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When a tree falls in the forest and there is no one there to hear it, it does not make a sound. The reality of this situation as we have discussed in class is a tree has fallen and it created vibrations through the air. Now that I think about it, it seems very clear and obvious that if I am not there when a tree falls, it will not make a sound. There are many things that exist, events that occur and we are unaware that they exist, but the reality is they do exist.

A few years ago, there was an innovative ring tone made specifically for young students to recognize that they are being called during their morning session of calculus. This tone would only be heard by cats, dogs, young adults and younger; the ring tone was a high pitched ring that would only be heard by the high school students that wanted to know when they should go to the bathroom to exchange hw and whatnot. The ring does exist; it sends vibrations through the air; however to the elderly teacher, it does not exist. Then what is reality for the teacher? If the teacher is unaware of the ring, can we say that the ring is within the teacher’s reality? How do you know of something that you do not know exists?

This then comes to the question of how we define reality. At best, reality is a relative term that is used to distinguish one person’s reality from another and from the world’s reality. In the US there are approximately 14.14 births per 1,000 people every year. That is the world’s reality and now it has become part of my reality. We will never know true reality, where every fact, being, event is in our knowledge; we will have to settle for just our reality.