Senses and Constructed Response
In big bold letters in my notebook from Professor Kirkpatrick's visit is the phrase "DETECTION TO PERCEPTION TO INTERPRETATION," which is basically a map of how our brains process the input from our senses so that they can be responded to. Detection and perception are biologically fascinating, but I'm more interested in interpretation, because it is the step where value is decided -- if a scent, taste, touch, etc is good or bad. The perception of a sensory experience is important for this judgement, but all perception is colored by interpretation. The example professor Kirkpatrick used was smoke. In most cases, it would be most advantageous for the smell of smoke to trigger a danger response. However, this is not my response. I smell smoke as I walk through the my neighborhood or the nearby woods and my nostrils flair. I am ...