Sorry to meddle in. That's a really fun question. Can I have a go?
OK:
Custard puddings:
1) A custard pudding doesn't know it's being made;
2) We know that a custard pudding doesn't know it's being made;
3) A custard pudding can neither know nor not know that we know a custard pudding is being made;
Cell phones:
4) A cell phone doesn't know it's being made;
5) We know that a cell phone doesn't know it's being made;
6) A cell phone can neither know or not know that a cell phone is being made;
Yet:
7) We know that a cell phone and a custard pudding are being made;
8) We know they will never they are being made;
9) When we look at a custard pudding there isn't much a custard pudding can tell us about the way we come to know about things like cell phones and custard puddings;
10) When we look at a cell phone, its structure, its design, its contents, its aesthetic value, its 'function', its relation with other objects, in comparison with a custard pudding, we get some further clues about how we, as humans:
11) come to know what we know, about either cell phones and custard puddings;
12) come to know what we know about the way they are made;
13) come to know what we know about the process by which we know that neither cell phones nor custard puddings know they are being made.
14) The passage from 9) to 10) is the passage from mere relativism to a pragmatic position.
Teena...I'm still with you.
--- On Wed, 24/11/10, Terence Love <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
From: Terence Love <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: whether a cell phone is knowledge
To: [log in to unmask]
Date: Wednesday, 24 November, 2010, 1:49
Hi Teena,
That was quick!
So.... is there a distinction between 'knowing' and 'custard pudding
making'? And, how would you justify it?... and does the same form of
justification apply to reasoning why cell phones are not capable of
'knowing' or containing 'knowledge'?
Terry
-----Original Message-----
From: PhD-Design - This list is for discussion of PhD studies and related
research in Design [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of teena
clerke
Sent: Wednesday, 24 November 2010 9:25 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: whether a cell phone is knowledge
Hi Terry,
I see the question as whether it is useful, rather than 'good', to
take such a position, which I don't see as 'relativist'. Again, this
is a position.
cheers, teena
>Hi Teena,
>This sounds like a 'custard pudding' issue.
>As in "All cell phones make and taste like 'custard puddings' depending
on
>how one understands/frames ' custard pudding' and who/what can
>be seen to be capable of 'making custard pudding'"?
>The underlaying question is whether it's good to assume a relativist
>position on epistemology.
>Some of us think not.
>Cheers,
>Terry
>
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