I believe in fluid truth. At any time, our truth changes. In 11th century Europe it was true that the Earth was flat. It is now true that the Earth is and was round.
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Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.It was not "TRUE" that the earth was flat.....
Lop-Eared-Mule
Level 7
Sep 19, 2018
0
It was NOT true then...it was a misconception based on poor/no data!
Please do not confuse opinion with Fact, we suffer more than enough of that from the WH nowadays!
AnneWimsey
Level 9
Aug 10, 2018
4
Right on Anne, lack of knowledge does not change the fact that the Earth was round in the 11th century. I think it still is. They, the 11th centuryers just did not look around them. Anybody can prove it to themselves by observation.
Truth never changes.
As with so many things it depends on your understanding of the word “truth”. To my understanding, truth is what is rather than what we believe. There is no my truth and your truth. There is just truth, and my perception of it and your perception of it. I realize that another legitimate understanding of the word is “information about reality” (rather than reality itself) but even then, inaccurate information about reality is still not true, no matter how popularly believed.
skado
Level 9
Aug 10, 2018
0
Truth is, in fact, fluid. When I was younger, it was accepted as scientific fact that Pluto was our 9th planet. We may fancy the notion that ‘absolute truths’ exist, with or without humankind’s awareness of them, and this may be the case. But as we have no other means to observe and describe the universe and the phenomena by which we are surrounded, we simply have to concede that our factual knowledge is forever subject to new information, and thus, may very well change. The philosopher of science, Karl Popper, noted that "all knowledge is provisional, temporary, capable of transition at any moment." This would, by necessity, include that which we call 'facts.'
p-nullifidian
Level 8
Aug 9, 2018
0
@Bobby9 Mere existence is not enough for science. Categories, taxonomies and scientific classifications also form the basis for much of our factual knowledge.
@Bobby9 So, would it be fair to say then that there exists facts of nature or the universe, outside of our limited capacity to fully appreciate or even recognize, much less accurately measure?
Oh no. The earth was always round. the facts of the physical world are not changed by our beliefs or ignorance.
A2Jennifer
Level 8
Aug 9, 2018
6
Exactly, simpley stated, thank you.
Truth is demonstrable; can be demonstrated with facts.
If a person believes in for example: the (not testable) supernatural and asserts it as truth
(i.e. Because I want to believe (have faith) in a magic sky daddy I will claim it is the revealed "Truth". Christians often Capitalize the "T" in Truth. The fact that they dishonestly assert their faith (without evidence) claim as truth does not demonstrate their claim has any truth value.
When I hear "fluid truth" I am reminded of a discussion I had with a religious elder (Native American). I pointed out that his culture had what I consider to be a vastly superior vision of reality before the Christian dogma most now embrace. I asked him how he can reconcile this different generations believing different things.
He replied, "Truth is whatever you believe" - - this sounds a lot like your "fluid truth". I find using the "trump era" alternative truth (a belief that is accepted as true) definition deludes the "that which is true or in accordance with fact or reality." definition. 
NoMagicCookie
Level 8
Aug 9, 2018
1
In the 11th century the Earth WAS NOT flat. The common person just did not know better. The Greeks and Arabs knew the Earth was round and so did Columbus.
starwatcher-al
Level 7
Aug 9, 2018
3
And the Greeks measured the circumference and got it really close by way of observing the difference in the angle of the Sun at varied places on the Earth at high noon.
I clearly said 11th century Europe. They had lost all Greek mathematical texts about the Earth being round. Europe didn't have access to it until the Arabs came to Spain with their math and science.
@PiercianTruth yes, their data was incomplete or missing....but the earth was still Round, all else was mistaken conjecture. The Truth never changed!
Truth is always there whether or not people know about it.
The Earth since life began on it has always been a sphere.
Gravity was always a fact.
The Earth has always revolved around the sun.
Etc.
Facts are facts and truth.
Just because someone is ignorant of the facts does not mean that there are other "truths".
But kudos for attempting to validate "alternative facts" as a thing.
It's just never going to happen.
SkotlandSkye
Level 8
Aug 9, 2018
4
We, at any given time, can only deal with today's knowledge. By definition, we can't wait for the ultimate truth to be here, because we will never be at the end of exploration. We may have things that we currently think are pretty much investigated as much as possible so we think we know the ultimate answer and truth, but something may turn up that says it isn't so. Some day they are going to laugh at our "dark matter" like we laugh at "ether".
"Alternative facts" are lying under a new name that doesn't have the baggage of being as nasty as it is.
I would call that belief. It was believed that the world was flat without any evidence. Actually even then there were a few that believed otherwise. Truth is usually spoken of as something that can be demonstrably proven with some sort of evidence otherwise it is belief. People speak of "my truth" or in your example, belief that is accepted as true, which I would still say is belief. That is why it's always good to ask people to state how they think a word should be defined.
gearl
Level 8
Aug 9, 2018
3
I know that some thought the Earth was round, especially sailors. Are you saying that there was no truth, only belief, until the advent and wide spread usage of the scientific method? That is an interesting claim. However, they certainly had concepts of true and false even if we don't agree with their conclusions.
@PiercianTruth I'm saying that I believe that truth is objective and not what you want it to be. Things that were provable were certainly true as far back in history as you want to go. About everybody back then believed in god. By your reasoning then god existence was true back then.
@powder I think about all I said was that believing something to be true doesn't make it so. About everybody believed god to be true thus to them it was a truth but believing something to be true does not make it so. Also the idea that water levels proved the world was flat is pushing it as it only proved that an object was level. Evidence should be able to prove something regardless of time and if it doesn't it wasn't good evidence to begin with. I will agree that what appears to be evidence with further study is proven wrong then the apparent evidence is discredited and thrown out. The problem I have with this whole line of truth and evidence as being changeable is the current alternative fact ideology that has become popular. If we accept the fact that truth, evidence and facts have no solid basis in reality then anybody can say anything and whatever he says carries as much weight as someone else that has spent a live time in education and study and work on the subject.
I would change the wording to fluid understanding. Many Greeks in BC estimated the size of a round earth and their books misplaced or lost or hidden. And people like Copernicus were understood at the highest levels of the Church to be correct, but the Church had to prepare for a fundamental change in philosophy. A lot of people don't know, but the Catholic church operates one of the largest telescopes in the world, in South America. It does mostly science research, but at its core the believers want to find the end of the universe and possibly proof of god.
Beowulfsfriend
Level 9
Aug 9, 2018
1
I've worked with the Vatican Observatory, at its installation in Arizona.
[en.wikipedia.org]
I don't think that facts about the world can be true or false. We assign these values, the world could give a fig.
cava
Level 7
Aug 9, 2018
1
I agree that truth is a language construct, nearly everything is. "Stars" are, in the sense that we have grouped together things that we think have common traits and give them a label. Of course the universe doesn't care what kind of labeling we get up to. That would imply the universe has feelings, which is unjustified.
cava:
@PiercianTruth
K. There are also other senses of the word truth. There are analytical truths.
Truth can also suggest an unveiling.
Truth is also said to impell, in the sense of troth
@cava Yes, mathematical truth is only a language construct. I think mathematics is language with logic being pimarily what it communicates.
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