25 Things We Understand Clearly But Can’t Fully Explain
There are some things in life that just go without saying. We all understand them intuitively. They just make sense to us. For example, breathing. How do you explain that to somebody? And we’re not talking about the scientific sense. We know, oxygen, carbon dioxide, gas exchange, etc. What we are talking about is actually explaining to somebody how to breathe. Could you do that? What would you tell them?
You see, there are some things that are just impossible to explain. You can’t talk someone into flexing their diaphragm and taking a breath in the same way that you can’t explain what the color blue looks like. Well, it looks like peacefulness or happiness or quietness. That’s just hippie talk! There is no way that you could definitively describe the color blue to someone in a way that would confirm they are seeing precisely the same color and shade as you. It is just impossible. When it comes to colors, words fail us. We have no vocabulary to describe what definitively distinguishes blue from green or red from orange.
And that is the topic for today. These are 25 Things We Understand Clearly But Can’t Fully Explain!
Featured Image: pixabay
25
Source: quora
The meaning of this legal term is so vague that lawyers are actually encouraged to not try defining it. In fact, there is no accepted definition and for most of recorded history it has been held to be self-evident.
Note: it is basically the point where it becomes obvious that the defendant is guilty. Perhaps not surprisingly, that point is very subjective.
24
Image: pixabay, Source: reddit
There is no clear way to describe what you are smelling without using a lot of adjectives and hoping the other person is a good guesser.
23
Source: quora
Why do you like them? Because I just do!
22
Image: wikipedia, Source: reddit
Apart from the fact that scientists still don’t know why we yawn, they also don’t know why it is contagious.
21
Source: thoughtcatalog
Why do you find something funny? It’s pretty hard to explain succinctly.
20
Image: pixabay, Source: quora
It tastes…watery.
19
Image: pexels, Source: reddit
As with a couple other things in this list, not even scientists can explain them.
18
Image: wikipedia, Source: quora
More specifically, what it feels like. Oh it feels bad? Then why are you laughing?
17
Source: reddit
Try to explain the concept of nothing without using the word “nothing” or the word “opposite.”
16
Image: pixabay, Source: quora
Recognizing and being able to identify your own emotions is hard enough. Describing them is next to impossible.
15
Image: wikipedia, Source: thoughtcatalog
Thanks to Einstein, our understanding of gravity changed, but we still don’t really know what it is or exactly how it works. All we know is that more mass = more gravity.
Curious about more inexplicable things? Check out 25 Crazy Diseases Science Can’t Explain.
14
Image: pixabay, Source: quora
It’s almost impossible to describe without using a self-referencing definition.
13
Image: wikipedia, Source: thoughtcatalog
More precisely, why we sleep. Scientists aren’t even sure of the reasons. We all assume it’s to rest, but our brains can actually be more active at night than during the day.
12
Image: pixabay, Source: reddit
The extremes of “hot” and “cold” to be more accurate. How would you describe heat to somebody? It burns? But wait, so does extreme cold.
11
Image: Shawn Rossi via Flickr, Source: reddit
Not the science of it, but the practical aspect. If your friend all of a sudden forgot how to breathe, and you couldn’t do CPR (or get near him/her), what would you tell them to do?
10
Source: reddit
Or English spelling to be more specific. Are there even any rules?
9
Image: wikipedia, Source: quora
It sounds dumb, and as with a few other things on this list, we are not interested in the scientific definition, but rather the practical definition. If your friend (the one who forgot how to breathe) instead forgot how to move, what would you say this time?
8
Image: wikipedia
We all know what blue is, but how on Earth would you explain it to someone?
7
Image: wikipedia
This is something that we just seem to understand, even as children. Even kids who grow up in environments where they are not exposed to any human language (feral children) will develop their own language. Furthermore, all languages share the same, or similar, methods and functions in spite of developing completely independently e.g. verbs, nouns, prepositions, articles, declension, conjugation.
6
Image: wikipedia
In math, they are defined as “undefined primitives.” This essentially means that they are self-evident. Or in other words, you can’t define them without themselves. A point is a point.
5
Image: pixabay, Source: quora
Why is it that a major chord is happy and a minor chord is sad? Furthermore, what does music even sound like?
4
Image: wikipedia, Source: thoughtcatalog
Try to tell somebody the difference between left and right without pointing or using directional words (clockwise, etc).
3
Image: wikipedia, Source: thoughtcatalog
You just…do it.
2
Source: quora
If you’ve ever had a gut feeling and tried to explain it, you understand.
1
Image: wikipedia, Source: thoughtcatalog
This is actually a legitimate problem faced by doctors and health care professionals as different patients describe the same problem very differently.
You see, there are some things that are just impossible to explain. You can’t talk someone into flexing their diaphragm and taking a breath in the same way that you can’t explain what the color blue looks like. Well, it looks like peacefulness or happiness or quietness. That’s just hippie talk! There is no way that you could definitively describe the color blue to someone in a way that would confirm they are seeing precisely the same color and shade as you. It is just impossible. When it comes to colors, words fail us. We have no vocabulary to describe what definitively distinguishes blue from green or red from orange.
And that is the topic for today. These are 25 Things We Understand Clearly But Can’t Fully Explain!
Featured Image: pixabay
25
Beyond a reasonable doubt
Source: quora
The meaning of this legal term is so vague that lawyers are actually encouraged to not try defining it. In fact, there is no accepted definition and for most of recorded history it has been held to be self-evident.
Note: it is basically the point where it becomes obvious that the defendant is guilty. Perhaps not surprisingly, that point is very subjective.
24
Smells
Image: pixabay, Source: reddit
There is no clear way to describe what you are smelling without using a lot of adjectives and hoping the other person is a good guesser.
23
Attraction
Source: quora
Why do you like them? Because I just do!
22
Yawning
Image: wikipedia, Source: reddit
Apart from the fact that scientists still don’t know why we yawn, they also don’t know why it is contagious.
21
Humor
Source: thoughtcatalog
Why do you find something funny? It’s pretty hard to explain succinctly.
20
The taste of water
Image: pixabay, Source: quora
It tastes…watery.
19
Dreams
Image: pexels, Source: reddit
As with a couple other things in this list, not even scientists can explain them.
18
Tickling
Image: wikipedia, Source: quora
More specifically, what it feels like. Oh it feels bad? Then why are you laughing?
17
Nothingness
Source: reddit
Try to explain the concept of nothing without using the word “nothing” or the word “opposite.”
16
Emotions
Image: pixabay, Source: quora
Recognizing and being able to identify your own emotions is hard enough. Describing them is next to impossible.
15
Gravity
Image: wikipedia, Source: thoughtcatalog
Thanks to Einstein, our understanding of gravity changed, but we still don’t really know what it is or exactly how it works. All we know is that more mass = more gravity.
Curious about more inexplicable things? Check out 25 Crazy Diseases Science Can’t Explain.
14
Time
Image: pixabay, Source: quora
It’s almost impossible to describe without using a self-referencing definition.
13
Sleep
Image: wikipedia, Source: thoughtcatalog
More precisely, why we sleep. Scientists aren’t even sure of the reasons. We all assume it’s to rest, but our brains can actually be more active at night than during the day.
12
Temperature
Image: pixabay, Source: reddit
The extremes of “hot” and “cold” to be more accurate. How would you describe heat to somebody? It burns? But wait, so does extreme cold.
11
Breathing
Image: Shawn Rossi via Flickr, Source: reddit
Not the science of it, but the practical aspect. If your friend all of a sudden forgot how to breathe, and you couldn’t do CPR (or get near him/her), what would you tell them to do?
10
English
Source: reddit
Or English spelling to be more specific. Are there even any rules?
9
Moving your body
Image: wikipedia, Source: quora
It sounds dumb, and as with a few other things on this list, we are not interested in the scientific definition, but rather the practical definition. If your friend (the one who forgot how to breathe) instead forgot how to move, what would you say this time?
8
Colors
Image: wikipedia
We all know what blue is, but how on Earth would you explain it to someone?
7
Language
Image: wikipedia
This is something that we just seem to understand, even as children. Even kids who grow up in environments where they are not exposed to any human language (feral children) will develop their own language. Furthermore, all languages share the same, or similar, methods and functions in spite of developing completely independently e.g. verbs, nouns, prepositions, articles, declension, conjugation.
6
Points, lines, and sets
Image: wikipedia
In math, they are defined as “undefined primitives.” This essentially means that they are self-evident. Or in other words, you can’t define them without themselves. A point is a point.
5
Music
Image: pixabay, Source: quora
Why is it that a major chord is happy and a minor chord is sad? Furthermore, what does music even sound like?
4
Directions
Image: wikipedia, Source: thoughtcatalog
Try to tell somebody the difference between left and right without pointing or using directional words (clockwise, etc).
3
Riding a bike
Image: wikipedia, Source: thoughtcatalog
You just…do it.
2
Instinct
Source: quora
If you’ve ever had a gut feeling and tried to explain it, you understand.
1
Pain
Image: wikipedia, Source: thoughtcatalog
This is actually a legitimate problem faced by doctors and health care professionals as different patients describe the same problem very differently.
