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In This Selection Russell First Distinguishes Between Knowledge by Acquaintance

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In this selection Russell first distinguishes between knowledge by acquaintance (e.g., knowledge by appearances, such as "I seem to see a red book," "I am in pain," or "I think, therefore I am") and knowledge by description (knowledge of truths, such as your knowing that you are really seeing a red book or that your pain is caused by having twisted your ankle). Knowledge by acquaintance is generally thought to be infallible because believing it makes the proposition true. But the same is not the case for descriptive knowledge claims because your beliefs could be false. Thus, descriptive knowledge is dualistic-it has the properties of truth and falsity as opposites-whereas knowledge by acquaintance is monistic and does not admit such opposites. Russell goes on to specify the conditions for an adequate theory of truth and shows how the correspondence theory meets these conditions, whereas the coherence theory does not.
-Russell ponders what is meant by the question whether a belief is true or false.


Definitions:

Satisfice

Satisfice is a decision-making strategy that aims for a satisfactory or adequate result, rather than the optimal solution, particularly when faced with limited information or time.

Shareholders

Shareholders are individuals or entities that own shares in a company, thereby holding a portion of the ownership and potentially influencing company decisions.

Problems

Situations, questions, or conditions perceived as unsatisfactory, requiring solutions or answers.

Subjective Probability

The individual's personal estimate of the chance of occurrence of a specific outcome, based on their own judgment or belief rather than on objective data.

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