Lec 1 | MIT 9.00SC Introduction to Psychology, Spring 2011
Introductory to Psychology 9.00 explores the scientific understanding of human nature and how
our minds work. We discuss how we perceive the world, how we see and especially how we hear,
and how we think. It has become increasingly clear that many people struggle with some aspect of
mental health. Our minds don't simply act as video cameras recording the world objectively;
rather, they determine the world we experience, see, and act upon. Even simple observations that
seem objective are determined by inferences and deductions our minds make. Psychologists have
demonstrated this by pointing out that although lines may appear different in length, they are in
fact all literally identical; yet it is our minds that determine why they look different.
Ted Adelson's beautiful demonstration of an illusion showcases how perspective cues can make a
more distant one look much bigger. Moreover, context is hugely determining when it comes to
interpreting how bright the grey is. This was demonstrated by Roger Shepard's illusion which
looked like it was coming towards you because of the way you were interpreting the light. At a
higher level, this can be seen in a study where Group A and Group B were told to look at a picture
of a trained seal act, with the only difference being that Group A had their eyes closed, while
Group B had their eyes open. The result was that each group had a different interpretation of the
picture, demonstrating how interpretation can depend on instructions given.
MIT professor Dr. Smith spoke about the important role of attentional resources in human
perception. He explained that even if something is right in front of us, we may not pay attention to
it if our minds are elsewhere. To illustrate this concept, the professor asked the class a few
questions about geography: "Who likes San Diego as being farther east? And which is farther
north -- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, or Rome, Italy?" The answer to the latter was that Rome is
north of Philadelphia. This interactive exercise highlighted how our mental maps shape what we
see and how we hear, often without us realizing it.
Four brave students demonstrate some of the limits and properties of memory, as Professor
explains that our memory for precise details is surprisingly modest and how we interpret things
matters a lot. To further explore this concept, the professor gives the students an exercise to do in
their seats: Listing sour, candy, sugar, bitter, good, taste, tooth, nice, honey, soda, chocolate, cake,
tart, pie. After every hand was up with a false memory from this exercise the professor explains
that it emphasizes both the amazing power of the human mind and an amazing peril of it. He then
asks somebody to read aloud something as fast as they can when they see it on the computer
monitor.
In America, we pronounce it ``of'' and it probably matters. Little preposition words like ``of'' often
go overlooked, but they can be important. For example, if you are in a room with 30 people, what
Introductory to Psychology 9.00 explores the scientific understanding of human nature and how
our minds work. We discuss how we perceive the world, how we see and especially how we hear,
and how we think. It has become increasingly clear that many people struggle with some aspect of
mental health. Our minds don't simply act as video cameras recording the world objectively;
rather, they determine the world we experience, see, and act upon. Even simple observations that
seem objective are determined by inferences and deductions our minds make. Psychologists have
demonstrated this by pointing out that although lines may appear different in length, they are in
fact all literally identical; yet it is our minds that determine why they look different.
Ted Adelson's beautiful demonstration of an illusion showcases how perspective cues can make a
more distant one look much bigger. Moreover, context is hugely determining when it comes to
interpreting how bright the grey is. This was demonstrated by Roger Shepard's illusion which
looked like it was coming towards you because of the way you were interpreting the light. At a
higher level, this can be seen in a study where Group A and Group B were told to look at a picture
of a trained seal act, with the only difference being that Group A had their eyes closed, while
Group B had their eyes open. The result was that each group had a different interpretation of the
picture, demonstrating how interpretation can depend on instructions given.
MIT professor Dr. Smith spoke about the important role of attentional resources in human
perception. He explained that even if something is right in front of us, we may not pay attention to
it if our minds are elsewhere. To illustrate this concept, the professor asked the class a few
questions about geography: "Who likes San Diego as being farther east? And which is farther
north -- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, or Rome, Italy?" The answer to the latter was that Rome is
north of Philadelphia. This interactive exercise highlighted how our mental maps shape what we
see and how we hear, often without us realizing it.
Four brave students demonstrate some of the limits and properties of memory, as Professor
explains that our memory for precise details is surprisingly modest and how we interpret things
matters a lot. To further explore this concept, the professor gives the students an exercise to do in
their seats: Listing sour, candy, sugar, bitter, good, taste, tooth, nice, honey, soda, chocolate, cake,
tart, pie. After every hand was up with a false memory from this exercise the professor explains
that it emphasizes both the amazing power of the human mind and an amazing peril of it. He then
asks somebody to read aloud something as fast as they can when they see it on the computer
monitor.
In America, we pronounce it ``of'' and it probably matters. Little preposition words like ``of'' often
go overlooked, but they can be important. For example, if you are in a room with 30 people, what
