bottom-up because the hierarchy also feeds backwards, allowing for complex processing and interpretation of sensory information 41m47s.

Most of what you see is memory, neural-plasticity when training for reward 41m59s

• Most of what adults see is memory, with sensory input serving as a hint to pull up the relevant memory, which is a faster process than raw perception 42m0s.
• When people see something for the first time, it has a "numinous glow of novelty" that is complex and difficult to process, but as they become accustomed to it, they build an internal mental model and replace the perception with memory 42m9s.
• The memory that people see is only a fractional meaning of the phenomena relevant to their past encounters, which can "take the magic out of the world" as raw perception is replaced with memory 42m32s.
• The reason for the "novelty kick" is that people experience a difference between raw perception and memory, which can be influenced by prior knowledge and expectations 42m53s.
• Even straightforward demonstrations can be experienced differently by individuals due to their unique knowledge, expectations, and context 43m9s.
• It is challenging to establish the independence of raw sense data and interpretation, as knowledge and expectations can influence how people perceive the world 43m47s.
• Dogs can be trained to associate electric shocks with positive emotions if paired with food rewards, demonstrating that the interpretation of sense data can be influenced by prior associations 44m2s.
• Animals, including rats and horses, can also deliver electric shocks to themselves due to boredom or other factors, highlighting the complexity of interpretation and behavior 45m0s.
• Humans also engage in self-destructive behaviors, and it is difficult to specify a level of analysis where there isn't an interpretive framework simultaneously active as raw sense data is perceived 45m16s.
• Interpretations are often nested in a hierarchy of interpretations, making it challenging to determine the relationship between raw sense data and interpretation 45m52s.

Empiricism and truth claims, evolving automated and emotional responses 46m2s

• The discussion revolves around the philosophical framing of truth, particularly in the context of postmodernism and empiricism, with the goal of understanding reality and our relationship with it 46m3s.
• Empiricism is seen as an ongoing project that acknowledges our initial understanding of reality is limited, but through continuous learning and improvement, we can gain a better understanding of the world 46m20s.
• Early empiricists had crude understandings of complex concepts like memory, reflex, emotions, and perception, which led to faulty theories and the perception that empiricism is a failed project 46m41s.
• However, this does not mean empiricism is inherently flawed, but rather it is an ongoing process of refinement and improvement 47m17s.
• Our understanding of reality is based on realist claims, where we acknowledge the existence of external events, such as a slap, and the structured energy patterns that our senses respond to 47m30s.
• The process of perception involves causal processes within the human physiological system, including feedback loops and parallel operations 47m54s.
• A minimal empiricist perspective insists that there is a reality with patterns that we are not making up, and our sensory receptors respond to these patterns without imposing them on reality 48m10s.
• The example of the nose responding to chemical structures in reality illustrates how our senses can detect patterns without imposing a pre-existing theory on them 48m50s.
• The distinction between imposing a structure on an unstructured reality versus having latent reception structures that respond to existing patterns is crucial in understanding the empiricist perspective 49m21s.
• Philosophy plays a crucial role in articulating the complexities of our background sets and how they influence our understanding of reality 49m57s.
• Human beings possess various capacities, including reason, emotions, memory, and physiological processes, which work together to articulate their main faculties, and philosophers should collaborate with neuroscientists and psychologists to better understand the mind 50m2s.
• Early modern philosophers attempted to develop philosophies of mind and epistemology without sufficient knowledge of neuroscience and psychology, resulting in failed experiments and theories 50m30s.
• A better understanding of the mind can be achieved by recognizing the importance of virtues, such as automated physiological responses to sensory stimuli, rather than viewing them as vices 51m25s.
• Emotions play a positive role in human psychology, particularly in evaluative structures, and should not be seen as the enemy of reason, but rather as a valuable tool that can be used effectively or ineffectively 52m2s.
• Some psychologists argue that human emotional and motivational systems are no longer adapted to the modern world due to evolution on the African plains, which echoes the rationalist argument that emotions are the enemy of reason 53m21s.
• Emotions are sophisticated, low-resolution, and quick, enabling humans to evaluate situations when there is insufficient information for thought, and they are not necessarily in conflict with reason 53m51s.
• Human endeavors have their pitfalls and limitations, as nothing human is omniscient, leading to inevitable errors 54m10s.
• The idea of a fundamental conflict between the emotional, ID, and ego is a misunderstanding of the integrated nature of the nervous system, rooted in a variant of psychoanalytic theory 54m25s.
• This misunderstanding arises from a flawed comprehension of how the nervous system functions as a unified entity 54m30s.

Levels of competing abstractions, memes, and feedback loops 54m34s

• A proposition is presented that builds upon meme theory, considering that abstractions compete across historical and evolutionary times, with the idea that sensory input is interpreted within a hierarchical framework of levels of abstraction that rise to ineffability 54m58s.
• This hierarchical framework is full of feedback loops, and variant forms of upper-level hierarchies compete across time, with the more successful ones becoming instantiated physiologically through a Baldwin effect selection mechanism 55m54s.
• Emotions are seen as higher-order interpretive structures that produce the best reproductive outcomes across time, becoming automated at an instinctual level, with humans sharing similar emotions such as anger, fear, and joy 56m25s.
• The domain of iterable and playable games is introduced, where a variety of interpretive frameworks are laid upon basic sensory data, but only a small subset has the capacity for sustainable improvement 56m49s.
• This concept is applied to the context of a marital relationship, where a large number of ways can lead to failure, but only a constrained number of ways can lead to success, requiring micro and macro routines to be voluntarily accepted by both partners 57m14s.
• The idea is extended to optimized contractual relationships, where the number of variants for successful treatment of each other is low, and there is a small number of voluntary, playable games that are iterable across large spans of time and improve as they are played 58m11s.
• An evolutionary pressure is proposed to exist on the domains of possible philosophy, filling up a space that reflects an empirical reality, but not the reality associated with basic sense data 58m32s.
• The existence of a finite number of complex games that are voluntary, playable, and improve is seen as a fact that explains the emergence of patterns of ethics in many different cultures, even independently 58m50s.
• This idea is used to argue against radical relativism, suggesting that the philosophical space is not relativistic, as there is a finite number of interpretive frameworks with productive staying power, reflecting the structure of reality 59m19s.
• The proposition aims to mediate between the postmodern claim that we see the world through a narrative and the idea that the stories themselves are constrained by empirical reality, even if they do not correspond to it 59m42s.

Challenging Dr. Peterson’s notion of seeing reality through a narrative 1h0m11s

• The concept of reality is rich and complex, and the idea that we see reality through a narrative is a formulation that is not entirely accurate 1h0m11s.
• This notion implies that there is a "we" or "me," a narrative, and then reality, suggesting that the narrative acts as a screen or obstacle to understanding reality 1h0m40s.
• The narrative is also seen as having a huge amount of background expectations, theories, and slippery terms built into it, which can affect our understanding of reality 1h0m58s.
• A more accurate way to view narratives is as tools that we use to see reality, but only if the narrative is true; sometimes narratives can accurately represent reality, while other times they can be wildly off-base 1h1m10s.
• Narratives can be seen as a state of our psychological conscious apparatus when we are relating to reality, and if we get it right, it can be a useful tool, but if we mess it up, it can become an obstacle to understanding reality 1h1m41s.
• The postmoderns may be on board with the idea that we see reality through a narrative, but this formulation can be problematic and even dangerous 1h0m35s.

Objecting to the objection: intellectual discussion at its finest 1h1m58s

• A narrative is described as the structure through which we see the world, and it is not a narrative until it is told or described, which raises concerns about dropping reality out of the picture 1h2m12s.
• The postmodern formulation of seeing the world through a narrative can be problematic as it may lead to reality being dropped out of the equation, leaving only the text or narrative 1h2m44s.
• A possible solution to this problem is to consider a Darwinian competition between narrative structures, where the most functional narratives are prioritized, and this could be addressed through the concept of reproductive functionality 1h2m54s.
• The idea of a narrative being a description is relevant, and it can be illustrated through the example of wolves perceiving and distinguishing the rank order of their pack, which is implicit in their perception and can be described as a story 1h3m12s.
• Certain facts present themselves to us and are heavily weighted, evoking an emotional response, and these facts have a biological and cultural element, but they are not a story until they are described 1h3m57s.
• The scientist studying the wolves is constructing a story about the patterns of behavior and perception in the wolves, which is mediated through stories 1h4m23s.
• Human beings are good at taking on the value structure of others, such as when watching a movie, and inferring their priorities and perceptual structure 1h4m42s.
• The way we prioritize our attention and action can be seen as a screen that brings some facts to light and makes others irrelevant, and this is dependent on our values and patterns of attention 1h5m15s.
• The concept of a screen is not exact, but it highlights the problem of some things being central to our perception and others being peripheral, which is dependent on our values and patterns of attention 1h6m11s.

Rebuttal and clarification: a state of focus rather than a screen 1h6m27s

• There are two kinds of examples being discussed: one where humans put themselves in another person's shoes and read the world, and the other related to perceptual cases where focus is involved 1h6m27s.
• The process of reading people is highly fallible and may involve learned behaviors, with possible sex and gender differences in interpersonal perception 1h6m59s.
• Despite being good at reading people, there is still a need to epistemologically unpack what makes humans good at it, which would be a sophisticated story 1h7m37s.
• In perceptual cases, focusing on one thing causes everything else to pale by comparison, which is a metaphorical expression 1h8m8s.
• Instead of using the metaphor of a screen, it's preferable to use the language of focus and unfocus, and describe the states of focus and unfocus 1h8m27s.
• A better metaphor for the process of attending to some things and not others would be to say filter, but even that is different from the issue of focus and unfocus 1h8m59s.
• The issue of focus and unfocus is not the same as using a filter, and it's essential to understand the distinction 1h9m13s.

The Tabernacle as a model of perception, spheres of resolution 1h10m11s

• The Tabernacle in the Old Testament is proposed as a model of perception, with the Ark of the Covenant at its center, representing a sacred and fundamental point of focus 1h10m40s.
• The Tabernacle's structure, with multiple veils surrounding the center, is seen as analogous to the way perception works, with a high-resolution center and decreasing resolution towards the periphery 1h11m3s.
• The visual system is used as an example, where the center of vision is connected to 10,000 neurons, and each of those is associated with 10,000 more, resulting in high-resolution vision at the center, but decreasing resolution towards the periphery 1h12m5s.
• The high cost of processing high-resolution vision means that the brain prioritizes movement in the periphery, assuming that if something isn't moving, it's not worth paying attention to 1h13m55s.
• The Tabernacle model is seen as a more accurate representation of perception than the screen or filter metaphors, as it captures the gradation of resolution and the prioritization of movement in the periphery 1h14m37s.
• The veils in the Tabernacle model represent the way peripheral perceptions are "veiled" or less intense than central perceptions, with the veils being graduated to reflect the decreasing resolution towards the periphery 1h15m5s.

Focusing on the field, survival versus task orientation 1h15m31s

• When navigating an unfamiliar and potentially dangerous environment, one's perception shifts to take in as much information as possible, similar to a magnetic or electric field, where the focus is not on a single point but rather the entire surroundings 1h15m34s.
• This perceptual mode is different from the one used in familiar territory, where the focus is on a central point and the periphery is deprioritized, as seen in the structure of the Tabernacle 1h16m55s.
• In unexplored territory, the perceptual mode is more akin to a "predator eye" or a "prey eye," where the focus is on scanning the surroundings and amplifying input from the periphery, rather than focusing on a single point 1h17m8s.
• This dichotomy in perceptual modes maps onto the hemispheres of the brain, with the left hemisphere responsible for focal perception and the right hemisphere responsible for peripheral perception 1h17m36s.
• The left hemisphere is detail-oriented and prioritizes the center, while the right hemisphere is more holistic and prioritizes the periphery 1h17m45s.
• This difference in perceptual modes is thought to be an evolutionary adaptation, with the "eat or be eaten" principle driving the development of separate perceptual systems for predator and prey 1h17m56s.
• The act of taking possession of a territory, such as driving a stake into the ground, establishes a center with a set of peripheries and a sense of security, which is associated with a particular kind of perception 1h18m23s.
• The "Tabernacle style" of perception is associated with explored territory and a sense of order, where the things one wants to happen are happening, whereas the "danger" or "unexplained" perceptual mode is associated with unexplored territory and a sense of chaos 1h18m51s.
• In the latter mode, there is less filtering and less specification of center, as one is on high alert and does not know what is important 1h19m19s.

The orienting reflex, object perception pertaining to use 1h19m42s

• The relationship between reality and perception is complex, and even if we acknowledge direct awareness of reality, the distinction between automatic and controlled processes is crucial, as seen in the example of an artist focusing on a task and being interrupted by a child's scream 1h19m42s.
• The orienting reflex, a concept developed by Russian researchers such as Sakov and Vinogradova, describes the automatic response to a stimulus that distracts from a goal, involving a hierarchy of gradated responses 1h20m27s.
• However, even instinctual responses can be modified by higher-order brain centers, as demonstrated by the example of an artist choosing to ignore a child's scream despite registering it, showing the malleability of responses 1h21m0s.
• The primary visual cortex is not a primary level of perception without top-down modification, as it is innervated by multiple higher-order brain centers, and even the perception of objects is influenced by the actions associated with them 1h21m32s.
• When looking at an object, such as a pen, the visual pattern is represented on the retina and propagated along the nerves, branching out to the motor cortex, where the action associated with the object is directly disinhibited, making perception closely tied to action 1h21m52s.
• This means that objects are not seen as mere objects, but as tools and obstacles defined in relation to goals, and the interpretation of these objects can be modified by the social landscape and goals 1h22m44s.
• Even the perception of a child's distress cry can be modified by the goal and social context, such as the probability of the cry being false or manipulative, demonstrating the complex interplay between perception, goals, and interpretation 1h23m0s.
• The concept of perception and reality is complex, and as sophisticated cognizers, humans have a built-in use function when perceiving the world, which includes the action embodied in that use, often without conscious realization 1h24m12s.
• This built-in use function and action can be attributed to a combination of physiological and psychological systems, with some aspects present at birth and others learned through experience 1h24m44s.
• The extent to which humans are born with a precognized understanding of objects and their uses is unclear, but it is likely that humans have a certain physiological and conceptual structure that allows for flexibility and adaptability in different environmental circumstances 1h25m15s.
• This flexibility enables humans to conceive of objects with various intrinsic properties as potential tools, allowing for creative problem-solving and adaptation 1h25m28s.
• The relationship between perception, reality, and the human ability to use objects as tools is influenced by a complex interplay of innate and learned factors, which are not yet fully understood 1h24m38s.

How couples become attuned to each other’s voices, focusing on a chosen center 1h25m33s

• Couples learn to be attuned to each other's voices and the sound of their own voice, allowing them to pick out their partner's voice in a loud environment, such as a party, even when separated across the room 1h25m41s.
• This ability to focus on a specific voice or conversation is also demonstrated in a bustling restaurant, where one can tune themselves to hear the person they're sitting beside, prioritize a nearby conversation, or focus on their own thoughts 1h26m27s.
• This process involves the imposition of a structure, similar to a Tabernacle, on the multitude of potential interpretations, allowing individuals to prioritize one conversation or voice over others 1h26m51s.
• Paying attention to something means prioritizing it, making it the center of focus, and relegating everything else to the periphery 1h27m8s.
• With practice, individuals can learn to automatically prioritize certain things, such as reading words, which becomes an automated process for literate people 1h27m20s.
• The ability to focus on a chosen center is contrasted with the postmodernist view, which highlights the infinite number of potential interpretations, but ultimately, individuals must prioritize one interpretation over others 1h26m56s.

How postmodernists warp interpretation into subjectivity 1h27m34s

• Postmodernists take the strengths of human consciousness, such as the ability to automate tasks, detect various things, and focus on specific aspects, and turn them into negatives, viewing them as vices rather than virtues 1h27m35s.
• According to postmodernists, an interpretation becomes something that is necessarily subjective due to their negative epistemological theory, implying that reality cannot be known without interpretation 1h27m51s.
• Postmodernists believe that to be aware of reality without interpretation, one would have to not have any interpretations at all, and that reality would have to "stamp itself" on the mind without any intermediary actions 1h28m11s.
• Postmodernists acknowledge that prioritizing certain aspects over others in one's visual field is a value judgment, but they also believe that values are subjective and have nothing to do with objective reality 1h28m26s.
• Postmodernists view cognition and evaluation as being in the realm of subjective territory, making words like "value" and "interpretation" negative 1h28m51s.
• Philosophers have a role to play in addressing the issue of subjective interpretation by examining the language used at the foundations of cognition, including metaphors such as screens, filters, and visual fields 1h29m5s.
• If the foundations of cognition are not corrected, it can lead to a flawed understanding of reality 1h29m20s.

Postmodernist rhetoric and the weakness of power claims, “it’s a confession rather than a description” 1h29m30s

• Postmodernists claim that there is no uniting meta-narrative, but this assertion is considered specious, as narratives are present at every level of analysis, and it is unclear where the uniting ends 1h29m36s.
• Postmodernists also propose that the narratives people use are predicated on power, which is a reflection of the subjective, and that the world is a battleground between different claims of power 1h29m59s.
• However, this perspective is considered a confession rather than a description, and power games are not iterable, productive, or improving across time, making them self-defeating and unsustainable 1h30m25s.
• The example of chimpanzees is given, where alpha chimps who use power have short reigns, fractious communities, and are likely to suffer premature violent deaths, whereas stable alphas are reciprocal and make lasting friendships 1h31m12s.
• In contrast, postmodernists' use of the word "power" is seen as turning a virtue into a vice, as power properly conceived could be coextensive with the ability to get things done and augment cognitive powers 1h32m17s.
• Postmodernists' skepticism towards epistemology is rooted in their graduate and doctoral level work in philosophy, which was heavily influenced by the skeptical phase of philosophy in the mid-20th century 1h32m58s.
• The big-name postmodernists, such as Derrida, Lyotard, and Foucault, all have PhDs in philosophy and were trained in epistemology, which became the foundation of their work 1h33m1s.
• The collapse of revealing theories and paradigms in the mid-20th century led to a skeptical phase in philosophy, which influenced the postmodernists' views on human knowledge and the world 1h33m30s.
• The devaluation of human cognitive abilities can lead to a regression in societal and evolutionary terms, making humans more similar to chimps or baboons, with a focus on power dynamics and social hierarchy rather than reason and logic 1h33m43s.
• The importance of cognitive issues in psychology and philosophy is highlighted, as understanding human cognition can help individuals and societies work towards positive outcomes and avoid regression 1h34m20s.
• The postmodernist perspective is discussed, where the abandonment of human cognitive power as a positive force leads to a focus on social relationships and power dynamics, rather than individual understanding of reality 1h35m2s.
• Without the idea that human cognition can understand reality, postmodernists may adopt a perspective where reality is either made up by individuals or determined by environmental and social factors 1h36m0s.
• This perspective leads to a focus on social relationships and power dynamics, with an emphasis on social constructionism and the understanding of power as a zero-sum game, rather than a positive sum 1h37m6s.
• The concept of positive sum power, where individuals can work together to achieve better outcomes, is dependent on the understanding that humans can figure out how the world works through science and technology 1h37m21s.
• Empowering ourselves through better nutrition can make our bodies more powerful, and understanding each other as rational individuals can lead to positive social interactions 1h37m31s.
• Treating others in a certain way conversationally and socially is necessary when acknowledging each other's rationality 1h37m40s.
• Postmodernists have eliminated the idea of inherent value and are left with beings that are conditioned and trying to recondition each other in a social world 1h37m50s.
• In this social world, power is understood as the influence or tools, including language, that are used to control and influence others 1h38m1s.
• These tools of power are seen as being socially constructed and having nothing to do with the nature of reality 1h38m10s.
• As a result, social interactions become a zero-sum game of influencing and controlling others 1h38m20s.
• Everything is reinterpreted in terms of this socially constructed power dynamic 1h38m26s.

Stephen’s courses are available now on Peterson Academy — with more to come 1h38m30s

• The concept of power is discussed, with the idea that power in itself may not be a desirable good, but rather a means to achieve a specific goal or serve a particular purpose 1h38m42s.
• The desirability of power is not self-evident and requires a clear definition of what power means in order to understand its value 1h38m52s.
• An alternative perspective is that power is desired for a reason, implying that there is a underlying motivation or goal driving the pursuit of power 1h39m1s.
• The Peterson Academy courses are mentioned, with three additional courses in post-production, including one on modern ethics 1h39m14s.
• The modern ethics course explores the diversity and complexity of the modern world, where traditional models and homogeneous cultures have collapsed, leaving individuals to navigate and determine their own moral frameworks 1h39m34s.
• The course covers eight influential modern moral philosophers, including David Hume, Emanuel Kant, and John Stewart Mill, among others, to provide a comprehensive understanding of the contemporary moral landscape 1h40m13s.
• Another course, "The Philosophy of Politics," examines the contributions of philosophers to political debates and ideology, with the assumption that disagreements about politics often stem from more fundamental disagreements about culture and underlying values 1h40m57s.
• The course covers the French Revolution, Edmund Burke, and other influential philosophers, including Hegel, Marx, and fascist thinkers like Mussolini and Gentile 1h41m43s.
• The courses aim to provide a deeper understanding of the philosophical underpinnings of politics and morality, encouraging individuals to position themselves within the contemporary landscape of ideas 1h40m46s.
• The course on national socialism starts with Friedrich Hayek, John Mayor, and Kees, and ends with World War I, covering the period from the French Revolution to World War II. 1h42m24s
• The next course begins at the end of World War II and the Cold War, focusing on defending robust liberal capitalism, starting with Ayn Rand and Robert Nozick. 1h42m32s
• The course also covers John Rawls, James Buchanan, who won the Nobel Prize for public choice economics, and the Islamist revolutions, including the Egyptian philosopher Sayyid Qutb. 1h42m54s
• The course explores the rise of Putin in Russia and the influence of Alexander Dugin's thinking, ending with a contemporary version of conservatism, Roger Scruton's "The Meaning of Conservatism". 1h43m30s
• The goal is to provide an overview of major thinkers in the last 500 years, integrating philosophical, ethical, and political realms with historical context. 1h44m18s
• The courses aim to provide a comprehensive understanding of the major thinkers and their ideas, including the nuances and details of their philosophies. 1h44m35s
• A new book, "We Who Wrestle with God", is coming out, making the case that sacrifice is the central story in the biblical corpus and equivalent to work and the foundation of community. 1h45m11s
• The book aims to provide a justification for the notion of sacrifice, making sense at both theological and scientific levels of analysis. 1h46m1s
• The Peterson Academy is mentioned as a platform for continued collaboration, and viewers are invited to join the discussion on the Daily Wire side.
• Two topics will be discussed: the practical and hypothetical future of online education, and the relationship between value and power from a postmodern perspective.
• The value of power from a postmodern perspective is questioned, suggesting that it may not be as self-evident as it seems and requires more detailed analysis.
• The discussion will continue for another half hour, and viewers are thanked for their time and attention.
• The film crew in Scottdale and producer Joy H are thanked for their hard work on the set and production side, which has led to a significant improvement in the podcast's quality.
• New content and announcements are promised for the near future.