To what extent can we trust our perception?

... To what extent can we trust our perception? Perception can be defined as the act of apprehending by means of the five senses - sight, sound, touch, taste and smell - although there are many other senses by which we can apprehend, such as pain, temperature, balance, internal senses, kinaesthetic, amongst others. Most of what human beings apprehend from the world around them is perceived by the senses. But perception is often selective and subjective, so can it really be trusted? Perception is a vital source of knowledge. Without their senses humans would be unaware of many things in the world. Losing one sense means losing an ability to perceive certain things e.g. if the sense of smell is lost, a human is no longer capable of identifying and distinguishing different smells. Also, perception is vital for survival - to cross the road, to hear the train coming, to smell when

want to read more? →