Let me share to you a beautiful saying that I found on the internet:

“The Philosopher’s soul
Dwells in his head,
The Poet’s soul
Is in his heart,
The singer’s soul
Dwells in his throat,
But the soul of man 
Who lives among flowers
Walks hand in hand 
With eternity.” 

Major Lessons Learned: Philosophy

I can say that Philosophy is one of my favorite subjects.

I got excited when I found out that I will be having a Philosophy class but my excitement went away when I heard feedbacks from other students, mostly negative. Like how boring the class is and how complicated, and so on and so forth. But I regained my excitement back soon enough. Yes, it gets complicated and confusing at times but that's just life. Sometimes, our class meetings really are boring and sleep-worthy but most of the time, I feel so active and I participate so much in class that I learn so much too! The topic, itself, is interesting. Especially to someone who desires to take up law. That someone is obviously me, but I let my chance on getting a pre-law course by studying BS Psychology but I think it could still happen via forensic psychology. Anyway, philosophy is about critical thinking, ethics, fallacies and many more.
I learned that Philosophers are lovers of wisdom. And that Philosophy comes from the greek words philo and sophia. Philo means love and Sophia meaning wisdom.

I really had fun studying Philosophy eventhough sometimes I got so drowsy and sleep in class, I still have time to re-read the slides on the powerpoint our instructor made and posted online in edmodo which gives me the advantage to think and analyze the topic more closely.

Most of the things I learned in Philosophy is in this blog. To check out more of my posts on Philosophy, just click THIS and browse.

Meanwhile, here's a picture of me with Albert Einstein.

"Try not to be a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value." - Albert Einstein

Ethical Dilemmas

An ethical dilemma is a situation that will often involve an apparent conflict between moral imperatives, in which to obey one would result in transgressing another. Below are some of the ethical dilemmas encountered by Psychologists(with real-life examples).

1. CONFIDENTIALITY
As a future Psychologist, one must value the essense of confidentiality, or keeping certain things private.

Examples:

a.) You are a guidance counselor in an elementary school and a student shares to you a story on how he/she is getting bullied. The student has the right to privacy but if the case is affecting him too much(like he doesn't want to go to school anymore), you have to act upon it. Call the bully's attention, perhaps or higher school authority.

b.) If someone confessed to you on a murderous crime or a great high offense that he/she did, you may have to tell the authority if it appears as if he/she have the tendency to repeat the said action.
c.) If you encounter a patient whose having self-hate issues and likes to hurt herself/himself, you have to tend to him/her quickly in order to give him/her the help he/she needs. And if you think that your patient is near to having the idea to killing himself/herself, seek further assistance. Call the attention of the parents.

d.) Randomly, a person goes to you for advice on certain non-serious matters. Since the matter doesn't really need immediate attention, if the patient asks that you're session be confidential, then confidential it shall be.

e. ) When your patient is diagnosed with HIV, a serious illness, addiction, or rape. It should really remain confidential.

2. CONFLICT OF RELATIONSHIPS

With the physical and emotional closeness of a partnership, it is inevitable that there is sometimes conflict.

Examples:

a.) Being a psychologist is a hard task. Giving the assistance needed by a patient requires a certain connection. And that connection sometimes transforms into affection. When a psychologist feels a pull towards his/her patients, then comes the conflict.
b.) Sometimes, the opposite happens. The patient falls in love with the psychologist, then comes the conflict.

c.) There is also a case where there is too much closeness between the patient and the psychologist that the latter forgets that the patient is a patient not a friend nor foe.
d.) There is also conflict when a patient seeks for advice yet does the opposite of the advice given.

e.) The tendency of having problems, arguments and/or misunderstanding between the patient and the psychologist is very high and it causes great conflict.

3. PAYMENT
When there is service offered, payment shall be given in return. Of course, everything comes with a price.

Examples: 
a.) There are cases where the psychologist needs to drop the clients even if they have urgent needs, if they cannot comply with the payments.

b.) There are also cases where the psychologist have to exaggerate the patient's condition in order for the payment to be covered by the insurance.

c.)  If the patient does not have enough money, the psychologist may negotiate with the patient in terms of payment. They can talk about payment options. The payment could be installment, one time big time, or paid in a different manner(through clothes, shoes, etc..) instead of cash.

d.) Sometimes, as a psychologist, you must understand the situation of your client. Including the client's financial status.

e.) Payment conflicts exists when the client gets into an accident, in a comma or dies before payment is settled. Therefore, the closest relative of the client must be the one to comply to the needed payment.

4. FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY

It is the interaction between psychology and the justice system.

Examples:

a.) A forensic psychologist must not take sides.
b.) When asked to be a witness in court, one must of course, say only the truth and nothing but the truth.

c.) Sometimes, the confidentiality of the client gets lost under some circumstances in the court.
d.) Psychologists often have difficulty being a witness against their client.
e.) If the client asks the psychology to be present in the client's hearing, the psychologist must comply, for support and for other reasons.

Major Lessons Learned: Human Person and Logic

 It is said that logic is an art that uses several arguments for evaluating reason. Arguments contain statements, conclusion, and and premises.

I learned a lot from this topic and/or discussion. I learned about logic as an art, logic as a science, arguments, objects of reasoning, and I learned about critical thinking, how to be a critical thinker.

Logic is divided into three operations of the mind. Simple Apprehension for concepts and ideas, judgment for mental proposition, and reasoning for mental agreement and disagreement. These operations are either oral or written terms, propositions, statements and arguments.

Logical fallacies fall under this discussion too but I already posted what I learned on fallacies before this post. I also explained a few of my favorite fallacies.

To check out my post about logical fallacies, click THIS.

Critique Paper on "Sam Harris: Science Can Answer Moral Questions"

The video is mainly about the relationship between science and human values. I admire the way Sam Harris started his talk, with examples of puzzling questions regarding science, values and life itself. It is said that science can get what we value but never tell us what we ought to value because science and values belong to different spheres, which is true.

Facts are hard to contradict because it is already proven whilst values doesn't really have any proof, mainly because it doesn't need to be proven. Morality should not really be questioned hence, doing either the right or the wrong thing.

I observed that Sam harris used different techniques during his talk. He used the slideshow, for example. The slideshow on the big screen behind Sam Haris shows us bits and pieces of photos of people, things, structures and animals that he used as metaphors. Just like the many stone hills or peaks photo that he used to explain rape, the moral landscape and the psychological balance in human culture.

But there's this one question that he brought up in the middle of his talk that really struck me. He questioned why people - specifically the people of the church - focus on gay marriage rather than on poverty or any huge consequential issue. He made me question my religion. Well, not really my religion but what my religion does, or what my religion could and should do. It dawned on me that science is just being practical. Values? Morality? Being good and nice? Those are just pleasures that sometimes isn't really pleasure at all, sometimes just for show. It's like when you're in a sinking ship and the moral thing to do is to give the last lifejacket to another person, preferably someone whose younger than you but then that's when science kicks you in your behind and tells you that you need to be practical in life in order to survive. But that's just my brain working on thoughts, ideas, scenes that hopefully wouldn't happen to me, that's just my opinion.

By the end of his talk, I have to say that I learn a lot from him because I really did. He is very informative. The way he delivered his talk, the way he arranged the slideshow, the way he explained, the way his questions puzzle me, is very rad. Sam Harris is a great speaker, whit his ways and all, you'd really learn from him.

Speech: Ciencia y Virtud

Does anyone know what ciencia y virtud means? It means science and virtue. Science, of which we study living and non-living things. Science is knowledge itself, and is considered as academic excellence. Virtue, on the other hand, is a positive trait or quality deemed to be morally good and thus is valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being. Virtue is moral excellence. Both of which should apply to every Escolarian.

Having the motto “Ciencia y Virtud”, Centro Escolar University paves its way to the top by instilling on their students, the Escolarians, the greatness in the world of science that their courses offered in their 3-branches namely CEU Mendiola, CEU Malolos and CEU Makati. They also teach their protégés how to value not only their school work and academics but also how they should think twice on how to act and what things to say which should be morally good. Centro Escolar University guarantees both academic and moral excellence.

Here in Centro Escolar University, I have acquired Science and Virtue which helped me to attain where I am today. Who would have thought that a simple motto of a university, that I often thought I’ll never use or never matter at all would help me in many aspects of my life? It pushed me to do my best, to strive, to study harder, to excel. It motivated me to do tiny charitable acts and simple acts of kindness day by day. It got me through the first two years of college.

May it be a good example, a motivator to you to push you throughout not only college life but in whatever way, in your everyday lives. Make science and virtue your motto, your mantra in life. Try your best to excel in both. Just remember these 3 words, ciencia y virtud.

Major Lessons Learned: Fallacies

fal·la·cy 

n. pl. fal·la·cies

1. A false notion.

2. A statement or an argument based on a false or invalid inference.

3. Incorrectness of reasoning or belief; erroneousness.

4. The quality of being deceptive.

Our midterms mainly revolved around fallacies. We studied at least 14 common logical fallacies and it's sub-fallacies. Studying fallacies sounded boring for me at first but when the examples were given, I started to understand them more and eventually, it brought my spirits high.

I learned a lot from this topic but I will just discuss a few since 14 is just too many.

My Top 5 Fave Fallacies:

1. Fallacy of Amphiboly -> I like this fallacy so much because it is so confusing. It's not supposed to be complicated but such people make it sound coplicated than it's supposed to be. Those people are the "pilosopo" kind. I belong to those people because I'd rather explore everything in a statement than settle for what's served on the plate. Hehe.
   
   
2. Begging the Question -> I also like this fallacy because it backs up it's first statement by restating it again(in a different manner, that is!) I realized that I often use this fallacy when I'm told to write an essay or when asked to report in front spontaneously
   
   
3. Argumentum ad Ignorantiam -> "To see is to believe" is a famous saying that is sort of related to this fallacy. But it is better suited with "Evidence/Proof before belief" or something like that.
   
   
4. Argumentum ad Hominem -> It has 3 sub-fallacies: Poisoning the well, circumstantial and tu quoque. I learned that poisoning the well is a logical fallacy that attacks the opponent by means of a negative trait while circumstantial is a logical fallacy that reveals what the opponent will gain by implying the opponent's statement. Tu Quoque, on the other hand, is when someone tells you not to do something even though that someone is doing it. My favorite argumentum ad hominem is the latter.
5. Argumentum ad Bacculum -> This is done by use of force and/or threats.
   
   

Well, that's only my understanding of the fallacies mentioned above. My understandings are only opinions, some are not really facts.

I think that I got interested with fallacies because I can relate to them, because I often encounter them. And because they're kind of rude - the kind of rude people like me likes, the mean-but-not-to-mean kind. Hehe.

MAJOR LESSONS LEARNED

I learned quite a lot. From knowing the meaning of Philosophy which is love of wisdom. Philo meaning love, sophia means wisdom. And philosophers are lovers of wisdom. It's branches. My personal favorite is logic and ethics. I found out a thing or two about a few philosophers too.

I also learned about critical thinkers and wishful thinkers. I believe that I can be both. I am a critical thinker at heart, but at times, I happen to be just a wishful thinker. I tend to see the ins and outs of a certain subject matter first before jumping into conclusions but then again, I sometimes jumps into conclusions just for the sake of having to finish that talk about the subject matter. Critical thinkers have to think more deeply, distinctly and carefully so as not to miss out on a single fact, whereas wishful thinkers doesn't really care about facts, they rely on their own opinions.

Creating this blog, this e-journal, really helps. Tho, to some, it may appear as boring to them or an additional work, but not to me. Blogging has always helped me. It helped me before and it's helping me now, helping me understand Philosophy more. And the good thing is, I can go back to my previous posts and read them and remember our class meetings wherein certain topics were discussed and it will seem like I''ll be learning all over again.

Science vs Philosophy

What are the similarities and differences between Science and Philosophy?

Even after I read the article, Philosophy for me, is still Science. They don't have much difference but they have unique features and uses.  Philosophy is mainly about critical thinking and reasoning whilst Science is more on chemicals, elements, living and non-living things, which is to say, everything.

Write a short critique paper about this article

The article about Philosophy is very informative but not convincing enough. It is well written, though. IT has reduntant words and expressions but still it helped me know more about Philosophy.

I just had to post this photo of my ideal Philosopher. HAHAHA.

Reaction Paper

"Why the world is the way it is: Cultural Relativism and its Descendents"

We were asked to make a reaction paper on cultural relativism. I got a bit frustrated because I got not a single idea on what cultural relativism is. I tried reading the document presented to us, yet it is filled with deep words with such deep meanings. I couldn't quite figure out what it means. I was about to give up quickly but luckily, I didn't. I read it 4 times, the least.

It is stated that the idea that Relativism contends that all truth is relative except for the claim that "truth is relative". It just means that the truth depends on the people. But the claim that "truth is relative" is not up to the people. We should not impose our values on other societies nor could we contend that one culture is superior to another culture. I think that the most famous intellectual descendents of cultural relativism is racism. Racists are everywhere. A racist is someone who believes that they are superior because of their race and have prejudices against others on belief, they are normally antagonistic towards other as a result of their belief in being superior. This is famous with Americans because they keep on comparing the Whites with the Blacks and that pretty much makes them a racist.

I agree that the truth is different for each individual, social group or historic period. Technically, there is only one truth but it depends on how a certain person or group of people see it. If they see the truth as positive, then the truth will come out as positive and vice versa. But then again, as what David Hume said, no one can know anything for certain. We may think we know but we really don't. He says that a person is unable to pass judgment on alternative moral systems and he claims that neither reason nor the sense can supply reliable knowledge and that, consequently, man is a helpless being in an unintelligible universe. I'm not quite sure if I'm siding with David Hume on his thoughts on truth and relativism but I must say that the guy has a point. We can't really know anything for certain and people think we're experts on causality wherein we just associate our experiences together. I agree with Kant and Hume when they said something regarding the inability to see or prove causality in the objective world. As Kant said, men are cut off from the objective world and can never know the world in itself. For example, when you're born in a rich family and grow up swimming in pols of gold, then you wouldn't really know what the real world is like, you wouldn't really know how difficult life is for most people since you have almost all the pleasure in life.

Multiculturalism in the other hand, stands up for the equality of all creatures be it big or small. Multiculturalism, in my own understanding, is sort of a law or bill because it includes too many anti-individualistic things, things regarding the government, individual rights and other rights, and other law-worthy topics. It also promotes a culture of victims who have perpetual claim on society and the government.

Society sets norms of truth  and falsity and right and wrong. It just means that the truth depends on the people. If majority believes that the truth is positive, then it will be, but if they believe it is negative, then negative its is. If a man sees things differently than the majority, then maybe he doesn't see the truth the way most people do. The truth changes too, that is why evolution is very essential to understanding consciousness, history and mankind.

My Ideal Philosopher

Who is your ideal Philosopher? Why?

My ideal philospher is Aristotle. I can't really explain why. Maybe I like him because I hear more about him than the other Philosophers. Or maybe it's just because of the sound of his name, Aristotle, it sounds like a turtle. I like turtles.

I came across this website about Aristotle, it says "Aristotle had something to say on just about every subject, whether abstract or concrete, and modern philosophy almost always bases every single principle, idea, notion or 'discovery' on a teaching of Aristotle. His principles of ethics were founded on the concept of doing good, , rather than merely being good. A person may be kind, merciful, charitable, etc., but until he proves this by helping others, his goodness means precisely nothing to the world, in which case it means nothing to himself." I believe that what is stated there is true. That Aristotle really always have a say on everything. Oh and he was the one that said that the earth, our world, is circular in shape. And also, I admire him for having to discover infinity. ∞ Hehe. =))

He is a critical thinker, he is a philosopher. And maybe that's why I like him. 

For you, what is the greatest idea or belief of your ideal philosopher? Elaborate.

In my own opinion, Aristotle is great because he had courage to stand up for his belief when he contradicted his teacher, Plato and Plato's teacher, Socrates. He discovered 'observational science' and formulated all the rules in logic. And some of his beliefs, ideas and sayings that caught my eye is as follows:

• Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom
• Each man judges well the things he knows.
• Our duty as philosophers requires us to honour truth above our friends.
• You will never do anything in this world without courage. It is the greatest quality of the mind the next to honor.
• No happy man can become miserable, for he will never do acts that are hateful and mean.

I'm not going to explain those because they're really self-explanatory, all you have to o is read and analyze, then you'll eventually get it.

Intro to Philosophy and Ethics

Why is the study of Philosophy and Ethics important to your development as a student and as a human being?

Philosophy simply means love of wisdom. It is the study of reason and understanding. Whereas ethics studies morality, right and wrong. It is very important to know how to express yourself by means of reasoning, correct reasoning, that is!

There are a lot of things that we can get from studying Philosophy and Ethics. Knowledge, I think, is the most important thing that we gain from studying the two. Knowledge of correct reasoning from logic, knowledge of beauty from aesthetic, knowledge of the nature of human beings from methapysics, knowledge of moral judgment from ethics and knowledge itself from epistemology.

It also helps us understand things more, to at least differentiate truth from reality, right from wrong, tough sometimes, I must say, it is still very confusing. But I think I am more knowledgeable now that I've learned a thing or two from studying Philosophy and Ethics.

"I am the wisest man alive, for I know one thing, and that is that I know nothing." -Socrates

I believe that Socrates is wise but not wise enough to be the wisest man on earth(amongst the living and the dead). I for one, think that Aristotle is much wiser than Socrates. It is because Aristotle have proved more things than Socrates, and he has done far more better studies than that of Socrates's.

But I like his modesty. Everyone knows that he is a genius, nonetheless, he admitted that he knows only one thing, and that is that he knows nothing. I came across a phrase when I was surfing the web a few years ago, and yes I still remember it, it says "Knowing nothing is knowing everything." I didn't really understand what it meant then, but now I do. Or at least, I think I do. It means that if you know one thing, you must acknowledge that you know nothing, since nothing can truly be known. That being said, is already an acknowledgement, acknowledging that you know nothing says that you are realistic. Being smart(or stupid) only refer to a person's ability to learn new things, and let go of the old concepts that are irrelevant. It means, a person can never really know everything there is to know, that's why we are always learning. 

Philosophy: A guide to happiness; Socrates, self-confidence

In my own point of view, I believe that Socrates is right. In an interview with Mr. Andrew Miller, Andrew stated that he felt frustrated but preoccupied when only a few believed that his belief is right while the rest believed he's wrong.

As Socrates said, "We should find ways to build confidence in our own beliefs and not be persuaded by the opinion of others". If you believe in something, you must stand up. Stand up for what you believe in even when others think or say that you're wrong. Socrates couldn't accept that every opinion was equally worth listening to anymore than any part that is equally capable. I'm not saying that I'm siding with Socrates but in some cases, he might just be right. Like for instance, people tend to believe things said by authrority, even without proof, they still think they're right. It is also said in the video that if majority of the population believes it is right, then it will be.

Happiness is not ready made, it comes from your actions so if you believe in yourself, then you shall be happy. Because when it comes to being happy, there is no right or wrong. It's just a battle between your happiness and people's judgment. If you believe that you're right, you have to stand up for yourself.

What is your purpose in life?

That is a very hard question.

You see, everything in this world, be it living or not, have its own purpose. Just like a bag. A bag's purpose is to carry things, to make human life easier. I can identify a lot of things and a few people who have purposes but I can't really explain what mine is. Maybe I was brought into this world to help someone, to be someone's guide or maybe even to invent, discover or do something important and/or valuable in the near future, but I don't know that yet.

As of now, my purpose as a student is to study, to learn, to experience things that may or may not help me discover my other purposes in life, to make me a better person so as to prepare me for what is to come.