Saturday, May 28, 2016

Physiological Perception and Psychological Perception


Perception as an idea cannot be restricted to the functions of biological mechanisms. It is important to tell the difference between 'impact on body' and 'impact on feeling'. Impact on body is sensory while impact on feeling is a sensation. Sensory perception is physiological, while a sensation is about living the moment, which is because of the impact. It is a psychological perception. Touching fire leads to physiological reflex while feeling the heat of an argument is psychological. Yet, the idea of perception distorts your understanding of perception on the whole as an actuality. By giving life to the experience, a sensation is experienced simultaneously. There are some sensory perceptions that overlap, making it difficult to discriminate between the moment of the body and the eclipse of its mechanism.

A mirage is an illusion, no doubt. Is it physiological or psychological? An optical illusion is hard to categorize in this regard. It could be due to both physiological and psychological mechanisms. These perceptions are common at large. They constitute shared reality. Illusions, overt and covert are shared. They are also part of the experience of shared reality. As a result, illusions are real in their own right. They just have a different semantic value from sensory perceptions that enable what "we" consider to be stability without deception. In both pragmatic and para-pragmatic realms illusions are experienced as realities. They have an impact on the body. Their impact on feeling is an entirely different matter. There is an appeal to reason and the cognitive awareness of it, challenges reason itself pointing to its limitations.

If your perception is unusual and others do not experience it, they may find you rather impossible to believe. It is said to be a subjective experience. Its reality cannot be denied purely because it is not shared by the rest of the population. At any rate, remote as it may seem, subjective perception cannot be denied. It may have some physiological or psychological basis. Factors alien to the external world do not justify dogmatic dismissals. From the depths of thought, you learn that Physics is never quite beyond metaphysics. The realization that shared reality has a boundary, throws you outside its confines. You then discover that both physiological and psychological perceptions have unique signatures.


Monday, May 16, 2016

Infinity-That's More Than Just a Metaphor

"Infinity" is not defined but understood as an abstract concept. The reason that it cannot be defined is because it is too subtle. You understand indefiniteness and you know what countless is. Can you define it? It would be a contradiction to try and measure it because it is by definition countless. But can it be defined? It can be defined because ‘definition’ is different from ‘measurement'. It is understood by your mind. However, it can be represented through a symbol. This symbol is what infinity stands for but that is not how it is processed in your mind. It has a subtle value beyond mathematical representation. In space try and discover infinity. You look around and you see that the universe is beyond your grasp. The moment you are overwhelmed by the complexity of the universe, you have discovered infinity. It is the realization of the incomprehensible that is infinity. 

The symbol of infinity has a definite structure. In that structure, there is no complexity. Follow the complexity in meaning and you will see that it is not circular. You are never in the same place. The structure however is limited in that you are rooted to the same place. The subtle value is not in the space occupied by the symbol but by the subtle notion that has gone into the notation. This notion lies beyond the notation.

It is worthwhile to note that a symbol may not be subtle. If it is a measured account of what it stands for, as an entity then it is not subtle. If a symbol represents a value that is subtle then it cannot be measured. It may interest you to know that it can function as a qualifier. It is beyond Mathematics but within the grasp of semantics. This is why meaning is realized. It is by no means arrived at by working out mere symbols. A real metaphor is discovery of the abstract concept. The moment you realize this concept, it ceases to be a metaphor.

That is why infinity is more than just a metaphor.