Discuss the claim that some areas of knowledge are discovered and others are invented:

It can, however, be argued that ethics are in fact an invented area of knowledge.  For instance, I was taught and repetitively told to act a certain way when I was younger, and as a result, I did not in fact discover this area of knowledge for myself. All of these proper mannerisms have been passed down through previous generations, thus, being invented and relearned over time; however, these conventions, I believe, have been discovered by people to ease social situations.  It is sort of like the discussion of the chicken and the egg; for instance, if politeness between humans was “discovered” then it could possibly mean that this factor existed in the mind of a higher being such as God previously.  

I believe that ethics can also be directly related to the discovery of history of each individual as well.  Discovery of a history fact refers to an event that has already taken place is then uncovered and understood by other people.  Thus, I believe that each individual has to comprehend the history that has occurred in the past and determine its significance in comparison to our entire world.  Each person can create their own history through their experiences as they age, and they can also learn about events and occurrences that have happened in the lives of other people through language and emotion as well.

There is a great abundance of history within my own family that is very important to me.  Both my parents, for example, have been in a revolution, fighting for what they believe in against the law.  When my mom was about 18 years old there was a revolution occurring in Iran, and she always tells me stories about how massive crowds of people would stop working for days at a time to rebel against the government and speak their opinions.  My mom would tell me that she and her friends would run around all day in protests and handing out flyers for what they believed in along with thousands of other individuals, even though they could have been sent to jail if they were caught.  After listening to all of her stories and seeing many pictures of everything that had happened I realized that she was the one who made her own history happen and I was the one who was able to discover the major disasters that she, along with thousands of other people had to fight through. Through language, sense perception and emotion I discovered exactly what many of these people had to go through and that was extremely significant for me.            

I do realize, however that it may not seem right to simply state that all history can only be discovered, for this isn’t necessarily always the case.  In many instances, history can be considered as an invented area of knowledge within our world. This can be assumed when historians look at different facts with what has happened previously, and fill in the blanks themselves and invent, or reinvent history.

These considerations of the invention of history can in some ways also link in with the area of knowledge of mathematics.  I believe that is quite evident that mathematics is a human invention that was created from the thought processes of the human race. Mathematics have been created, expanded and advanced over a large period of time and it is vital to our everyday survival.  Math creates structure and order in the lives of all people and gives us direct answers that are either right or wrong.  With the invention of mathematics we have progressed technology to where it is today, and we are capable of sleeping at night in our homes, knowing that we will be safe and that the building will not suddenly break down and fall on our heads.  Thus, I deduce that math is an invented area of knowledge that has been a primary reason for thousands of technological advances in our society. For instance, even the Egyptians in 2500 B.C.E used mathematics to aid them with the construction of the Great Pyramid and in 1440 C.E the printing press was invented as a result of mathematics, and to this day we extensively use it to print out our books, textbooks, and novels.  

Mathematics has even always been a huge part of my family.  My father was the top student in University in mathematics and always had a great passion for solving problems for hours at a time.  As a result, my brother and I have always been persuaded to strive to achieve excellence in this subject area.  I am always told to practice mathematics and take the highest level that is available to me in school because it is extremely important to my family.   I do argue with my parents at many times that I am struggling with math and don’t want to take the higher level course for it, but they always have high expectations for me and aid me with any form of help that I need to ensure that I can excel in the course and as a result I receive high marks for it.  This makes me think that if mathematics were discovered by each person individually instead of invented and taught, then more people could possibly enjoy it more and strive to achieve excellence in it.  For instance, if every person from a younger age was in some ways guided to discovering even simple mathematics then they could learn to appreciate its values much more.  A good example of this would be helping a child count their toys and see the total number that they have by adding.  This would teach a small child addition and they could discover it for themselves. Even though I do believe that mathematics is an invented area of knowledge, if they were in fact discovered it may have been better for society.  

In closing, the invention and discovery of different areas of knowledge through experience, language, emotion and sense perception can lead people to better comprehend and appreciate these different topics.  From ethical values, to mathematics and history, every area of knowledge, regardless of its significance in someone’s life, can overtime be appreciated and understood.  Without realizing it we utilize all of the areas of knowledge in our day to day lives, therefore making them greatly significant and impactful to our entire population. Mahatma Gandi once said, “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” If we all continuously follow by this quote, then we can utilize all of the areas of knowledge to further develop our understanding of the people and world around us.

Bibliography:

"Tok (Thailand)'s favorite quotes." Share Book Recommendations With Your Friends, Join Book Clubs, Answer Trivia. Web. 2 Feb. 2010. <http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/list/508314-tok>.

MacroHistory : World History. Web. 3 Feb. 2010. <http://www.fsmitha.com/h2/ch29ir.html>.

"Math-History Timeline." WSU Mathematics and Statistics. Web. 3 Feb. 2010. <http://www.math.wichita.edu/~richardson/timeline.html>.