Serendip is an independent site partnering with faculty at multiple colleges and universities around the world. Happy exploring!
Remote Ready Biology Learning Activities has 50 remote-ready activities, which work for either your classroom or remote teaching.
I function
I, like many others, am confused as to our exact definition of the I function. It seems that even if we experience reactions rather than choice, the presence of the I function is what causes us to believe it is indeed a choice. So, as is asked above, what is the actual purpose of the I function? Also I find the question of whether animals also possess an I function intriguing. Many animals have complicated social systems, as well as a complex communication system. Primates are even more complex, and are even able to learn some amount of sign language and communicate with humans. Where then do we decide the I function ceases to exist? While there are certain animals we know are capable of higher thought, what about animals whose thought processes we simply don't understand? While we see the I function as choice, it is certainly possible that we too simply react, while the presence of an I function causes us to think we have made a choice. I think it is possible then to think that other animals also possess this function to different extents, but it is not observable because scientists merely see reactions.