Guidance, Encouragement, Warning

«Education is what remains after one has forgotten everything he learned in school.» Albert E.

You have much of the knowledge already, because THEE-Topics deal with what we come across and must handle, one way or another, daily.

You know what you know from your experiences, and that automatically qualifies you to appraise and contribute. There may be some relatively specialist topics that will be outside your experience (e.g. you may never have been an employer) or outside your interests (e.g. how a scientific discipline is organized). However, it will be obvious when this is the case.

«There are two ways to live your life—one is as though nothing is a miracle, the other is as though everything is a miracle.» Albert E.

By approaching what is posted with an openness, a belief in yourself, and a willingness to ask questions, you and everyone else will benefit. A closed mind is a good thing to lose.

Reading widely around any theme may give a degree of confidence, but no formal studies of any kind are required for most Topics. If you enjoy reading, good. If not, then your imagination will suffice. Of course, anyone who wants to inquire in a serious and deeper way will wish to read widely. Wide reading helps us avoid the danger of bias or (worse) unconscious adherence to a particular school of thought.

«The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education.» Albert E.

«Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods.» Albert E.

Relevant authorities contribute to the corpus of knowledge and deserve due respect. However, this Project rejects appeal to authority as a valid way to control thinking on human topics. Your goal here is not to gain knowledge or follow rules (as affirmed by others) but to develop understanding (that you can naturally use in your life).

Many authorities have a particular perspective, and even an agenda that has nothing to do with you. You are the only proper authority in regard to how you choose to live your life. Anyone else, including me, has a point of view with which you may legitimately agree or disagree, partly or completely. If you are thoughtful and reflective, you can work through authoritative analyses, and make them your own by understanding them.

I hope there is general comfort with the names chosen for psychosocial things in the Taxonomy. However, I am aware that there are differences even amongst English-speaking countries. If these cause difficulty in communicating, then ways need to be found to handle them. Formulae are one way to be unambiguous.

The importance of both naming and formulae in the Taxonomy should be understood and accepted as reasonable in principle. Read more in the Hub. Formulae, often included with the name, can be ignored until you come to see their benefit.

A Glossary is currently under construction, with the current draft available in the Glossary Room.

THEE Frameworks contain common-sense knowledge capable of being expressed in everyday vocabulary via short simple sentences. In contrast, describing taxonomic structures forces the use of jargon-terminology, as in any specialist research. The jargon may seem turgid and unpleasant, but it is unavoidable. It should be viewed as a hard-won achievement that dramatically speeds up inquiry and exposition.

Fortunately, taxonomic terminology is not needed to follow and understand the substance of Frameworks. If you need to check any THEE term, simply click on the Terms tab at the top of the left-hand vertical navigation column—but this is only visible in the Explore sections. An alphabetic list will appear and clicking on any term reveals a brief definition or explanation. Familiarity with the terminology will help your studies.

If you have a particular interest in certain pages, you may notice textual or diagrammatic changes over time. Some may be minor, and some may seem rather significant to you. The reason is that this website is subject to a constant process of inquiry and refinement to formulations.

Any change to a formulation or a description leads to a change in the Last Updated (or Last Amended) date at the bottom of the Topic.

You will notice that every Satellite and major Framework will be introduced with a diagram of the taxonomic path from the Root Cell: Will. The inquiry will always be an extension of that path. The aim is to show the taxonomic location graphically, allow comparisons, and help familiarization with the overall structure.

Note that the taxonomic path is a conjectured conceptual route: it is not the path of discovery, nor should it guide practical thinking. Each item on the taxonomic path can be taken for granted or can be queried and studied. Some steps are posted. Others with minimal or preliminary investigation may be found in the Frameworks or Architecture Rooms of the TOP Studio.