Epistemology Basics

The Nature of Knowledge

• Knowledge is a way of being latched to facts, and confidence does not equal knowledge.
• Epistemology is the study of knowledge and how we know anything, derived from the Greek words Episteme (meaning “Knowledge”) and Logos (meaning “rational study” or “theoretical inquiry”).

Empiricism vs. Rationalism

• Empiricism involves acquiring knowledge through observation and experience, and it poses that there is no innate knowledge, rather we are born as a blank slate.
• Rationalism, on the other hand, poses that we have innate knowledge.

The Scientific Method

• The scientific method is a process of systematically collecting and evaluating evidence to test ideas and answer questions, often involving the use of empiricism in a controlled environment.
• It takes quite a bit of time and resources, and cannot be used to answer all questions (only empirical questions).

Dogmatism and Doubt

• Dogmatism is the acceptance of ideas without questioning, laying down principles as incontrovertibly true without consideration of evidence or the opinion of others.
• Doubt is a basic strategy of Descartes's method, which involves doubting the truth of everything, including evidence, cultural presuppositions, and even the fundamental process of reasoning itself.

Ways of Knowing

• Intuition is a method of knowing that relies on emotions, gut, and instinct, rather than logic or evidence.
• Knowledge of Authority involves accepting new ideas because an authority figure states them to be true, but not all authorities are equally reliable.
• Rationalism is a method of knowing that involves using logic and reasoning to acquire new knowledge, following logical rules to reach a conclusion.

Skepticism

• Academic skeptics argue that knowledge is impossible, while Pyrrhonian skeptics argue that knowledge is essentially skeptical and we should doubt everything.