Mathematics. What’s the first thing that popped up in your head? A subject that is super confusing and difficult, or a universal tool that transcends all languages, and could be used to discover the secrets of the universe?    In this series, we discuss different Areas of Knowledge with our guests. In this episode, we have John Lee, an university student from the University of Warwick, pursuing in applied mathematics.

00:00 Opening

2:00 Is maths a rigid subject?

3:06 Are all maths statements either true or false?

4:43 is everything in maths certain?

7:24 Is maths always logical?

15:00 Maths and intuition

16:48 Is maths subjective? (the axiom of choice)

21:57 Is maths a human construct? Or is it discovered?

25:27 What would happen if maths is used by someone with ulterior motives?

The Natural Sciences. A field that started from western philosophy, fuelled by human’s innate desire to know about the world that we’re living in. from the wonders of mother nature, the numerous cells that living organisms are made of; to the unknown secrets of ourselves - the wonders of this machine that we’re living in: human anatomy, natural science is inseparable from the wonders of the world.

In this series, we discuss different Areas of Knowledge with our guests. In this episode, we have Jasmine Chan and Jasmine Poon, and they are university students from the Chinese University of Hong Kong and Bristol University, pursuing majors in medicine and veterinary science.

The Natural Sciences. A field that started from western philosophy, fuelled by human’s innate desire to know about the world that we’re living in. from the wonders of mother nature, the numerous cells that living organisms are made of; to the unknown secrets of ourselves - the wonders of this machine that we’re living in: human anatomy, natural science is inseparable from the wonders of the world.

In this series, we discuss different Areas of Knowledge with our guests. In this episode, we have Jasmine Chan and Jasmine Poon, and they are university students from the Chinese University of Hong Kong and Bristol University, pursuing majors in medicine and veterinary science.

Hi! We’re two IB graduates from Hong Kong. “The Uncommon Senses” Podcast revolves around the Theory of Knowledge(TOK), where we reflect on how we know what we claim to know. We believe that the critical thinking skills we gained from our TOK course have become increasingly vital in the 21st century, and therefore we would like to continue our TOK explorations here!

Primarily, we aim to help the current IBDP students learn more about TOK based on our own experiences and research. Hopefully, we can also reach out to other people who’s interested in our  philosophical, psychological and social discussions to see the world beyond our so-called common senses, and reconsider: to what extent are our common senses ‘common’?

Timestamps for Episode #9:

0:00 Opening

0:27 TWE does language shape our reality? The Himba Tribe

4:14 Discussion on colors — Chinese and English

8:49 Discussion on language preservation

14:13 TWE does reality shape our language? — Chinese and English cultures

20:44 Language’s development throughout China

26:19 Gendered vocabulary

Resources:

Music Credit:

aeseaes – all in blue, Chimera

Hi! We’re two IB graduates from Hong Kong. “The Uncommon Senses” Podcast revolves around the Theory of Knowledge(TOK), where we reflect on how we know what we claim to know. We believe that the critical thinking skills we gained from our TOK course have become increasingly vital in the 21st century, and therefore we would like to continue our TOK explorations here!

Primarily, we aim to help the current IBDP students learn more about TOK based on our own experiences and research. Hopefully, we can also reach out to other people who’s interested in our  philosophical, psychological and social discussions to see the world beyond our so-called common senses, and reconsider: to what extent are our common senses ‘common’?

By the way, for our cReDEntiALs:

Telia: 45/45 in IB, grade A in TOK :)

Joshua: 30/30 in TOK :)

Timestamps for Episode #8:

0:00 Opening

0:42 Language as a Social Construct

4:51 Inner Monologue & aphantasia discussion

9:55 Does knowledge have to be formed on the basis of language?

20:50 Language shaping our reality through connotation — Diamond and Coal

Music Credit:

aeseaes – megalomaniac

Hi! We’re two IB graduates from Hong Kong. “The Uncommon Senses” Podcast revolves around the Theory of Knowledge(TOK), where we reflect on how we know what we claim to know. We believe that the critical thinking skills we gained from our TOK course have become increasingly vital in the 21st century, and therefore we would like to continue our TOK explorations here!

Primarily, we aim to help the current IBDP students learn more about TOK based on our own experiences and research. Hopefully, we can also reach out to other people who’s interested in our  philosophical, psychological and social discussions to see the world beyond our so-called common senses, and reconsider: to what extent are our common senses ‘common’?

By the way, for our cReDEntiALs:

Telia: 45/45 in IB, grade A in TOK :)

Joshua: 30/30 in TOK :)

Timestamps for Episode #7:

00:00 Opening

0:43 Skinner’s language theory

4:04 Discussion on Skinner’s language theory

9:15 Chomsky’s language theory

12:51 Discussion on Chomsky’s language theory

Resources:

Skinner:

Chomsky:

Others: (INFP)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73SIDF-Ll1g

Music Credit:

aeseaes - megalomaniac, carrion comfort

(they are such a cool band! Go check them out!)

Hi! We’re two IB graduates from Hong Kong. “The Uncommon Senses” Podcast revolves around the Theory of Knowledge(TOK), where we reflect on how we know what we claim to know. We believe that the critical thinking skills we gained from our TOK course have become increasingly vital in the 21st century, and therefore we would like to continue our TOK explorations here!

Primarily, we aim to help the current IBDP students learn more about TOK based on our own experiences and research. Hopefully, we can also reach out to other people who’s interested in our  philosophical, psychological and social discussions to see the world beyond our so-called common senses, and reconsider: to what extent are our common senses ‘common’?

By the way, for our cReDEntiALs:

Telia: 45/45 in IB, grade A in TOK :)

Joshua: 30/30 in TOK :)

Timestamps for Episode #6:

0:00 opening

0:51 the Matrix

2:23 idealism gone wrong - religious cults

5:30 The Ghost short story summary

10:04 The Ghost discussion: the powerful “natural science”?

14:47 differences in viewing the world - politics

16:45 modern education = mass hypnosis!?

22:14 the power of “astrology”: crystals & psychic readings

27:38 education = mass hypnosis cont.

29:55 should we always keep an open mind?

Resources:

Try Guys and Tyler the Medium:

https://youtu.be/lADBzq_CFwY

Rise in young people interested in astrology: https://www.swlondoner.co.uk/news/16062020-astrologers-and-tarot-readers-see-rise-in-young-people-seeking-guidance

Psychic experience:

https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/day-friday-emotional-psychic-experience-made-believer/story?id=31703622

Stories of the Sahara by Sanmao

The Egg by Andy Weir (not included in the podcast, but quite interesting):

https://ofwhiskeyandwords.com/the-egg-by-andy-weir/

Hi! We’re two IB graduates from Hong Kong. “The Uncommon Senses” Podcast revolves around the Theory of Knowledge(TOK), where we reflect on how we know what we claim to know. We believe that the critical thinking skills we gained from our TOK course have become increasingly vital in the 21st century, and therefore we would like to continue our TOK explorations here!

Primarily, we aim to help the current IBDP students learn more about TOK based on our own experiences and research. Hopefully, we can also reach out to other people who’s interested in our  philosophical, psychological and social discussions to see the world beyond our so-called common senses, and reconsider: to what extent are our common senses ‘common’?

By the way, for our cReDEntiALs:

Telia: 45/45 in IB, grade A in TOK :)

Joshua: 30/30 in TOK :)

Timestamps for Episode #5:

0:00 opening

1:23 common sense realism

8:10 scientific realism

19:35 Sokhal Affair

21:41 phenomenalism

28:57 idealism

49:21 religious reality

Hi! We’re two IB graduates from Hong Kong. “The Uncommon Senses” Podcast revolves around the Theory of Knowledge(TOK), where we reflect on how we know what we claim to know. We believe that the critical thinking skills we gained from our TOK course have become increasingly vital in the 21st century, and therefore we would like to continue our TOK explorations here!

Primarily, we aim to help the current IBDP students learn more about TOK based on our own experiences and research. Hopefully, we can also reach out to other people who’s interested in our  philosophical, psychological and social discussions to see the world beyond our so-called common senses, and reconsider: to what extent are our common senses ‘common’?

By the way, for our cReDEntiALs:

Telia: 45/45 in IB, grade A in TOK :)

Joshua: 30/30 in TOK :)

Timestamps for Episode #4:

0:00 opening

3:10 ultimate reality: butterfly net - monkey business illusion

5:12 ultimate reality: experiences - gorilla in lung scan, Death and the Maiden

15:01 ultimate reality: cultural interpretation - cows & dogs

28:42 Schrodinger’s cat

38:17 the simulation hypothesis

Resources:

Monkey Business Illusion:

https://youtu.be/IGQmdoK_ZfY

Lung scan gorilla:

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2013/02/11/171409656/why-even-radiologists-can-miss-a-gorilla-hiding-in-plain-sight

Zimbabwe Shona culture:

https://www.marintheatre.org/productions/the-convert/convert-shona-culture

Hinduism and cows:

https://www.britannica.com/topic/sanctity-of-the-cow

Schrodinger’s cat TED-Ed:

https://youtu.be/UjaAxUO6-Uw

Schrodinger’s cat article:

https://studentsxstudents.com/understanding-quantum-superposition-through-the-schr%C3%B6dingers-cat-thought-experiment-d0cea6e13063

Heisenburg’s uncertainty principle TED-Ed:

https://youtu.be/TQKELOE9eY4

Vox article: Are we living in a computer simulation? (good read!):

https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2019/4/10/18275618/simulation-hypothesis-matrix-rizwan-virk

Hi! We’re two IB graduates from Hong Kong. “The Uncommon Senses” Podcast revolves around the Theory of Knowledge(TOK), where we reflect on how we know what we claim to know. We believe that the critical thinking skills we gained from our TOK course have become increasingly vital in the 21st century, and therefore we would like to continue our TOK explorations here!

Primarily, we aim to help the current IBDP students learn more about TOK based on our own experiences and research. Hopefully, we can also reach out to other people who’s interested in our  philosophical, psychological and social discussions to see the world beyond our so-called common senses, and reconsider: to what extent are our common senses ‘common’?

By the way, for our cReDEntiALs:

Telia: 45/45 in IB, grade A in TOK :)

Joshua: 30/30 in TOK :)

Timestamps for Episode #3:

0:00 Opening

01:14 How senses affect how we see the world: sales; car crash experiment

06:51 The theory of mind: Sally-Anne test, universality of emotions?

23:29 Qualia: inability to communicate our experiences

Music Credit:

aeseaes - All Things Devour, Black Swan

(they are such a cool band! Go check them out!)