1 / 21

Epistemic Functions of Pictures Some Conceptual Preliminaries

Epistemic Functions of Pictures Some Conceptual Preliminaries. Conference „Visual Learning: Communication – Cognition – Curriculum “ , Budapest, Decemper 7-8, 2012. Introduction. Background. Philosophy and Image Science Conceptual clarification Specific functions of pictures Core Topics

hateya
Download Presentation

Epistemic Functions of Pictures Some Conceptual Preliminaries

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript


  1. Epistemic Functions of Pictures Some Conceptual Preliminaries Conference „Visual Learning: Communication – Cognition – Curriculum“, Budapest, Decemper 7-8, 2012

  2. Introduction Background • Philosophy and Image Science • Conceptual clarification • Specific functions of pictures • Core Topics • Relation of pictures and knowledge • Rhetoric of picture use

  3. Introduction Content • Introduction • Epistemic Functions of Pictures • Pictures as empirical basis • Pictures in contexts of justification • Pictures in contexts of discovery • Visualization and Genesis of Knowledge • The basic problem: pictures and knowledge • Picture, truth and rhetoric • Conclusion

  4. Epistemic Functions Sequential photography (Muybridge)

  5. Epistemic Functions Sequential photography (Muybridge)

  6. Epistemic Functions Pictures as empirical basis • In empiricalresearch, causallycreatedpicturesareparticularlyimportant. • Theyservetoaugmentperception in ordertoverifytheexistenceofobjectsorevents. • Whenpicturesareusedindexicallyas a measuringinstrument, precisecalibration must beensured (i.e. authorization/authentification).

  7. Introduction Content • Introduction • Epistemic Functions of Pictures • Pictures as empirical basis • Pictures in contexts of justification • Pictures in contexts of discovery • Visualization and Genesis of Knowledge • The basic problem: pictures and knowledge • Picture, truth and rhetoric • Conclusion

  8. Epistemic Functions Pictures in contexts of justification • Pictures candepictcomplexissuesschematically. • Here, theirepistemiccontributionarisesfromtheillustrationof an argumentation. • Pictures canfunction also asvisualarguments. • In contextsofjustification, visualargumentsrequire a precise (usually verbal) explanation.

  9. Epistemic Functions Mathematic example

  10. Introduction Content • Introduction • Epistemic Functions of Pictures • Pictures as empirical basis • Pictures in contexts of justification • Pictures in contexts of discovery • Visualization and Genesis of Knowledge • The basic problem: pictures and knowledge • Picture, truth and rhetoric • Conclusion

  11. Epistemic Functions Scientific visualizations (Kekulé)

  12. Epistemic Functions Scientific visualizations

  13. Epistemic Functions Pictures in contexts of discovery • In epistemiccontextsofdiscovery, picturesoftenfulfillthefunctionofanalogies (as do metaphors). • Pictures allowforthetransferofcomplexstructuresfrom a fieldtheoretically well-foundedto a fieldyetunexplored. • As analogymodels, they also influenceourabstractconceptualviews.

  14. Rhetoric Content • Introduction • Epistemic Functions of Pictures • Pictures as empirical basis • Pictures in contexts of justification • Pictures in contexts of discovery • Visualization and Genesis of Knowledge • The basic problem: Pictures and knowledge • Picture, truth and rhetoric • Conclusion

  15. Rhetoric The basic problem: Pictures and knowledge 1 • Knowledge is true and justified opinion. • Truth is a property of statements / propositions. • True opinions (knowing that) presuppose concepts. • Justification is a communicative activity.

  16. Rhetoric The basic problem: Pictures and Knowledge 2 • In contrast, the essential function of pictures is illustration respectively visual characterization. • In terms of communication theory, this function is comparable to predication. • Thus, reference is principally problematic. • Problem of selection

  17. Rhetoric Content • Introduction • Epistemic Functions of Pictures • Pictures as empirical basis • Pictures in contexts of justification • Pictures in contexts of discovery • Visualization and Genesis of Knowledge • The basic problem: Pictures and knowledge • Picture, truth and rhetoric • Conclusion

  18. Rhetoric Pictures and idealization • An important subfunction regarding the epistemic use of images is idealization. • Analogy models are idealizing representations. • Idealization corresponds to an emphasis of particular aspects / views. • Idealization is a rhetorical figure that possesses a certain closeness to the conceptual.

  19. Rhetoric Idealization in pictures Ernst Haeckel

  20. Conclusion Conclusion • Pictures can assume epistemic functions in different ways. • However, the quality of an epistemic function always depends on the respective contextual (often linguistic) embedding, as well. • Accordingly, pictures can direct knowledge, but through ‚skillful‘ recontextualization, they can also ideologically distort it .

  21. Thank you for your attention!

More Related