Exam 8: What Is Knowledge?
Explain knowledge as acquaintance, knowledge how, and propositional knowledge. Include examples of each.
Knowledge can be understood in different ways, including as acquaintance, knowledge how, and propositional knowledge.
Acquaintance knowledge refers to knowledge gained through direct experience or interaction with something or someone. For example, if someone has acquaintance knowledge of a particular city, it means they have visited the city and have firsthand experience of its streets, landmarks, and culture.
Knowledge how, on the other hand, refers to practical knowledge or skills that enable a person to perform a specific task or activity. For instance, someone may have knowledge how to ride a bike, swim, or play a musical instrument. This type of knowledge is often gained through practice and hands-on experience.
Propositional knowledge, also known as factual knowledge, is knowledge that can be expressed in the form of propositions or statements. It involves knowing that something is the case or understanding the truth of a particular claim. For example, knowing that the Earth revolves around the sun, or that Paris is the capital of France, are examples of propositional knowledge.
In summary, acquaintance knowledge is based on direct experience, knowledge how is practical and skill-based, and propositional knowledge involves understanding facts or truths. Each type of knowledge plays a crucial role in our understanding of the world and our ability to navigate it effectively.
Discuss the brain in a vat thought experiment as a criticism of internalism.
The brain in a vat thought experiment is a philosophical scenario that challenges the idea of internalism, which is the belief that all knowledge and justification comes from within the mind. In this thought experiment, a person's brain is removed from their body and placed in a vat of nutrients, while a supercomputer simulates the experiences of the outside world and feeds them directly into the brain. The person in the vat would have no way of knowing that their experiences are not real, as the simulation would be indistinguishable from actual experiences.
This thought experiment serves as a criticism of internalism because it shows that our beliefs and justifications could be based on false or simulated experiences, rather than on internal mental states. If all knowledge and justification were truly internal, then the person in the vat would still be able to have justified beliefs about the external world, even though their experiences are entirely simulated. However, this thought experiment demonstrates that our beliefs and justifications are not solely based on internal mental states, but also on external factors that we may not be aware of.
Therefore, the brain in a vat thought experiment challenges the idea of internalism by highlighting the possibility that our beliefs and justifications may be influenced by external factors beyond our control, rather than solely by our internal mental states. It raises important questions about the nature of knowledge and justification, and the extent to which they are dependent on external factors.
Which of the following is equivalent to "If S knows that p, then S believes that p, p is true, and S's belief is justified"?
Which possibility, regarding the chain of justification, can be used to justify any conclusion?
Critics of foundationalism claim that talk of "self-justification" is
Philosophers who do not think that justification of a belief must guarantee that belief's truth are called
The "isolation objection" to coherentism claims that its account of epistemic justification is isolated from
Edmund Gettier used what have come to be called "Gettier cases" to show that one can
The branch of philosophy that tries to answer the question "What, exactly, is knowledge?" is
Which kind of knowledge are the following examples instances of?
Lachlan knows that Ottawa is the capital of Canada.
Shanice knows that there is no greatest prime number.
Hyeon knows that John Quincy Adams was the sixth president of the United States.
While foundationalists think that our justified beliefs are structured like a building, coherentists maintain that our justified beliefs are structured like a(n)
A belief that p, which is acquired by luck, is missing the __________ aspect of knowledge.
Skepticism claims that the justification a person has for her belief
Aristotle noted that there are three possibilities as to where the chain of inference and justification of one belief by others may stop. Which of the following is not one of those possibilities?
Sometimes we have beliefs (Level-1) that are inferred and justified by other beliefs (Level-2), which are in turn inferred and justified by still other beliefs (Level-N), and so on. __________ was the first philosopher to ask where this sort of inference and justification stops.
Almost all philosophers agree that if one knows that p is the case, then
Philosophers often describe the form of sentences of propositional knowledge as
Filters
- Essay(0)
- Multiple Choice(0)
- Short Answer(0)
- True False(0)
- Matching(0)