Guest gankeel Posted June 7, 2009 Report Share Posted June 7, 2009 My topic I chose is "Does the language gene exist". I have to do this in four days time but I am not sure what the knowledge issue behind this topic is involved real life siuation is? Can someone please explain or if you are really nice give me an example related to the topic?Your help is much appreciated. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tilia Posted June 7, 2009 Report Share Posted June 7, 2009 Why did you choose that topic if you don't know what the knowledge issue is? Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HJ:) Posted June 7, 2009 Report Share Posted June 7, 2009 (edited) If I were you, I would check with your biology teacher Edited June 7, 2009 by HJ:) Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandwich Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 (edited) What would the repercussions be if it did exist? How come all languages are so different if we all have the 'language gene'? Why would some of us have a greater facility with languages than others? Is language therefore somehow preprogrammed into us, rather than learnt? If it's preprogrammed, what parts of it must be preprogrammed (i.e. what're the similarities and things which unite all different languages)? If there was a language gene and we could identify it presumably before birth, could it be used to selectively pick children? That sort of thing, I imagine. The actual biological existence of a language gene is relevant, but not necessary for somebody to go all weird and TOKattack it.EDIT: By the last paragraph I meant that even if we haven't biologically identified a language gene yet, you can still talk about it as related to TOK. I only mentioned it because somebody suggested asking the Biology teacher, but I thought I'd point out that these things don't need to be real and proven to talk about them in a TOKish way TOK is, after all, not about facts. Edited June 8, 2009 by Sandwich Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gankeel Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 I am doing it on "Do we have an innate sense of language?". In my presentation, I will look at the for and against arguments for the existence of a language gene so as to prove that we have a gene that is built into us. Hence, helps to show that language is preprogrammed into us. I might then look at babies. Do you guys think my topic is good as a knowledge issue but I am not too sure whether I have linked this to a real life situation? What does it mean about how the position taken on the knowledge issue would have an implication be in related area?Your help is much appreaciated Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandwich Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 Didn't you just make a thread about this?Anyway, the point of TOK isn't to analyse a problem-- it's not solving an argument. Looking for a language gene would be genetics and part of Biology! TOK is about examining the implications of a piece of knowledge. As I think I tried to get across on the previous thread, it's about asking all the questions which would crop up. If we had a language gene, what would it mean in a wider sense? Would anything change? Would we have to compensate for it somehow-- does it raise a potentially significant ethical dilemma, discrimination for example, in its repercussions?You wouldn't hit many of the TOK criteria if you made it into any sort of argument. In TOK facts and real relationships are meaningless -- it's the issues they raise, not the facts themselves. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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