Communicating Nature Ch.2

Chapter 2 of “Communicating Nature,” labels and defines various types of environmental ideologies. These ideologies range from “unrestrained instrumentalism,” which is where humans view themselves as the totally dominant species and we are free to use the environment around us in any manner, no matter how destructive; to “transformative ideologies,” which is characterized by the thought that humans should have no more right to the environment’s resources than any other species or element of nature. More simply, the ideologies range from a pyramid shaped hierarchy with humans at the top to a circular, equality based system.

I would probably consider myself somewhere in between “preservationism” and “ethics and value driven ideologies.” I believe all living things have a basic right to live in natural conditions and humans should do as much as possible to preserve the environment. With that said, I believe humans, to some extent, have the right to modify the environment in necessary ways for the advancement of society.

Alec Hugo

Chapter Summary 1-6

Chapter 1:

This chapter is all about how intricate the brain is. Ramachandran focused on the idea of phantom limbs a lot. That after a limb is amputated for example the patient still has feeling or pain sensation in the limb. He has experimented with mirrors and reflection in hopes of decreasing sensation and pain in that phantom limb. Through his works he has discovered that the mind is ever changing and evolving to be better.

 

Chapter 2:

Perception is the key point in this chapter. Are the illusions that we ‘see’ really there or is it a story that the brain has created. This is where the ‘vision’ occurs, the eyes are just the tool used to do this. He makes a point that the brain makes symbolic descriptions of things like letters and objects to create meaning to them. Ramachandran gives a patient as an example, Jon. This patient has suffered a stroke and can still ‘see’ but the connections distinguishing what the objects are is lost.

 

Chapter 3:

Blending the senses is called synesthesia, and it is where people can for example; see colors though numbers or sounds, and others can hear shapes. Ramachandran believes it as a real phenomenon after his research.

 

Chapter 4:

Mirror neurons are fascinating neurons that are present in humans that could be the credit to what makes humans human. This mirror neuron gives the ability to learn to do something by just seeing how to do it and not have to be taught it. For example you can see someone hammer a nail into a board and then can repeat this act.

 

Chapter 5:

Autism is discussed in this chapter. Ramachandran proves that autism patients are lacking a number of these mirror neurons. Autistic patients lack common social knowledge. Social knowledge is largely learned from watching, mirror neurons.

 

Chapter 6:

The evolution of language is examined within this chapter. The three components in the evolution of language Ramachandran came up with are lexicon, semantics and syntactic structure. He also goes into the language and speech area of the brain, the Broca’s Area (speech) and Wernicke’s (language comprehension). Also it is easier to learn language at a young age compared to and older age.

Chapter 2

Amanda Sherry

In Chapter 2 of “Communicating Nature”, Julia Corbett discusses the different environmental ideologies that exist and how they can be viewed on a “spectrum.”  As described by Corbett, the endpoints of this spectrum are anthropocentric views and ecocentric views.

Anthropocentric ideologies center around humans and view humans as superior to the rest of nature.  On the other hand, ecocentric ideologies recognize that humans are merely a part of an interdependent circle where no single species rules.   Between these two extremes, other ideologies exist, including unrestrained instrumentalism, conservationism, preservationism, ethics and value-driven ideologies, and transformative ideologies.

Unrestrained environmentalism views humans as a “dominant entity” and claims the natural world exists solely for human use.  On the other hand, conservationism views nature as a resource for humans that should not be misused in a harmful manner.  Further, preservationism claims that it is important to preserve resources for reasons that go beyond their instrumental value.  For example, the sanctity of a religious aspect of nature should be taken into account when protecting natural resources.  Ethics and value-driven ideologies claim that non-human entities have the right to exist and that humans need to respect those rights.  Finally, transformative ideologies require social change because they recognize the effect that human use of natural resources has on the environment.

After reading this chapter, I am more aware of the different ways that humans perceive how their daily actions affect the environment around them.  As stated at the beginning of the chapter, most people tend to have an anthropocentric ideology that places humans and their needs at the center.  Considering humans are at the “top of the food chain,” I would certainly agree with this point.  Often, people take the resources that are provided for them by nature for granted.  For example, I certainly take the water I have to shower everyday for granted and subconsciously consider this water as existent solely for my use.

Though people tend to be anthropocentric, I do think humans are evolving to a state of being more environmentally aware and utilizing resources in a less-wasteful manner.  Through movements that call for more recycling and other “green” actions, humans are acknowledging that the natural environment is not something that should be taken for granted and that it is necessary to take care of it in order to ensure its existence in the future.

Haiku’s :)

1)The summer days are passing

but they still buzz about

when will these bees just fly away?

2)Sounds of water falling

Pitter patter, pitter patter

Soon it will all turn to ice

3) Thick canopies of leaves

covering me

while I swing in a hammock

By: Ericka Martin

Haiku

Hannah Spaulding

Summer nights
sweet warmth
fading into next

Over mountains
through the seas
-gone fishing

A bee below-
a jump,
forward tall.