Knowledge is a true belief that is justified. It is not just facts that are perfectly organised, but what someone regards or considers being true and has faith in. When we talk about knowledge that is discarded, does it mean it is completely not in use even for further references? On the other hand, does it mean it is on hold temporarily due to opinions that defer its concepts? In my view, knowledge either can be on hold temporarily or discarded completely like theories. As we explore the statement further, other questions might arise such as who rejects or accepts knowledge. Nevertheless, knowledge should be accompanied by evidence that is legitimate.
In my study, I want to traverse the different ideas and possibilities on how our current world is explored, which will help understand what knowledge is and its importance on our lives. First, one questions the significance of knowledge if it would at time become obsolete. Second, if knowledge changes so frequently, is there a point of examining the current theorems that have a temporary existence?
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I believe it is an individual’s choice to take knowledge as it currently is. However, one has a right to question the current knowledge since if no one attempts to question information, there would be no existence of newer information and there would be no progress in the world. This does not credit forgetting the past as we progress to the future since at times we need prior knowledge for development. Knowledge has wide range of practical application such as the natural sciences and history, where these two broad field have undergone significant changes 1 . To further the study, I will use the three common ways of knowing which include, emotion, sense perception and reason.
History, as is commonly perceived, is our entire past ideas, information, and experience. History gives us a view of the way the world was, or what we perceived was in the past generations. We can conclude through the wide range of perception, the comprehensive change in knowledge, that is clear in in the modern way of human thinking compared to that of ancestors. Moreover, natural sciences causes consistent changes all over the world. The scientific research and technology development gives us new things to question, explore, and see on a daily basis 2 . How legit is the new discovery and technology? Is there a possibility that things we perceive today are less sensible than they were perceived in the past? Is there a probability that they would also have a contradicting meaning in the future? If so, how can we credit what is wrong or right, or how do we know what could probably change in future or what could not.
Spontaneous generation is a theory that has been discarded for long, which stated that human beings originally came from substances that are lifeless such as rocks. The ancient people developed this through observation of maggots growing from rotting meat. Even though this looks absurd and amusing, this concept was believed by many scientists in the 19th century. It was also considered as a scientific fact. However, theories or hypothesis can be false as conceived in the theory of falsification. Having such false hypothesis and theories is an example of instability of knowledge. Luis Pasteur challenged the Spontaneous generation theory by placing two pieces of meat in different jars and covering one leaving the other open. His observation was that maggots grew inside the jar that was open. His conclusion was that the cause of the maggots was from outside living organisms in the air. This perspective of the origin of life was discredited and people begun believing on a new theory of origin of human kind. Having an entire generation believing in a theory or hypothesis that is completely wrong without doubt for years shows that knowledge can be credited for a certain period and discarded later 3 .
Taking a look at what the historians had worked for through investigation, there are many flaws in the knowledge that was believed blindly for many generations. The historic event of the internet era, the attack of The World Trade Centre was claimed to have collapsed in 9 seconds by conspiracy theorists who incited the probable links to the World Trade Centre being rigged with explosives before the attack. Rosie O’Donnell who demanded an investigation supported this conspiracy theory. If this theory was never questioned, there would be a falsified historic event record caused by wrong research from one individual. Many people would have believed her theory, which was not based on any fact such as the footage that clearly displayed the building collapsing taking over 20 seconds. This challenges the logic of the World Trade Centre building collapsing at free fall speed, making the false conspiracy very upsetting and shocking. Such theories can cause emotional instabilities in ordinary men and women, patriots, and researchers. Moreover, it might cause emotional distress to the families of the victims that were traumatised due to such an event. Nevertheless, there is a clear understanding of the unusual falling of the building was due to its enormity which had caused it to be built with triangles around the sectors of the building. A significant number of people based their knowledge on the wrong theory and did not know the truth due to little understanding of the situation. When there was a closer look into the case, it was debunked 4 . If there are such closer looks taken into consideration in the history, there could be many other loopholes that could be discovered. It is ultimately clear that it is ultimately an individual’s choice to deny or accept the knowledge presented to them. An individual’s perception is what drives what they believe in.
Being rational beings, we have the ability to making informed decisions based on past knowledge but at times, we are not always right. Some facts that are human-based are always persistent and the fundamental concept of comprehending these facts goes beyond accepting them. To have a comprehensive understanding of a theory, one must make inquiries concerning the specific subject, and they can further strengthen their knowledge or change their entire perception on the issue. In most cases, people take information created and presented by other researchers without taking their time to make a background examination of whether the researcher had presented a correct theory. A theory should be regarded as false until the recipient of information takes a look at the situation or the theory and makes a validation of the knowledge.
In the current world where information is dynamic and changes every new dawn, some individuals press on while others disappear suddenly and entirely from coming up with new ideas and research. The concept of the statistical universe, which has been so much deep rooted in the people's minds is an example of a theory that has always been considered as it is. People do not take into consideration of the details of approach or carry out research to establish its genuineness. The image of the statistical universe has been persistent even in the twentieth century 5 . Nevertheless, some of the prominent intellectual minds such as Albert Einstein also considered and believed in this theory. When albert Einstein was coming up with the theory of relativity, he included the cosmological constant, which he explained that it prevented the world from contracting due to gravitational force and maintain it at a constant position. However, Hubble had made an observation of galaxies moving away from the earth, which proved that the world was expanding. This was observed through a redshift which occurs whenever a body such as a galaxy emits light and is noted to be elongated or moving away from the observer. This shows an increase in distance. Hence, there was expansion experienced by the earth. Albert Einstein did not take research on this theory and consequently ended up adding unnecessary constant to his argument that would otherwise be misleading until today. An approach that was previously conceived to be true was proven false and discarded or modified 6 .
The urge to take detailed research and the willingness to know more will always be an essential aspect in the lives of human beings. This will drive us to have the enthusiasm to advance our knowledge and be open-minded to change the knowledge we know today in order to enhance the current knowledge. However, it also takes perception to be a knowledgeable, critical thinker. If one takes time to think of the grand paradigm of the universe, there would be limitless invention scope for more advanced and realistic knowledge 7 .
Even though some theories and knowledge might hold true forever as reviled through evidence and further research, numerous situations show knowledge is continuously evolving with different ideas analysed, modified and others discarded due to advancement in technology and different perspective in thoughts. It is of most significance for people who hold knowledge to be open minded and appreciate alteration, development, and rejection of knowledge in order to understand the world 8 .
In conclusion, the statement ‘Today's knowledge may be obsolete tomorrow' raises several issues. For knowledge to be completely discarded it must be completely of no use and there is concrete evidence of its irrelevance. In other cases, knowledge might be temporarily on hold due to ambiguities or unconsolidated evidence to support its claim. However, the suspended knowledge undergoes modification and re-accepted as valid knowledge in future. Nevertheless, knowledge outlined without solid evidence can also be discarded and disregarded without proof.
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