Rene Descartes was one of the most important and influential thinkers in human history. Both modern mathematics and modern philosophy began with the work of Rene Descartes. He is often referred to as the father of modern philosophy. His invention of coordinate geometry paved the way for advances ...

Considering the events that occurred in the United States recently, the mathematical and humanistic orientation should be used to advise the U.S. citizens and help them deal with their problems.The mathematical orientation attempted to move from the material level to a general principle for all life...

Rene Descartes In the 17th century, the French philosopher Rene Descartes came up with "Cogito ergo sum" or "I think, therefore I am". This became the first principle in his philosophy. He formed the "Cartesian Method" which has "powerfully influenced the developm...

Introduction Rene Descartes was a famous French mathematician, scientist and philosopher. He was arguably the first major philosopher in the modern era to make a serious effort to defeat skepticism. His views about knowledge and certainty, as well as his views about the relationship between mind a...

When I was a child I viewed everything from a child's point of view. If I was afraid of the dark it was because I believed that monsters dwelled under my bed and in my closets. If I was afraid of loud noises it is because I believed with all my little heart that they led to danger. As I aged an...

The Question of Certainty We are living in a world where there are various theories, views and opinions about many different issues. These theories, views and opinions are changing, as everyday new scientific discoveries are made and new theories conducted. Consequently, our knowledge and what we ...

1. Plato's Life In order to better understand Plato's philosophy on life we must first learn about his background. Plato was born in Athens, Greece in 427 B.C. He was the youngest son of Ariston and Perictione, who were both from very well respected and wealthy families. When Plato wa...

Early in meditations, Descartes says that no clear mark distinguishes dreaming from waking. "But in thinking over this, I remind myself that on many occasions, I have in sleep been deceived by similar illusions, and in dwelling carefully on this reflection I see no manifestly that there are ...

Pythagoras: A Great Man (or A Great Myth) Pythagoras, my adopted philosopher, was a man of great stature, a man who had a cult of followers, a man who is believed to be a product of the school of Anaximander , a man whose beliefs lead to his exile from his communities home in Kroton , and a man wh...

Renee Descartes Meditations Descartes is a philosopher who is very disturb with the happenings of the world around him. Things are changing and he does not know if what he has been taught in the past is true. He has extreme doubt in everything that he has ever known. He feels that everything ...

Aristotle believed that for something to be real it had to have a substance and a form or a body and a soul. Aristotle found no difference between matter and form, relying on nature to explain itself. He believed that each person can see form differently. What makes a table a table? The way Aris...

Can You Show That We Don't Know Anything? Most people go through life without ever questioning the idea of knowledge. We all make statements every day such as 'I know X', and 'We all have knowledge of Y', yet when we truly examine what it means to 'know' some...

Science has always been seen as a quest for knowledge that quenches man's thirst for the ultimate truth. This is actually a statement that really can't just be stated but must be followed with a deep explanation as not everyone would agree with this saying. Even if the statement is ag...

There are many differences in methods used by science and religion. Which ones are more fundamental is not very clear. The basic method of religion is to explain the world by already existing beliefs. Those beliefs may be extended or redefined to revolutionize religion. Theology as a "method" of rel...

There are two main areas of which knowledge can be obtained; they are from a scientific and artistic point of view. It has been argued that the true form of knowledge is acquired from science, but artists also play an important role in understanding the world, which surrounds us. The scientific vi...

Abstract This short paper is to analyze the possible answers given by David Hume and Renee Descartes to the question by Betrand Russell "Is there any knowledge in the world which is so certain no man could doubt it?" Descartes thorough his theory would show the existence of person bey...

When I was a child I remember having a vivid imagination. One Sunday morning, when I was but a mere four years old, we learned about the devil at Sunday school. We were taught there was an evil being with incredible power that loved nothing more than for people to do wrong. He was a tyrant of the...

Aristotle Aristotle was a famous ancient philosopher and scientist that lived from 384 to 322 B.C. He was born in Macedonia to a physician of the royal court. He moved to Athens when he was 17, to study with Plato, another famous philosopher of his time. Aristotle is said to have loved hi...

Descartes Descartes believed that we should ask what it would mean to know about reality, and to examine what reality meant. He claims that unless we know first whether our belief itself is justified we can't know. To determine whether our beliefs are justified, we have to be able to trace them back...

In order to discuss what the senses contribute to knowledge, one must first identify the senses used and their contribution to the human learning process. The human senses sight, smell, touch, hearing, and taste are all commonplace in our everyday life, one must therefore not forget their initial im...

What does it mean to know something is true? - Why is it necessary to differentiate between what you know and do or can not know? - When do you doubt what you thought you sincerely knew? This critical essay of epistemology focuses on skepticism, and why philosophers such as John Hospers challenge a...

Most definitions of philosophy have been fairly controversial partly because what has been called philosophy has changed drastically in the course of history. What used to be a part of the philosophical inquiries detached themselves from it. This is why most academic subject began as some aspect as ...

EXPLAIN WHAT PLATO MEANT BY THE FORM OF THE GOOD. Plato, (427 – 347 BCE), was the second, and probably the most famous of the three ancient Greek philosophers. it has been said that all later philosophy is merely a "footnote to Plato" (A.N. Whitehead). Plato is the first p...

Tyler SamplePL 10103/20/01Can Doubt lead to Understanding?Descartes opens his Meditations indicating his desire to have only true beliefs. One way to accomplish this is to doubt everything he has learned that might be subject to error. He does not intend to doubt the truth of every specific idea t...

Descartes and Socrates -- What Knowledge Is Two Approaches to KnowledgeThe concept of knowledge, what it is, what it means, and how it is gained, has been debated for literally centuries. Philosophers, historians, social scientists have questioned the components of knowledge and its acquisition and...