Emotional Understanding and Empathy

 

This visual representation encapsulates the interconnected journey toward wisdom through the facets of our exploration.

Platohagel: How do we recognize emotions?

Socrates: Ah, the recognition of emotions, a fascinating aspect of human existence. It is through introspection, my dear friend Platohagel, that we gain insight into our own emotional states. Additionally, we observe external cues in others, such as facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice, to discern the emotions that may dwell within them.

Platohagel: Can you name all the emotions a person may have and how they are integrated with memory? Subsection 1.1

Socrates: In the vast realm of human emotions, one encounters a plethora of nuanced states. Joy, sorrow, anger, fear, and love are among the fundamental emotions. As for their integration with memory in Subsection 1.1, one must consider the intricate dance between emotions and memory formation. Intense emotions, whether positive or negative, tend to leave a lasting imprint on our memory, influencing the recollection of significant events and experiences.

Platohagel: Socrates by looking inward do we see the memories relived by how strong the emotive forces dwell in our inner being?

Socrates: Indeed, Platohagel, the introspective gaze allows us to witness the resurgence of memories, their strength intertwined with the emotive forces that reside within our inner being. As emotions ebb and flow, so too does the vividness of recollections. It is through this internal reflection that we navigate the intricate tapestry of our own existence.

Platohagel: As well Socrates we learn to see these emotions in other human beings. This is where empathy is developed in the human being?

Socrates: Ah, you grasp the essence, Platohagel. The cultivation of empathy indeed springs from our ability to recognize emotions in others. By observing and understanding their emotional states, we forge connections that transcend the boundaries of our individual experiences. Empathy, a noble virtue, flourishes as we extend our understanding of the human condition to encompass the joys and sorrows of our fellow beings.

Platohagel: So practising mindfulness we learn to see the deeper emotional manifestations exhume themselves into our interactions in daily life?

Socrates: Precisely, Platohagel. Through the practice of mindfulness, we attune our awareness to the subtle currents of emotions that flow within and around us. In this heightened state of consciousness, we become more adept at discerning the deeper emotional manifestations that influence our interactions in the tapestry of daily life. Mindfulness becomes a guiding lantern, illuminating the intricacies of our emotional landscape and fostering a more profound connection with the world.

Platohagel: So being present in the moment and fostering self awareness we seat ourselves in a heightened state of consciousness?

Socrates: Indeed, Platohagel. Being present in the moment and cultivating self-awareness act as the vessels that carry us into a heightened state of consciousness. By anchoring ourselves in the now, we navigate the currents of existence with a clarity that transcends the constraints of past and future. It is in this heightened state that we unlock a deeper understanding of ourselves and the world around us, forging a path toward wisdom and enlightenment.

Platohagel: How do we developed a curious mindset?

Socrates: Ah, the cultivation of a curious mindset, a noble pursuit indeed. To embark on this journey, one must embrace the spirit of inquiry and approach the world with an insatiable thirst for knowledge. Ask questions, explore the unknown, and challenge assumptions. In the pursuit of wisdom, curiosity is the flame that kindles the torch of enlightenment, guiding one through the labyrinth of understanding.

Platohagel: How is it we are to know what has been unknowable to us?

Socrates: To grapple with the unknowable, Platohagel, one must humbly acknowledge the limits of one’s understanding. Embrace the Socratic wisdom that true knowledge lies in recognizing our ignorance. Through relentless inquiry, open-mindedness, and a commitment to seeking truth, we may unravel the mysteries that once eluded our comprehension. The pursuit of the unknown is a journey marked by humility and an unwavering thirst for enlightenment.

Platohagel: Curiosity has been known as the flame that becomes a motivator for discovering the path to wisdom, along with mindfulness and a heightened state of consciousness. Through the course of our current dialogue, have we discussed the pathway to moving toward Wisdom?

Socrates: Indeed, Platohagel, in our discourse, we have traversed the pathways that lead toward wisdom. Through the flames of curiosity, the grounding practice of mindfulness, and the ascent to a heightened state of consciousness, we navigate the intricate terrain that unfolds on the journey to wisdom. By acknowledging our ignorance, questioning assumptions, and embracing the present moment, we embark on a noble quest to unravel the mysteries of existence and attain true understanding.

Platohagel: Thank you Socrates that is enough for today. Do you remember the geometrical shape compared section 1?

Socrates: Ah, indeed I do, Platohagel. In our earlier discourse, we ventured into the intricate realm of emotions and memory, drawing parallels to the multifaceted nature of geometric shapes. Should you seek further enlightenment on this or any other matter, I stand ready to engage in dialogue whenever you so desire.

Platohagel: Socrates you write,

Curiosity, my esteemed Platohagel, is intricately tied to wisdom, forming a symbiotic relationship within the framework of our first chapter. Let me elucidate:

1. **Curiosity as the Catalyst:** At the foundation of our pyramid, curiosity serves as the catalyst for the pursuit of wisdom. It sparks the innate desire to seek knowledge and understanding, propelling individuals on a journey of intellectual exploration.

2. **Mindfulness as the Contemplative Layer:** Moving upward, mindfulness becomes the contemplative layer, enriching the curious mind. The practice of being present in the moment enhances self-awareness, a cornerstone of wisdom, allowing for a deeper understanding of one’s thoughts and emotions.

3. **Emotional Intelligence as the Interpersonal Bridge:** Ascending further, emotional intelligence forms the bridge between self-awareness and empathetic understanding of others. It encompasses recognizing and managing emotions, fostering harmonious relationships—a crucial aspect of wise living.

4. **Wisdom at the Apex:** Finally, wisdom crowns the pyramid, representing the culmination of curiosity, mindfulness, and emotional intelligence. Wisdom is the harmonious integration of knowledge, self-awareness, and ethical discernment. It stands as the pinnacle of our exploration, guiding individuals toward virtuous living.

As for the schematic drawing, envision a pyramid with curiosity as its base, mindfulness and emotional intelligence forming the middle layers, and wisdom gracing the summit. This visual representation encapsulates the interconnected journey toward wisdom through the facets of our exploration.“

Socrates: Your metaphorical pyramid eloquently encapsulates the symbiotic relationship between curiosity, mindfulness, emotional intelligence, and wisdom. It mirrors the intricate interplay of these elements in the pursuit of enlightenment. This conceptual pyramid serves as a guiding structure for those aspiring to ascend the intellectual heights toward the summit of wisdom

Atlantis?

View Larger Map

Atlantis and Plato Seamounts 33 28'N, 29 39'W

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Plato's TIMAEUS :Atlantis against Athens

;Many great and wonderful deeds are recorded of your state in our histories. But one of them exceeds all the rest in greatness and valour. For these histories tell of a mighty power which unprovoked made an expedition against the whole of Europe and Asia, and to which your city put an end. This power came forth out of the Atlantic Ocean, for in those days the Atlantic was navigable; and there was an island situated in front of the straits which are by you called the Pillars of Heracles; the island was larger than Libya and Asia put together, and was the way to other islands, and from these you might pass to the whole of the opposite continent which surrounded the true ocean; for this sea which is within the Straits of Heracles is only a harbour, having a narrow entrance, but that other is a real sea, and the surrounding land may be most truly called a boundless continent. Now in this island of Atlantis there was a great and wonderful empire which had rule over the whole island and several others, and over parts of the continent, and, furthermore, the men of Atlantis had subjected the parts of Libya within the columns of Heracles as far as Egypt, and of Europe as far as Tyrrhenia. This vast power, gathered into one, endeavoured to subdue at a blow our country and yours and the whole of the region within the straits; and then, Solon, your country shone forth, in the excellence of her virtue and strength, among all mankind. She was pre-eminent in courage and military skill, and was the leader of the Hellenes. And when the rest fell off from her, being compelled to stand alone, after having undergone the very extremity of danger, she defeated and triumphed over the invaders, and preserved from slavery those who were not yet subjugated, and generously liberated all the rest of us who dwell within the pillars. But afterwards there occurred violent earthquakes and floods; and in a single day and night of misfortune all your warlike men in a body sank into the earth, and the island of Atlantis in like manner disappeared in the depths of the sea. For which reason the sea in those parts is impassable and impenetrable, because there is a shoal of mud in the way; and this was caused by the subsidence of the island.

***

So you have google earth and your looking at a specific location, "Atlantis and Plato Seamounts 33 28'N, 29 39'W". Now if you look closely from above, there is a long fracture down the center of the Atlantic, but what is interesting, now that your looking at this expanse of water, is having the question in mind, what would happen if lets say the bottom dropped just below the azores and Pico, that waves would wash over a plain and leave indication, that such a drop is recorded in the terrain?

If the water was going in one direction, what would that terrain look like as the water swept over it?
What do dunes look like if the winds flow over them, the dunes would point in which direction?

 It is interesting that as you get closer to the surface of the ocean, the water now indicates movement and motion.

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See Also:

•  Sarah Parcak: Archeology from space and more
• Comparison of different translations of Plato's Atlantis by Benjamin Jowett, R.G. Bury and Sir Desmond Lee

Sarah Parcak: Archeology from space and more

 Sarah Parcak: Archeology from space

 Sarah Parcak is an archaeologist and Egyptologist, and specializes in making the invisible past visible using 21st-century satellite technology. She co-directs the Survey and Excavation Projects in the Fayoum, Sinai, and Egypt's East Delta with her husband, Dr. Greg Mumford. Parcak is the author of Satellite Remote Sensing for Archaeology, the first methods book on satellite archaeology, and her work has seeded several TV documentaries. She founded and directs the Laboratory for Global Observation at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

While most Google Earth hobbyists are satisfied with a bit of snapping and geotagging, some have far loftier ambitions. Satellite archaeologist Angela Micol thinks she's discovered the locations of some of Egypt's lost pyramids, buried for centuries under the earth, including a three-in-a-line arrangement similar to those on the Giza Plateau. Egyptologists have already confirmed that the secret locations are undiscovered, so now it's down to scientists in the field to determine if it's worth calling the diggers in.

ANN, Firstpost Google Earth Anomalies

Possible Egyptian Pyramids Found Using Google Earth

How Time Ages the Pyramids

Chanticleer - A Pleasure Garden

Believing that something must be true about the world because you can’t imagine otherwise is, five hundred years into the Age of Science, not a recommended strategy for acquiring reliable knowledge. It goes back to the classic conflict of rationalism vs. empiricism. “Rationalism” sounds good — who doesn’t want to be rational? But the idea behind it is that we can reach true conclusions about the world by reason alone. We don’t ever have to leave the comfort of our living room; we can just sit around, sharing some single-malt Scotch and fine cigars, thinking really hard about the universe, and thereby achieve some real understanding. Empiricism, on the other hand, says that we should try to imagine all possible ways the world should be, and then actually go out and look at it to decide which way it really is. Rationalism is traditionally associated with Descartes, Leibniz, and Spinoza, while empiricism is associated with Locke, Berkeley, and Hume — but of course these categories never quite fit perfectly well.SEE:What Can We Know About The World Without Looking At It?

I had been able to isolate Lee's Smolin's method of approach as to whether something can exist within, or, exists outside of time. Thoughts about Meno come to mind and Plato's Problem and Meno: How Accurately Portrayed?

The idea that truth is timeless and resides outside the universe was the essence of Plato's philosophy, exemplified in the parable of the slave boy that was meant to argue that discovery is merely remembering. Lee Smolin

Of course this article of yours Sean has lead to interesting thoughts. His talk with Memories Arise Out of a Equilibrium David Albert.....how does one logically proceed with inquiry. Why is the past so different, in so many ways, from the future? (12:20)

Sean Carroll

This raises all sorts of questions, the most basic of which are: “What counts as `looking’ vs. `not looking’?” and “Do we really need a separate law of physics to describe the evolution of systems that are being looked at?”

See:Quantum Diavlog

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When you are told that carrots have human rights because they share half our genes -- but not how gene percentages confer rights -- wizard. When someone announces that the nature-nurture debate has been settled because there is evidence that a given percentage of our political opinions are genetically inherited, but they don't explain how genes cause opinions, they've settled nothing. They are saying that our opinions are caused by wizards, and presumably so are their own. That the truth consists of hard to vary assertions about reality is the most important fact about the physical world David Deutsch: A new way to explain explanation

***

Of course thanks to Lubos for link on Rationalism vs empiricism You can find his thoughts there and more information around his heading below.

The dispute between rationalism and empiricism concerns the extent to which we are dependent upon sense experience in our effort to gain knowledge. Rationalists claim that there are significant ways in which our concepts and knowledge are gained independently of sense experience. Empiricists claim that sense experience is the ultimate source of all our concepts and knowledge.

Rationalists generally develop their view in two ways. First, they argue that there are cases where the content of our concepts or knowledge outstrips the information that sense experience can provide. Second, they constuct accounts of how reason in some form or other provides that additional information about the world. Empiricists present complementary lines of thought. First, they develop accounts of how experience provides the information that rationalists cite, insofar as we have it in the first place. (Empiricists will at times opt for skepticism as an alternative to rationalism: if experience cannot provide the concepts or knowledge the rationalists cite, then we don't have them.) Second, empiricists attack the rationalists' accounts of how reason is a source of concepts or knowledge.See: Rationalism vs. Empiricism

The Pyramid(as an expression of Liberal Arts Encapsulated) is a combination of  the Trivium , and  the Quadrivium

***

The Socratic Method.....and Plato's Ideas, is Replaced by Google?

The Socratic Method.....and Plato's Ideas, is Replaced by Google?

http://youtu.be/dk60sYrU2RU

The idea that truth is timeless and resides outside the universe was the essence of Plato's philosophy, exemplified in the parable of the slave boy that was meant to argue that discovery is merely remembering. Lee Smolin

 Bold added for me for emphasis....as well as saying that this philosophy is not "outside of time."

Our attempt to justify our beliefs logically by giving reasons results in the "regress of reasons." Since any reason can be further challenged, the regress of reasons threatens to be an infinite regress. However, since this is impossible, there must be reasons for which there do not need to be further reasons: reasons which do not need to be proven. By definition, these are "first principles." The "Problem of First Principles" arises when we ask Why such reasons would not need to be proven. Aristotle's answer was that first principles do not need to be proven because they are self-evident, i.e. they are known to be true simply by understanding them.

Yes no doubt. But as you look through the experiment present by Youtube something very important is realized that as a "data base" and Google's connection to it,  allow an excursion for children that we would want applied to "all thinking beings"  as  a vast resource made available to them, having considered the Grandmothers as part of the cloud of encouragement toward progressing and developing. Teachers can come in many forms?

So yes I see education in this way as well...but imagine if such a data base is taken away......imagine being devoid of the technology?

You want to see the children apply such a tool .....being devoid of the technology as to a method inherent in their own design and makeup which will grant them the same benefits as you would have,  having gone through such an experiment?

What did they learn that was algorithmic pleasing that Arthur C Clarke might embrace as to all teachers? Replace teachers with Grandmother Cloud?

These things are being considered now in the future development of education as I have research it.....but there is something deeper that must be transmitted that can only be done with the interaction of the teachers....while still accessing that data, you still need the teachers there.

Imagine a "gogle search feature" as the very last "self evident question." This is internal and not attached to the keyboard computerized developer algorithmic code,  but is a feature of the human being searching, looking for answers, and becoming their own teachers as well as students. This the independence you want transmitted to children from teachers, as well as too,  adults in my view. The teacher, and student are one.

You of course recognize the grounding factor...all I am saying is this inductive /deductive process is part of the need for individuals to excel, regardless of that technology.

***

Logic is the art of thinking; grammar, the art of inventing symbols and combining them to express thought; and rhetoric, the art of communicating thought from one mind to another, the adaptation of language to circumstance.Sister Miriam Joseph

 Painting by Cesare Maccari (1840-1919), Cicero Denounces Catiline.

In medieval universities, the trivium comprised the three subjects taught first: grammar, logic, and rhetoric. The word is a Latin term meaning “the three ways” or “the three roads” forming the foundation of a medieval liberal arts education. This study was preparatory for the quadrivium. The trivium is implicit in the De nuptiis of Martianus Capella, although the term was not used until the Carolingian era when it was coined in imitation of the earlier quadrivium.^[1] It was later systematized in part by Petrus Ramus as an essential part of Ramism.

***

The quadrivium comprised the four subjects, or arts, taught in medieval universities after the trivium. The word is Latin, meaning "the four ways" or "the four roads". Together, the trivium and the quadrivium comprised the seven liberal arts.^[1] The quadrivium consisted of arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy. These followed the preparatory work of the trivium made up of grammar, logic (or dialectic, as it was called at the times), and rhetoric. In turn, the quadrivium was considered preparatory work for the serious study of philosophy and theology.

***

The Pyramid(as an expression of Liberal Arts Encapsulated) is a combination of  the Trivium , and  the Quadrivium

If you internalize this pyramidal structure then you realize what Plato was talking about in terms of "the idea" and how it can arrive at the peak. This is of course after giving education a  sincere scrutiny with all the tools applicable to what can become self evident? The "google search feature,"  is your connection to "vast potentials" and is accessible to all who are creative and endeavor to learn to understand the search for truth.

Liberal arts

The Pyramid(as an expression of Liberal Arts Encapsulated) is a combination of  the Trivium , and  the Quadrivium

My interest has been from a historical position about how such a system while it developed from that ancient perspective,  is still not about a "religious perspective" as to what is to be believed by Lee Smolin.

If we think outside of time, we believe these ideas somehow "existed" before we invented them. If we think in time we see no reason to presume that.Lee Smolin

I of course question what is relative by appointments from him as to what can  exist "within and out of time." Since this is a foundation approach with which his whole take depends on, his relative relationships as it is relegated toward perspective about the beginning and the end of the universe,  is a position with which one cannot ever assume, hence, the value in religious perspective one is suppose to have in relation to their science? I hope I get this right.

The idea that truth is timeless and resides outside the universe was the essence of Plato's philosophy, exemplified in the parable of the slave boy that was meant to argue that discovery is merely remembering. Lee Smolin

So I needed to put this in perspective, so it is understood that the issue here arises "from within" so that all expression without,  inside or outside of time become a relative issue about position and stances assumed and cannot be differentiated to such categories as to it significance as being religious.

Among contemporary cosmologists and physicists, proponents of eternal inflation and timeless quantum cosmology are thinking outside of time. Proponents of evolutionary and cyclic cosmological scenarios are thinking in time. If you think in time you worry about time ending at space-time singularities. If you think outside of time this is an ignorable problem because you believe reality is the whole history of the world at once. Lee Smolin

So, I provided some access to "Plato's Dialogues" so as to give you the the ability to discern what is assume by Lee is what is spoken by and through Plato's own words.

What did you gain by reading that you can now say that what is established as "foundations approached" to being realistic, wafts through the scientific community and distinguishes itself according to some category that allows you to believe that it is religious by inherent and that such searches have no basis according too?

Does he say that explicit....only you can say by such association and quotes, can I say then that I point toward that direction in my assumptions as well. I mean you have been given the opportunity so you decide.

My perspective is about that "Cognitive Tool Kit" and how leading to a "point source" is nothing more then the recognition of coming to a "point source" inside you,  that is inside time. What I am saying, is that such perfection is the containment of all that has ever existed, or will ever exist, you are connected to in time, so these thoughts about the before and after are not apart from what happens within in any universe, nor can birth and death be considered outside of it.

This recognition is "the measure of" with which one can assume their foundation. That is, how I see Lee's position. All scientist would agree in that such measure is appropriate, yet such thoughts about time and outside of time pertaining to the Cognitive Tool Kit is not part and parcel of a "religious context" that one could say, "eureka!"

Again, it leads to a Point Source. A "point source" inside time that contain vasts potential?

SEE:

• Meno
• Plato's Problem
• Plato's Problem and Meno: How Accurately Portrayed...

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The seven liberal arts – Picture from the Hortus deliciarum of Herrad von Landsberg (12th century)

The term liberal arts denotes a curriculum that imparts general knowledge and develops the student’s rational thought and intellectual capabilities, unlike the professional, vocational and technical curricula emphasizing specialization. The contemporary liberal arts comprise studying literature, languages, philosophy, history, mathematics, and science.^[1]

Contents 1 History 2 Liberal arts in the United States 3 See also 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External links

History

In classical antiquity, the liberal arts denoted the education worthy of a free person (Latin: liber, “free”).^[2] Contrary to popular opinion, freeborn girls were as likely to receive formal education as boys, especially during the Roman Empire—unlike the lack-of-education, or purely manual/technical skills, proper to a slave.^[3] The "liberal arts" or "liberal pursuits" (Latin liberalia studia) were already so called in formal education during the Roman Empire; for example, Seneca the Younger discusses liberal arts in education from a critical Stoic point of view in Moral Epistle 88.^[4] The subjects that would become the standard "Liberal Arts" in Roman and Medieval times already comprised the basic curriculum in the enkuklios paideia or "education in a circle" of late Classical and Hellenistic Greece.

In the 5th century AD, Martianus Capella defined the seven Liberal Arts as: grammar, dialectic, rhetoric, geometry, arithmetic, astronomy, and music. In the medieval Western university, the seven liberal arts were:^[5]

• the Trivium

1. grammar
2. logic
3. rhetoric

• the Quadrivium

4. arithmetic
5. astronomy
6. music
7. geometry

 Liberal arts in the United States

Main article: Liberal arts college

Further information: Liberal arts colleges in the United States and Great Books Program

In the United States, Liberal arts colleges are schools emphasizing undergraduate study in the liberal arts. Traditionally earned over four years of full-time study, the student earned either a Bachelor of Arts degree or a Bachelor of Science degree; on completing undergraduate study, students might progress to either a graduate school or a professional school (public administration, business, law, medicine, theology). The teaching is Socratic,^{[citation needed]} to small classes,^{[citation needed]} and at a greater teacher-to-student ratio than at universities;^{[citation needed]} professors teaching classes are allowed to concentrate more on their teaching responsibilities than primary research professors or graduate student teaching assistants, in contrast to the instruction common in universities.^{[original research?][dubious – discuss]} Despite the European origin of the liberal arts college,^[6] the term liberal arts college usually denotes liberal arts colleges in the United States.

See also

• Bachelor of Arts
• Bachelor of General Studies
• Bachelor of Liberal Arts
• Bachelor of Liberal Studies
• Doctor of Liberal Studies
• Great Books Program
• Great Books Programs in Canada
• Liberal arts college
• Master of Liberal Studies
• The Mechanical Arts

 References

1. ^ "Liberal Arts: Encyclopedia Britannica Concise". Encyclopedia Britannica.
2. ^ Ernst Robert Curtius, European Literature and the Latin Middle Ages [1948], trans. Willard R. Trask (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1973), p. 37. The classical sources include Cicero, De Oratore, I.72–73, III.127, and De re publica, I.30.
3. ^ H. I. Marrou, A History of Education in Antiquity [1948], trans. George Lamb (London: Sheed & Ward, 1956), pp. 266–67.
4. ^ Seneca Epistle 88 at Stoics.com
5. ^ "James Burke: The Day the Universe Changed In the Light Of the Above".
6. ^ Harriman, Philip (1935). "Antecedents of the Liberal Arts College". The Journal of Higher Education, Vol. 6, No. 2 (1935), pp. 63–71.

 Further reading

• Blaich, Charles, Anne Bost, Ed Chan, and Richard Lynch. "Defining Liberal Arts Education." Center of Inquiry in the Liberal Arts, 2004.
• Blanshard, Brand. The Uses of a Liberal Education: And Other Talks to Students. (Open Court, 1973. ISBN 0-8126-9429-5)
• Friedlander, Jack. Measuring the Benefits of Liberal Arts Education in Washington's Community Colleges. Los Angeles: Center for the Study of Community Colleges, 1982a. (ED 217 918)
• Joseph, Sister Miriam. The Trivium: The Liberal Arts of Logic, Grammar, and Rhetoric. Paul Dry Books Inc, 2002.
• Pfnister, Allen O. "The Role of the Liberal Arts College." The Journal of Higher Education. Vol. 55, No. 2 (March/April 1984): 145–170.
• Reeves, Floyd W. "The Liberal-Arts College." The Journal of Higher Education. Vol. 1, No. 7 (1930): 373–380.
• Seidel, George. "Saving the Small College." The Journal of Higher Education. Vol. 39, No. 6 (1968): 339–342.
• Winterer, Caroline.The Culture of Classicism: Ancient Greece and Rome in American Intellectual Life, 1780–1910. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2002.
• Wriston, Henry M. The Nature of a Liberal College. Lawrence University Press, 1937.
• T. Kaori Kitao, William R. Kenan, Jr. (27 March 1999). The Usefulness Of Uselessness. Keynote Address, The 1999 Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth's Odyssey at Swarthmore College.

 External links

• The Annapolis Group/College News
• The Classical Liberal Arts Academy
• Philosophy of Liberal Education
• Liberal Arts at the Community College
• A Descriptive Analysis of the Community College Liberal Arts Curriculum
• The Center of Inquiry in the Liberal Arts
• Academic Commons
• CatholiCity: Catholic Encyclopedia
• What are the liberal arts? at liberalartsadvantage.com
•  "Arts, Liberal". New International Encyclopedia. 1905.

Plato and Justice

A just society must be governed by men of reason.Inventing a new social myth to replace the old. Socrates calls those who rule for the benefit of the whole society and not to it's detriment golden men: in his myth they rightfully govern the men of silver and bronze.
This is the myth of metals(415a ff.) the centrepiece of a second accusation that has dogged Plato through the centuries. Plato made clear that merit and not heredity defined the gold man and that gold could be found in all parts of society. Nonetheless, Plato has never escaped the charge that he imposes upon society an elitist and authoritarian rule. The charge is pressed even though in Book IV Plato makes justice in the individual the condition of justice in society.--Pg 16, Para 2 and 3, of Plato the Republic Introduction by Richard W. Sterling and William C. Scott.

Plato prove that justice does not depend upon a chance, convention or upon external force. It is the right condition of the human soul by the very nature of man when seen in the fullness of his environment. It is in this way that Plato condemned the position taken by Glaucon that justice is something which is external. According to Plato, it is internal as it resides in the human soul. "It is now regarded as an inward grace and its understanding is shown to involve a study of the inner man." It is, therefore, natural and no artificial. It is therefore, not born of fear of the weak but of the longing of the human soul to do a duty according to its nature.

Plato's Concept Of Justice: An Analysis Bold was added by me for emphasis.

There is something extremely important about this term that comes from understanding it at a soul level then to think its administering is implied as external and there after, settles all accounts from what was done by telling lies stealing etc. It is an account expressed by Cephalus, Polymarchus, Thrasymachus and Glaucon, while Plato is the understanding of justice to imply it as a "human virtue' that makes a person self-consistent and good."


If the heart was free from the impurities of sin, and therefore lighter than the feather, then the dead person could enter the eternal afterlife

Now these are ancient notions about justice. It is something much more, when you understand what happens inside. What happens when you review your position to ask whether or not the heart is indeed "lighter then the feather." In these situations that one may extend themself beyond the issues of science here, to include the extensions of what is happening out there in our economies and our social institutions. It is very important to understand what the feather represent in that culture(truth) that would depict the plate for consideration, in line with, the concepts of Plato and what I feel is relevant to who you are and what happens inside.

It is even more real to have experienced this weighting process in one 's life when you know that to defy the mass consideration and physics therein, that a mind might consider to be lighter then, indeed such a state may have found that gravity no longer exists to keep the body home on earth. That it can float. Alas though no repeatability will ever the measure of in your case, so I cannot say this is a method with which you will ever experience, and will have thought better to let it arrive at the illusions of, then to sanction the validity of what is being presented here.


You would have to know of colour of gravity has been built throughout this site to know, that colour of gravity is a "real measure of the internal nature of the human being" that extends beyond it's home.

Scotch tape is nothing new Arun, and neither is Kirlian photography? It is not this external measure as to what one should weigh, but of what is inside, that leads to such colours.

Thus it is with some knowledge that Plato's pyramid is more the understanding of an "internal structure" and it's ascent, placing a value to the ephemeral nature of colour in the mind's evolution, and it's final discourse thoughtfully constructed as to who you are.

Gran Sasso and the Pyramid

What good is a universe without somebody around to look at it?
Robert Dicke

This summer, CERN gave the starting signal for the long-distance neutrino race to Italy. The CNGS facility (CERN Neutrinos to Gran Sasso), embedded in the laboratory's accelerator complex, produced its first neutrino beam. For the first time, billions of neutrinos were sent through the Earth's crust to the Gran Sasso laboratory, 732 kilometres away in Italy, a journey at almost the speed of light which they completed in less than 2.5 milliseconds. The OPERA experiment at the Gran Sasso laboratory was then commissioned, recording the first neutrino tracks.

Now of course most of you know the namesake with which I use to explain, is an aspect of the development of what are "shadows" to many of us, also, reveal a direction with which we know is "illuminated." We are streaming with the "decay path" all the while there is a sun behind us that shines.

Now it is always an interesting thing for me to know that secret rooms can be illuminated, given the right piece of equipment to do the job. Somethings that will stop the process, and others, that go on to give indications of which these "massless particles" can travel.

But no where is the penetration of the pyramidal model more apparent to me, is when it is used to explain the "rise of the colour theory" used on this site, to explain the nature of emotive sufferings, and it's ascensions, with which we can place the "colour of gravity" to it's rightful place. While one can discern the patterns in an ancient philosophical game of chance, what use to explain the underlying structure of abstraction, as we peer into the materiality of the object of this post? Do you know it's inherent geometrical nature, as an expression?

Maybe, this is the Plato in me? Not a criminal "who hides" having perpetrated crimes against humanity, spouting a philosophy that some would pretend hides behind "the garb" of some "quantum cosmology?"

Yes, no where is this measurable in nature at this time, other then to know that a philosophical position is being adopted. It may allow one to understand the brain's workings, alongside of the fluids that emotively run through our bodies. The "eventual" brain development toward it's evolutionary discourse, with the matter distinctions becoming apparent in the brain's structure, may be greatly enhanced in our futures?

This is what is progressive to me about the work of Kip Thorne and Archibald Wheeler, as we look at the experimental processes of gravitational waves and the like, in LIGO. Is this proof of the gravitational waves? Is this proof of the Geon denoted by Wheeler to express, or the bulk, teaming with the gravitons?

An event in the cosmos, allows us, while standing in the decay path of the expression, and as we turn with it, to know that a source can initiate, and allows us to see it's disintegration.

WE are concerned with all the matter distinctions, while beyond this, is the expression of these schematically drawn rooms of energy, as we particularize them into neat boxes(things) for our entangled views, and loss of sight?

To me, such a sun exists at our centres and such analogies, as I have drawn them here is to recognize that such a "heliocentric view" is not the idea behind our observations of the ego distinctions about self in the world, but a recognition of our connection to what pervades all of us, and connects us.

Now this path streams onwards, no different then in the way we move into the materiality of the world we live in. While of course you see the bodies of our expression. You see the "emotive functionings" on our faces, primitive as it can be, as well as, the intellectual abstraction that is part of the inherent pattern of that expression into materiality. The "sun still shines" from that deeper place inside.

Secrets of the PyramidsIn a boon for archaeology, particle physicists plan to probe ancient structures for tombs and other hidden chambers. The key to the technology is the muon, a cousin of the electron that rains harmlessly from the sky.

I am Lost/Not Lost

While the descent into the matters, one tends to loose sight of what is happening around them. Such a thing is the human part of us, as we think we are in the moment.

While one may think they are in this "way station" it is ever the spot that we assign ourselves with or selections and happenings that we are connected too, in ways that are never understood, or looked for, as we progress these views about the reality we live in?

How much farther is our eyesight granted into the materiality of things as we progress ever deeper into nature's structure, to think, this will bring us ever closer to that sun that shines inside?

Lost souls were given directions in the manuals of the ancients to decipher this relationship with the world we live in, so that the understanding about perplexing paradigms that ensue the mind, may be set, "to live life" not to experience it's death. But to prepare that life beyond the limitations with which we assign our perception according to these material things.

God the Geometer

Let proportion be found not only in numbers, but also in sounds, weights, times and positions, and whatever force there is.Leonardo Da Vinci

Vitruvian Man by Leonardo da Vinci.

Leonardo is clearly illustrating Vitruvius De Architectura 3.1.3 which reads:

The navel is naturally placed in the centre of the human body, and, if in a man lying with his face upward, and his hands and feet extended, from his navel as the centre, a circle be described, it will touch his fingers and toes. It is not alone by a circle, that the human body is thus circumscribed, as may be seen by placing it within a square. For measuring from the feet to the crown of the head, and then across the arms fully extended, we find the latter measure equal to the former; so that lines at right angles to each other, enclosing the figure, will form a square.

De Architectura, VitruviusFirst Milanese period 1481/2 - 1499

The first printed edition of the De Architectura (On Architecture) by the ancient Roman architect, Vitruvius, appears.

It is never easy sometimes to know what direction to go with these blog posts. What is being shown on the "screen of my mind" is a painting of Leonardo, and along with this idea about Coxeter's insight into what the geometer is really doing when he discovers aspects of what exists before it's manifestation in reality. As if, it is not enough to know what the Higg's is doing as it crosses the room in analogy with the great Professor Einstein.

Science takes us back to the very beginnings of the universe and how it is we know that such phases and transformational changes can be described, and behind it all, there is not some existing geometrical nature to the forms that manifest?

So from an historical perspective, the image set the pace for what discoveries become part of the blog entry. Who is to know what direction this may take me as I scour the internet and find the following.

Fol 79v-80r-Acoustics. Photo RMN © René-Gabriel Ojéda

Music

According to Leonardo, the musician composes harmony by the simultaneous conjunction of its “proportional parts”. The painter “grades the things before the eye as music grades the sounds that meet the ear”. On Ms. L. Fol 79v. Leonardo investigates sound and tries to establish strict mathematical proportions between the loudness of a sound at its origin and its range, the point in space up to which it can be heard. This “pyramidal law” was seen as a universal law of proportion that could be applied to other natural phenomena such as light, perspective and even mechanics.

Leonardo’s pyramidal law of proportional diminution did not always lead to fruitful conclusions. In the absence of knowledge of advanced mechanics, he attempted to apply it to the investigation of gravity, noting that every falling object acquires increments of impetus. He was obviously unaware of the Merton “mean speed theorem” which states that a body traveling at constant velocity will cover the same distance in the same time as an accelerated body if its velocity is half the final speed of the accelerated body.

Undeterred, Leonardo investigated the actions of levers, pulleys and balances at length according to medieval proportional laws, illustrating endless demonstrations of harmonic equilibrium. While most of the results had no practical purpose, Leonardo seems to have taken delight in demonstrating the certainty of proportional law for its own sake. Perhaps it confirmed his view of the inter-connectedness of all things in nature, which he so often disproved in the course of testing theory with experiment.

See Divine proportions as well.

Pyramidal colourings of our Emotive States

Photo RM -Hervé Lewandowski / Thierry Le Mage- Make Mona Smile here.

As you know I am using a comparative view of emotions which are much more subtle then the matter to which we assign our body. Earth is square. Plato points to heaven for a reason, and all things descend according to those things we assign emotive value which return to the matters defined. Alas, the human experience is emotive determined and our lives set in the direction we send it. All matters of due course, are heralded from a much finer level of thought.

See: The Triangle Descends into the Square

As many of you know I am not the great scientist that so many I follow are. Who have spent their times in the higher halls of learning. It is no less important to me that I work to the same vein of truth that they do in their pursuances for understanding and implementation of science under it's laws.

So too I work an area that would have been the decline of our scientist's credibility. The scientists who have suffered under the scorn of their own colleagues because of this divergence from what is known and understood. I do not have to worry, because I already work the lower echelon of the thoughts and feeling about those scorned. My immaturity perhaps and wonderment as to what purpose this lone blogger attempts, and I could be past off as some kook. I persevere, as we all do to understand life, reality and it's truths.