Arnold -
> Would an exploration of the concept of 'metaphor' prove useful here?
Metaphor? Trouble is, we forget that what we are talking about it
metaphor and not what is so.
I get the idea that we really cannot speak about what is so and that we
can only speak in metaphor - or, if you will, mental models. Maybe it
doesn't make any difference.
A description of a phenomenon does not reveal what is so. Merely being
aware that descriptions of phenomena is not true or not real does little
for us when we find ourselves in unfamiliar territory. Our dance is all
important. Does any of this make sense . . . on any level?
> My apologies if I've waxed somewhat philosophical here.
No apologies, please! That's what I like about this list.
> I'm personally still trying to find useful metaphors for making sense
> of a world that seems to be both anything and everything expect what it
> used to be, and I don't wish to pretend that I've come up with any
> definitive answers. Instead, I'm learning to find meaning from the
> processes of asking questions.
Who was it that said something like,
"It's not just asking questions that is important.
What is generally missing is our ability to ask original questions?"
Note: No guarantee that this quote resembles the original - whatever it
was - in any way. ;-)
> My own exploration of mental models has taken me in many directions including
> some of the more mystical and metaphysical realms you alluded to as well
> as into some of the 'harder' sciences of cognition, semantics, and
> complexity. When I find the expression 'mental model' to be a hindrance,
> it helps me to perceive it as little more than a metaphor for what I mean
> when I say 'my view of life'.
Ok, then. Why don't we just use the term metaphor? Or is it that mental
model means something more? For me, mental model conjures up a picture of
an airplane, a model airplane. I don't know why. I have yet to get
excited whe we talk about model airplanes. ;-/
-- George 'jorge' Bartow e-mail: jorge@tenet.edu Home: http://web2.airmail.net/jorge Research: http://web2.airmail.net/jorge/research =========== 4/4/99 "It is impossible to make anything foolproof, because fools are so ingenious" - anonymousLearning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>