Lecture One Notes · How do we get knowledge about the outside world? " Alcmaeon of croton- 500BCE, main land Italy: " Perception is distinct from understanding " Sensory organs are connected to the brain by channels (poroi) " Sensation and though occur in the brain Chapter 1 Psychology in the ancient world · in an academic context, psychology refers to the systematic study of human or animal thoughts, feelings and behaviour . the word "psychology" didn't appear in the English language texts until the 17th century · the latin equivalent "psychologia" first appeared in 1590 · the subject matter of psychology was studies systemically by philosophers in ancient Greek and roman times . the philosophers of these times were often interested in the human mind "spirit" and its physical properties, which led them to study about fundamental psychological phenomena like sensation and perception, personality, and motivation · Greek and roman philosophers first explored the ontological difference between materialism (the notion that reality is grounded in physical objects which exist independatly and are available for us to perceive and think about) and idealism (the notion that reality as we know it consist only of our perceptions and ideas. . Early philosophers like Thales (tt24-545, BC) and Parmenides (504-45tt, BC) were materialists . Later figures such as Plato (429-fi47, BC) and Aristotle (fift4-fi22, BC) were idealists . Another important distinction can be found between rationalism (the position that knowledge is best produced by reasoning) and empiricism (the position that knowledge is best produced by experiences and observations) · Plato was a rationalist, but his student, Aristotle, was more of an empiricist and emphasised the importance of observation in knowledge production · the way that ancient Greek and roman philosophers considered psychology is often encapsulated in a field of philosophy known as philosophy of mind . applied their views about the nature of the universe to argue that the mind is a non- independent by-product of the physical body . alternatively, plate and Aristotle argued that human psychological function existed independently of physiological processes . these views relate to a conceptual debate that has continued throughout the entire history of psychology and has been referred to as the mind-body problem . this is the question of whether the mind and the body are separate entities, the position known as dualism, or whether they are intrinsically one and the same entity, the position of monoism . these philosophers fall within the socalled "western tradition" of philosophu Example of ancient Egyptian consideration of psychology As well as within the Western philosophical tradition, psychological subject matter was considered by thinkers in other cultures. Some historians argue that ancient Egyptian culture was far better informed about some aspects of psychology than ancient Greek and Roman culture. One historical artefact,
known as the Edwin Smith Papyrus, is particularly informative in this regard. This document comprises a lengthy written description of medical knowledge in Egypt dating back to around 1600 bce . The document was written to aid