Epistemology and Reality Lecture Notes

These flashcards cover fundamental concepts in epistemology, including theories of justification, types of knowledge, and philosophical inquiries into the nature of reality.

Justified True Belief (JTB)

The traditional definition of knowledge, which asserts that for someone to know something, it must be justified, true, and believed.

Gettier problem

A situation in which someone has a justified true belief that is still considered not to be knowledge due to luck.

Internalism

A theory of epistemic justification that asserts justification depends solely on factors internal to the believer's mind.

Externalism

A theory of epistemic justification that claims justification can depend on external factors, such as the reliability of the process by which a belief is formed.

Empiricism

The theory that knowledge comes primarily from sensory experience.

Rationalism

The philosophical belief that reason is the chief source of knowledge.

A priori

Knowledge that is independent of experience.

A posteriori

Knowledge that is dependent on empirical evidence or experience.

Skepticism

The philosophical position questioning the possibility of certainty in knowledge.

Simulation hypothesis

The proposal that reality could be a simulated environment, rather than the 'real' world.

Deepfakes

Artificially created visual and audio content that can mislead viewers by mimicking real people.

Extended mind theory

The theory that extends the concept of mind to include external devices and tools as part of cognitive processes.

Boltzmann brain

A thought experiment that posits a self-aware entity arising from random fluctuations in a state of thermodynamic equilibrium.