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Ecology of Mind Reflection #2

connormatthews223 04 May 2012 19:10
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Ecology of Mind Reflection #2

The film chapters by Gregory Bateson Provided several interesting topics. The one that jumps out to me has to be the topics about perspective. Gregory Bateson talks about how we as humans should look at things differently as frequently as we can. Looking at things as you always have for too long doesn't excercise the potential of the brain which I think was an interesting and powerful point.

“Multiple Kinds of Knowledge” is a writing by Mary Bateson that discusses different thought processes and how we think. She spends a lot of the time talking about her childhood and how her parents were studying anthroplogy which allowed her to start thinking differently. Even at a young age, she interpreted everyday things like Gregory Bateson did, which is still something I want to accomplish.

“Lessons of 9/11” is another writing by Mary Bateson about the tragic attack on our country 11 years ago. She talks a lot about the impact the attack had on government and how it affected our government. She also spreads light on the fact that so many died and how many of those who past had family that will miss them dearly.

The film chapters by Gregory Bateson conferred many distinctive topics that I found interesting. The one topic that stands out to me the most is definitely how he talks about how we can perceive everything in a new way. Ever since I was little I always thought of things in many different perspectives just to have a better understanding of it. Because I did this with almost everything, it became easier for me to figure out problems that came into my life. I would be able to think of an abnormal way to solve it.

“Multiple Kinds of Knowledge” is a writing by Mary Bateson that discusses different thought processes and how we think. She also talks about when she was young and how her parents did work in anthropology and how it surrounded her all the time. She observed behaviors of others and began to perceive things in a different way at a younger age, which is remarkable.

“Lessons of 9/11” is another writing by Mary Bateson about the tragic attack on our country 11 years ago. She talks about the reactions our country took against this attack and it made me think in a different view about how the government took action. People now perceive everything in a different way and were more vulnerable to the real world. People lose loved ones and witnessed a horrible tragedy, which is bound to change people, and I agree with her.

“Form, Substance, and Difference” is a writing by Gregory Bateson about our enviornment and if we choose to destory our enviornment, it will be destroyed. Humans have been ignoring the simple fact that keeping the enviornment clean is important and necessary to live. Eventually, if we don't change our ways enviornmentally, we wont have a place to live anymore.

All three of these readings all have a common theme, which is the way we perceive things in the world. They all allow you to think in a different way given a different perspective. I think that if everyone considered everyones perspectives and appreciated what they had to say, things would get done faster and more efficiently.

Reflection #3

connormatthews223 04 May 2012 18:54
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Reflection #3

One of my favorite videos watched in this course was the film “Ecology of Mind” by Nora Bateson. The movie provided insight on subjects such as patterns in life, double binds, change, relationships, and much more. It provides insight from a great professor, Nora Bateson's father. Because Nora was his daughter, she was able to understand his teaching probably the most. She was also able to have all of his teachings and thoughts interpreted which I think she does a great job putting in the movie.

“The Wisdom of Recognition: Activism & Aesthetics” provided information that I found intriguing and insightful. One of the first things that came to mind for me in this movie was the part of metapatterns that it goes over. There was a lot of mutual information betweeen this and the Nora Bateson movie as well as projects presented in the class. I also understand the concept a lot better. As far as the character Mary goes, because she opened her eyes and her mind to the thoughts of these teachings, she has bettered her thinking about everything in life.

Being in this class was one of the best things that I have done this year in college. Not only was the material interesting and insightful, but the class was low stress and provided diversity in my schedule, considering this class was nothing like my other ones. This class allowed my normal thoughts and feelings to be challenged by the teachings of professor Blooom as well as the movie. There were also a lot of interesting people in the class that allowed me to befriend people I wouldn't normally be friends with which I thought was really cool. I will never forget this class or what it taught me.

Reflection 3

Garret Vanderlinde 04 May 2012 03:44
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Reflection 3

One of my favorite videos watched in this course was the film “Ecology of Mind” by Nora Bateson. The video is a summary of her fathers thoughts and reasoning’s in his life. One topic that I am interested in is the change in life and how it is everywhere. People may not know it, but change makes the world a better place because without it we would be making mistakes over and over again. With change, people learn from their mistakes and become better people because of them and they change their mistakes to something that is correct in their eyes. “The Wisdom of Recognition: Activism & Aesthetics” talks about this type of change and how people react to change.

“The Wisdom of Recognition: Activism & Aesthetics” has many points that I found interesting. The first is how they discuss the patterns within different cultures around the world. Another point was how they talk about aesthetics, which is the appreciation of beauty in something. Another topic discussed was metapatterns, which are multiple patterns that make up one big pattern. Also, even to this day, the ideas from Mary’s parents are still affecting her today. She has been surrounded by it her whole life, but every time she looks at it differently and understands it a lot more in depth.

Being a part of this class this semester has definitely opened my eyes in the world. With this class I look so much more into depth about common things I see everyday. This course was very lenient and it was a good break from my major classes that I am taking. Learning all the new material this semester has opened my eyes so much to where I see double binds in my daily life. However, the more I realize that they are there, the more prepared I am for future situations. This class was the first step to a different realm where I can relate multiple things to my life much more in depth and figure out different situations. Finally, the film that we focused in the class was the main aspect to making me think differently in my life and to really look into profundity.

Reflection #3

Jacklyn 02 May 2012 01:51
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Reflection #3

The film, "Ecology of Mind" by Nora Bateson was an inspiring overview of her father's astonishing findings and reasonings. She explains how change may be uncomfortable and scary, but no change is even worse. The topic of changeability comes up a few times and is explained in depth about how change makes the world work better and better. Without change we would make the same mistakes over and over. If people couldn't change things either about themselves or things they did we would live with the mistakes and wrong paths we have taken instead of learning from the mistakes we make and have the chance to fix them and change them to what was supposed to be. The changeability has become an unconscious act that society does.

“The Wisdom of Recognition: Activism & Aesthetics”
-Patterns between people, society, different cultures.
-Aesthetics: The appreciation of beauty and how beauty is defined within a person or even as a whole.
-M.C. Bateson describes how with the ideas her father published, she still is learning from to this very day. Yet there information has always been there, she seems to look at it differently and understand it more in depth each time she reviews it.
-The division of patterns to make up one big pattern considered a metapattern. Things are divided, then creating patterns of the division and the relationship between things could make up their own patterns.

Attending this Ecology of Mind course has expanded my mind to a realm of understanding and explaining of ideas that i never understood or even contemplated about. These ideas are simple but yet overlooked. I feel in touch with society and understand the reasoning. The topics we have covered in class make me thing about Gregory Bateson's reasonigs and how he came up with these things. I constantly find myself intrigued when i discover a new topic and then relate it to my life. This has been an incredible and rewarding class and i feel as if i really can say i have learned real life and valuable information.

Reflection 3

Kelsey Anliker 01 May 2012 20:19
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Reflection 3

“Change may be scary, but not changing is even scarier” (Nora Bateson). This quote was taken from the film, “Ecology of Mind” and describes the concept of changeability. Ultimately the idea of change presented in the film describes it in a very clear manner but broad at the same time. This idea is broad because it has the ability to describe various things such as people and situations. If someone is faced with a similar situation that they have previously been through, they will tend to act in the same manner as before. This concept of slipping back into the old ways is described in the reading, “The Wisdom of Recognition: Activism & Aesthetics”. These consistent reactions result in that person not changing. Without changing, no one will ever move forward in life. Even though change may appear bad at first, without every change from our past, we would not be who we are today. Whether it be a slight change or a huge life alteration, it is a necessity to move forward in life.
“The Wisdom of Recognition: Activism & Aesthetics”
• Revisiting the ideas from Margaret and Gregory Bateson now that she is older and can understand them from a better perspective
• Patterns within different cultures
• Cybernetics
• The effects of World War II on both Margaret and Gregory Bateson and their thought processes. Regardless of their opposing views on social action, they seemed to be fully committed to the same cause when it came to World War II.
• How the ideas from her parents such as science and art are still affecting Mary Catherine Bateson today.
• Things are constantly being divided into smaller parts which could either cause a larger pattern or the loss of a connection within a pattern.
Throughout the duration of this course, my thinking has only slightly been changed. Personally, I have always looked at things through many differing perspectives. This class has taught me more ways to see things. For example, now I can see how things relate to each other and see more patterns in everyday things. This idea of relationships and patterns go hand in hand with one another and I have become much more aware of them. Also, whenever I discover a double bind I will think of the possible solutions to it. Furthermore, the film made me think about how much more there is to think about in the world.

Reflection 3

Lundon Hatcher 01 May 2012 04:09
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Reflection 3

“The pattern which connects.” This is a quote that Gregory Bateson often used. This quote I believe ties in all of the “chapters” in the film “An Ecology of Mind.” Obviously patterns are mentioned, “connections” can be interpreted as relationships or meta-patterns, there is a double bind when you think of the way in “which” it connects, and it also ties into that all things are connected, and have similarities. The reading “The Wisdom of Recognition: Activism & Aesthetics” discusses the relationships and personalities of Gregory and his wife Margaret. As different as they were they had a shared interest in whole systems, and how interactions happened. I love reading about Gregory’s studies and how different and abstract they all were. He got criticized because “he just doesn’t stick to any one subject.” One of the first readings we read also talked about Gregory’s struggle to find out what he wanted to be, and how finally “it became clear that he had been working on the same kind of question all his life.” This relates to me perfectly, I don’t have one major I secretly have two along with two minors. I don’t know what I want to be or do, so for now I’m trying to do it all “studying Balinese to alcoholics to dolphins and octopuses.” There’s no limit, and that’s how life should be.
No limits means no lines, no categories, no imaginary things that make something what it’s not for the sake of “science.” This is something I’ve learned to recognize from this class. Gregory said that the most honest and pure form of communication was the arts, and I think this is because a piece of art work does not have categories. People’s art show exactly what they see, or don’t see, it is not limited. The way in which I define things and view things is different in all aspects. Relationships; how do you define this? After taking this class you don’t, it’s not something you define; it’s something that just is. The quote that has changed me and opened my mind the most by Gregory is “You have probably been taught that you have five fingers. That is, on the whole, incorrect. It is the way language subdivides things into things. Probably the biological truth is that in the growth of this thing – in your embryology, which you scarcely remember – what was important was not five, but four relations between pairs of fingers.” This quote describes how we are taught to categorize, to assume, and to break what is to define what isn’t.

Reflection #2

Taylor Brown 25 Mar 2012 17:03
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Reflection #2

Knowledge is a very useful tool to have to, however until we know how to use it be cannot become very wise. In Form Substance and Difference, I thought it interesting how following the pattern of things was once discarded. As the story goes one more things seem to pop into my attention such as “If the organism ends up destroying its environment, it has in fact destroyed itself.” This statement sent my mind into motion about we tend to think of ourselves as separate from our environment but that sort of thinking gets us nowhere. In modern times we have done so much in destroying our environment and only now are we panicking with more CO2 in the atmosphere and less fossil fuels to run our vehicles. Compared too much longer ago we worked with nature to get what we wanted not just used it. Another thing that pops out are differences. We separate ourselves by differences and rarely think of how it all works together.
In 9/11 by Mary Bateson, it never ceases to amaze me how judgemental we can be. How one event will forever alter our suspicions of anyone not us, and even for those that are us we can to judge anyways. For example I have a friend who was telling me a story of how when she was in elementary school she was personally blamed for the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. What this shows it that people tend to let their emotions control them rather than logical thought. Two people could share the exact same thoughts but because they appear different from each other they persecute each other. Does this seem right?
In multiple Kinds of Knowledge, Knowledge goes both ways. The teacher must be willing to teach but they must also have the attention of the person they are trying to teach or not much information is going to go across. Sometimes the only way for information to effectively bridge the gap between people is money. Money will grab anyone’s attention however that is not so much the case in classrooms. Many classrooms feel like they are just giving information that other people thought were important. The tests/ papers in that class is basically the same information that the students has learner to relay. It seems like very structured learning to me rather than how it should be with the student learning to think for themselves and discover that truth rather than be taught as this is it and all it is.

Ecology of Mind Reflection 2

Garret Vanderlinde 21 Mar 2012 22:07
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Ecology of Mind Reflection 2

The film chapters by Gregory Bateson conferred many distinctive topics that I found interesting. The one topic that stands out to me the most is definitely how he talks about how we can perceive everything in a new way. Ever since I was little I always thought of things in many different perspectives just to have a better understanding of it. Because I did this with almost everything, it became easier for me to figure out problems that came into my life. I would be able to think of an abnormal way to solve it.

“Multiple Kinds of Knowledge” is a writing by Mary Bateson that discusses different thought processes and how we think. She also talks about when she was young and how her parents did work in anthropology and how it surrounded her all the time. She observed behaviors of others and began to perceive things in a different way at a younger age, which is remarkable.

“Lessons of 9/11” is another writing by Mary Bateson about the tragic attack on our country 11 years ago. She talks about the reactions our country took against this attack and it made me think in a different view about how the government took action. People now perceive everything in a different way and were more vulnerable to the real world. People lose loved ones and witnessed a horrible tragedy, which is bound to change people, and I agree with her.

“Form, Substance, and Difference” is writing by Gregory Bateson and is one that stands out to me a lot. He talks about how if we destroy our environment then we ultimately end up killing ourselves. I really like this because I agree completely that if we take advantage of our environment and treat it like garbage, then we will end up hurting or even killing ourselves in the long run.

All three of these readings all have a common theme, which is the way we perceive things in the world. The film chapters show people a new perspective to the world and how if we take a step back, we can look at the world in a whole new way. This can help people act on situations in a new way, which can help them in the long run. These films and readings can optimistically influence so many people if they take the advice and just simply think in a changed way.

Baldauf Reflection 2

Christine Baldauf 21 Mar 2012 04:56
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Baldauf Reflection 2

Christine Baldauf
Ecology of the Mind
Jeff Bloom
3/20/2012
Reflection 2
Knowledge is one of the most important things a person can gain. With more knowledge and understanding of something, it is said that one can do anything. That is why I really enjoyed learning about epistemology. Knowledge can be based on truth and beliefs. One person’s beliefs cannot be said to be wrong. Though others may disagree with one person beliefs, they cannot tell that person they are wrong. Someone can mistake their beliefs though. At one moment they may find themselves to be correct and the next moment be proven wrong by a study, or some sort of scientific research proving them to be wrong. Gregory Bateson says in “Form, Substance, and Difference”, that difference is an abstract matter. Difference can be the difference between me and the chair I am sitting on. It can be anything, even the energy passing between two different objects.
One article that I really liked was Mary Bateson’s Lessons of 9/11. I liked how she talked about people’s change in attitude and perception. After the events of 9/11 occurred the American people perceived everything as “different”. Bateson describes Americans as more vulnerable. I completely agree with her. After the tragic events happened people were scared. Some had even lost loved ones and were very vulnerable and upset.
Reading the articles make me think about things a little more abstractly. It makes me reconsider that there is only one right answer to a question. There are always more ways to look at something. I feel like these things will definitely help in my future career. I want to be a therapist, and work with people. If I have the understanding that everyone thinks differently and has different views, I will be able to connect with people easier and see where they are coming from.

Baldauf Reflection 1

Christine Baldauf 21 Mar 2012 04:55
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Baldauf Reflection 1

Christine Baldauf
FS 121
2/6/2012
Nora Bateson’s “Slippery Rigor” was very similar to her film “An Ecology of Mind.” She explains how her father has made a big impact in her life, especially the way she learns and thinks. She mentions Gregory looking at things from many different perspectives. Ways that most people would not think to look at a simple object. We got to experiment with different ways of looking at things in class by going outside and really looking at an object of interest outside. We were not just looking at the object though; we were really observing it in depth and paying closer attention to its details than you normally would not notice. It really opened my eyes to a different way of thinking.
Gregory Bateson had a strong impact on more people than just his daughter. Marilyn Price-Mitchell is also fascinated by Gregory and his way of thinking. In the reading, “Where the Sea Meets the Land,” Price-Mitchell talks about her first encounter with Mr. Bateson. In one of her memories of Gregory, she recalls him saying, “When man lost touch with nature, he lost touch with himself.” The fact that we are nature and that our minds are nature was something else that she got from meeting Bateson.
Something that really had an impact on me personally was in “Where the Sea Meets the Land.” There is a dialogue between Marilyn and Gregory, and Gregory says, “We are simply a part of something much bigger than ourselves. I found my beauty in seeing the patterns that connect us.” Until reading this I never stopped to think about how we really are just a small part of a huge world. But there are connections between us and every aspect that makes up this huge world that we live in.

Ecology of Mind Reflection #2

Jacklyn 21 Mar 2012 01:00
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Ecology of Mind Reflection #2

Jacklyn Hipkins
Reflection #2

From the chapters of the movie, I learned and pondered these ideas closely. For example, epistemology, the nature of knowledge, when we expand our minds and open them to new things we become more curious and thrive to learn. Epistemology, branches thoughts into other related areas; this impacted my thinking because I never really paid much attention to the nature of my knowledge. So I pondered the idea, and came up with that I do in fact strive to learn and learn about new things so that I can share my findings with others. These film chapters shaped my thinking because I noticed my subconscious actions and worked to learn more, and teach others around me.

The assigned readings made me more enthusiastic to really expand my thinking and reason with my thoughts. In the reading “Multiple Kinds of Knowledge” by M.C. Bateson, she reminisces when she was young the work he parents did in anthropology was brought into their lifestyle and in her upbringing. Bateson claims that she learned about herself that she was an observer of all things. She began observing other people’s behavior while participating in it. At a young age I feel that Bateson was incredibly aware of all knowledge and had a conceptual understanding of her parents’ work and applying it accurately.

In the reading, “Lessons of 9/11” by M.C. Bateson, I got a vibe from Mary Catherine that it, in a way, is incredible that the entire population as a whole participated in the change of our nation. Yet incredibly horrifying and tragic our country changed. But not how M.C. thought it would be, “trauma works against learning. In my opinion, it was a bandwagon effect, yet I do care a lot about what happened, it was as if the government created this huge defense and started supporting our allies but when we personally were attacked it was more of a competition of who could locate Binladin first. I pray for those killed in the attack but instead of turning our attention to the victims it was more about enraged retaliation.

The TED videos we watched in class over the topics we were studying were surprisingly enjoyable, I liked that I could relate to their studies. The host always had me thinking about my real like experiences and relating them together. The other activities done in class like the picture clip and we had to come up with the rest of the photo was interesting to me because I came up with an entire story for each one and they all seemed to have the same related topic in my eyes. It was even more interesting that a few of the clips were all included in the same big picture. As for the “big picture” I feel that life works the same way, the six degrees of separation is included in the big picture, and we are all little clips of one big photo sequence.

Reflection 2

Kelsey Anliker 20 Mar 2012 20:24
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Reflection 2

“Form, Substance, and Difference”, written by Gregory Bateson, discussed many varying topics. The main topic that stood out was how he talked about thinking in new ways. “The most important task today is…to learn to think in the new way” (Gregory Bateson). Throughout my own life I have always tried to think of things through multiple perspectives. By doing so it becomes much easier to figure out any complication or problem a person may be faced with. “Multiple Kinds of Knowledge” also talks about different thought processes. Qualitative and quantitative are two types of thinking and research discussed in this literary work written by Mary Catherine Bateson. “Lessons of 9/11” was also written by Mary Catherine Bateson. This was written in response to the September 11 terrorist attacks. Ultimately, this article makes readers think more in depth about the response of the United States to the attacks. “This change in perception following 9/11 was not a simple subtraction, because it was pervasive, affecting the whole experience as if the new present were viewed through a gray or yellow filter” (Mary Catherine Bateson). This particularly displays how fragile Americans were after the attacks and how skeptical they became for good reason. Overall, I think all of these readings tie in with the film “An Ecology of Mind.” All three of the readings discuss varying thought processes which was something that was widely seen in the film. The impact of the film was that it gave the viewers the insight needed to see everything and anything from a new point of view. The result could cause individuals to take a step back and really examine a situation or an idea before acting upon it. Simply by just thinking in a different way, people could be positively influenced by these readings and viewings.

Reflection 2

Lundon Hatcher 20 Mar 2012 05:51
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Reflection 2

After viewing “An Ecology of the Mind” a few more times I have started to relate things that I have learned in that film to the readings we do. “Form, Substance and Difference” had many key points that made me think. One thing that stood out to me was “the organism which destroys its environment destroys itself.” I believe greatly that we take for granite the earth and its resources. I took an FS class last semester that focused on Native American’s, it taught me a lot about the earth and why we should not treat it like its “mine.” It’s not mine at all, it’s not yours either, it belongs to everything inhabiting it and I think humans are selfish when thinking about this topic. Another thing that Gregory said that made my mind puzzled was “in the world of mind, nothing- that which is not- can be a cause.” This is something that I don’t completely understand but that I would like to further explore.
“Multiple Kinds of Knowledge” is written by Catherine Bateson and explores the concepts of research, cultural systems, and the difference between quantitative and qualitative thinking. One thing that she said was “the structures of attention and the structures of intelligence are what determine our decision making as a society.” This reading and her other reading titled “The Lessons of 9/11” strongly tie into something that was said in “An Ecology of Mind.” It’s all about context and perspective, we see and make sense of things differently; however we do not take into account that people are different. We usually get a first impression and keep it, even if we are shown differently. All of the readings especially these three tied into that concept. As humans we often do not take into account that we share this world with animals and plants and how our actions affect them, it’s about how we profit.
After thinking about context and perspective and how we are all different and make sense of things differently I’ve realized that is our biggest hurtle as a society and world. I mean if we all understood how the Muslims or people in Iraq perceived us, and for what reasons they did, then we probably wouldn’t have such a social problem with them. We need to always keep in mind that we are all raised differently, think differently, learn differently and see things differently. We shouldn’t argue and get mad we should listen and try to grasp and understand others ways of thinking and life.

Reflection #1

connormatthews223 13 Feb 2012 03:53
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Reflection #1

Composing a Life Story
I think that what Nora Bateson was saying in this summary was what she was saying in her movie. That how we interpret things and how we view things, even everyday things such as cups on a coffee table, is always up to us, and how we want to view that object.
An Ecology of Mind Film
Like states in her summary, I think this film was about how we view things and how we interpret things. Learned from her father, Nora Bateson tries to shed light on how important it is to explore your mind, and reach deep into your brain to better understand the world we live in, and to make the best of it.
A Slippery Rigor
I think that it becomes apparent how important Nora Bateson's father was to her, and how he affected her as a film maker. She makes it obvious that he was extremely important, and provided a sense of mind that only she could've obtained from her father her taught her how to take advantage of the full potential the mind offers.
Where the Sea Meets the Land: Remembering Gregory Bateson
Gregory Bateson seems to me as someone who should be widely recognized as someone who contributed to the study of the mind, and how to use it. He seems as important as Sigmond Frued, an extremely well knwon psychologist who is mentioned in psychology all the time. However, the work and thoughts Dr. Bateson had seem just as influential to me. He taught something extremely important, which was to use your mind.

Ecology of the Mind Relection #1- Santos

Yadi 07 Feb 2012 05:04
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Ecology of the Mind Relection #1- Santos

Yadi Santos
Ecology of Mind Reflection #1

Marilyn Price’s “Where the Sea Meets the Land”
- Patterns of thinking and nature
- We have lost our very basic roots with nature
- We are part of something much bigger than ourselves
- The relationship of the sea to the land is always changing.
- Bateson saw circular processes in the natural world

Nora Bateson’s “Slippery Rigor”
- The thing was never the thing.
- Gregory Bateson had not many, but infinite ways to examine everything
- The map was not the territory.
- We should never get stuck down on the linear line of thinking
- “Bateson-thought” is not only an academic pursuit; it is ultimately a way of life.

Margaret Wheatley’s “Introduction” Chapter
- This is not a book of conclusions, cases, or exemplary practices of excellent companies.
- She believes that our present ways of understanding organizations are skewed
- We must learn to see the world anew
- We need to stop seeking after the universe of the seventeenth Century and begin to explore what has become known to us in the twentieth century
- This book attempts to be true to that new vision of reality

What parts of these articles resonate with you and your viewing of the film,” An Ecology of the Mind”? How so?
- Learning never stops
- Finding little thing in big things is complicated
- We are bigger then the sum of our parts
- There’s a lot of thing that we are capable of doing or that we already do and we don’t even know why.
- Our thoughts are not ours, but the cultures thoughts.

M.C. Bateson’s “Composing a Life Story”
- We make a visual composition of form and color
- One of the most striking examples is the way people talk about divorce
- Much of coping with discontinuity has to do with discovering threads of continuity
- Narratives have canonical forms
- The availability of multiple interpretations of a life story is particularly important in how the generation communicate with each other

What parts of this film had an impact on you and your thinking? How so?
The video had not particular audience she said that if an 11th grader couldn’t understand the video than it was not worth it. In reality there is no real economy. Most importantly we are each a system. The video from Harrison Bergeron also had some things that can be tied to the video Ecology of Mind because it goes deeper on how individuals can make an impact on the world.

Ecology of Mind Reflection #1 -Brown

Taylor Brown 07 Feb 2012 02:13
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Ecology of Mind Reflection #1 -Brown

In “Where the Sea Meets the Land: Remembering Gregory Bateson” the author discusses patterns of thinking and how we have lost our very basic roots with nature. She lingers on how we have a way of communication by analyzing the relationships between things and whether or not they are directly related.

In “Slippery Rigor” Nora discusses the relationships between things and her father’s way of thinking. By approaching a subject at numerous angles you can gather an infinite number of patterns or answers. By looking at something a thousand different ways you can widen your perspective.

In “Introduction” the author stresses the importance of having a wide perspective and to consider all the possibilities. By maintaining a wide perspective, we can always think up new solutions when old ones stop working and by doing to continue to move forward. The world is constantly changing so we need to learn to adapt to these changes and remain flexible to what the world throws at us. The author also tells us that everything overlaps creating complexity, making it simple would be preposterous since we rely on other things to define it. It is the connections between things and around things that really defines the world. Organization does not really exist either as it must remain fluid and become a paradox in order for it to be organized.

After watching “An Ecology of Mind” I understand at what these various authors are trying to portray. Everything is constantly changing and if we don’t change with it, then we are going to be left behind because our old way of thinking no longer works. To define things for practicality we separate ourselves rather than think of the relationships between them to define them. With this way of thinking we can open and widen our perspectives to unimaginable planes but we don’t. Why?

Ecology of Mind Reflection #1

Garret Vanderlinde 06 Feb 2012 21:16
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Ecology of Mind Reflection #1

Composing a Life Story
• What I got out of this short story was that it is the choices you make in your life affect what you can do next. Basically, people construe the present and then use that idea to prepare a future that they want.
An Ecology of Mind Film
• This film definitely relates to all the readings done so far. Each story goes into depth about exactly how we think in this world as well as how we can think differently too. What I got out of the film is that we can think about anything in a different perspective and see something entirely different from what we perceive it to be.
Slippery Rigor
• This story is about how Bateson talks and remembers the stories her father would tell her and how they would teach her things as well. The few main points that I got out of this story was how she admits that admires how her father attempted everything he did. What Gregory did was that he questioned everything he saw, such as “What works with this”.

Where the Sea Meets the Land: Remembering Gregory Bateson
• The main point I got out of this reading was that Price always wondered about the relationships between one thing and another. Whether things are directly related or not, they all seem to connect with one another. On top of that, she talked about the relationships in nature and would study every aspect of an object to get a better understanding of it.

"Ecology of Mind Reflection #1" - Hatcher

Lundon Hatcher 01 Feb 2012 21:18
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » "Ecology of Mind Reflection #1" - Hatcher

This month we looked at four readings and had our first viewing of “An Ecology of Mind.” The readings corresponded to the movie in that they all were about Gregory Bateson or his teachings on ecology. “Where the Sea Meets the Land” and “Composing a Life Story” are two readings in which the authors discuss their own experiences with patters, relationships and other aspects of Bateson’s way of thinking. “Composing a Life Story” was interesting in that it showed how multiple stories, told so differently, can be true about one person’s life. It also talked about Bateson’s struggle to find out what he wanted to be, a biologist, anthropologist, and when he put all his work and thoughts together that is when he created Steps to an Ecology of Mind. This gave me hope. As funny as that sounds, I am only 19 and have endless options and opportunities to be whatever I want to be; yet I have no clue what that is. “It became clear that he had been working on the same kind of question all his life.” Maybe that’s what I’m doing, working on a question that I do not know, but will take me to what I truly desire.
“An Ecology of Mind” is a film in which I would have to watch a dozen more times to have a basic understanding of all the concepts that are given, and even then I’m sure I would learn more each time I watched it. One major aspect that caught me was when Nora discussed fingers. As a nursing student we learn all about the anatomy of the hand and the physiology or movement of it; but I never thought of fingers having a “relationship.” This relationship between your fingers really is what’s important, not the fingers themselves. “You can’t step in the same river twice.” This was another thing that popped out at me. The river is always changing, the water is different, the pebbles have floated down stream, the leaves or sticks have too; it is not the same. The final thing I want to reflect on is that I loved how Nora said scientists look for relations that really aren’t there. That’s so true, we categorize, and characterize but why; for our own selfishness? Why can’t we see everything as being what it is, not what it should be or isn’t…

Reflection #1

RebeccaC 01 Feb 2012 07:06
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Reflection #1

Rebecca Conforto
Reflection #1

Marilyn Price’s “Where the Sea Meets the Land”
• The patterns of nature
• Bateson liked to answer a question with a question not an answer
• Common patterns link natural systems to human systems
• Relationships and boundaries are always changing
• We are part of something much bigger than ourselves
• Combined many levels of mind to generate true learning

Nora Bateson’s “Slippery Rigor”
• Looking at things with alternate angles
• Gregory Bateson had infinite ways to examine everything
• Never got stuck down linear line of thinking
• Not what he said, but how he approached everything was key
• How does is work?
• What are its relationships?
• How does it think? (Ecology of the mind)
• The nature of our curiosity effects the nature of our findings

What parts of these articles resonate with you and your viewing of the film,” An Ecology of the Mind”? How so?
• Learning never stops
• Acknowledge your differences in thought
• Ecology: A totality of the pattern of relationship between something and its environment
• There is a huge ecological component in our mental processes
• “If the world is made of relationships, what are relationships made of?”
• When solving problems look to how nature finds a solution
• Shift in perspective is where change comes from!
• “You might think your thinking your own thought, but you are thinking your cultures thoughts.”
• How nature works vs. the way people think = problems

M.C. Bateson’s “Composing a Life Story”
• Gender differences in compartmentalizing life
• The art of composition is key
• You can create different versions of your life
• Context needs to be considered when explaining something
• Discontinuities are not a bad thing
• “You cannot adjust to change unless you recognize some analogy between your old situation and your new situation.”
• Relationships between ideas
• A continuous life story is often a cultural creation, not a reflection of life at is it really lived

What parts of this film had an impact on you and your thinking? How so?
Epistemology is not a word I was familiar with but the meaning is something I have always been curious about. As I said in my story about my life, I look at every instance through many lenses. Although this may not give me complete clarity of a situation, it allows me to have a unique perception which can ultimately lead to a new type of understanding. I feel as though this is what Bateson hoped for-to start a revolution of original thinking. The film encouraged me to continue thinking about how and why things relate and interact with each other, but to do so in a non-linear way.

Ecology of the Mind Reflection #1 Jacklyn Hipkins

Jacklyn 01 Feb 2012 05:50
in discussion Course Forums / FS 121 (Spring, 2012) » Ecology of the Mind Reflection #1 Jacklyn Hipkins

Marilyn Price “Where the Sea Meets the Land”
-She would look at the relationships of the objects in nature and studied their distinctive and unique qualities
-There was always a connection to different things in nature whether they were directly related or not, they all seemed to connect somehow.
-Her curiosity then wondered to the patterns and relationships of people.
-Price spent her days team building, constructing meetings and decided she wanted to continue to stretch herself personally.

Nora Bateson “Slippery Rigor”
-Bateson reminisces on the stories her father would tell her and also teacher her.
-She stated that she admired most that her father attempted EVERYTHING
-Gregory questioned everything he analyzed, like “How does it work?, What works with it?”
-Bateson had an urge to learn everything because he father claimed that you never stopped learning.

M.C. Bateson “Composing a Life Story”
-Bateson related life to the arts and the artistic process.
-She wants us to compose our own versions of our lives and we can come up with the ideas and distinct details there are to creating it.
-She claims that in life we have to go through disappointments, choices, surprises and interruptions.

“An Ecology of the Mind"
-The one thing that stood out to me the most was the comment that we don’t necessarily think our own developed thoughts but that society has an impact on what we think and how we act. She said he seemed to be looking through a portal but when in reality it just might have been his own developed thoughts all along. The movie had me questioning my own thought process and if society does have some sort of influence or control over what I think. It gave me insight on how things may be related and how I can look at them from different angles or in a zoomed view. It also had me questioning the material just as Gregory did in the film. For instance, if the world is made up of relationships what are relationships made up of? Also if society in a way influences our thoughts who or what is the main source, and who make the rules? The film made my perspective of the world different for that now I will consider the reasoning and patterns of nature and society.

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