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What is truth?

lostmyway

Curt Godel, the famous mathematician, showed that in any sufficiently complex system of mathematics, there are statements that are true in the sense that they work and describe a pattern of nature that is consistent, but that cannot actually be proved mathematically using the internal logic of the axioms involved.

So, my question is, how can we know that mathematics really describes reality and that reality may simply be a construct that human beings invent on order to stay alive? In other words, more or less "subjective" representations of the way evolution has shaped our perceptions?

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  • The truth is the state of something described in reality. There's nothing subjective about it. People can twist the truth to suit their own narrative, sure, but that doesn't change what the truth actually is.

  • in reply to Jamesmac
    Jamesmac said:
    The truth is the state of something described in reality. There's nothing subjective about it.

    This is your interpretation of the meaning of the word truth though - others have a different interpretation so this is where we often find the arguments start.

    For example if 2 people walked into a room and one said "it is cold in here" while the other said "nah, it is quite warm" then can either be seen as the truth? This represents subjective truth and is the source of many problems in the world today as many people see "their" truth to be correct and others should comply.

    Objective truth can be altogether more of a fickle beast as the discussion about mathematics below starts to reveal - "facts" are not as fixed as we would like them to be - mathematics and physics have to adapt and evolve as we learn more about it so what may have been seen as a fact one year would change the next with a different understanding of the rules behind it.

    My take after 6 long decades in this world is that worrying about the "truth" is not worth the effort - either the details change, the interpretation will change of people will just not care in the end. Deal with the nearest approximation to the truth that you can cope with and don't expect others to see it the same way you do.

    This approach is a good survival mechanism in my experience.

  • in reply to Iain

    Yes, well, as you mentioned, in the past different people held varying views about what is true in the natural or physical world, which is why the scientific method was devised. It’s testable, open to revision, and peer-reviewed so that general agreement can be reached. However, it doesn’t claim to have the final say on truth, as that is an ongoing process, just as you pointed out. I find this rather marvellous because imagine living in a universe where you knew all the answers and that was it! There would be no mysteries left to solve, and human beings thrive on solving mysteries. There would be no point in living.

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  • in reply to Iain

    Yes, well, as you mentioned, in the past different people held varying views about what is true in the natural or physical world, which is why the scientific method was devised. It’s testable, open to revision, and peer-reviewed so that general agreement can be reached. However, it doesn’t claim to have the final say on truth, as that is an ongoing process, just as you pointed out. I find this rather marvellous because imagine living in a universe where you knew all the answers and that was it! There would be no mysteries left to solve, and human beings thrive on solving mysteries. There would be no point in living.

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