Scepticism - Sources of Knowledge

Theory of Knowledge

Introduction

Scepticism

Rationalism

	Introduction
	The Sources of Knowledge
	Illusion & Deception
	How Far Can Scepticism Go?
	Counter Arguments
	The Argument from Dreaming
	Other Arguments
	Assignment

	Additional Information
	A Brief History of Scepticism
	Useful Links

The Sources of Knowledge

Now, look through your list. How does it compare to mine?

Mistake	Reason
Thinking it is Tuesday not Thursday	Lapse of Memory
Mathematical mistake (42 + 59 = 111)	Faulty Reasoning
Mistook a flying paper bag for a bird	Visual hallucination
Thought I heard the doorbell ring	Auditory hallucination
Thought I smelt burning	Olfactory hallucination
Felt as if something was crawling up my arm	Tactile hallucination
Dreamed that I won the lottery	Dream (sleeping hallucination)
Accepted that Father Christmas is real	False trust
Thought that Canada was a continent	Misheard, confused, misinformed
Feeling of familiarity in unfamiliar place	Déjà vu (false internal conviction)

Do you have any that aren't on my list? Or have you missed out some that I have mentioned? Of course, the reasons for the different types of mistake might be different to the answers I have given. Some might argue that Déjà vu, for instance, is a form of ESP (Extra Sensory Perception, or psychic ability), or even evidence of reincarnation or past life memories.

From the point of view of the sceptic, the reason for the mistake is not so important as the fact that the mistake itself is possible. Looking down the list you may also note that most of the errors listed are due to some limitation in our sensory apparatus (our eyes, ears, etc.). This is not really surprising in that almost all of our knowledge - arguably - comes through them at one time or another.

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