How we know / What we know

Dear all,

For this article, it is so hard to understand for me. However, I can get something from the article by examples. I think I can understand but it’s not clear. Therefore, I would like someone explain it to me.

The authors talk about levels of abstraction that influence to the reader’s understanding. Moreover, they explain about the step as “Abstraction Ladder”, but I don’t know the word “Bessie”, what dose it means? Is it the name that represents something? As for the other examples, I can understand about the process of abstracting which help both of the writer and the readers to communicate between them.

I apologize for my confusion.

Thanks
Best Regards
Jib

I'm sorry

Dear all,

I am sorry for this time I don't have any comments for this article -- How We Know, What We Know -- beacuse I have not read it yet; I had to join the mob. No! I am joking.

In the last class, I listened to Ajan Karnchanoke explained a bit about the article. Then I get that this article talks about how to make a writing work easy to read, or how to make it be Reader-based prose more. The author, Hayakawa, suggested that if a writer wants to write thing which is an abstract, s/he should try to explain it bit by bit from something that is concrete to the abstract s/he is going to write. The author also gave an example how to write by using the Abstraction Ladder (p. 101).

Take care
See you in class ^o^

Khun Yee's Post

This article is too hard understnding (vocab and context). I'm not sure that I'm right (think). I think that "bessie, the cow" (Hayakawa, p99) is "a process of change" (p.99).

Hayakawa described all thing on the earth to change (natural) and I think this is an example for writing. He gaves the example for comparision with abstract.

"Absrtaction Ladder" (p.101) is process level to adjust thinking from tangible to intangible. It have 8 steps for description each step.I read this topic but I'm not sure that I'm right.

I sorry that I don't understand but It's very hard.

I have questions: what's bessie, the cow?

thanks.

How We Know : What We Know :

This artical is interesting.
I thinks that abstraction ladder is the main point of this artical.
A meaning of a word is abstraction; the word has different meaning and level.

Futhermore, the abstraction is important factor of a writer and reader. If the reader cannot understand the abstract as well as the writer; the reader cannot understand the writing that the writer want to communicate.

For my opinion, I think that the experence is the fator helping to adjust the gap of abstraction between a sender and reciever. The experience resulted from a life, education, surrounding and a lot.

Best Regards
Banna Wanishayanun