Bates Method

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Cam Hewett 11/02/09 Section Q Occams Razor and the Bates Method Occams r...
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Dit is de html-versie van het bestand http://users.wpi.edu/~chewett/Files/occam.pdf. G o o g l e maakt automatisch een html-versie van documenten bij het indexeren van het web.
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Occams Razor and the Bates Method
Occams razor is a method developed by William of Ockham in the fourteenth century for analyzing supposed explanations and theories. Ockham stated that if there are multiple theories that describe the same outcome, the simplest explanation is the best. For objectification, this theory is the one with the fewest assumptions. It is important to note that the simplest explanation is not always the correct one, but it is most logical to accept it. As scientific knowledge accumulates over time, seemingly more complex explanations become simpler because there are fewer assumptions made.
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:lISikFVUC90J:users.wpi.edu/... 15-9-2010
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simpler because there are fewer assumptions made.
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The Bates method, proposed by William Horatio Bates in 1891, is an alternative therapy for improving eyesight. Bates claimed that all maladies in eyesight can be blamed on so strain on the eyes; furthermore, eyeglasses, he said, are harmful and unnecessary (Bates method, 2009, para. 1). The term strain is defined as the mental effort to see, which tenses the muscles controlling the eye. To remove strain, therefore, is to make seeing effortless and consequently easier and clearer (Basic principles, 2009, Strain section, para. 1). To do this, Bates invented multiple techniques, including palming, in which the patient covers the eyes
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with his or her palms in order to see perfect blackness; visualizing, in which the patient pictures mental images in black at different distances and sizes to perfect imagination; swinging which the patient moves his or her eyes back and forth in order to perceive an illusion of objects swinging in the opposite direction and to reduce the area over which the swing occurs; and sunning, in which the patient stairs directly at the sun to improve light sensitivity
(Eulenberg, 1995, para. 1-9). According to Bates and the followers of his ideas, these techniques have helped improve the vision of the visually impaired (Bates method, 2009, Treatments section, para. 2-8).
The supposed results of the Bates method can be better explained with Occam
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.d k. mind. A simpler explanation is that those who start learning the Bates method becomeo cmorec u -tr a c
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focused on improving their eyesight and unknowingly take other measures that improve eyesight. This is suggested by a study that was done in India: groups of myopic children were given treatment with techniques of the Bates method along with healthy changes in diet and exercise. After six months, it was reported that the children experienced relief of eye strain (Bates method, 2009, Treatments section, para. 9). The best explanation for this is that it was the effect of the improved diet and exercise and not the Bates method techniques. Possibly their prior diet and exercise level had been a part of their deficiency in vision, and the change had reduced stress. Essentially, this alternative theory states that improved eyesight can be brought about by changes in behavior such as diet and exercise.
There are multiple other explanations as well. A simple theory could involve the placeb effect; that is, when people do the techniques of the Bates method, they are under the false
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impression that it will improve their eyesight. This false impression, however, will have a therapeutic effect and possibly improve their eyesight. Another explanation could be based on muscle memory. The Bates method is highly focused on imagining, memory, and other mental processes. It is known that a thought can be made to move a muscle without actually moving the muscle, so imagining mental images excites eye muscle movement in the brain. Through
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repeated imagining, the eye muscles develop a muscle memory and therefore have less strain.
Thus, it is shown that Occams razor can be applied to the Bates method. All of the proposed alternative explanations for the effects of the method are much simpler than the explanations provided by Bates. Sunning, for instance, requires explanations for many unknowns, i.e. many assumptions. For example, it is assumed that prior scientific knowledge that direct sunlight can damage the eye is incorrect. It is much more ideal to have a simpler explanation that agrees with other scientific studies and requires fewer assumptions.
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Literature Cited
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Basic principles. (2009). Retrieved (2009, October 30) from http://www.seeing.org/techniques/principles.html
Bates method. (2009). Wikipedia. Retrieved (2009, October 30) from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bates_method
Eulenberg, A. (1995). Bates method in a nutshell. Retrieved (2009, October 30) from http://www.i see.org/bates_nutshell.html
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Occams Razor and the Bates Method

simpler because there are fewer assumptions made.

Basic principles. (2009). Retrieved (2009, October 30) from http://www.seeing.org/techniques/principles.html

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