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The Fundamental Knowledge Of Knowledge

Decent Essays

The fundamental knowledge issue arising from this question is whether knowledge is consistent throughout time. Can we progress through applying knowledge generated decades ago? To determine whether knowledge generated from areas such as history and science can predict the future, it is necessary to know whether the knowledge acquired through these areas of knowing is consistent, irrespective of changes in time and culture, amongst other factors. Through considering this question, we are gaining insight into whether we should uphold our current knowledge beliefs or aim for perpetual progression and uncover new knowledge, potentially aiding us in our development as a species. Old, redundant knowledge may hinder our progression, causing us to …show more content…

Science is the study of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment, allowing us to gain insight into the nature of the universe which we can practically apply to improve, or perhaps even deteriorate, the state of the world we live in. History is the study of past events, allowing us to gain knowledge into human nature and identify trends to avoid in the future.

Mathematics is often regarded as objective and accurate in its generation of knowledge. Mathematical theories are most saliently derived through intuition and reason. Rationalism, the theory that we have an inherent sense of reason, is associated with mathematics. This raises the question of whether innate knowledge is consistent throughout time, and thus whether mathematical laws are mutable or immutable. Rationalism is connected with intuition, as mathematicians intuitively deduce their theories. Although intuition is often deemed infallible, there is the possibility of false intuited propositions, demonstrating how knowledge derived through mathematics is mutable. The fallible nature of intuition is evident in Euclid’s parallel postulate, which stated that ‘if two lines that cross a third in a plane in such a way that the sum of the "interior angles" is not 180° then the two lines meet. Two thousand years later, this was shown to be wrong and inconsistent with four-dimensional space-time. This demonstrates how

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