Comments on: Are our talents inherted of learned? http://www.josephyiptong.com/2009/08/10/are-our-talents-inherted-of-learned/ My existence in the virtual world Tue, 14 Dec 2010 01:54:23 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.2 By: joseph http://www.josephyiptong.com/2009/08/10/are-our-talents-inherted-of-learned/comment-page-1/#comment-106269 joseph Thu, 20 Aug 2009 06:18:04 +0000 http://www.josephyiptong.com/?p=1620#comment-106269 Thanks for your comments. I believe it is not a question of either in born or acquired, it can well be both. Thanks for your comments. I believe it is not a question of either in born or acquired, it can well be both.

]]> By: Steven Lam http://www.josephyiptong.com/2009/08/10/are-our-talents-inherted-of-learned/comment-page-1/#comment-106218 Steven Lam Wed, 19 Aug 2009 13:56:56 +0000 http://www.josephyiptong.com/?p=1620#comment-106218 This is a very interesting article! Let's take the case of a baby, for example. We assume that the baby has not learnt anything from the world yet, except for the immediate world that he has experienced after being born and for his 'inherent' intellect. Further borrowing from your example, if the baby is presented with a drawing, one with a lot of details, colour, meaning. What will the baby notice first? I believe some of us will be more attracted to the pattern. Others might be more interested in the colour. Some might 'see' more meaning and notice an underlaying pattern behind the drawing. This raises several questions in my mind: 1. Why would one be attracted to a particular aspect of this drawing and not the other? Was the baby's mind already 'pre-set' by genetics? Or is it simply down to chance? i.e. Presented with so much information, the mind picks any aspect of the drawing that is 'read' first. 2. What is talent? How would we judge that the baby who picked up on the pattern is more 'talented' than the baby who picked up on the 'colors' instead? Talent, suddenly, seems a very subjective term! Lastly, i would sit on the fence and say that some skills can be learnt, and some cannot. :) Steven This is a very interesting article!

Let’s take the case of a baby, for example. We assume that the baby has not learnt anything from the world yet, except for the immediate world that he has experienced after being born and for his ‘inherent’ intellect. Further borrowing from your example, if the baby is presented with a drawing, one with a lot of details, colour, meaning. What will the baby notice first? I believe some of us will be more attracted to the pattern. Others might be more interested in the colour. Some might ‘see’ more meaning and notice an underlaying pattern behind the drawing.

This raises several questions in my mind:
1. Why would one be attracted to a particular aspect of this drawing and not the other? Was the baby’s mind already ‘pre-set’ by genetics? Or is it simply down to chance? i.e. Presented with so much information, the mind picks any aspect of the drawing that is ‘read’ first.

2. What is talent? How would we judge that the baby who picked up on the pattern is more ‘talented’ than the baby who picked up on the ‘colors’ instead? Talent, suddenly, seems a very subjective term!

Lastly, i would sit on the fence and say that some skills can be learnt, and some cannot. :)

Steven

]]>