1 Problems in Knowledge Acquisition from Text and Pictures

Abstract

This chapter discusses about problems in knowledge acquisition from text and pictures. Texts and pictures can be regarded as media as they visualize parts of reality, which are not immediately present or accessible in one's direct experience. The original pictograms to the phonetic alphabet pass through several intermediate phases—like, the Egyptian hieroglyphics, where illustrations and texts still coincide. This connection between text and pictures finds structural expression in the organization of the brain. The largest part of text-picture investigations concerns didactic texts with illustrations. Many of the considerations and findings are also valid for other text–picture combinations, such as slide-shows, audiovisual shows, film, and video. Mental models seem to offer a means of mediation between the different forms of knowledge. A mental model is the representation of a limited area of reality in a format which permits the internal simulation of external processes, so that conclusions can be drawn and predictions are made.