Simson L. Garfinkel discusses the epistemology behind Wikipedia in an interesting article in Technology Review.
So what is Truth? According to Wikipedia’s entry on the subject, “the term has no single definition about which the majority of professional philosophers and scholars agree.” But in practice, Wikipedia’s standard for inclusion has become its de facto standard for truth, and since Wikipedia is the most widely read online reference on the planet, it’s the standard of truth that most people are implicitly using when they type a search term into Google or Yahoo. On Wikipedia, truth is received truth: the consensus view of a subject.
Tags: Technology Trends
petrosianii
on Nov 5th, 2008
@ 1:10 pm:
Interestingly, this, the philosopher’s question of questions, so to speak, was the exact same question asked of Jesus by Pontius Pilate just before sentencing him to death by crucifixion (as far as legend and lore go). Even more interesting: had Pontius Pilate known – or had Jesus told – then his execution would have been stayed; and, according to Christian theology, at least, he would have never been the Savior of the world – in which case, humanity would still be “dead in trespass and sin” and a horrible “final judgment” would have been imminent.
The moral: perhaps ignorance really is bliss?
Or, knowing the truth isn’t always the best for us, morally speaking.
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Hawaii Wedding Business Owner
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