How We Recognize Progress In The Search For Knowledge
How can we recognize when we have made progress in the search for knowledge? I have concluded that the purpose to the search for knowledge is to create guidance for the knower to live by and follow. I can recognize when I have made progress in the search for knowledge when I have reached a new level of understanding on how I should live my life. This became clear to me when I observed the search for knowledge in the two contrasting areas of knowledge, Ethics and Natural Sciences. 1 of 4
I believe progress in ethics to be the narrowing down of what is right or wrong regardless of the ethical theory that is believed in. There are five theories of ethics that are followed by people around the world and they include; Religious theories, self interest theory, universal law theory, the law of respecting others theory and utilitarian theory. Western Religion theories follow the belief that there is a god and that he has commandments that should be lived by. Self Interest theory is the belief to look after yourself and promote self interest. The universal law theory by Immanuel Kant, requires that we act in such a way that our actions effect all others. The Law of respecting others follows the philosophy that people should be respected as rational beings with goals of their own. utilitarian theory shifts the focus from the individual to the group. It’s the recognition that your happiness is only one happiness among many. After identifying these ethical theories it can be established that the search for knowledge can progress through these different ethical codes. A belief of one can establish a set of morals and beliefs that will help advancement in knowledge such as the utilitarian theory which allows the knower to be aware of the fact that their contributions to knowledge are for the good of the majority.
The Term Paper on Theory Of The Behavior Of Law
DONALD BLACK S THEORY OF THE BEHAVIOR OF LAW DAPHNE A. GRAHAM Donald Black, author of Behavior of Law, can be described as a conflict theorist. The conflict criminologist would argue that societies are composed of groups with conflicting values and interest. The groups with the most power shape the laws of their society. This creates an inverse relationship between power and official crime rates. ...
In my experience, I have learned of the progress in ethics to be through a series of reactions. When I was young I had a wide range of things that I believed to be ethically justified until something would go wrong. Perhaps I punched my brother for stealing my toys, I believed there was nothing wrong with this since he stole my toy. However, once my mom would find out she’d tell me that it was wrong and make me apologize, maybe even send me to my room to think it over. In time other experiences have allowed me to narrow down what is “right or wrong.” I progressed in the search for knowledge in ethics when my grasp of “right and wrong” became more refined. Of course this is not exactly how the progress in the knowledge of ethics works universally, however it demonstrates how my beliefs are changing over time from what we learn as a culture.
We can measure the progress of knowledge in this way through how refined our list is. This personal experience can be applied to the ethics of the nation as a whole as well, for example, in the U.S. the nation leaders have apologized more then ever recently during the American Indian Movement that began in 1972, to the native American Indians for the exploitation of their territory and the mass killings of many. This was not something that was felt or shown by the U.S. government 200, even 100 years ago. But recently it has been recognized that the land was rightfully theirs to begin with. This did not happen until the Natives formed movements to show U.S. citizens how it was ethically wrong. Our list was then refined. This is how ethics progresses.
The Essay on Should Students Be Required to Take Tests to Prove Their Knowledge?
AGREE OR DISAGREE Students should be required to take regular standardized tests to prove that they are learning. Should students be required to take tests to prove their knowledge? Many people think students should not take tests. Especially since lately tests are being more difficult than years before. I agree with this. It is better if students take regular standardized tests due to the fact ...
Someone of the western religion theory may counter-argue however claiming that there is already an established set of rules to live by that cannot be refined, these being the commandments. However the commandments are broad and only give a generic outline of how one is to live. If we continued to live by the same rules without narrowing them down, we would not make progress. Last September the pope visited Birmingham England and a recent poll had established that 80% of the population didn’t show enthusiasm, (1) this demonstrates the change in theories we follow as we advance our search.2 of 4
Is progress equal to more knowledge? Knowledge is defined as “justified true belief.” According to Karl Popper’s work, All Life Is problem Solving, the closest to truth we will reach is a theory that cannot be proven false. (2) So then, how do we measure progress in natural sciences? I agree that progress in natural sciences is through empirical falsification. I believe this because a theory can never be proven experimentally correct. All we can ever do for certain is prove that something is wrong. Science doesn’t attempt to prove things right, it attempts to prove things wrong and hope that it fails. Knowing that we haven’t proven something wrong is the closest way we can reach truth. Personally I have recognized progress in natural sciences through my grades, good grades reflect progress, bad grades reflect the lack of. This personal example is similar because the grades gave me guidance on how to improve much as a theory proven false will give the scientist guidance on what to improve.
A counter-claim would be Thomas Kuhn’s theory of progress in natural sciences as he describes in his work, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, (3) Paradigm shifts are a measurement of progress in natural sciences and that falsification makes science impossible (“If any and every failure to fit were ground for theory rejection, all theories ought to be rejected at all times.”- Pg. 145-146).
His theory states that Sciences goes under periodic “paradigm shifts” instead of progressing in a linear and progressive way; These shifts open up new approaches to understanding or truth that scientists wouldn’t have considered valid before. However, if this were true then we could never completely prove something as the best solution and we couldn’t narrow down, we’d be in a jumble of theories that had not been proven false and we could not build progress.
The Dissertation on Ayn Rand Theory Knowledge Reason
No thinker, perhaps, has had more influence upon contemporary libertarians than the novelist and non-academic philosopher, Ayn Rand. For that reason alone, she deserves attention; however, many of her arguments have been misunderstood, misrepresented or ignored. As George Smith has commented, there has appeared relatively little in the way of competent reflection of Ayn Rand as a philosopher. ...
Logic as a way of knowing helps us measure progress. There are two types of logic that help us with this; induction and deduction. Induction is the belief that since an event continues to occur, it will always happen. If someone followed this belief they would believe that, if something continues to be ethical then it will always be ethical. The problems we encounter when using induction is that it can be disproved easily, and “hasty generalizations” (an informal fallacy) can be made. Deduction is the other, which offers no new information, this means that someone will exclude other ethical beliefs or scientific progress and deduct which are truth. This would include narrowing the ethical list for ethics and falsifying for natural sciences.
Ethics is dependent on language, as a way of knowing, for progress. We learn what is right and wrong through the reactions of others when they communicate, perhaps even through body language, how the action could have been right or wrong. Natural sciences as well is dependent on language for progress because it is used when new discoveries are made which could aid scientists in later years, as well as track information for scientists in the future to build off of what has already been learned.3 of 4
Ethics and Natural sciences follow different sets of rules. Unlike ethics, Natural sciences do not contain multiple sets of beliefs and philosophies, it guides the knower through facts. They each give examples on how to live your life, ethics in the sense that it establishes a set of principles to live by and natural sciences in the sense that it gives facts about how much to exercise and what to eat by demonstrating through research what the effect of the lack of exercise or lack of proper nutrients will do to destroy the body. Ethics is an area of knowledge that is quite contrasting to natural sciences because they each follow different values and they strive for different results. Natural science has the goal to reach more knowledge and to eventually reach truth, ethics has the goal to understand and create a universal set of beliefs and morals to follow. However, indirectly they are both striving for the same goal.
The Essay on Nazi Science and Nazi Medical Ethics
In this history of science and medical ethics, one of the most controversial periods would probably be the 1930s and 1940s in Nazi Germany. We can jump outright into the conclusion that Nazi Germany was the breeding ground for scientific and medical breakthroughs which, no matter how grandiose, are questionable in term of ethics. We can readily suppose that Nazi Germany was the epitome of “ ...
I personally hold the ethical belief of Utilitarian Theory and believe that everything we do is for the good of the majority. I believe progress in the search for knowledge can be measured when people have narrowed down and refined a list of right and wrong that brings them to a fulfilling lifestyle. I believe that we can recognize the progress of science through the amount of people who are positively effected by it. For example discoveries in health that positively effect many people and save lives is a measurement of progress in natural sciences. Progress in natural sciences can provide new information on how to live a healthier life to avoid cancer or other terminal illness, this is how we can recognize progress in the search for knowledge through Natural sciences. Through these contrasting areas of knowledge there is knowledge in each that helps us to understand how to live our lives and gives us guidance through the progress of each.
Sources:
1. Popper, Karl R. All Life Is Problem Solving. London: Routledge, 1999. Print.
2. Kuhn, Thomas S. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions,. Chicago: University of Chicago, 1970. Print4 of 4
7. How Can We Recognize When We Have Made Progress In The Search For Knowledge
Megan Broadie
Theory of Knowledge
David Quinn
2011
Word Count: 1569
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