What is a phenomenon?

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What is a phenomenon? Here is my definition:

A phenomenon is something that can be perceived

I believe that every detail of experience is a phenomenon. Everything you can notice is a phenomenon. This includes every event, attribute, object, piece of information, thought, sense and anything else that can be observed.

What is the difference between a phenomenon and perception? I believe that a perception is the sense itself, while a phenomenon is the thing being sensed. For example, imagine that somebody watches a tree fall over. The phenomenon is the tree falling, while the perception is the sense occurring in the mind of the viewer.

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What is phenomenology?

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What is phenomenology? Here is my definition:

Phenomenology is the study of immediate perception

I believe that phenomenology is one of the most interesting topics to study. This occurs whenever you take one of your senses and examine the sense itself. You can do this for any sense: feel, taste, sight, thought, smell, hearing, etc. All you have to do is observe the intricacies of the sense, especially the small details you never notice.

I believe Leonardo da Vinci was a phenomenologist, in the way that he studied vision. This enabled him to create paintings that imitated actual vision. For example, Leonardo was able to paint light in a way that resembles how we actually see light. This talent required a great deal of studying vision itself.

When I was younger, I used to eat doughnuts with the sole purpose of figuring out why exactly I liked the taste. I would sit down at a table, take a bite and concentrate on the taste, but I could never pinpoint the exact reason for my satisfaction. Was it the fluffy texture? Was is the sweetness? Was it the way the doughnut disintegrated into pieces in my mouth?

Even if I decided that sweetness was my favorite part, the question would still remain: why do I like sweetness? What is the nature of sweetness? What part of sweetness makes me so attracted to it? Ultimately, I felt like I was staring in oblivion trying to grasp an elusive answer. I believe this doughnut eating experiment was one of my earliest examples of phenomenology.

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What is a fact?

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What is a fact? I have two definitions:

1. A fact is something known with absolute certainty

2. A fact is something known with certainty

The rest of this post is an explanation of each definition.

1. A fact is something known with absolute certainty

According to the first definition, anything that could be a hallucination or a dream is not a fact. For example, is it a fact that you're reading this sentence? No, because there's a chance you're actually asleep in a dream or that you're a brain in a vat experiencing a simulation.

Now imagine that you're actually a brain in a vat. What knowledge is still true in this hypothetical? Although this is probably not an exhaustive list, I can think of seven propositions that are still true in the brain in a vat hypothetical:

• I exist
• Consciousness exists
• Experience exists
• A sense exists
• A perception exists
• Reality exists
• Time exists

I believe that these seven propositions are necessary for any hallucination to happen. In this regard, even the most elaborate hallucination could not negate any of these propositions. For that reason, I believe that these seven propositions are absolute facts.

If the self didn't exist, there would be nobody to view the hallucination. If consciousness didn't exist, the hallucination wouldn't have been seen. If experience didn't exist, the hallucination wouldn't have been endured. If a senses didn't exist, there would be no way to access data about the hallucination. If a perception didn't exist, the hallucination wouldn't have been perceived. If reality didn't exist, there would be nothing. If time didn't exist, there would be no seconds to experience the hallucination.

I also believe that mathematical equations are not absolute facts. For example, take the question 8 + 6 = __. To demonstrate this question, you can take eight bananas and add six bananas and then count the total. The problem comes when you're counting. Even if you count the same total a thousand times in a row, there is still the chance that you miscounted every time. I believe this also applies if you imagine counting the bananas in your mind. Even if you used a calculator, the calculator could have messed up every time.

I also believe that logical conclusions are not absolute facts. Here is an example:

1. Every rabbit is purple
2. John is a rabbit
3. Therefore, John is purple

I do not regard this conclusion as an absolute fact. Imagine that you read the first premise and memorize it in your mind. Then you read the second premise while retaining your memory of the first premise. Now when you try to combine both premises, you might accidentally warp the memory of either premise leading to a mistake. Even if you perform this task hundreds of times, there is still a chance that the same mistake could be made every time.

2. A fact is something known with certainty

According to the second definition, a 'fact' is something known with certainty, but does not require absolute certainty. For example, if you see a book on the windowsill, it's a 'fact' that the book is on the windowsill. The only chance that the book isn't there, would be if it's a hallucination. But in our daily lives, we regard this observation as a 'fact'.

We can also learn facts about reality such as statistics, names and general information. According to this definition, a piece of information should have a high degree of certainty to be regarded as a 'fact'.

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What is establishment?

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What is the definition of establishment? Here is my definition:

Establishment is the process of causing something indefinitely into existence

I believe that language is formed through establishment rather than usage. For example, imagine that we have a million different color shades and we want to give a word to each shade. In this situation, we could name every color a separate number. This process would establish many word-concept relationships. Although we wouldn't use every color shade, the meanings would still remain. This example shows how usage is not necessary for a word to have meaning.

What if somebody starts using a word in a new way? Would this be a case where usage precedes establishment? I don't think so because the usage of a new meaning is simultaneous to the establishment of that meaning. In this regard, usage and establishment occur at the same time, but establishment is more important for creating meaning.

If somebody uses a word incorrectly, does this change the meaning of the word? I don't think so because it goes against the established meaning. Maybe with enough misuses, a new meaning can get established to coincide alongside the original meaning, but still establishment is what truly gives a word meaning. This is another example of how usage does not predominate over establishment.

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What is evidence?

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What is evidence? Here is my definition:

Evidence is information that is relevant for determining the truth

I believe that evidence is the basis of all knowledge. It would be impossible to form a belief without relevant information. Evidence is the traction that allows a person to learn about reality.

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What is an experiment?

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What is an experiment? Here is my definition:

An experiment is an event that potentially tests a hypothesis

When thinking about experiments, I divide experiments into two types: artificial and natural. An artificial experiment is a man-made procedure, while a natural experiment is a real-world event. Natural experiments are controversial because there will always be an abundance of confounding factors.

For example, the impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 is not a clear experiment because there were many other variables affecting the economy at the time, making it difficult to isolate the impact of the stimulus package. That's not to say that all natural experiments are bad, but they certainly require a higher level of analysis to assess the results.

Conversely, with artificial experiments it's much easier to isolate the impact of a treatment. With an artificial experiment you can have two identical groups and implement a different treatment to each group. Since both groups are theoretically identical, any difference in the results can be assumed to be caused by the treatment.

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What is an observation?

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What is an observation? Here is my definition:

An observation is a perception that is recorded or attentively noticed

I believe that some observations are not recorded. This occurs when an instance is attentively noticed. For example, imagine that you are at a restaurant and you notice that the menu only has foods starting with the letter 'w'. I believe this is an observation because it requires a higher level of attention.

I also believe that observation is necessary for scientific experiments. Merely sitting back and letting the results pass by without storing them, is not an adequate way to do science. By not recording results, there is a risk that the original perception could become distorted in one's memory.

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What is an argument?

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What is an argument? Here is my definition:

An argument is a reason or set of reasons meant to support a belief

I believe the first step in any disagreement is make the central proposition as clear as possible. This is important so that both sides have a clear reference point, and it also helps the conversation stay focused. That's why its important to make the central proposition clear and not deviate from it.

I also believe many disagreements go unresolved because people are not clear about the evidence and reasons they are using. For example, someone might assume that a particular piece of evidence is so obvious that they don't even mention it in a debate. They assume that the person they're arguing with is also aware of this evidence. But in actuality, the other person doesn't know about this piece of evidence, thus resulting in a disconnect. For this reason, I believe its important to be explicit about all supporting reasons.

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What is an inference?

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What is an inference? Here is my definition:

An inference is a belief based on indirect evidence

I believe that inferences are based on indirect observation. For example, imagine that you hear a doorbell ring. In this scenario, it wouldn't make sense to say you infer that the doorbell rang. This is because you directly experienced the sound. But you can infer that somebody is waiting at the door. This is because you did not first-hand observe that somebody is waiting there.

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What is a statistic?

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What is a statistic? Here is my definition:

A statistic is numerical information

I believe that all statistics come in the form of numbers. For example, imagine that somebody asks you for Willie Mays' career baseball statistics. In this situation, you would not describe his swing or his mindset towards baseball. Instead, you would provide a few numbers that describe his career output.

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What is a number?

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What is a number? Here is my definition:

A number is a word that represents a quantity of units

I believe that quantity is a fundamental aspect of numbers. I can't imagine a single number that doesn't represent a quantity. Maybe a mathematician could prove me wrong, but I don't see how a number could represent a quality instead of a quantity.

I also believe that numbers are objective. Think of the number 2. To establish the definition of 2, we can point to groupings of 2. In this regard, the meaning of 2 can be clearly differentiated from the meaning of 3. For this reason, I believe that numbers have an unmistakable meaning.

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What is counting?

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What is counting? Here is my definition:

Counting the process of reciting numbers in order

I believe that counting and measurement have a close overlap, except two primary examples. For the first example, imagine, that you are listing numbers with the purpose of reaching 1,000. In this situation, you are counting but you are not measuring anything. The moment that something other than numbers is being counted, I believe you are simultaneously counting and measuring.

The second example, comes when you have a measurement device that skips the step of counting. For example, when you weigh something on a scale, you do not need to count every single unit. Instead, the total amount is displayed by the scale automatically. This is an example of measurement that does not involve counting.

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What is a measurement?

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What is a measurement? Here is my definition:

A measurement a numerical observation based on a standard unit

What's the difference between a measurement and a statistic? Although measurements and statistics both rely on standard units and numbers, I believe the difference has to do with observation. Measurements are discovered in a single instance, whereas most statistics are not necessarily derived from a single instance. For example, take the statistic that Willie Mays hit 660 career home runs. This is not a measurement, because it wasn't discovered in a single observation.

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What is clear?

What is clear? Here is my definition:

Clear is the attribute of being easy to understand

When I write, I try to be as clear as possible. When I write about an idea, the first draft usually has many problems. For example, some sentences might have unnecessary words while other sentences might have misleading or incorrect words. All of these flaws detract from having a clear meaning. Despite these flaws, I try to maintain hope that I can arrange the words more clearly.

Overall, I believe that clear writing depends on how well the author can translate a thought into words. This process can be difficult because some thoughts are mysterious and complicated. In this regard, clear writing is related to phenomenology.

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What is what?

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What is the definition of what? Here is my definition:

What is a question word used to ask for the predicate's actual subject

Think of the question: what is in the refrigerator? In this question, 'what' is the subject and 'in the refrigerator' is the predicate. The answer to this question, we would replace the word 'what' with the actual subject. For example, an answer could be, 'pineapples are in the refrigerator'. Here you can see that the original subject ('what') was replaced with a new subject ('pineapples'). In this regard, we can think of the word 'what' as pointing to the actual subject.

I also believe that the word 'what' is the most fundamental question word. All of the other major question words can be reconstructed using the word 'what'. 'How' means 'what way'. 'Why' means 'what reason'. 'Which' means 'what one'. 'Where' means 'what place'. 'Who' means 'what person'. If I was forced to choose only one question word for the rest of my life, I would choose 'what'.

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What is exact?

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What is exact? Here is my definition:

Exact is the attribute of being precisely accurate

I believe that exact shapes do not exist in physical reality. For example, imagine a circle created using a high-tech computer with extremely fine ink. This circle would not be an exact circle because there would be some ink molecules slightly out of place.

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What is free will?

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What is free will? Here is my definition:

Free will is the faculty that enables a being to make independent choices

I believe in free will because my choices feel independent. For example, when I have to make a decision, I will generate a sequence of thoughts related to the choice. For big decisions, I will normally generate a larger amount of thoughts. Sometimes this process can be difficult and take a long time. At a certain point, I will make a final decision after I evaluate these thoughts. This process feels like an independent choice instead of auto-pilot.

The second reason I believe in free will because consciousness would be pointless in a 100% deterministic human body. In that situation, the human body would be a giant agglomeration of chemical reactions and all behavior would be automatic. The deterministic body would have no need for a powerless spectator. In this regard, I believe that consciousness is evidence that we have free will.

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What is time?

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What is time? Here is my definition:

Time is the process by which reality moves from past, present, to future

I believe that consciousness couldn't exist without time. To demonstrate this, first imagine a consciousness that lasts for 2 minutes. This would be a brief amount of time, but enough to experience a few thoughts and senses. Now imagine a consciousness that lasts for a quarter of a second. This would be like a flash. And finally, try to imagine a consciousness that lasts for 0 seconds. In this case, the flash wouldn't even occur and consciousness would not exist. In this regard, time can be thought of as the window that allows consciousness to exist.

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What is a name?

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What is a name? Here is my definition:

A name is a word that designates something

I believe that words and names have a perfect overlap, but have slightly different meanings. Every word is a name for concept, and every name is a word. Here is the difference: the emphasis of a name is designation, whereas the emphasis of a word is the collection of letters or phonetic sounds. For example, think of a name tag. It wouldn't make sense to say, "Hello my word is: ". This is because your personal name is primarily a designation. It's not as important that your personal name is a collection of letters or phonetic sounds.

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What is a representation?

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What is a representation? Here is my definition:

A representation is something that stands for the actual thing

In an earlier post, I said that establishing knowledge is one of the central goals of intellectual activity. If establishing knowledge is a central goal, another goal is to create true physical representations of reality. This includes all of our models, descriptions, equations and illustrations. For example, the equation E=MC^2 is a representation of a real world phenomenon. Another example, the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci is believed to be a representation of Lisa del Giocondo. In this regard, all of our written and spoken knowledge is a representation.

In 2015, I created the website Econfactbook.org to be a representation the world economy. On the website, there is a page for 193 countries and I believe this layout could be expanded to states and cities. To create the website, I retrieved statistics from many different sources and organized the statistics into a consistent format. The goal of this website is to make a clear representation of the world economy.

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What is literal?

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What is literal? Here is my definition:

Literal is according to the primary meaning of language

I believe that almost every word in the English language has multiple meanings. For example, the word 'argument' could mean a verbal disagreement between two people or it could mean a set of reasons to support a belief. Another example, the word 'time' could mean a specific occasion or it could mean the entire phenomena of past, present and future.

I also believe issue becomes bigger when we consider the most basic words. For example, the word 'for' could indicate a length of time or an occasion in a series. Another example, the word 'in' could mean that something is surrounded by something else or refer to a condition.

These examples show that being perfectly literal is somewhat of an elusive task. For most words, it's not clear what the primary meaning is. In this regard, we can only subjectively choose what we believe is most literal meaning.

When I write, I try to be as literal as possible to minimize the chance of being misunderstood. I believe its important to be clear and make writing easy to read. I don't want people to read my writing and ask, "What does he mean here?" Instead, I want the meaning to be clearly represented. Although I can never fully accomplish this goal, I believe it's a good thing to aim for.

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What is inexplicable?

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What is inexplicable? Here is my definition:

Inexplicable is the attribute of lacking an explanation

Reality is full of mysteries that have not be solved. For example, the Great Pyramids of Egypt lack a commonly agreed explanation for how they were created. These mysteries usually contradict what we already know about reality, thereby making them inexplicable.

I believe that the most inexplicable phenomena is the existence of reality itself. The Big Bang is not an explanation for why reality exists because it doesn't explain why the Big Bang happened. German philosopher Gottfried Leibniz also expressed great wonder about this question,

"Why is there anything at all rather than nothing whatsoever." (De rerum originatione radicali, 1697)

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What is an emotion?

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What is an emotion? Here is my definition:

An emotion is a state of mind concerned with good, bad or duty

I believe that all emotions are rooted in at least one of three things: good, bad and duty. Most emotions fall somewhere on the dichotomy of good and bad, but there are also duty-based emotions that can be completely void of feelings of good and bad. An example of a duty based emotion is want. Want does not necessarily feel good or bad, but instead it is a duty towards something. Another duty based emotion is seriousness. Seriousness does not necessarily feel good or bad, but instead it is a duty to treat something with importance.

I also believe every type of emotion is corresponds to a type of thought. This is where the diversity of emotions comes from. In this regard, I believe there could be unlimited types of emotions as long as they are concerned with good, bad or duty.

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What is God?

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What is God? Here is my definition:

God is a conscious being who created reality

I believe that something created or caused our reality. It's hard to imagine how reality always existed and didn't need to be created. But it's also inexplicable to think about what created the creator. I believe that the most plausible explanation is that whatever created our reality must have been completely magical and not subject the same rules as us.

I also believe that the creator is conscious. I believe that everything that exists in reality (including consciousness) must have existed within the creator somehow. For this reason, I believe that only a conscious creator could create consciousness, rather than an unconscious creator.

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What is a religion?

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What is a religion? Here is my definition:

A religion is belief in and worship toward a divine supernatural power

I believe that it's important to be religious. It's inexplicable that the universe exists in the first place, therefore I think we should pay respect to the supernatural power that allowed us to exist. I believe this is a mystery that cannot be solved, but the only realistic explanation is that a metaphysical divine being is responsible.

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What is a soul?

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What is a soul? Here is my definition:

A soul is a conscious transcendental being

Some people believe that a soul is merely chemicals and atoms, but I disagree with that opinion. Instead I believe that the actual soul is invisible to the physical world. Although, neuroscientists might be able to narrow their focus down to a single part of the brain and call it a 'soul', I doubt that this will provide an explanation for how it works. Even if neuroscientists do further research and identify an even more microscopic process, the mystery will still remain. For that reason, I believe the actual soul is non-physical.

I believe that the soul has one foot in physical reality and one foot in transcendental reality. Although the actual soul is invisible to physical reality, it's presence can be observed. We can clearly see life forms behaving with emotions and thoughts. Although these physical manifestations are partially caused by a soul, the actual soul still remains hidden to physical reality.

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What is a mind?

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What is a mind? Here is my definition:

A mind is a faculty that enables a being to have beliefs, memory, sense replications, emotions and a subconscious

I believe that mind processes can be sensed via consciousness. For example, if you are nervous about a presentation at work, you can become aware of your thought. The same goes for any explicit thought you might have. In this regard, it's important to not conflate consciousness with mind.

I believe that the subconscious helps the mind to perform intuition. Intuition is when we have a belief but the reasons for our belief are unclear. In this situation, a being must rely on their subconscious to determine the truth. Without the subconscious, I believe that the mind would operate extremely differently than we are accustomed to.

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What is information?

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What is information? Here is my definition:

Information is something that educates

I believe that the fundamental purpose of information is to educate. Information must have the ability to teach something. For example, imagine that you see a kiosk with some language and maps displayed. This is information because you can learn something from the kiosk.

I also believe that information is not necessarily true. There is a large amount of false information floating around in the universe. As long as the material has the potential to teach something true or not, I believe it qualifies as information.

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What is data?

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What is data? Here is my definition:

Data is rudimentary information

I believe that data is the root source of all knowledge. Everything we know about reality was originally received as data through a sense. Data is the most basic material we use to construct our beliefs about reality.

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What is a symbol?

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What is a symbol? Here is my definition:

A symbol is something that represents a concept

I believe that behind every symbol is a concept. Symbols are portable concepts. In this regard, symbols are useful for communicating efficiently and making propositions.

Although many symbols are completely abstract (such as the peace sign), there are some symbols that have a physical relation to the meaning. For example, imagine the up arrow symbol. This symbol resembles the thing it represents. In this regard, the up arrow symbol is not abstract.

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What is a sign?

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What is a sign? Here is my definition:

A sign is something that indicates something else

I believe that a sign is something that provides knowledge without itself being the knowledge. For example, imagine that you see a grocery bag full of food in the kitchen. This is a sign that one of your roommates recently bought food at the grocery store. Another example, imagine that you see a store that looks dark inside. This is a sign that the store is closed.

How does this apply to street signs? A street sign conveys knowledge in an abstract form without being the knowledge itself. For example, imagine that you see a sign that says 'detour ahead'. This sign is not the detour itself, but instead it is an indication of the detour.

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What is a priori, a posteriori, analytic and synthetic?

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What is a priori, a posteriori, analytic and synthetic? I have 4 definitions below:

A priori knowledge is acquired without experience

A posteriori knowledge is acquired through experience

Analytic knowledge is the meaning of a concept

Synthetic knowledge extends beyond the meaning of a concept

Using these four definitions, we can divide knowledge into four types: a priori analytic, a priori synthetic, a posteriori analytic and a posteriori synthetic.

Before describing each type of knowledge, I should mention that I believe all thoughts are experiences. This makes all thoughts a posteriori knowledge. For example, imagine that you're climbing a mountain and when you get to the top, you have the thought that you've accomplished a great feat and you're proud of yourself. I believe that this conscious awareness is an experience. The same goes for any emotion or idea you experience.

A priori analytic

A priori analytic is knowledge of the meaning of a concept without experience. I believe that a priori analytic knowledge doesn't exist, because all definition retrieval occurs within the bounds of experience. For example, imagine that you ask yourself the meaning of the word 'fence'. To answer this question, your mind needs to retrieve a mental representation of what 'fence' means. I believe this definition retrieval would be an experience, thereby making it a posteriori knowledge.

A priori synthetic

A priori synthetic is knowledge that extends beyond the meaning of a concept without experience. I believe that a priori synthetic knowledge doesn't exist, because I regard all mental activity as an experience. In this regard, every belief that I have about reality was initially based on a previous experience in my life.

I also believe that mathematical equations are known a posteriori. For example, take the equation 86 + 14 = __. To demonstrate this, imagine that you combine 86 apples with 14 apples and then count the total. Even if you count the same total a million times in a row, there is still a chance that you miscounted every time. Even if you do this exercise entirely in your mind, you could potentially make the same mistake. We need experience (physical or mental) to determine the answer. For this reason, I believe that all mathematical equations are known a posteriori.

A posteriori analytic

A posteriori analytic is knowledge of the meaning of a concept through experience. For example, imagine that you ask yourself the meaning of the word 'rock'. To answer this question, your mind needs to retrieve a mental representation of what 'rock' means. This inquiry would tap into your past experiences and look for instances when objects were labeled as a 'rock'. I believe this picture retrieval would be an experience, therefore making it a posteriori knowledge.

A posteriori synthetic

A posteriori synthetic is knowledge that extends beyond the meaning of concept through experience. For example, think about this proposition: There is a bowl in the kitchen. This proposition is synthetic because the definition of 'bowl' doesn't include 'in the kitchen'. This proposition is also a posteriori because it would be impossible to know whether it was true or false without first-hand experience or mental reasoning.

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What is a perception?

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What is a perception? Here is my definition:

A perception is a conscious sense datum

In our daily lives, we are exposed to a large amount of sense data. Derived from our immediate environment, our senses are always taking in new data. Of course, not every piece of sense data receives conscious attention. In this regard, we are unaware of most of the data we encounter. The moment that a datum captures our attention, it becomes a perception.

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What is experience?

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What is experience? Here is my definition:

Experience is the totality of past and present sense data

I believe that experience is the only thing we know in life. It's impossible to perceive anything without it being an experience. In this regard, I also believe that our inner thoughts are an experience. For example, imagine that while working in an office, you walk over to the water fountain, get some water and return to your desk. Once you are back at your desk, you can reflect on the individual thoughts going through your head during your trip to the water fountain. This is why I believe we experience our own thoughts.

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What is a sentence?

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What is a sentence? Here is my definition:

A sentence is an unified segment of words that has at least one subject-predicate pair and follows grammatical rules

The subject of a sentence is the piece of reality that is selected, while the predicate describes that piece. For example, in the sentence 'John ran to the store', 'John' is the subject and 'ran to the store' is the predicate. Some sentences have multiple subject-predicate pairs such as, 'John ran to the store but the store was closed'.

Some sentences have an implied subject or predicate. For example, in the sentence 'Pay your taxes', the subject 'you' is implied and part of the predicate, 'should' is also implied.

I believe that the only syntactic rule common to all languages is the subject-predicate pair. When comparing languages from around the world, you will not find a uniform consistency in the way words are ordered. The only syntactic consistency you will find is the subject-predicate pair.

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