120 Oct 6

.docx

School

University of California, Los Angeles *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

120

Subject

Philosophy

Date

Oct 30, 2023

Type

docx

Pages

Uploaded by MajorTitaniumPony13 on coursehero.com

PHIL 120 – Oct 6 The distinction between real news and fake news (72) How can we tell? Often, we have no direct access to the truth of the matter. Thus, we look to whether the reported news is justified. The problem : As Kevin McCain and Ted Poston (M&P) point out: “Can we go through our beliefs one by one and sort out the true ones from the false ones? Given our vast number of beliefs, that task is impossible”. “When we think about the reasons for our beliefs we see that our reasons stretch out to a vast number of beliefs that collectively support other beliefs” (73). In short, our set of beliefs is enormous, and the task of justifying (non- foundational) beliefs is immensely complicated. Descartes’ answer Methodological skepticism: For any belief, see if it is doubtful. If it is, set it aside. If not, use it as a foundation for other beliefs. McCain and Poston reject foundationalism: “[W]e can’t set aside all our other beliefs while we evaluate some particular belief. We must rely on some beliefs to evaluate others” (73). 1

“Instead, we start with the beliefs we have and revise them in a piecemeal fashion as we reflect and learn new things” (74). This approach is called ‘coherentism’. The philosopher Otto Neurath proposed the following metaphor to describe this option: Neurath’s boat : Justifying a belief is similar to fixing a ship while at sea. We must always retain the bulk of our ship (74). Support for coherentism (74-75) Case 1: Scientific practice When scientists encounter new observational data, they always evaluate the data given the best scientific theory available, the set of scientifically established beliefs. The Neptune case: In the 19th C, it was noticed that the orbit of Uranus did not follow Newtonian gravitational theory. Newtonian theory is fundamental to our understanding of the world. So for coherence’s sake, we should strive to preserve this theory. This was done by hypothesizing the existence a planet beyond Uranus that caused the anomaly in Uranus’ orbit. This planet was discovered, and called ‘Neptune’. This case shows the value of prioritizing coherence in scientific justification. Case 2: Rumours A vicious rumour has spread about someone you’ve known for a long time. You evaluate this rumour by reference to your complete set of beliefs about this person, your “thousandfold experiences” relating to this friend. 2

Your preview ends here

Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version