1.1Epistemology:keyconcepts

WhatisKnowledge?

•  Tradi&onaldefini&on:jus<fiedtruebelief.

Wedis<nguishphilosophicalclaimsfromthoseindifferenttotruth

•  Mar<nHeidegger(1889-1976):claimedthatmosttalkisidletalk.

•  HarryFrankfurt(1929-):introducearelatedconcep<onofbullshit.

•  Victorianwriterscalledit“humbug.”

Heidegger’sIdleTalk

Because[Idletalk]haslostitsprimaryrela<onship-of-beingtowardstheen<tytalkedabout,orelsehasneverachievedsucharela<onship,itdoesnotcommunicateinsuchawayastoletthisen<tybeappropriatedinaprimordialmanner,butcommunicatesratherbyfollowingtherouteofgossipingandpassingthewordalong.Whatissaid-in-the-talkassuch,spreadsinwidercirclesandtakesonanauthorita<vecharacter.Thingsaresobecauseonesaysso.

Whatistruth?

•  Correspondencetheory:trueclaimshaveakindofpicture-likerela<onshiptotheworld.

•  Aristotle’sbeingtheory:truthisexistence.•  Defla&onarytheory:“P”istrueifandonlyifP.

Wewilltaketruthataprimi<ve!

WhatisKnowledge?

•  Tradi&onaldefini&on:jus<fiedtruebelief.•  Reviseddefini&on:properlyjus<fiedtruebelief.

What(properly)jus<fiesabelief?Threeviews.

•  Founda&onalism(aboutx):theviewthatbeliefs(aboutx)arejus<fiediftheyareconsequencesof(orotherwisemademorelikelytobetrueby)afounda<onofindubitable(oratleastverylikelytrue)beliefs.

•  Coheren&sm(aboutx):theviewthatbeliefs(aboutx)arejus<fiediftheycoherewithone’sotherbeliefs.

•  Sa<sfac<onofthescien&ficmethod.

Howdowegetknowledge?Threeviews.

•  Ra&onalism(aboutx):theviewthatknowledge(aboutx)isgainedprimarily(orsome<mes:only)throughreason.Ra<onalistsalsotendtobelievethat:–  Wehavesomeimportantinnatebeliefs–  Wecanaccuratelyjudgeourownmentalstates

•  Empiricism(aboutx):theviewthatknowledge(aboutx)isprimarily(orsome<mes:only)gainedthroughexperience.Empiricistsalsotendtobelievethat:–  Wedonothaveimportantinnatebeliefs–  Ourjudgmentsaboutourownmentalstatesarejustasfallibleasour

judgmentsabouttheexternalworld–  Welearnabouttheworldprimarilybyiden<fyingregulari<esinour

experiences•  Scien&ficmethod.

Besuretodis<nguishthesemetaphysicalviews!

•  Idealism:theviewthattheworldismadeofideas.

•  Materialism/Physicalism:theviewthattheworldismadeofmaterialorphysicalthings.

Extremeproper<esthatsomeepistemologicaltheorieshave

•  Rela&vism(aboutx):havinglowepistemicstandards(aboutx),sothatmany(andperhapsevencontradictory)statements(aboutx)arebelievedtobetrue.

•  Skep&cism(aboutx):havinghighepistemicstandards(aboutx),sothatfewstatements(aboutx)arebelievedtobetrue.

Anexampleofafamousskep<calargument(DavidHume(1711-1776))Itappears,then,that[the]ideaofanecessaryconnexionamongeventsarisesfromanumberofsimilarinstanceswhichoccuroftheconstantconjuc<onoftheseevents….Butthereisnothinginanumberofinstances,differentfromeverysingleinstance,whichissupposedtobeexactlysimilar;exceptonly,thatacerarepe<<onofsimilarinstances,themindiscarriedbyhabit,upontheappearanceofoneevent,toexpectitsusualadendant,andtobelievethatitwillexist.Thisconnexion,therefore,whichwefeelinthemind…isthesen<mentorimpressionfromwhichweformtheideaofpowerornecessaryconnexion….Thefirst<meamansawthecommunica<onofmo<onbyimpulse,asbytheshockoftwobilliardballs,hecouldnotpronouncethattheoneeventswasconnected:butonlythatitwasconjoinedwiththeother.Acerhehasobservedseveralinstancesofthisnature,hethenpronouncesthemtobeconnected….Whenwesay,therefore,thatoneobjectisconnectedwithanother,wemeanonlythattheyhaveacquiredaconnexioninourthought….

NOTE:onecanholdtheseviewsinalimitedway

•  Forexample,itisconsistenttobe,allatonce:– Ara<onalistaboutethics– Anempiricistaboutphysics– Anidealistaboutmathema<cs– Amaterialistaboutmindandbody– Arela<vistaboutaesthe<cs– Askep<cabouttheology….

•  Thatsaid,manyphilosopherstendtodefendtheseviewsinamoreglobalway.

Ibn-Sinaaka“Avicenna”(980-1037AD)FromOnTheSoul(Fi'-Nafs):Letussuppose…thatapersoniscreatedinanadultstate,butinsuchacondi<onthatheisborninavoidwherehisbodycannottouchanythingandwherehecannotperceiveanythingoftheexternalworld.Letusalsosupposethathecannotseehisownbodyandthattheorgansofhisbodyarepreventedfromtouchingoneanother,sothathehasnosense-percep<onwhatsoever.Suchapersonwillnotaffirmanythingoftheexternalworldoreventheexistenceofhisownbodybutwill,nevertheless,affirmtheexistenceofhisselfasapurelyspiritualen<ty.Now,thatwhichisaffirmediscertainlynotthesameasthatwhichisnotaffirmed.Themindis,therefore,asubstanceindependentofthebody.

1.2Founda<onalism

We’vediscussedfounda<onalism

•  Founda&onalism(aboutx):theviewthatbeliefs(aboutx)arejus<fiediftheyareconsequencesof(orotherwisemademorelikelytobetrueby)afounda<onofindubitableoratleastverylikelytruebeliefs.

Butwhatisa“consequence”?

•  SupposeAandBaregroupsofoneormoresentences.

•  WesayBisaconsequenceofAjustincase:ifallthesentencesofAaretrue,thenallthesentencesofBmustbetrue.

•  Thisisalsosome<mescalled“entailment.”

1.3Coheren<sm

Analterna<vetofounda<onalism

•  Coheren&sm(aboutx):theviewthatbeliefs(aboutx)arejus<fiediftheycoherewithone’sotherbeliefs.

“Coherence”defined(inthestrongestway)

•  By“contradic<on,”wemeantwosentencesthatcannotbothbetrue.Forexample:TomisnowinParisandTomisnotnowinParis.Therearealsosinglesentencesthatarecontradictory(thesearesentencesthatcannotbetrue):TomisandisnotnowinParis.

•  AsetofsentencesAiscoherentifthereisnocontradic<oninA(orintheconsequencesofA).

•  TwosetsofsentencesAandBarecoherentwitheachotherifthereisnosentenceinA(orconsequenceofthesentencesinA)thatcontradictsasentenceinB(orconsequenceofsentencesinB),andviceversa.

•  (NOTE:definedinthisway,itisunclearwhatitmeanstosaysomethingis“morecoherent”or“lesscoherent.”Perhapsitmeansitisharderoreasiertoiden<fyacontradic<on,orthatcontradic<onsarelessormorelikelytoariseinawaythatmaderstoyourwork.)

1.4Scien<ficmethod

Anexample:IgnazSemmelweiss

•  1818-1865•  StudieddeathsintheViennaGeneralHospitalfrom1844-1848

ViennaGeneralHospital

Thedata

•  DeathsofmothersinchildbirthintheFirstDivision:–  1844:8.2%–  1845:6.8%–  1846:11.4%

•  DeathsofmothersinchildbirthintheSecondDivision:–  1844:2.3%–  1845:2.0%–  1846:2.7%

Source:“,”byCarlHempel.

TheHypotheses

•  Atmosphericcosmictelluricchanges•  Overcrowding•  Roughexamina<ons•  Thefrighteningpriest’sbell•  Layingontheirbacks(nottheirsides)•  Theautopsies

TheScien<ficMethod(simplified)•  Formulateahypothesis.•  Iden<fyapar<culartestableconsequenceofthehypothesis,andobserve

ifthispredic<oncomestrue.(Thetestmustbesuchthatyoucansharetheresultswithothers.)

•  Rejectthehypothesisifthepredic<onprovesfalse,andcon<nuetotestthehypothesisifthepredic<onprovestrue.

•  Betweendifferenthypothesesnotyetrefuted,chose(inorderofpreference):–  Theonewiththemostpredic<vepower–  Theonethatismostproduc<ve–  Theonemostcoherentwithyourothertheories–  Thesimplestone

NOTE:Noscien<fictheoryisnecessarilytrue.Eachscien<fictheorymustbefalisifiable.Whatwecansayinsteadisthatsomeofourscien<fictheoriesaretestedandhavebeenshowntobeourbestexplana<ons.

Anotherexample:Tiktaalik

1.4Othermethods?

Mysteriesremain.Forexample,math.

•  Wearenotsureabouthowwelearncrea<venewstepsinmathema<calmethods.

•  Maybera<onalismistrueofmathema<cs?•  Orsomethingelse?But!Althoughwedon’tknowhowweunderstandthemethodsofmathema<csandlogic,weconsistentlygetreliableresultsfrommathandlogic.Sothemysterydoesnoharm.

Wait!Dophilosophersagreeonanything?

•  Mostphilosophersagreethat:–  Scien<ficmethodisareliableguidetolearningaboutmanyphysicalphenomena

–  Mathema<calresultsarereliable–  Logicalmethodsarereliable.

•  (Thereisgreatdisagreementaboutwhatscience,math,andlogicare,however.)

•  Considertheconsequencesofthisconsensus:epistemologyismostimportantwhenweeither-  askaboutthingsthatscienceormathcannotaloneexplain,or-  askaboutwhatscienceandmathandlogicareandwhytheywork.