Epistimologies+and+Why+They+Matter

Epistemology is the theory of knowledge and knowledge production. In epistemology, we attempt to answer questions such as: To take a look at this, let's consider how the process of science has changed over history.media type="youtube" key="b_6ydWUwNKM" height="345" width="560"
 * What counts as knowledge? and the thus the reverse, what counts as non-knowledge?
 * How is knowledge acquired? and what are the implications for this for what we can and cannot know? For example, is the knowledge of the existence of things and materials more certain than knowledge of the effects that things and materials have upon our sense? Think carefully about the implications of this question for the field of psychology. What do we actually measure - construct (e.g., agoraphobia, personality disorder, identity) or the effects of the construct?

This moves into the question of different types of instruments to augment our knowing: This second set of instruments raises an important question; In describing what we learn from the use of detecting instruments, is it correct to say that we have discovered facts about a magnetic field as well as facts about the way iron fillings/compasses behave in proximity to an electrified coil of wire? These and other similar questions lead to queries about the ultimate subject matter of scientific laws.
 * instruments that improve and expand our senses, such as microscopes
 * instruments that detect phenomena which we could not otherwise observe, such as a compass