Know or Believe?
You think it will rain because the sky is dark. Do you know or believe it will rain?
This is a belief because you are not completely certain its gonna happen
Your friend says a movie is bad because they did not like it. Is this a fact or an opinion?
Opinion, since it shows a personal preference rather than a fact.
Your friend tells you that a new restaurant is the best restaurant in town because they loved it. Is their opinion good evidence?
It is evidence of your friend's experience, but it is not strong evidence that the restaurant is really the best. One person's opinion does not represent everyone's experience.
What does perspective mean?
The way someone sees or understands something based on their experiences.
Someone gives you information online that agrees with what you already believe. What should you check before accepting it as true?
You should check who created the information, the evidence they give, and if other reliable sources support it.
Why should evidence matter more than feelings when deciding what to believe?
Evidence provides support which can be backed by research while feelings can be influenced by bias
A student gets a 70% on a test and thinks it is terrible, while another student thinks it is a great grade. What does this show about perspective?
The same fact can be understood differently depending on someone's expectations and experiences. The grade itself does not change, but the reactions of the students do based on their own beliefs of whether or not it is a good grade.
You find two articles making the same claim, but one is based on a single person's experience while the other uses data collected from hundreds of people. Which evidence should you trust more?
You should trust the data which has the larger amount of people. This gathers data from multiple people of different backgrounds, making sure that the data is not affected by another variable that is common in all the people participating in the experiment. Therefore, gathering from multiple people makes the evidencce mroe trustworthy and reliable.
Why can something feel completely true to someone even when there is evidence that it is false?
The person may just believe that it is true. For example, Galileo knew that the Earth rotated around the sun, but everybody mocked him because of their own beliefs even thought there was evidence. He defended the heliocentric view by using real evidence.
Two websites make completely opposite claims about the same topic. How could you decide which one to trust?
Compare the sources and evidence and verify ifthe information is correct. You could also look for other well known websites that are commonly known to be true and double check with those.
Can you believe something without knowing if it is true?
Yes, for example, religion. We dont know which religion is right or wrong, but it is rather a personal belief which we dont know is true. All reglioious ideas may be true, or none at all.
How can your past experiences affect whether you trust a person, even if you have never met them before?
Based on a certain characteristic some good or bad people have, you may be able to ttrust them easily or not at all. For example, people who have tattoos, heavy piercings, etc. are generally associated to be bad people even if you have never talked to them.
A website makes a statement but gives no sources for where its information came from. How should this affect how much you trust this?
You should be more careful if they dont give any sources, especially if it is an untrustworthy website which is not widely known. The website could be making things up or have completely lied about it.
If you cannot prove that something is false, does that mean it must be true?
Even if you cannot prove it is false, you may also not be able to prove it true. In time, with a higher development of technology, it could be proved true or false. Just because at the moment you cannot prove something false does not mean you can also prove it to be true.
If someone you trust tells you something that conflicts with strong evidence, should you believe the person or the evidence? Explain.
You should believe the evidence. It doesnt matter if you trust them, since the human brain is not very reliable and it could also just be personal belief over evidence.
If two people have the same evidence but believe different things, does that mean one person is automatically wrong? Explain.
Not necessarily. They might interpret the evidence differently or make different assumptions. We would need to examine their reasoning and see which conclusion is better supported by the evidence. One person would not be automatically wrong, but through researching which had better support, you can find out who is wrong.
If two people remember the same event differently, should we automatically believe the person who sounds more confident? Why or why not?
No, because confidence does not necessarily mean their memory is accurate. We should compare their accounts with other evidence, such as camera footage, other witnesses, or facts about what really happened.
Three witnesses give different descriptions of the same event. How could you decide which information is more trustworthy?
You should fact check with other witnesses, if there are any. You could also look for evidence such as camera footage to verify who is telling the truth.
You strongly believe something, but new reliable evidence contradicts your belief. What should you do?
You should reconsider what you believe in. If there is new and reliable evidence opposing your original ideas, then it would be best to change your beliefs.
What would be strong enough evidence to make you change a belief you have held for years?
Strong evidence from reliable and independent sources that directly contradicts the reasons for your original belief. You should also make sure the evidence is accurate and has not been taken out of context.
If you are completely confident that something is true, does that make it knowledge? Why or why not?
No because confidence is a feeling rather than proof. Someone can be extremely confident and still be wrong. Knowledge requires research, such as reliable evidence and good reasoning.
Is it possible to completely remove your own perspective/opinions when deciding whether something is true?
While it may be possible to remove most of them, a lot of people usually have some bias towards a belief they do not share.
Can evidence be real but still be misleading?
Yes, because evidence can be shown without context. For example, the evidence may be completely correct, but misleading if important data is left out.
Is it possible to know something with absolute certainty?
It is possible if there is strong, hardcore evidence such as fossils, dna, or recordings.
Imagine you discover that the main piece of evidence supporting something you believe is unreliable. How should that affect your belief?
You would become less confident in what you believe and consider whether or not there is enough evidence to support it. If most reasoning depended on that evidence, you should probably change what you believe about that topic.