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Old 11-07-2007, 11:25 AM
Subfallen Subfallen is offline
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Default Re: Epistemological question

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Justification isn't necessarily something you have to be wholly cognizant of at the very moment, but if you were asked to justify your belief, you could do so and in a rational manner.

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Hmm...yeah, I was thinking of justification too narrowly; as in, I "know" that e=mc^2, but I can't "justify" my knowledge by deriving that equation from first principles. Of course I CAN justify my belief by appealing to scientific authority.

But once we broaden "rational justification" beyond direct logic, it seems that justification becomes mostly a question of epistemic scope and personal utility. It's pretty easy to "justify" any belief when you make enough qualifications and compromises.

What's a good introduction to these issues...why do people argue about these models?
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