eThoughts : What is the Truth Again?

So what about the truth? What is it?

I was recently engaged in a conversation that seemed to turn into a miscommunication. This kind of thing is not particular to me, it happens to us all. My take was the problem had to do with interpretation (one of us, both of us—I’m not sure).

So what do we do if we value the truth and need the truth to make accurate decisions? Indeed, good eyes, ears, taste, touch, and smell are not the only instruments with which to make choices—learning how to separate data from interpretations is important. That ability may be the function of cognition and emotions working in tandem with our sensory abilities. Still, learning to understand the distinction between facts and interpretations does not mean we have all the truth at hand.

For instance, does a picture or a film give us the ability to separate fact from interpretation?

In sports, instant replays show that the camera angle is important. From one camera angle the truth may look quite different than from another angle camera angle. That’s an important lesson about perspective I think.

And then there is memory. Memory is one of our driving agents and is heavily involved in our take of reality, truth, and experience.

The definition of memory usually includes the concepts of encoding, storing, and retrieving information. The encoding part is tricky since it can include a lot of interpretation about what the informa