# KEHOME/knowledge/theory/NaturalSemanticMetalanguage/evidence.html
# Oct/20/2003
Validation of Knowledge
Validation of Knowledge
Basic Ideas
The evidence used to validate knowledge comes from many sources.
-
personal senses: see, hear
-
personal actions: do something
-
personal inference from senses and actions
-
hearsay evidence from other people
Some natural languages have very elaborate semantics
for specifying what type of evidence was used to arrive
at conclusions.
NSM Examples [1]
- Kashaya (northern California)
- I know this because I am doing it
- I know this because I did it a short time before
- I know this because I saw it
- I know this because I see it
- everyone knows it
- I know this because I hear it
- I don't say this because someone else said this; I know it
- I say this because someone else said this; I don't say: I know it
- I know this because I know something else
- I know this now because I know something else now; I didn't know it before now
- I know this not because someone else said something; it happened a long time before now
- Huanuco Quechua (central Peru)
- I say this not because someone else said it; I know it
- I say this because someone else said it; I don't say: I know it
- I think this; I don't know it
- Tarma Quechua (central Peru)
- I know this
- someone else says this; I don't say: I know it
- I think this; I don't know it
- Wintu (northern California)
- I think this because something happens (happened) to me
- someone says this; I don't say: I know it
- I know something now (because I see something); I think I can say something about someone because of this
- I think this; I can't say: I know it
- Maricopa
- I know this happened; people could see it
- I know it happened because I did it; people could see this
- I know it happened because it happened to me; people could see this
- I know this happened; people could see it
- I know this happened; people could hear it
- I know it happened because I did it; people could hear this
- I know this happened; people could hear it
- people say this; I don't say: I know it
- Macedonian
- I know this
- I think this
- I know this not because someone said something
- I think this because someone said something
Qualitative Evidence Scale [2]
Peikoff describes the gradual accumulation of evidence
required to support a conclusion, in a given context.
He identifies four states of a conclusion,
as one moves from ignorance to knowledge.
- abitrary - no evidence supports the conclusion
- possible - some, but not much, evidence supports it, and nothing is known that contradicts it
- probable - a substantial body of evidence supports it, but some doubt remains
- certain - all available evidence supports it, and there are no grounds for doubt
References
-
Anna Wierzbicka, "Semantics: Primes and Universals",
Oxford University Press, 1996.
Chapter 15.
- Leonard Peikoff, "Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn
Rand", Dutton, 1991.
Chapter 5.
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