“Our perception does not
identify the outside world as it really is, but the way that we are allowed to
recognize it, as a consequence of transformations performed by our
senses. We experience electromagnetic waves, not as waves, but as images
and colors. We experience vibrating objects, not as vibrations, but as sounds.
We experience chemical compounds dissolved in air or water, not as chemicals,
but as specific smells and tastes. Colors, sounds, smells and tastes are
products of our minds, built from sensory experiences. They do not exist, as
such, outside our brain. Actually, the universe is colorless, odorless, insipid
and silent. Although you and I share the same biological architecture and
function, perhaps what I perceive as a distinct color and smell is not exactly
equal to the color and smell you perceive. We may give the same name to similar
perceptions, but we cannot know how they relate to the reality of the outside
world. Perhaps we never will.”
– Dr. Jorge Martins de Oliveira
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