CENTERING: Some thoughts about focus and conjectural knowledge IMAGE: a photo of a date palm tree blended with a semi-transparent circular frame Satoru: I'm not sure what this picture says. Perhaps something about centering and moderation? Melissa: (shrugging her shoulders) It could be. That sounds like a comfortable, middle-of-the-road philosophy. Liao: Hm. Is that what true centering is about? I think the author is talking about a level beyond mere compromise. Melissa: How would you know that? Liao: (laughing) I don't know. Actually, I don't know anything. My entire life is merely a series of guesses, at least that’s my best current working conjecture. Tim: (snapping his fingers) That's a great way to frame life in general! Instead of a bundle of dogmatic beliefs, perhaps we should think of our mental landscapes as a series of hypothetical guesses. Melissa: (yawning) Yeah, I guess so . . . ===================================================================================== from _Crassroom Voices - Poetry, Art, & Dialogs about Education_ by T Newfields SUMMARY: An image of a date palm tree and dialog about certainty and conjecture. KEYWORDS: middle path, conjectural knowledge, dogmatic belief, cognitive centering Author: T Newfields [Nitta Hirou / Huáng Yuèwǔ] (b. 1955) Begun: 2006 in Tokyo, Japan / Finished: 2017 in Gifu City, Japan Creative Commons License: Attribution. {{CC-BY-4.0}} Granted < LAST http://www.tnewfields.info/CrassroomVoices/st3.htm TOC http://www.tnewfields.info/CrassroomVoices/index.html NEXT > http://www.tnewfields.info/CrassroomVoices/aston.htm