<How important are material tools in the production or acquisition of knowledge >

(Knowledge and Knower)

Object 1: Uniqlo x Kaws: Summer UT Collection 2019

I have personally owned this piece of the summer Uniqlo collection that has collaborated
with a brand named “Kaws” and I was quite intrigued by the design and was quite curious as
to why my friends were so obsessed over it despite how simple this design looks. To get
over my curiosity, I bought the piece and looked more into it on the internet. First, I found
their Instagram Page and they showcased this figure a lot making it into their known
trademark, this avatar has been widely used on their page with different emotions and
designs. I’d never seen anything like it and I was in awe of the whole concept. I was then
exposed to other brands such as Supreme and Bape which have made collaborations over
the past few years with Kaws.

Ever since then, I have been more exposed to the streetwear culture from knowing the
impacts that have been made by major figures in the industry such as Pharell Williams and
Kanye West to how much value the streetwear community puts on certain items. With the
knowledge I’ve gained, I started buying collectible items and reselling them at higher prices
because the price can fluctuate at times especially if the item were to be “deadstock”
(deadstock items are items that are no longer produced by the brand which puts more value
most of the time) and there wouldn’t be any government intervention so the resell prices of
these items solely depend on the demand from the community.

Up to this point, thanks to the knowledge I’ve gained, I have somewhat generated a decent
amount of money as a passive income. Going back to the IA prompt, because of my interest
and curiosity about this specific item due to the attention that it's getting, it gave me the
motivation to study more and acquire existing knowledge that I never thought existed in the
first place and shaped me into someone that is quite knowledgeable in the streetwear game.
Object 2: “SICKO MODE” by Travis Scott (feat. Drake)

First and foremost, I would have to say that I never had any specific preference for any type
of music. However, at the age of 14, my friend told me to listen to this specific song in the
album which is called “SICKO MODE” by Travis Scott featuring Drake. As a nice friend I
was, I just listened along and I’ve developed an interest in it. I do admire the upbeats and the
lyricism displayed by the two artists here and the flow and pacing they were going at really
gave me some type of adrenaline that I never thought I sought, I was hyped up.

So, I took the initiative to learn and listen to more songs in this type of genre which was a
mind-opening experience. That was the first time I decided to venture into the world of Rap.
Ever Since then, I started listening to more rap artists such as Lil Baby, Playboi Carti,
Kendrick Lamar, and many more. In society’s point of view, rap music tends to be seen as
“thug” music and it would ruin the mindset of the listeners because people believe that these
songs promote sexism, violence, and rape.

However, this is not exactly true and it is quite discriminative towards the rap culture. Mostly,
the rap songs that I listen to tend to showcase the upbringing of the rapper’s life and all the
struggles and hardships they have gone through in the “hood” to get to where they are
today. I tend to appreciate songs by the story-telling because these artists really showed me
that everyone comes from different backgrounds and all of us have different struggles and
we must find a way to always overcome our obstacles to achieve our life goals.

In conclusion, going back to the IA prompt, from my indulgence of this Rap genre, it allowed
me to shape my music taste that I never knew I would be so attached to until now and also
learn to pull through the struggles that we are going through.
Object 3: Additional Mathematics Form 4 KSSM Textbook

When I was stuck at home during the quarantine caused by the global pandemic, I was
flipping through the textbooks that I had just gotten at the start of my year of being a Form 4,
I somehow developed an interest in the Additional Mathematics syllabus and I spent my
days indoors just by doing revision papers non-stop. I could say that I was quite addicted to
it and simultaneously became my new coping mechanism. Moving forward into the last year
of high school, we were all introduced to applicable institutions to seek tertiary education and
as we all know, the fees are expensive.

Fortunately, there was a talk given to our school about scholarships offered to us SPM
candidates and most scholarships are seeking for students who could ace the SPM
examination with impressive results. So, I just thought that if I were to study more and obtain
good grades, I could at least get a chance to get a scholarship and I won’t need to depend
on my parents financially to pursue my dreams. I did so, and thankfully I have been awarded
amazing results consisting an A+ for the subject of Mathematics and Additional Mathematics
and I was allowed to apply to some scholarships. Lastly, I was accepted in the Young Talent
Programme (YTP) offered by MARA.

Currently, I have enrolled myself in the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme
where I have taken up a subject called Mathematics: Application & Analysis Higher Level
(MAA HL) which is a more in-depth understanding of math and up to this point, it has been
somewhat manageable thanks to the basic foundation that I have gained from my secondary
school years. Going back to the IA prompt, just by the syllabus displayed in the Form 4
Additional Mathematics textbook, it gave me some type of adrenaline to study it and it was
beneficial me up to the point that the knowledge I’ve gained is helping me cope with my
college studies.
 References
Object 1

https://stockx.com/

https://bn.thesimplesum.com/alternative-investments-reselling-streetwear-br/

Object 2

https://www.today.com/popculture/hip-hop-faces-increasing-backlash-wbna17386527#:~:text=A
%20recent%20study%20by%20the,negative%20force%20in%20American%20society.