Object: UOFT International Undergraduate Admissions Bulletin 2024-2025

The object identified above is a bulletin for all undergraduate students planning to take their bachelor's degree in the University of Toronto. It includes in-depth information on faculties, courses, tuition fees, scholarships, and even dorms. Hence, it contains all that non-Canadians might need when surveying UOFT.

With the immense amount of knowledge in the bulletin, numerous people might highlight certain parts more than others. For example, low to middle class applicants will highlight tuition fees and scholarships opportunities in the bulletin to see if they are still able to apply to UOFT with their limited amount of funds. Other applicants from middle to high class families might view the study life and work opportunities in Canada as they have financial stability and do not need to focus too much on tuition fees.

All mentioned above are forms of knowledge that can be absorbed by readers of this bulletin. But, depending on an individual's background, focus, or priority at a certain time, they will unconsciously put heavier emphasis or importance on certain types of knowledge that is relevant towards their current situation. Hence, the takeaway from the exhibition of this object would be the fact that there are knowledge that are more important than others. Although, this claim or phrase entirely depends on an individual's perspective of a certain situation based on their priorities and needs at a certain point of time.

Personal Narrative in the context of TOK:

As I was looking through headphones, I saw the different models sold that were all released at different years. These different models all had different specifications, where the older ones would have less updated technology. Since I was looking through gaming headphones, I realized a major difference between the models over the years was the quality of surround sound used. Aside that, there are also different and newer features in the more recent models.

I applied TOK concepts to this experience:

- Justification: By buying one of the newer models of the headphones, I get to experience the improvement in technology when I compare it to my older ones. The claims made by the product were true; The quality of audio and mic was better then the older one.  

- Certainty: the certainty of how much better a product is can only be determined after trial. When bought online, it only can be tested after it’s bought.

This experience made me realize that the knowledge of how much better technology improves can only be determined after purchasing the product. Even in an offline store, you can’t identify the strength and weaknesses of the product to identify the change in technology over a short span of trial. Using the headphones more will allow you to go in depth in the strengths and weakness to experience the improvement made in the technology of the headphones, therefore gives you knowledge about the evolution of technological devices.

The object above is the iPhone Xs Max, which is also my phone. This object is my day-to-day handheld device which is used for communication, entertainment, and so on. It's also just like your day-to-day phone. Or is it?

I have considered changing my phone after it has been used for more than 5 years now, but it could even be considered unnecessary. This phone will do the same thing as the newer iPhone would do but just in a faster format. The upgrade may even be considered negligible from certain perspectives. Even some people are still using older iPhones and it may not even be the issue for them. It relates to technology as yes, it may be faster, but by how much? If it is only a little bit, then why do I need to change? So yes, the phone is an upgrade, but it isn't that necessary as I consider my phone to be fast enough already.

We can know that knowledge is an improvement through, in this case, how efficient it is, reliable, faster, and many more. An example on how efficient it is, is on how that the phone can improve my life by making things faster, besides that, what is also the effect after that. It shows that the not everything is considered better already, but it may be different due to individual perspectives. But if I were to give this phone to someone who has a worse phone, it may be considered as an upgrade, so there is something higher than the

Object: Volkswagen "Clean Diesel" Advertisement

The object above is a picture of an advertisement used by the company Volkswagen (VW). This company had the audacity to spread out a claim that they had produced “clean diesel” vehicles, which later turned out to be a complete hoax. As the car company has deceived millions of people, it has filed a lawsuit. (Buisnessinsider.com. 2016)

The example that involves Volkswagen is a special case of false advertising, which further emphasizes why one should consider the original motives of a claim before believing it. The company’s claim of “clean diesel” vehicles was meant to attract potential customers to buy the product. Therefore, it can be concluded that the company has made a completely bogus and misleading claim with the hidden intention of increasing the company’s product sales. Furthermore, a person might realize the ambiguity of the claim. The company does not highlight what makes their “clean diesel” vehicles cleaner than the average diesel car or the competitor’s product. The results of this special case are to make a backed-up guess of the motives behind the claim, as there is a possibility that the claim maker is taking advantage of the claim’s believers.

Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/false-advertising-scandals-2016-3#vw-falsely-advertised-environmentally-friendly-diesel-cars-1

-jev

The chosen object is a PPKN textbook. The textbook is intended to teach students and provide them knowledge about Indonesia's history and also teach them about the nation as a whole.

The author of the book is Indonesian, and this makes sense since the book is about Indonesia's history hence the knowledge presented in this book must also be from someone who knows the country well. However, this presents the issue of bias since the book was written by someone of an Indonesian background. This can alter the truth of the country considering that the author's sense of nationalisme may tailor the information by writing it in a matter where it paints Indonesia as a perfect country despite its flaws and dark history in order to persuade its readers to be proud of their "flawless" country.

Since the author is of Indonesian descent, the information presented in the book may only be information that makes Indonesia look perfect and pure, when in reality external sources shows Indonesia's dark history, struggles, and problematic actions. As a result, readers may have misconceptions which lead the readers to firmly believe that the country is perfect.

This bias is why it is important cross check with other sources, as a textbook which is considered to be non-fiction and objective, may be altered according to the author's beliefs and intentions. In the PPKN textbook, the author intends to paint Indonesia as a strong, perfect country to increase nationalisme amongst the youth.

However, if the book were written by an outsider, the knowledge may not be biased, but it will be limited. Hence, this demonstrates that bias is inevitable and efforts made to avoid it may cause a limitation in the knowledge presented.

Object: Tree Octopus Website

The object chosen is a website about an endangered species of tree octopus. The website is an elaborate hoax. Not only has it not been updated and looks old, it also lacks sources for most of its information. Most of the pictures look obviously photoshopped or blurry, and the website itself isn’t a reputable source. These factors can be used when considering the reliability of the knowledge. Luckily, this website seems to have been made for fun and no harm was intended other than misinformation.

However, there are other websites out there that don't spread misinformation as a harmless prank. Many sources actually spread misinformation to take advantage of others. A good example of this could be propaganda.

Source: https://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/

I applied TOK concepts to this experience:

• Evidence: In assessing the SPF claims, it's important to consider the completeness of the evidence provided. This brought up the thought of the importance of complete, comprehensive evidence to support claims. In this case, the partial display of the UV testing report raises questions about the reliability and completeness of the evidence presented by the brands.

  
  

This experience taught me the importance of considering whether the evidence is good for supporting a claim. The evidence should be reliable and complete to effectively prove whether the claim is true or not. It strengthens the significance of discerning what forms good evidence for a claim so that we are not easily misled by the marketing strategies of certain brands.

Through this, we can see that with new knowledge on the importance of equal human rights as well as the harmful effects of segregation, the societal values are influenced to change in order to fit into these standards and the view and knowledge of other things in relation to the civil rights movement in the 20th century also changes.

Object: Tarot cards

Tarot cards are a deck of playing cards often used for divination and gaining insights into the past, present, or future. Each card in the deck carries symbolic imagery and meanings. Tarot readings involve drawing and interpreting these cards to offer guidance or understanding. The cards are typically categorized into two main groups: the Major Arcana, representing significant life events, and the Minor Arcana, focusing on day-to-day situations. People turn to tarot cards for various reasons, seeking personal reflection, spiritual guidance, or predictions about their lives.

Firstly, the words on tarot cards can be confusing. They use symbols and pictures, making different people see different things. This confusion makes us doubt if we really understand what the cards are trying to say.

Also, the way we see tarot cards depends on where we're from and what we know. In a world with lots of different views, tarot cards might mean one thing to one person and something else to another. This makes us wonder if there's a universal meaning or if it's all just personal.

And then there's the fact that there's no real proof that the predictions on the cards actually happen. In TOK, we usually rely on proof to believe something is true. Without this proof, we start to doubt if the knowledge we get from tarot cards can be trusted.

So, in conclusion, tarot cards make us think about how the way they talk, the symbols they use, and the lack of proof all play a role in making us doubt about what they claim..

Object: Compass

Along with being used for navigation, a compass is often seen as an indicator of direction certainty. Even a compass, which is meant to point in the direction of magnetic north, can get misdirected due to outside factors like magnetic fields and metal objects.

The search for certainty is symbolized by the compass in this way. It is not perfect, but it does offer a dependable sense of direction in many circumstances. Similar to this, we can utilize multiple "compasses" to help us in our search for knowledge, such as reason, logic, and proof, but we always need to be mindful of the possibility that outside forces could mislead us.

The idea is that there are natural constraints and uncertainties that we have to acknowledge, even while we can try to seek certainty in our knowledge. The search for knowledge is defined by a similar balance between certainty within the face of inconsistency, just as a compass can offer direction but not total assurance.