Just another blogs.oregonstate.edu weblog
Posted in Uncategorized on Nov 30th, 2009
Social constructionism is a theory that holds that the way different peoples (cultures) construct their reality is dependent on their shared social experience & worldview. A social construct is a way that a culture or society imposes a shared order over the natural world. As language is the primary medium through which social interactions are [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Nov 23rd, 2009
“The human quest for perfect undersanding….” In western thought, enlightment is expressed as reason and rational thought overcoming superstitions and irrational thinking. It is oriented around the development of philosophical frameworks of rationalism, materialism, skepticism, etc… In eastern philosophy, enlightment is expressed as a state of being, an individual experience. It is the shunning of [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Nov 16th, 2009
Phenominalism, a branch of empiricism, is the idea that everything is reduced to it’s sensory perception, that the reality of material phenomena is dependent upon our perception, dependent upon the sensory data about it. It is the sensory, perceptual experience that is ‘true’, more that the object itself. For me, there is an element of phenominalism that resonates…… I do [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Nov 9th, 2009
Empirical knowledge is that which is experienced through the senses. Empiricism is developed around a reality that can be percieved through direct observation. It emphasizes sensory experience and material evidence. For most, empiricism embodies a sense of material ”truth” based on sensory perception.. In science, empiricism helps to define the nature of the scientific method. All arguments/hypotheses/theories [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Nov 2nd, 2009
Keep it simple. Ockham’s Razor, or the ”principle of parsimony”, basically states that “all things being equal the simplest explanation is the best.” When building an argument, the least number of foundational assumptions, the better. Ockham’s Razor is a nominalist position…meaning that reality is understood to be made of particular, known, named entities. Ockham’s Razor serves as a [...]