Zenon Pylyshyn on Seeing and Visualizing

Zenon Pylyshyn's 2003 book on Seeing and Visualizing has suggested something to me from my experience with PC flight simulators and air traiffic control simulators.

In the case of x-plane, a serious FAA-approved simulation using blade-elements and quaternions, several options involve visualization and seeing.

For example, the user can add a "vector view" of forces at aerodynamic external surfaces or the more common visual "tags" for other aircraft or geometric views of flight path (past or suggested future approach path).  And there are various map views to help visualize the flight environs near or far.

In the commonplace view of an evolving "perception as image-replicated-in-the-brain" class of organisms, there would seem to be a clear advantage to the sort of visual aids found in the fighter cockpit HUD (Heads-Up Display): a red aura around the alpha male; a blue aura deepening as an indication of an alpha male's reduced rate of breathing (he really is asleep) and expecially velocity vector arrows attached to prey not to mention "tagging" the intended prey in a herd or group (perhaps "set" and "reset" using words and signals among the hunting group.)

Yet for many of us facial recognition remains a challenge as does our memory for names (spectacles are already in the making for these evolutionary deficiencies in social interaction.)

Then there is our simple failure to be able to "compare" our memory "image" of some state of affairs with the state of affairs where we now find ourselves (not even to reliably review which lame jokes we told the last time we met any given bully-brute: for that audience we had to develop mnemonic strategies as any court jester could attest.)

Even a newbie on first arrival at the Second Life web site will note that tagging is notably missing as a visual aid in our everyday tasks of seeing and recognizing when we usually find ourselves out in the open in a social setting.

The world is not in our head.  Not as an image.  Not as a construction.  Our brains had more important objectives to satisfy under much stronger constraints if genes were to be passed on.  In this regard, see "Baboon Metaphysics" and any given season in the life of a troupe of macaques.

The world is not what we see.  What we see is seen as our world - sometimes seen as unbelievable - but most often with no need for confirmation other than a non-hostile glance and unremarkable grunt - and sometimes visualized as a suitable match or as way outa this world.  And then came mirrors and mimickry and pictures and language, in no particular order or inter-relation (an elephant can recognize herself in a mirror and are now known to mimic sounds - there evolution to likely be cut short by armed hominids.)