Theory of Knowledge - Course Companion for Students Marija Uzunova Dang Arvin Singh Uzunov Dang

II. Perspectives
writs that long for Europans knw
Wrthim
wr only 17 typs of symmtry on a plan:
thr
medieval mosaicists working with their hands
…
the Hasba method knew about them all. [They]
using
discovered aperiodic tiling, which is a way
also
lling a plane where the pattern never repeats.
of
mathematicians discovered these tilings
Western
in the 1960s, again after centuries of theorising
only
adds that Afrian raftsman had
Wrthim
fratals nturis ago. “A wid
disovrd
of fratal pattrns ar inorporatd into
varity
txtils, hairstyling, mtalwork,
Afrian
painting and arhittur”
sulptur,
2017). Follow th link to wath
(Wrthim
Eglash’s Td Talk “Th fratals at th
Ron
of Afrian dsigns”.
hart
trms: Ron Eglash on
Sarh
fratals
Afrian
what xtnt is a numr sns natural?
To
answr to this qustion has signifiant
Th
for how w think aout human
impliations
and diffrn, and aout th
samnss
of mathmatis. Furthr, how w
univrsality
this qustion rvals muh aout our
answr
of human iology, ognition
undrstanding
volution, and th sop and limitations
and
our knowldg in ths aras, as wll as th
of
of spial human apaitis for musi,
origins
and languag. This as study onsidrs
art
argumnts of nurosintists and ognitiv
th
as prsntd y th writr Philip Ball.
sintists,
of his argumnts ar quotd low,
Many
pratis an somtims look
Mathmatial
diffrnt twn ulturs—ut is all
strikingly
ultural variation asd on a univrsally
this
mathmatial aility? Early 20th-
shard
thorists viwd Indignous Popls as
ntury
of sophistiatd analytial thought or
inapal
logial rasoning. Cntral to this prjudi
formal
th qustion of whthr all human minds
was
ulturs ar al to oniv of th onpt
and
numrs. Ovr th past ntury, rsarhrs
of
movd away from this lin of thinking.
hav
th qustion of numray rmains
Nvrthlss,
question of the universality of mathematical
The
overlaps with the discussion about the
reasoning
of the human faculty of language in
universality
4, and of the nature-nurture debate in
Chapter
8. The assumptions made and the methods
Chapter
to explore these questions in dierent
used
meet in the case study below. As you read
disciplines
consider whether questions at the intersection
on,
multiple disciplines benet from or require an
of
approach.
interdisciplinary
trms: Philip Ball “Why
Sarh
humans hav numrs?”
do
have long claimed that our ability with
Scientists
is indeed biologically evolved—that we
numbers
count because counting was a useful thing for
can
brains to be able to do … .
our
othr animals hav dmonstratd an
Indd,
to diffrntiat twn small quantitis
aility
things. Prhaps it is a iologial gift. But
of
numr of ognitiv sintists argu that
a
“numr sns” is atually a produt of
this
Ball sums up as follows.
ultur.
11
that such patterns were impossible … .
(Wertheim 2017)
ompliatd, as th as study low illustrats.
Making connections
Universality
Case study
Looking for numbers in the brain
and in culture
(Ball 2017)
ut follow th link to rad th full artil.
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