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Schemata - noun; a representation of a plan or theory in the form of an outline or model
But could schemata, programs, algorithms alone provide for us the richly visionary, dramatic and musical quality of experience - that vivid personal quality which makes it 'experience'?

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"We have always two universes of discourse - call them 'physical' and 'phenomenal,'... dealing with questions of quantitative and formal structure, the other with those qualities that constitute a 'world,'" (Sacks 129)

Is this section Sacks explains the phenomenon of reminiscing which he sees as a the combination of the real world and the world in our heads. The chapter seems to talk about the haunting of the past which I thought was really interesting because of the strange outlandish nature of these disorders.

"Now, with her dream, and the long 'dreamy state' which succeeded it, she recaptured a crucial sense of her forgotten, lost childhood," (Sacks 143)

One of the disorders Sacks mentions in Reminiscing is a woman remembering her childhood through songs that would constantly play through her head. And though they were not welcome, they were the attempts of her brain trying to remember her lost childhood. This is similar to the chapter on a girl who was diagnosed with a brain tumor and her medication made her dream about her home in India. When she finally died, the doctors described her as returning home to India through her dreams. These disorders are sad yet beautiful in the way their minds try to express themselves.

"Experience us bit dissoluble until it is organised ironically; action is not possible unless it is organised ironically. 'The brain's record; of everything - everything alive - must be iconic," (Sacks 148)

This was an interesting quote about memories. That in order to create them they must be an iconic moment in one way or another. This makes me think about all my memories and how in a way they are key points in my live or especially strange and interesting moments. This thinking about memories is different than I have ever considered them which I found interesting.

"His character, judgement and general memories and feelings were wholly preserved - it was specifically and solely memories and feelings of the murder which now erupted uncontrollably, obsession and tormenting him," (Sacks 163)

In this chapter, Sacks recalls a man whose story could be a movie. The man accidentally kills his girlfriend/wife under the influence of PCP and therefore cannot remember no matter what. Then, at the hospital, the man is in a car accident and receives a brain injury which causes him to remember everything about the murder. This chapter is haunting because of the man's distress and fear he experiences after realizing he is a murderer.

"A man may be very 'low' intellectually - unable to put a key in a door...wholly unable to comprehend the world as concepts, and yet fully able, and indeed gifted, in understanding the world as concreteness, as symbols," (Sacks 177)

In my opinion, this was one of the sections. Sacks explores stories of technically "retarded" people with very low IQs but are spectacular in other areas. These stories in the chapter challenge the one dimensional view of disabled people. Rebecca who had a low IQ had an incredibly high EQ. When dealing with the death of her grandmother she describes her crying as her being sad for herself because she has lost such a big part of her rather than crying for her grandmother, who has gone to a better place.

"Their memory for digits is remarkable - and possible unlimited. They will repeat a number of three digits, of thirty digits, of three hundred digits, with equal ease," (Sacks 197)

Finally, I related this section back to education. This set of twins received less than 60's on their IQ but could remember the day of the week of any day in time on the spot and could memorize hundreds of numbers. It seems strange that such extraordinary people would fail a test that determines "intelligence." It related back to our discussions on testing in education and how it is not possible to measure important skills such as communication and character in tests. Despite them being important skills for success.

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unlauded - verb; not praised highly in public context
But there are other senses - secret senses, sixth senses, if you will - equally vital, but unrecognized, and unlauded.

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If there is defective (or distorted) sensation in our overlooked secret senses, what we then experience is profoundly strange, an almost incommunicable equivalent of being blind or being deaf (Sacks 72)

Throughout this chapter, Sacks explores the loss of a six sense within his patients resulting in strange outcomes such as not feeling this body is tilted, or able to comprehend that their own leg is theirs, or even missing their missing limbs. This exploration of a six sense is interesting because it quantifies "that feeling." For example, in gymnastics I can feel if my steps are wrong for my vault 20 feet ahead. And it also explores the importance of this six sense through the loss of it.

"Some physicians, indeed, regarded it as 'mythical,' a product of Tourette's colorful imagination," (Sacks 93).

What is interesting about the book is the time period in which it is written. The book seems to be written without technology in mind and relies solely on the "feeling" part of psychology. This quote shows the advancement of psychology over time. More and more disorders are being introduced each day with more specific understandings. The introduction of Tourette's could be an example of a disorder people did not believe in until it was defined.

"What a paradox, what a cruelty, what an irony, there is here- that inner life and imagination may lie dull and dormant unless released, awakened, by an intoxication or disease," (Sacks 107)

An interesting part about the stories is that Sacks doesn't completely rely on the whimsical of the disorders. Sacks also brings in the personal life of each of his patient and he draws a connection between their disorder and artistic talent. I read before that geniuses often have other disorders or diseases. This is interesting because the contradiction of being high functioning in art or math, but then lacking communication skills, which Tourette's effects.

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I ordered the book online, but it arrived after the first book discussion. So, I read a PDF version of the book instead. That's why the page numbers are different from the first entry to the second.

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gnosis - noun; knowledge of spiritual mysteries
But it was not merely the cognition, the gnosis at fault; there was something radically wrong with the whole way he proceeded.

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"He failed to see the whole, seeing only details, which he spotted like blips on a radar screen. He never entered into relation with the picture as a whole - never faced, so to speak, its physiognomy. he had so sense of whatever of a landscape or scene," (Sacks 9)

In this story, Sacks recalls a man who could only identify the features of certain aspects, but not be able to conclude them to a certain image, object, or person. The man was able to identify that a glove had a "continuous surface" and five containers but he could not translate this into the idea that what he was holding was a glove. This chapter shocked me because of how strange  and outlandish this disorder was, however on the other hand, it was a reality for someone to live through.

"Perhaps there is a philosophical as well as a clinical lesson here...catastrophes..., however great the organic damage...there remains the undiminished possibility of reintegration by art, by communion, by touching the human spirit," (Sacks 24)

Sacks reflects on his experiences with a man with extreme amnesia, not able to remember minutes before. Jimmie begins to grow hopeless because of his condition and his inability to live his live happily, but finds resolution in church. This passage is especially strong because it reflects on the idea that no matter the damage a person has experienced, it can always be repaired.

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These clinical tales seemed like an interesting read because psychology has always interested me. I grew up watching TV shows such as Hannibal, Sherlock, and Criminal Minds that featured stories about abnormalities in the brain. These disorders interest me because they show how powerful the brain can be and how they could even make a man mistake his wife for a hat.