Posted on by sphere of humanity

WHERE IS OUR MIND?

By Deepika R Nair and Varsha A.S

Image courtesy : Pexels stock photos

Often we wonder about were these thoughts are originated? Do they come from our “mind”? Is the mind a part of the brain? What is this “Mind” exactly? Well theoretically speaking it is a set of cognitive faculties of consciousness, imagination, perception, thinking, judgement, memory and language. The “Mind” is considered as a link to our unconsciousness. Many theories and approaches have been made by philosophers and psychologists on the origin of mind and where it is present.

Mind is often referred as a seat of human consciousness. Sigmund Freud, Father of Psychology suggests that, there are three levels of consciousness: ‘conscious’, ‘preconscious’ (subconscious) and ‘unconscious’. This theory, talks about the sources and consequences of emotional conflicts and how people deal with it.

Conscious includes the thoughts feelings and actions which people are aware of. It refers to one’s individual awareness of unique thoughts, memories, feelings, sensations etc. For example the conversation we are having with someone or a task we are doing comes under conscious awareness. Preconscious includes the mental activity of which people may become aware only if they attend it closely. It is the stuff of which dreams are made. Every experience we have ever had, every thought, every impression of loss or gain, resides in our subconscious mind .For example remembering the birthdate of our parents or recollecting a small incident comes under sub consciousness. The last level is the unconscious , it includes the mental activity that people are unaware of. According to him, the unconscious is a reservoir of animal drives. It stores all ideas and wishes that are concealed from conscious awareness,as they might lead to psychological conflicts. Most of these arise from sexual desires which cannot be expressed openly and therefore are repressed. Even though we’re not aware of their existence, they have a significant influence on our behaviour. If one is unsuccessful in resolving these conflicts they can result in abnormal behaviour.

From Freud’s theory , there are three primary elements of personality which reside in the unconscious- id, ego and super ego.

  • Id works on the pleasure principle, which assumes that people seek pleasure and avoid pain. Id does not care for moral values society or other individuals.
  • Ego is said to be frown out of id. It seeks to satisfy an individuals needs in accordance with reality and thus works by the principle of reality.
  • Superego is like a moral branch of mental functioning. It tells the id and ego whether the gratification for a particular thing or instance is ethical or not.

For example- the id of a boy, who wants chocolate tells him to grab the chocolate and eat it. His ego tells him that if he grabs the chocolate without asking, he may be punished. So, working on the reality principle, the best way to get it is to ask permission to eat the chocolate. If a boy wants a chocolate and asks his mother for it, his superego will indicate that his behaviour is morally correct.

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Unlike the Brain, the mind does not have a physical structure nor has a location. Mind cannot exist without brain, but mind is a separate entity. At the same time, Philosopher Descartes says that mind interacts with the body at the pineal gland and regarded it as the principal seat of the soul and the place in which all our thoughts are formed.

Posted on by sphere of humanity

The three R principle

By Ashika S Kumar and Arundathi M.

Image Copyright : Pexels Stock Photos

In the present world waste has become one of the biggest problems affecting each and every part of our environment. Anyway we cannot completely avoid waste production, but what we can do is to take self precaution and thereby reducing the amount of waste produced.


When we first hear the word Waste hierarchy many questions may arise in our mind like, What is its purpose ? What it really means ? What is the need for it ? and so on.
Actually it is a part of waste management process and is used to reduce the amount of waste. It mainly involves three processes: Reduce,Reuse and Recycle.

They are known as the three R’s of waste management process. These are essential for a sustainable living as they help as to reduce the amount of waste we have to throw away. The ideas behind three R’s are really simple:

• Reduce: To reduce the amount of waste we produce.

• Reuse: To reuse the items before replacing them.

• Recycle: To recycle the items which can be recycled.

When we take a deep look into each of the process we may feel it is so easy, but it does not seem so easy when we start to follow it in our life.

1. REDUCE :

       The first R is all about reduction in the amount of waste we produce. Reduction is the main among the three as, if the amount of waste produced is less, the things to be reused and recycled will be automatically reduced. Some methods we can adopt in our life to reduce wastes are:

¤ Buy only necessary things.

¤ While buying a product rethink the fact whether it can be reused and recycled.

¤ Try to avoid buying food materials having too much of packing.

¤ If possible completely avoid the use of plastic.

¤ Reduce the use of electricity, For eg: Lights should not be used during day time.

¤ Reduce the amount of petrol by using public transport systems.

¤ Reduce the wastage of food by making only the sufficient amount of food and the rest can be used in compost making.

¤ Shopping can be reduced by buying things which are durable and long lasting.

¤ Shopping of new clothes can be reduced by using the old clothes by mending them.

¤ Using second hand goods is also one of the method to reduce the waste.


2. REUSE :

     Reuse simply refers to using the same thing again and again for different purposes. It refers to the reuse of object as it is without treatment. It is a sustainable process as it reduce pollution and waste.
Reusing is better than recycling because it saves the energy which is used to dismantle and re-manufacture products. It also saves the forest and water supplies as it reduces the need for raw materials. Examples of reused items include anything bought as second-hand including furnitures and clothing.

    Here are some methods to practice reuse in our daily life :

    ® We should make sure that we are not buying things unnecessarily until the one wit us is damaged. This can save money as well as the space in our storage room.

    ® After cleaning thoroughly we can reuse food containers.

    ® Rather than throwing things away, (old things and food that is left out )it could be donated to the poor.

    ® Make new things from the things in trash.

    ® Glass bottles could be reused by storing nails and screws in it.

    ® Use the both sides of a paper for printing. OR use the unwanted papers for writing the list of grovery items , notes etc.

    3. RECYCLE :

           Recycling is an energy consuming process in which the item is turned into raw material that can be used again.It reduces the waste disposal as it transforms the used materials like plastic, glass and paper into new material. Also recycling plays an important part in sustainable living for decades. In UK, recycling is a very expensive process. Examples of recycled materials include fibreglass from glass bottles , insulation materials from newspaper or plastic bottles.

           Here are some benefits of recycling :

           ✓ Reduces the amount of waste

           ✓ Conservation of natural resources

           ✓ Increases economic security by tapping a domestic source of material.

           ✓ Prevents pollution .

           ✓ Helps to create job opportunities in manufacturing and recycling industries.

           ✓ Saves energy.

   Some methods of recycling in our daily life :

           • Kitchen and garden waste  can be recycled by making your own compost. Compost has great use in garden as it contains nutrients essential for the growth of plants.

           • Old newspapers , magazines , notebooks etc are recycled to new paper or cardboard.

           • Food cans made of steel could be melted and moulded into new cans.

           • Drink cans which are usually thin and light is made of aluminium could be easily recycled.

           • Waste wood is turned to new wood products.

           • Glass is very easy to recycle . Waste bottles and jars are melted and used again and again.

           • Waste vegetable oil could be recycled to a useful vehicle fuel called biodiesel.

           • Plastics are hard to recycle. Plastics can be recycled into more durable products like flower pots and plastic pipe. Another solution is the use of bioplastics which are environment friendly.

So the 3 R’s ( Reduce, Reuse , and Recycle)  are a way of life , we must understand that it is our duty to take good care of our planet that depends on our deeds. It is not someone else’s issue , it is the responsibility of the person you see at mirror every morning.

You CAN make a difference!!!