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QOTD: What Is Knowledge?

QOTD: What Is Knowledge?. Is This Knowledge?. David says the sun is pulled across to sky by horses. Does he possess knowledge? Chuck knows that he is Jesus. Is his knowledge correct? I know that I am the hybrid product of a secret alien experiment. I’m half Vulcan!

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QOTD: What Is Knowledge?

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  1. QOTD: What Is Knowledge?

  2. Is This Knowledge? • David says the sun is pulled across to sky by horses. Does he possess knowledge? • Chuck knows that he is Jesus. Is his knowledge correct? • I know that I am the hybrid product of a secret alien experiment. I’m half Vulcan! • None of these are knowledge. Why? • Because they are not true.

  3. Knowledge Criterion #1: It must be true.

  4. There is a Difference Between Belief and Knowledge • Before we “knew” the earth was round, did people “know” that the earth was flat? • We’d say that they believed it, but were proven wrong. • Do children “know” that Santa is coming to town? • They cannot know, but can only believe. • Again, there is a difference between belief and knowledge. • Question for discussion: We have suggested that you can believe something without knowing it. Is it possible to know something without believing it?

  5. Knowledge Criterion #2: We must believe what we claim to know. Although belief alone is not enough, it is an essential component of knowledge.

  6. Joseph and Daniel Discussion • Imagine you have found a long-lost manuscript detailing a conversation between two scholars – Joseph and Daniel – from the Middle Ages. • Does Daniel know that the Earth is round? • Is it true that the earth is round? • Does Daniel believe that the Earth is round? • So what’s the problem?

  7. Knowledge Criterion #3: Knowledge must be justified.

  8. Plato’s Definition: K=JTB • Daniel’s belief is unjustified: his reasons for believing that the Earth is round are wrong! • Plato’s Definition: • Knowledge = Justified True Belief (K=JTB)

  9. Is this definition absolutely correct? • Perhaps it is not very helpful. • If we claim to know something, then we believe it, and we believe it to be justified and to be true. • But how do we know something to be justified and/or true? • You see: we are trying to define knowledge in terms of justification and truth – but we are using the concept of knowledge to do so! • Our definition has become circular!

  10. The Problem of Justification • Maybe this problem of justification isn’t as bad as we thought. • What if we talk about the validity of the justification (poor, strong, excellent) leading to “stronger” and “weaker” forms of knowledge? • What sort of justifications lead to “strong” or “weak” knowledge? • Which of your school subjects give you “strong” knowledge? How about “weak” knowledge?

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