Lesson           3/2/2017

“Facts are needed to establish theories but theories are needed to make sense of facts.” Discuss this statement with reference to two areas of knowledge

It is well established that theories are a set of statements or principles devised to explain a group of facts or phenomena. Most theories that are accepted by scientists have been repeatedly tested by experiments and can be used to make predictions about natural phenomena. A fact is a thing that is known or proved to be true. Theories explain certain occurrences and facts support the validity of these theories. This statement is a circular example of the two requirements that make up the scientific method.

When looking at this statement, one can see that it is the ideal connection between history and the sciences (Areas f Knowledge). History includes all past events of existence and is the entire collective of the development of the human race that led us to this moment in time. It can also be seen as a timeline for trials and errors and we can see how human conceptual understanding has evolved. Every time, we learn or understand something we write it down. As time and effort progresses, we can dismiss false information or build on base knowledge to give rise to complicated and sophisticated understandings such as the quantum theory or atomic fission. The progression of knowledge that is built on history is achieved through science, as the rigorous testing and theories can amount to great technologies and improvements over time.

The assumptions made by this claim is that facts and theories need to work hand in hand in order to have any significance in our understanding. While this is true, facts do single handedly remain the underlying principle of all knowledge. Only because there is no theory to make sense of a fact, this does not abolish the fact. However, if there are no facts to establish the theory, the theory becomes obsolete. Sometimes we must realize, that in order to further our understanding, we need to take educated and evolutionary guesses and form them into theories. Than do we have the focus to direct our research towards something in order to prove/disprove something (quantum theory). So, really, we can pursue both things separately as long as we make sure that they add up to each other in the end, to create factual knowledge.

Regarding this statement, there is absolutely no bias to be found. It is stating that understanding cannot be achieved without the other which is counterproductive to successful persuasion which relies on deceiving and not teaching critical thinking to its audience. Belief is also absent as it argues the importance of evidence in order for things to be valid. This is the opposite of belief. There are also few flaws to be found, sure, anything can receive criticism but this statement is the foundation of all modern science and information. Having been accepted by such a variety of academics and the mass population, this statement holds massive validity which makes it valid, certain, truthful and reliable and is the keystone for justification in the first place. Additionally, it is the definition of objectivity which makes it impossible to be categorized as subjective. The only thing it can be properly criticized for is being limited. It is a very rigid statement and does not allow for much artful thinking, however, considering that its purpose is to ensure accurate understanding, this seems like a small price to pay.