Nature of Knowledge

Man is a credulous animal, and must believe in something. In the absence of

good grounds for belief, he will be satisfied with bad ones.

-Bertrand Russell

Truth

Belief

Justification

Is it justified true belief?

Truth

Belief

Running from -10 to +10… Christopher Columbus ‘discovered’ America in 1492 If A is bigger than B, and B is bigger than C, then A is

bigger than C Human beings are descended from apes Murder is wrong Aliens have visited the earth at some point All metals expand when heated Is is possible to construct a square with the same area

as a given circle Humans have an immortal soul

Where do you stand on the continuum?

Usually done via one of the Ways of Knowing

(Emotion, Reason, Sense Perception, Language, Faith, Intuition, Memory, Imagination)

If asked how you know: I saw it Someone told me I worked it out It’s obvious It feels right I remember it I have faith

Justification

Reliability – how often does this justification work?

Discuss this in overview: When you say you know something, you are taking responsibility for its being true.

Acceptable vs Unacceptable justifications

What is the difference? Is there one?

Distinction – Knowledge and

Information

By Acquaintance – first hand based on

perceptual experience

Practical – skills based knowledge, know how

By Description – second hand knowledge which comes in the from of language…knowledge that.

Types of knowledge

Primary form of knowing

Answer 1 of these in overview: Could someone who has never visited NYC know

more about it than one who lives there? Could a male doctor know more about childbirth

than a woman who has had children? If you have never gone without food, how might

that affect your attitude towards the 900,000 people who go hungry regularly today?

Acquaintance

Description depends on acquaintance Acquaintance spills beyond description – can

you describe the taste of chocolate or garlic to one who has never tasted them? Or love, or hate?

Description colors acquaintance – Acquaintance fades with time, and description

fills it in. Journals, photos, etc

Acquaintance and Description

Practical Knowledge

Doing and explaining – can you? Theory and practice – when does theory help,

or hinder? Example in overview Analysis paralysis – How can you think and hit

a baseball at the same time? How does too much information hinder a college choice?

Assessing know how – how do we?

Aspects of practical