I want you all to picture this, you are sitting on your desk after finally submitting your Extended

Essay and
you suddenly start daydreaming. You imagine yourself free from the tedious work of completing an
extended essay or in the infamous words you have been shifted to IB Course. Scary isn’t it?

Sometimes what we imagine may not turn out to be true however, sometimes imaginations build a
foundation for various discoveries and revelations.

Good Morning everyone, the title of our presentation is Imagination – the bridge between the Past and the
Future

Our Real-life situation is about two surgeons in China who have allegedly developed a method to
transplant a human head on a fully functional and alive body. Their focus is to help patients with spinal
cord injuries and paralysis. The surgeons have already performed the procedure on mice, rats and dogs, all
of which survived the surgery and even regained some motor function. Although the scientific and medical
advancements necessary for human head transplantation are rapidly approaching plausibility, major
ethical and moral hurdles remain.

The first question that was raised in our minds is how did the doctors come up with this idea? The very
core to make such an important discovery is lead through the influences we have. How does imagination
influence our thoughts and channel into our actions? Whether it is to excavate the truth from the past or
pave the future. We tend to gain a lot of knowledge through visualizations, testing theories and performing
scenarios in our heads before physically conducting them. Thus, for an individual, the question really raised
is how did imagination influence the change in knowledge? This leads us to ask the next question on how
specifically imagination affects certain areas of knowledge that appear to heavily depend on imagination.
For instance, natural sciences or history. The exploration of these leads to our main knowledge question -
“How does the role played by Imagination in the progression of knowledge differ in Natural Sciences and
in History?”

This question explores the influence imagination has over the progression of knowledge.

To explore this question, our first claim is that: Imagination is the genesis of discoveries.

Imagination is an essential tool that helps us solve novel problems. It does not present complete
knowledge but instead, it presents different forms of exploring and expanding on possible knowledge.
Imagination acts as a mean of obtaining more knowledge. Through imagination, we can separate possibility
and probability. For example, scientists use imagination to hypothesize theories and come up with possible
conclusions even before performing an experiment. This is extremely beneficial in fields such as
healthcare. Personally, when we perform an investigation for our IA in sciences imagination and hypothesis
help develop a relevant conclusion and test success of the experiment. As Einstein puts it imagination is
“...the preview for life’s coming attractions.” It is evident that imagination helps us conjure images and
sensations that are unperceived.

The anomalies of quantum physics, string theory, M-theory, and theory of relativity, cannot be solely based
on reasoning, some imagination was invested in coming up with the probabilities of such anomalies
existing. Imagination in science as in history is essential to the development of theories because it allows a
scientist or historian to imagine. One of the biggest examples of imagination being the genesis of discovery
by August Kekule and his dreams leading to the discovery of Benzene ring.
In the 1940’s British philosopher R.G. Collingwood argued that historical knowledge was grounded in the
imagination. According to Collingwood, a historian must imagine himself in the shoes of a historical figure
and only then can she gain full insight into the event in question. Palaeontologists need to rely on
imagination by piecing up the evidence ie the fossil records they find to articulate their findings of ancient
history. While excavated evidence is the primary source of information in history, historians use
visualization as a secondary source to make connections between the past and the present. Fantasy-
directed imagination is aimed at depicting a scenario that goes beyond reality. An example of fantasy-
directed imagination would be the creation of Mickey Mouse. Reality-directed imagination, on the other
hand, is aimed at depicting a scenario that reflects reality, whether as it is known at present or as it is
known to have existed in the past. An example of reality-directed imagination would be the study of
Napoleon. It helps us to reconstruct history, to describe it and to understand it. It helps us in the study of
history and, in turn, enhances our imaginative abilities. It is both a means to absorb the facts of history and
a tool to improve the use of imagination as a reality-directed vehicle. In the study of history, we make use
of reality-directed imagination as we depict in our minds the characters of individuals or the nature of
events. We attempt to imagine the unknown by resorting to the known.

However, If taken too seriously imagination can distort one’s sense of truth by blurring the lines between
imagination and reality. Putting emphasis on hypotheses (the extreme case of hypothesis-driven science)
can lead to lunatic abstractions disconnected from what we observe. Emphasizing data at the expense of
hypothesis means that we ignore the actual thinking and we end up with trivial or arbitrary statements,
spurious relationships emerging by chance, maybe even with plenty of publications, but with no real
understanding. Bias in judgement based on imagination may be dangerous, as false knowledge could be
deliberately spread and used to manipulate people to achieve adverse objectives. As in our RLS, the
doctors allegedly got carried away in their experiment causing life-threatening consequences which were
highly reprimanded in the medical community. Here Emotion along with imagination comes into play as
they were clearly influenced by their hypothesis that this experiment will succeed despite their unethical
approach. Another example is the nocebo effect. If one believes that the drug will harm him or her,
according to the nocebo effect, he or she can potentially experience very real symptoms based solely on
their imagination. Imagination, through the nocebo effect, does not only distort the patient’s reality, but it
can further distort medical research and experimental studies.

Nonetheless, imagination is also limited to what you know or have remotely experienced before. Reality
often restricts imagination which is good for as it maintains rationality. This leads us to think that at one
point, all the greatest historians and scientists were considered crazy because their imagination and
expanse of thinking did not coincide with the society’s truth during their times. The genesis of ideas
through imagination is the basis and origin of science which is further worked upon to develop concrete
theories. History is an area of knowledge where imagination plays a huge role and where knowledge
becomes extremely limited if not for imagination. Imagination in many areas presents subjective
knowledge that needs to be verified with evidence. Fantasies are indeed subjective; the truth, however, is
not.
In the end, imagination may lead to discoveries and development but until and unless it is supported by
evidence and its existence in personal knowledge can be converted to shared knowledge, it does not do
any good.

Moving on to our second claim, that is Imagination aids in developing an acute understanding of
concepts throughout time.
The concept of history plays a fundamental role in human thought. It raises the possibility of “learning
from history” and it suggests the possibility of better understanding ourselves in the present, by
understanding the forces, choices, and circumstances that brought us to our current situation. It is
therefore unsurprising that philosophers have sometimes turned their attention to efforts to examine
history itself and the nature of historical knowledge. These reflections can be grouped together into a body
of work called “philosophy of history.” Here we reiterate R.G. Collingwood’s statements of imagination
playing a very crucial role in the development of history and provides an argument on the historical
developments. Imagination becomes a tool to transport us backwards in time while remaining glued to
reality. Reality-directed imagination is thus a means to retain a solid sense of reality rather than to
submerge into the everlasting landscape of fantasy.

Without imagination as a study-device, the learning of history becomes near impossible, for the
information furnished to us is rendered unintelligible. We are unable to relate to it in any meaningful
manner. We assess it in a mechanical way, devoid of image, sound and feel. Without imagination we
cannot compare, distinguish and separate; we cannot know the difference between the particular and the
general. In other words, we ought to refrain from both lack of imagination and fantasy-directed
imagination; the first does not allow us to proceed forward while the latter leads us to the realm of the
unreal.

History is the province of both art and science, of the contemplative and the concrete. To know it, to
understand it, to relate to it, we need imagination; an imagination that does not create a new world, but
rather re-creates an old one.
Stephen Hawking, Albert Einstein, Nicholas Tesla are some important people who used their thinking
ability for scientific discoveries by applying their minds, they were able to come up with different thoughts
that reshaped our history. Karl Popper first presented the idea that scientific methods give way to
falsification in 1934. In contrast to this, Science evolves in paradigm shifts according to Thomas Kuhn,
challenging Popper’s ideas about falsification. He believes that over time as a paradigm starts to seem
increasingly false to scientists, and as they bring up problems with it, scientists pretty much accept the
current paradigm, this is moment of normal science, in which problems with the paradigm are being
solved. When the paradigm has been put into question, and then eventually replaced there is a paradigm
shift, a revolution. The first paradigm was essentially established by imagination because that is how an
idea begins and is built upon. For example, Thales’ Explanation - pre-Socratic astrologer who observed the
night sky living on an island in Greece 2600 years ago. There is a great dome in which he lives with little
holes in it. Outside the dome burns the eternal fire. There is a God who is turning the dome around
hence the movement of stars. This explains the circular motion/revolution of stars. Post Thales, another
astrologer Ptolemy in 100 AD built on his ideas using his imagination giving another explanation - Puts
earth in centre and draws 2 circles around it. Outside is a sphere of stars and between earth and stars is
the sphere of planets that performs a rotation and revolution. This explanation fits the facts better than
Thales. Both were discoveries of the b=universe, both stemming from different ideas yet both justify the
same cause that imagination helps develop ideas over time.

But, our counterclaim Without the understanding of factual knowledge imagination cannot be
used to expand existing knowledge brings a very different perspective to the table.

Imagination has its limitations, for although imagination can extend and reform one’s concept of reality
such as through artistic expression or revolutionary science, it cannot confirm reality without the other
ways of knowing. To imagine something, we must have a basic foundation of knowledge. If you have not
seen, heard, touched something, you lack the basic idea to work on. This depicts how without the
involvement of another WOK - in this case sense perception, imagination alone cannot help coming up
with something new unless you are connecting it to something you already know or have observed.

Let's take another example, you all can see Priyam, hear Priyam, touch Priyam so there is a 26% chance
that Priyam might appear in your dreams. But unless you we able to do any of the above, I guarantee you
that you won't be able to imagine someone like Priyam.

Jokes aside, factual knowledge and sense perception go hand in hand when we justify something we
imagined to a larger group of people.

To sum up the claims, we believe that imagination is an outlet that explores various avenues in the fields of
science and history. It has different implications and roles in both areas of knowledge- Natural Sciences
and History. If used to the correct measure and deliberately, it opens a multiverse of opportunities. As
stated in claim 1, Imagination is the basis of knowledge and the catalyst to new developments across time.
Imagination helps in hypothesising and generating new theories - in a way working towards the future
while imagination in history helps us connect with our pasts. In a way, it definitely reduces the gap
between the past and the future. As in our RLS the head transplant surgery is a theory based on total
imagination with minimal evidence. If this was to be a success they would have to encounter many ethical
issues as well as justify the lack of factual accuracy. Imagination influences personal knowledge over both
the AOK’s which needs to be quantified and substantiated and in order to be exhibited as shared
knowledge.
Moving on the parallel situation, Sci-fi has been previously banned in China because the Communist Party
didn’t support alternatives narratives where it wasn’t in control of main plot. In most Sci-Fi titles, the
Communist Party of China doesn’t even exist. It’s a non-entity. This affected the development of
adolescents in China as their thinking capacities were greatly limited according to a study conducted by
____________________ of China

Sci-fi films write their own history or re-write existing history. China is very concerned and put great effort
into crafting its own narrative of its place in history. Time travel was once banned in Chinese shows. It
implies leaving the Community Party and its era of control for some other. Science fiction films essentially
deal with concepts which are imagined and are usually far from reality.

As mentioned in our conclusion, imagination plays a vital role in catalyzing progress in natural sciences and
history, this example from chinese history shows how a lack of imagination hindered the progress of the
young minds in their nation rather than the effect they wanted it to achieve.

Thank You!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!