TOK Essay Draft
Title: ' 'There are only two ways in which humankind can produce knowledge: through passive observation or through active experiment. ' ' To what extent do you agree with this statement?
Knowledge as an abstract concept1 is supposed to help us developing skills and the ability to think for ourselves throughout our whole life and obviously there are various ways to gain it, for example by observing the world around us or through active experiment, such as in the area of knowledge science.
Producing and finding knowledge within the capability to learn is the very essence of what makes us human and in the following essay I shall attempt to explore the idea of knowledge production.
Firstly, I shall attempt to explore the importance of methodical calculation and logical thinking in producing knowledge in the field of the natural sciences.
Following that, I intend to detect if passive observation as such even exists and then compare it to active experiment regarding its level of productivity and importance in creating knowledge.
Thirdly, I aim to investigate whether other ways to produce knowledge besides the two afore-mentioned are existing, for example how do sudden clever ideas, so-called brainwaves fit in this pattern?
First and foremost, when one thinks of active experiment, it will perhaps come to one 's mind that getting to learn something actively implies a process in which knowledge evolves from experiment, for example in the field of the natural sciences. Everything that involves active involvement and then is reflected can be counted into the process of active experiment,because it gives us a particular knowledge on something. Beyond doubt one might say that reasoning is a strong way to produce this experimental knowledge, since we are able to come up with several knowledge claims through empirical research, which can be more or less justified but reasoned. This can not only imply observation, but experiment and experience as
Knowledge as an abstract concept1 is supposed to help us developing skills and the ability to think for ourselves throughout our whole life and obviously there are various ways to gain it, for example by observing the world around us or through active experiment, such as in the area of knowledge science.
Producing and finding knowledge within the capability to learn is the very essence of what makes us human and in the following essay I shall attempt to explore the idea of knowledge production.
Firstly, I shall attempt to explore the importance of methodical calculation and logical thinking in producing knowledge in the field of the natural sciences.
Following that, I intend to detect if passive observation as such even exists and then compare it to active experiment regarding its level of productivity and importance in creating knowledge.
Thirdly, I aim to investigate whether other ways to produce knowledge besides the two afore-mentioned are existing, for example how do sudden clever ideas, so-called brainwaves fit in this pattern?
First and foremost, when one thinks of active experiment, it will perhaps come to one 's mind that getting to learn something actively implies a process in which knowledge evolves from experiment, for example in the field of the natural sciences. Everything that involves active involvement and then is reflected can be counted into the process of active experiment,because it gives us a particular knowledge on something. Beyond doubt one might say that reasoning is a strong way to produce this experimental knowledge, since we are able to come up with several knowledge claims through empirical research, which can be more or less justified but reasoned. This can not only imply observation, but experiment and experience as
Bibliography: Arney,Kat. ' 'Are pink toys turning girls into passive princesses ' ' 9 May 2011. The Guardian. http://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2011/may/09/pink-toys-girls-passive-princesses Biello, David. ' 'Fact or Fiction?: Archimedes Coined the Term "Eureka!" in the Bath ' ' 8 December 2006.Scientific American. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fact-or-fiction-archimede/ Dombrowski, Eileen. Theory of Knowledge Course Companion, Glasgow, Bell & Bain Ltd, 2013. n.p. http://www.quora.com/There-are-only-two-ways-in-which-humankind-can-produce-knowledge-through-passive-observation-or-through-active-experiment-To-what-extent-do-you-agree-with-this-statement