Ameatypie said:
You must recognize knowledge as something that is a) specific to individuals, and b) attached to emotion.
Emotion is not a basis for knowledge. Emotions are irrational. They are chemical reactions to stimuli that compels an individual into certain behaviors. Thought never enters into it. Hence why I said they are irrational.
This is why scientific method was developed. It helps to weed out emotion and other human fails so that the truth can be found and, more importantly, confirmed. Careful speakers will couch any scientifically confirm knowledge as "based on the currently available evidence" or something similar. I think that would be a bit much for everyday conversation.
I don't think your definition of knowledge quoted above is knowledge but belief. Beliefs are specific to individuals and attached to emotion. People did not know the Earth was flat. They believed the Earth was flat.
Knowledge and belief often go hand in hand, but they are distinct concepts.
Knowledge is just the raw facts. By facts I do not mean things that are true. For instance, I
know that god created man out of the dust in its own image and created woman out of one of the man's ribs. However, I do not
believe a word of this. Knowledge is distinct from belief. You should not confuse the two as it will make your life difficult.
Do we REALLY know what we know? How can you be certain that, say, you are reading this? What is telling you that you are reading this? How do you know your computer is the color that it is? How do you know who your mother is? How do you know that you look as you do? How do you know the earth is round?
Golly. That really does not follow from the previous paragraph about knowledge/belief. You seem to be mixing solipsism into it here, which is an unrelated topic. So I won't address that.
As for the knowledge/belief items here, I can see two that we can work with. The shape of the Earth and the identity of my mother.
The shape of the Earth I'll discard because I honestly do not care and no reason for anyone else to care unless they travel. Most people do not travel. Many do not even leave the town or city they were born. The shape of the Earth is a trivia question, so it is moot.
That leaves the identity of one's mother, which is more pragmatic. We tend to accept the person who identifies herself as our mother is the woman for gave birth to us. But this is not always true. Many are adopted. Some come to find out that the woman they thought was their mother is actually their grandmother and their older sister is really their mother.
When we learn something, we tend to accept the first facts we receive and then resist changing them. That's where emotion can impede progress. By and large, it makes sense to retain the knowledge we gain until there is a reason to question it. There is no reason to think you are adopted unless you notice a lack of familial resemblance or something similar. Perhaps not even that as adoptive parents often tell their children they are adopted.
This is the nature of knowledge. We take what facts we find until new facts are discovered.
The nature of belief is to resist new facts, regardless of how poorly justified the old facts and how well justified the new facts. This is why emotion is dangerous and should be guarded against. Otherwise we would still be praying over black plague and small pox victims.
