George sent me what I consider to be an absolutely fascinating article this morning. (N.B. If you enjoy the aforementioned piece, you might be interested in this one as well).It could be that I am reading too much into what is essentially a glorified Pepsi Challenge, but it could also not be and therefore it is worth exploring a bit further.
At first glance it may seem as though Brochet's experiments are intended to prove the power of effective elitist marketing or the sycophantic nature of human beings; and while such theories are undoubtedly relevant, it is the fundamental issue of perception versus truth that I think is most significant in the context of his tests.
Brochet shows that the biases we are confronted with in our lives are inextricably linked to our perception of the world. For me it really comes down to the nature versus nurture argument, and I think that in proving that sensory perception can be quite easily misled, Brochet makes a stunning case for the dilemma of perceived truth.
There are many arguments to be made to the contrary (because really, when aren't there?), but I think that Lehrer's claims at the close of the piece logically stand up for the most part...objectively speaking, of course.
"Without our
subjectivity we
could never decipher our sensations, and without our sensations we would have
nothing to be subjective about."
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