16.
PERCEPTION VERSUS REALITY
(B)  MY FATHER HAS TAUGHT ME THESE TWO PLATONIC MODELS. THE FIRST
IS THE SLAVE IN THE CAVE. THIS TO ME IS THE MOST EXPRESSIVE IDEA I
KNOW OF, WHICH EXPLAINS PERCEPTION VERSUS REALITY.  FIRST, LET'S SAY
THERE IS A CAVE.  THE CAVE IS L-SHAPED, WITH THE OPENING AT THE END OF
THE SHORT LEG.  AT THE LONG END OR THE DEEP SIDE OF THE CAVE, A
SLAVE IS CHAINED FROM BIRTH TO THE WALL AND NEVER ALLOWED TO SEE
OUT THE CAVE DOOR.  THE SLAVE IS FED AT NIGHT WHEN ASLEEP AND NEVER
EXPERIENCES ANOTHER HUMAN BEING.  THE ONLY EXPERIENCES THE SLAVE
CAN PERCEIVE OF THE OUTSIDE WORLD ARE THE SHADOWS SHINING ON OR
SOUNDS ECHOING OFF THE WALL FACING THE SHORT LEG'S OPENING.  THE
SLAVE CAN NEVER TELL IF A PERSON OUTSIDE OF THE CAVE DOOR IS SHORT
OR TALL BY HIS SHADOW BECAUSE HE CAN NEVER BE CERTAIN HOW CLOSE
TO THE DOOR THE PERSON IS AND WHAT THE ANGLE OF THE SUN IS.  TO
MAKE MATTERS WORSE, THE SLAVE DOESN'T EVEN KNOW THE SUN RISES OR
SETS, OR UNDERSTANDS CLOSER OR FARTHER FROM THE DOOR, OR THAT
PEOPLE ARE SHORTER OR TALLER.  THE SLAVE CAN'T EXPERIENCE ANY OF
THAT, SO THE SLAVE HAS A REAL PROBLEM PERCEIVING REALITY OUTSIDE OF
THE CAVE.
     OUR BRAIN IS LIKE THAT SLAVE IMPRISONED INSIDE A BONE CAVE AND
NEVER ALLOWED TO LEAVE THE CAVE.  IT IS NEVER ALLOWED TO
EXPERIENCE ANYTHING OUTSIDE THE CAVE, EXCEPT FOR THE SHADOWS AND
ECHOES THAT ARE THE NEURAL IMPULSES COMING IN FROM THE EYES, EARS
AND OTHER SENSES ALONG THE OPTIC, AUDITORY, OR AFFERENT NERVES AS
NEURAL IMPULSES.  OUR BRAIN MAKES US UP AN IMAGINARY IMAGE OR
PERCEPTION OF WHAT IT THINKS IS AROUND US, BECAUSE IT HAS THE ABILITY
TO DO SO.  THIS ABILITY IS BUILT INTO EVERY LIVING BEING WITH SENSES. 
THE ACCURACY OF THE MENTAL IMAGE OR PERCEPTION IS BASED ON THE
ACCURACY OF THE SENSORY ORGANS TO TRANSFORM THE  SENSORY DATA
INTO MEANINGFUL NEURAL IMPULSES THAT CAN BE USED BY THE BRAIN, THE
CONTINUITY OF THE NEURAL PATHWAYS, THE BRAIN'S  INTELLIGENCE OR
COGNITIVE ABILITY, EXPERIENCE WITH THE OUTSIDE  WORLD, AND THE LEVEL
OF ATTENTION FOCUSED ON THAT IMAGE OR  PERCEPTION.  ALL OF THESE
FACTORS ALLOW OUR BRAINS TO FORM A MORE  RELEVANT IMAGE OR
PERCEPTION OF REALITY WHICH IS OUR INTERNAL  REPRESENTATION OF THE
OUTSIDE WORLD.  NOTICE, I SAID PERCEPTION OF  REALITY, NOT REALITY. 
WE DO NOT SEE OUT OF OUR EYES, WE SEE AN  IMAGE PRODUCED BY OUR
BRAIN, SEEN IN OUR MIND'S EYE.
     THE SENSES ARE A LIMITED WAY OF GAINING DATA FROM OUTSIDE OUR 
CAVE, BECAUSE THEY ARE LIMITED IN THEIR ABILITY TO GATHER DATA. THE 
EYES ONLY TRANSFORM LIGHT WAVES IN THE WHITE LIGHT SEGMENT OF THE
ELECTROMAGNETIC  SPECTRUM INTO NEURAL IMPULSES.  THE EARS CAN
ONLY TRANSFORM SOUND WAVES  FROM TEN HERTZ TO TWENTY  THOUSAND
HERTZ INTO NEURAL IMPULSES.
     THE TACTILE SENSES ARE ALSO LIMITED, THE SECOND MODEL, PLATO'S 
THREE PAIL MODEL ILLUSTRATES THIS.  LET'S SAY YOU HAVE THREE PAILS OF 
WATER: THE LEFT ONE IS VERY COLD, THE MIDDLE ONE IS ROOM 
TEMPERATURE, AND THE RIGHT ONE IS VERY HOT.  YOU PUT YOUR HANDS IN 
THE OUTER ONES, LEAVING THEM IN A WHILE TO ACCLIMATE TO THE 
DIFFERENT TEMPERATURES.  THE LEFT-HAND WILL FEEL COLD.  THE 
RIGHT-HAND WILL FEEL HOT.  IF YOU TAKE BOTH HANDS OUT AND PLACE 
THEM IN THE CENTER PAIL, YOUR LEFT-HAND SENSORS WILL SAY IT IS HOT, 
WHILE THE RIGHT-HAND SENSORS WILL SAY IT IS COLD.  WHICH IS CORRECT?  
OBVIOUSLY, OUR SENSES ARE ONLY ACCURATE RELATIVE TO THEIR ABILITY 
TO SENSE AND TRANSFORM SENSATIONS INTO MEANINGFUL NEURAL 
IMPULSES.
     HAVE YOU EVER ROLLER SKATED FOR A LONG TIME, AND THEN 
REMOVED THE SKATES?  IT SEEMS THAT YOUR FEET ARE REALLY LIGHT, BUT 
THEY ARE ACTUALLY THE SAME WEIGHT AS NORMAL.  THE PRESSURE YOU 
THINK YOU FEEL ON THE BOTTOM OF YOUR FEET RIGHT NOW IS REALLY A 
PERCEPTION THAT IS IN YOUR MIND, IN YOUR INTERNAL REPRESENTATION OF 
YOURSELF WHICH IS A MENTAL IMAGE OF YOUR WHOLE BODY.
     I THINK THAT IS WHY PEOPLE WHO HAVE HAD AMPUTATIONS STILL 
THINK THEY FEEL THE AMPUTATED PART.  THEIR INTERNAL REPRESENTATION 
OF THEMSELVES HAS NOT COMPLETELY CHANGED TO MATCH THE NEW 
REALITY, AND IT MAY NEVER DO SO.  OUR INTERNAL REPRESENTATIONS OF 
OURSELVES AND THE OUTSIDE WORLD ARE VERY HARD TO CHANGE AS 
ADULTS.  THAT IS WHY WE MUST NURTURE OUR KIDS SO THAT THEY HAVE A 
GOOD HEALTHY INTERNAL REPRESENTATIONS OF THEMSELVES AND THE 
OUTSIDE WORLD.  THIS NURTURE MUST BE POSITIVE; MENTALLY, 
EMOTIONALLY, PHYSICALLY, AND SPIRITUALLY OR THEY MAY NEVER 
PERCEIVE THE REALITY OF THEMSELVES OR THE EXTERNAL WORLD WITH 
ANY RELATIVE ACCURACY.
     WE HUMANS, ARE VERY INQUISITIVE AND VERY INVENTIVE.  WE HAVE 
DEVELOPED MANY TOOLS TO ENHANCE OR EXTEND OUR SENSES' ABILITIES 
TO TRANSFORM DATA WHICH WOULD NORMALLY BE OUTSIDE OUR SENSES' 
ABILITIES TO DETECT OR DIFFERENTIATE.  WE DO THIS TO TRANSFORM THIS 
INFORMATION INTO SENSORY DATA THAT OUR SENSES CAN USE,  AND THUS 
GIVE OURSELVES A BETTER MENTAL IMAGE OR PERCEPTION OF REALITY 
WHICH IS OUR INTERNAL REPRESENTATION OF THE WORLD OUTSIDE OUR 
CAVE.  ONLY GOD PERFECTLY PERCEIVES REALITY, BECAUSE GOD CREATED 
REALITY. THEREFORE, ONLY GOD CAN PERCEIVE REALITY PERFECTLY 
BECAUSE ONLY GOD CAN IMAGINE IT PERFECTLY.