Truth HQ by Tom Wallace - HTML preview

T R U T H H Q

that we think we can add to our knowledge. Other people. Observations of the world. Scientific theories. Geometry. Mathematics. Logic.

Problem is, none of it’s been proven. Yeah, some folk think there can be progress – that we can gain knowledge beyond the simple thought of our own existence. Going back to our metaphor again – the fixed point in space – could we really say that there is a ‘fixed point’ in philosophy? Some would say yes. There is a kind of TRUTH HQ, where all manner of facts reside – quite apart from whether anyone believes them or has even discovered them. In here, for instance, might be the axioms of geometry and mathematics, the rules of logic, the laws of physics, and more besides. We like this TRUTH HQ idea very much. But mostly, to the question of whether there is a fixed point in philosophy outside of our own minds, the answer these days is a resounding NO! There is no agreement, only more and more questions. That’s the current state of philosophy. So what to do?

In the UK we have what are called Ordnance Survey maps. They are amazingly popular,

even in these days of sat-nav and Google Earth. The OS map is based on over 6,000 fixed points – ‘trig’ points – that are physically marked across the landscape of the UK. And there are many hundreds of thousands of little arrows carved into stone gateposts and other such long-lasting locations that are points where the exact height of the point above sea-level is marked on the map.

Despite all this accuracy though, the map is not the land.

And this is what we do with reality. We make

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