Sep 27, 2020 10:31 PM
https://www.forbes.com/sites/andreamorri...-on-facts/
EXCERPT: . . . A fact is something that is actually true, independent of whether anyone believes it. A fact is something that exists in reality. Things get complicated when we try to know facts; when we try to move beyond our subjective experience and gain access to objective reality. We are really good at soaking up information (stimulus) from the outside world and constructing mental representations inside our minds that either track with reality or distort it.
Science tries to account for the gulf between facts that exist in the world and what we can know about facts. A scientific fact is something measurable, something we observe that has been repeatedly confirmed using the scientific method. A scientific fact is accepted as true for practical purposes. Because we make mistakes, a scientific fact remains open to disconfirming evidence that may upend and replace the fact with a new and better one. This new scientific fact will also remain open to disconfirming evidence, revision or replacement. No final decree is handed down, no lightning bolt or proclamation from on high. The success of science depends on learning and revision, always being open to being wrong so that we can be right more often.
Thus far, the scientific method has proven the most effective method for getting at facts, for knowing facts. The scientific method was established because we simply don’t have direct access to facts without filtering them through our sensory organs and brains. And our brains get things wrong.
If a fact is real, shouldn’t it feel certain? Facts exist for certain. But again, we don’t have direct access to them. When we think we know a fact, it triggers a powerful feel-good response. Being certain, confident and in control feels good. The positive emotional response is tied to the belief we know a thing, independent of whether or not we actually know a thing. Uncertainty, on the other hand, triggers a negative emotional response, a stress-response on par with the stress associated with physical pain. Psychologists refer to this as uncertainty-stress.
Uncertainty means possible peril. We want to know what’s around the corner so we can be ready for it. We may need to act fast with limited information. The anxiety associated with uncertainty can paralyze us when we need to act. By seeking relief from uncertainty-stress, we may be inclined to believe we know something we don’t actually know. We may be inclined to believe something is a fact when it is not... (MORE - details)
EXCERPT: . . . A fact is something that is actually true, independent of whether anyone believes it. A fact is something that exists in reality. Things get complicated when we try to know facts; when we try to move beyond our subjective experience and gain access to objective reality. We are really good at soaking up information (stimulus) from the outside world and constructing mental representations inside our minds that either track with reality or distort it.
Science tries to account for the gulf between facts that exist in the world and what we can know about facts. A scientific fact is something measurable, something we observe that has been repeatedly confirmed using the scientific method. A scientific fact is accepted as true for practical purposes. Because we make mistakes, a scientific fact remains open to disconfirming evidence that may upend and replace the fact with a new and better one. This new scientific fact will also remain open to disconfirming evidence, revision or replacement. No final decree is handed down, no lightning bolt or proclamation from on high. The success of science depends on learning and revision, always being open to being wrong so that we can be right more often.
Thus far, the scientific method has proven the most effective method for getting at facts, for knowing facts. The scientific method was established because we simply don’t have direct access to facts without filtering them through our sensory organs and brains. And our brains get things wrong.
If a fact is real, shouldn’t it feel certain? Facts exist for certain. But again, we don’t have direct access to them. When we think we know a fact, it triggers a powerful feel-good response. Being certain, confident and in control feels good. The positive emotional response is tied to the belief we know a thing, independent of whether or not we actually know a thing. Uncertainty, on the other hand, triggers a negative emotional response, a stress-response on par with the stress associated with physical pain. Psychologists refer to this as uncertainty-stress.
Uncertainty means possible peril. We want to know what’s around the corner so we can be ready for it. We may need to act fast with limited information. The anxiety associated with uncertainty can paralyze us when we need to act. By seeking relief from uncertainty-stress, we may be inclined to believe we know something we don’t actually know. We may be inclined to believe something is a fact when it is not... (MORE - details)
