MegaMaester

Critical Thinking · Module 5

How We Know

The first four modules taught you to reason, argue, and think clearly. This module goes beneath them to the deepest question of all: how do we know anything at all? It is a friendly introduction to epistemology — the theory of knowledge — for everyday life.

You will explore what knowledge really is, where it comes from, what truth means, how to handle doubt and certainty, how to match belief to evidence, the difference between knowledge and wisdom, and how to make critical thinking a way of living.

Lessons
7 lessons
Estimated time
~6-8 hours
Assessment
Module quiz included

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Lessons

Lesson 1 · 16 min

What Is Knowledge?

Lesson 2 · 16 min

Where Knowledge Comes From

Lesson 3 · 16 min

What Is Truth?

Lesson 4 · 16 min

Doubt and Certainty

Lesson 5 · 16 min

Proportioning Belief to Evidence

Lesson 6 · 16 min

Knowledge, Understanding, and Wisdom

Lesson 7 · 16 min

The Examined Life

Check your understanding

Finish the lessons, then test yourself. Your best score is saved on this device. You can also open this quiz on its own page.

How We Know — Module Assessment

14 questions · pass mark 75%

  1. 1.According to the classic account, which three conditions must all hold for a belief to count as knowledge?
  2. 2.What did Edmund Gettier's 1963 paper show about justified true belief?
  3. 3.Why is testimony considered the source most of our knowledge actually comes from?
  4. 4.What is a key reason not to assume firsthand sources are always more reliable than testimony?
  5. 5.According to the correspondence idea, what makes a factual claim true?
  6. 6.Which statement best describes the problem with 'everyone has their own truth' when applied to objective facts?
  7. 7.Which best describes fallibilism?
  8. 8.In the Meditations, what did Descartes conclude he could not doubt, even imagining a powerful deceiver?
  9. 9.What is the core idea of proportioning belief to evidence?
  10. 10.How did William James's "The Will to Believe" (1896) respond to Clifford's rule?
  11. 11.In the DIKW hierarchy, what best captures the difference between information and knowledge?
  12. 12.What is Aristotle's phronesis, or practical wisdom?
  13. 13.What best captures the central idea of "the examined life" as this lesson uses it?
  14. 14.In Plato's "Apology," what is the most accurate account of Socrates' declaration about examination?
Answer every question to submit.