BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR INSTITUTE 2006
Session 3

Starting Wherever We Are ... The Brain (= Nervous System)

Recapitulation and prospectus

Diversity, as a positive benefit
  • More observations, more stories

Science as exploration, not "Truth"

Story-telling, imagine and reflect, start where are, get "less wrong" and enjoy it

Take everything I say in this light (is a scientific "story", observations? usefulness?)

"We are all evolving and all of our thoughts and opinions are useful in one way or another." ... Clete

"As our scope of observations widens we may end up with new story and a new summary that may contridict our views at the moment or may further validate out thoughts." ... Minh

"The harder part, for me, is not to ensure that they are "right," but that they are describing what they truly observe, not what they want to see." ... Gayle

"The observation, prediction, assessment loop and our ability to share our stories even beyond our generation, is precisely the predominant feature of human behavior that has led to our "success" as a species. That success being a more developed understanding of our universe, both external and internal ... Glen

"I'm afraid that there is an attitude that goes with the words "story telling" that right away, makes people think it's time to sit back, relax, and enjoy this (probably fictitious) story that we are going to hear ... Will people begin to take science less seriously if we as a culture start to see it as a story? Will science start to lose its credibility? or is that the point? ... Julie

I am wary to allow science to be a place that isn't definitive for a moment, that isn't a community to which others turn for processed data and interpretation of nature. So much of public policy is created by people who don't understand the balances created by continual exploration and reevaluation of observations ... Tiffany

"I believe it is very important that we as teachers give serious thought to how we can teach students to understand that they don't always have to be right or perfect. The difficulty is that we must learn to believe it ... With practice we will be able to view science differently." ... Sherry

Simple things interacting in simple way can have sophisticated outcomes

Brain as an explorer?

(passive or active?)

Education as an exploration?

(passive or active?)

"Need to participate ourselves in a 'huge' attitude change? ... from day 1

Moving on ... to the nervous system

The Brain - is wider than the Sky -
For - put them side by side -
The one the other will contain
With ease - and You - beside-


Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)

Implications if Emily was right?

One example (of many) of one kind of reason (of many) to suspect she was ...

What story do you hear/see in Emily Dickinson's poem? Do you think the brain is wide enough to contain the sky ... "and You beside"? What would this imply? In general? About education? Write your thoughts in the institute forum area.

Thinking about how the brain (nervous system) works (if Dickinson right)

Is the real brain (nervous system) actually that way?

Yep ...

Key points

What most interests you about what we've talked about so far? In what ways might it be relevant in your classroom? What would you like to learn more about yourself using the internet? Write some thoughts/questions in the institute forum area.


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