Introduction to World-Making - Part Two
2.945 Methodology - whether linguistic, pictorial, or other - does not create, construct, or understand, in and of itself. Rather, methodology establishes the limits (or boundary conditions) and degrees of freedom for what can be created, constructed and/or understood using that form of methodology.
2.946 The value of a given form of methodology - linguistic or otherwise - is in direct proportion to the capacity of the set of rules and principles inherent in that methodology to enable an individual to probe the relationship between experience and that which makes experience of such character possible, and through this process of hermeneutical probing to establish an understanding that accurately reflects the structural character of that which makes experience of a certain nature possible. The greater this degree of accurate reflection, the greater the heuristic value of the methodology.
2.95 Methodology, language, understanding, hermeneutical space, logic, and mapping are different ways of making reference to the process of creating and constructing epistemological mirrors which are capable of reflecting, with varying degrees of accuracy, the nature of the relationship between experience and that which makes experience of such structural character possible.
2.96 The medium of measurement for reflective accuracy is congruency.
2.961 In mathematics, two geometric figures which can be precisely superimposed on one another are said to be congruent.
2.962 In hermeneutics, two spaces which are being compared are said to be congruent to the extent that one can establish mapping relationships which link aspects of respective facets of being in a way that does not generate more problems and questions than the congruency is capable of demonstrating in the way of mapping relationships of a reflective nature.
2.9621 The greater the degree of congruency between spaces being compared, then, the greater will be the degree to which those spaces will be said to merge horizons.
2.9622 A horizon is an expression of the logical nature of some facet of manifested structure. Horizons are boundaries which tend to differentiate what is within a structure from that which is external to such a structure.
2.96221 However, frequently, horizons are not static but shift with perspective, experience, interpretation, and understanding. Facets of experience which, at one time, may have been considered to be separate and independent, may be discovered, at a later time, to have a relationship which requires one to re-work one's understanding of how to differentiate between what is within a structure and what is external to that structure. Like the physical horizon of landscapes, hermeneutical horizons tend to move with us and are shaped and influenced by the nature of that movement.
2.96222 Horizons may be simple or complex - that is, the boundary conditions which are given expression through the way the horizons differentiate between what is within a given structure, and what is external to that structure, may consist of relatively few elements and/or forms of transaction between the 'internal' and the 'external' realms, or such boundary conditions may consist of many facets and dimensions - both with respect to the number and character of elements, as well in relation to the extent of the transactions which transpire across the boundaries marked by the horizons, thereby making it difficult to determine on which side of the boundary a given phenomenon(whether event, object, process, and so on) falls.
2.96223 Most of us have a considerable backlog of experience with, information about, understanding of, and insight into the process of establishing congruency. More specifically, whenever an individual seeks to translate feelings, experiences, thoughts, beliefs, states of consciousness, and other facets of the phenomenological field into public discourse via a language (spoken, written, signed, mathematical, coded), one goes through a process of trying to create logical spaces through the way we utilize and weave together the syntax and semantics of a given language so that the structural character of this space is congruent with, or accurately reflective of, or able to mirror the structural character of whatever aspect of the phenomenological field one to which one is making identifying reference by means of the language.
2.96224 When there is a mismatch between the structural character of the two hermeneutical spaces (one being: that which is meant, intended, understood, or experienced, and the other being: the language used to describe or convey what is meant, intended, and so on), then, the one who is communicating with someone else tends to amend the character of the syntax and semantics being used to better reflect the meaning or sense one wishes to convey to the recipient of the communication.
2.96225 Similarly, when someone receives communication from another individual, and the recipient does not understand the sense of what is meant or intended by the other individual, then, the recipient tends to use the modality of the interrogative imperative to query various facets of what has been communicated. Here, again, there is a mismatch between hermeneutical spaces - namely, the understanding of the recipient and the structural character of the linguistic spaces generated by the one who is seeking to communicate about some aspect of the latter individual's phenomenological field.
2.96226 Most of us do not tend to think of these processes of translating between phenomenology and language as instances of congruence operations, but, this is what is transpiring irrespective of whether, or not, we use this term.
2.963 The notion of "spaces" need not be restricted to geometric, mathematical, physical, or material modalities. A "space" is anything which has a logical or structural form of whatever kind.
2.964 Since we don't, yet, know where or how creative, interpretive, epistemological, and/or linguistic processes take place, we do not know what the precise nature of the space is through which these phenomena are given expression. However, what we do know is that all of these processes have a logical form or structure to them.
3.01 There are a multiplicity of logical systems.
3.011 Some logical systems are invented or created and other logical systems are given expression through the structural character or nature inherent in some dimension of reality being the way that it is.
3.012 Whether created or natural, logic gives expression to the structural character of the forms and/or processes governing a given facet, aspect, dimension, level, or plane of being.
3.0121 All created systems of logic constitute hermeneutical spaces.
3.01212 Created systems of logic involve a hermeneutical process of mapping which is governed by a set of assumptions, principles, rules, and propositions which are ordered in accordance with the constraints and degrees of freedom permitted by the set of assumptions, principles and rules which constitute the given system of logic.
3.0122 Natural systems of logic involve the manner in which some facet, aspect, dimension, or plane of being is manifested or unfolds over time.
3.0123 When the structural character of a created system of logic reflects the structural character of a natural system of logic, then, congruency exists between the two systems of logic to the extent that the reflection of the latter by the former can be shown to be accurate.
3.1 Characterization refers to the process of placing an aspect or dimension of experience within hermeneutical space. Assumption, abstraction, categorization, definition, description, belief, faith, and modeling all give expression, in one way or another, to the process of characterization.
3.11 How we emotionally respond to experience forms an important dimension of the characterization process. Liking, attraction, repulsion, hostility, fear, pleasure, pain, trust, avoidance, and so on are all expressions of characterization.
3.112 Characterization is something human beings, along with various other species of life, do in order to help orient themselves within hermeneutical space. Characterization relates us to experience through the construction, creation, and/or generation of modalities of classification concerning such experience.
3.1121 Different systems of created logic employ a variety of mapping techniques - included among these are: induction; deduction; analogy; abstraction; dialectic; implication; inference; entailment; tautology; validity; consistency; necessity; coherency; assumptions; possibility; plausibility; correlation; probability; causality; conjecture; interpolation; extrapolation; hypotheses; theory; law; formulae; equations; arguments; evidence; demonstration; proof; description; explanation; belief; insight; models; world-making; frames of reference; paradigms, and world-views.
3.1122 Some of these mapping techniques are applied to one, or another, created system of logic as a means of analyzing and/or evaluating such systems, and some of these techniques are applied to the data of experience in order to either map out the structural character of such experience or to generate maps which are intended to account for how experience of such structural character is possible.
3.1123 Induction is a process that uses some set of data as a basis for generating a conclusion concerning the proposed character of similar instances of data not yet encountered. For instance, if all the swans one has seen are white, one might use this base set of data about swans to conclude that all future instances of swan-encounters are likely, as well, to involve white swans.
3.11231 The risk one runs in using induction is that the conclusion one has formed on the basis of what has been observed or encountered may not be correct. For example, black swans do exist, and, therefore, the belief that all future instances of swan-encounters will involve white swans will fall with the first black swan which is encountered.
3.113 Deduction focuses on the kinds of conclusion one can draw about some facet of experience or about a system of logic given certain information concerning both the nature of that facet of being, as well as a background of information about a variety of experiences in general. Such conclusions usually are limited to unpacking or delineating the set of constraints and degrees of freedom which are inherent in the available information. Thus, if I know that human beings are capable of carrying on a conversation, and if I am carrying on a conversation, via a telephone, with a voice that is located elsewhere, then, I might deduce that this other voice belongs to a human being.
3.1131 Conclusions reached through the exercise of deduction concerning a given set of data, propositions, experiences, and so on aren't always correct. For instance, if the voice with whom I having a conversation is part of a complex and sophisticated system of software and hardware which constitutes a framework of artificial intelligence, then, the deduction that the other voice belongs to the human being with whom I am having a conversation may not be warranted - among other things, one might have to determine whether one could extend the category of human beings to include systems of artificial intelligence before making such a deduction, and whether such a deduction would, then, be correct might depend on whether, or not, the determination concerning the relationship between human beings and systems of artificial intelligence is warranted.
3.1132 Interpolation is a form of mapping which inserts or computes intermediate values within a given sequence, series, or set of events, operations, or calculations - these values are believed to be related to the rest of the series or sequence in the same way as the present set of events, and so on, are related to one another. Interpolation may give expression to either inductive and/or deductive processes.
3.1133 Extrapolation is a form of mapping which seeks to determine or estimate the identity of values which extend beyond the horizons or range of some given set of data, and, yet, retain the structural character of the relationship which links the elements within the known set of data. Extrapolation may consist of induction, deduction, or some combination of the two.
3.114 Mapping techniques involving analogy use the structural features and/or relationships within one context to direct attention to possible similarities of structural character and/or relationship within a different context. For example, rivers and arteries constitute different contexts, but they share a variety of similarities - they both: involve liquids; the flow of materials within a delimited framework; pressure; currents; a possibility for transport; are part of a larger ecological system; and so on. One might key in on one, or more, of the foregoing features to establish a relationship of analogy between rivers and arteries for purposes of description, explanation, analysis, modeling, and the like.
3.1141 The value of an analogy depends on both the strength of the similarity which is being proposed with respect to the contexts which have been selected for comparison in this manner, as well as the nature of the purpose for which such an analogy is being established and whether, or not, the similarities are capable of sustaining the purpose for which the analogy has been drawn.
3.1142 An analog is a logical system which purports to reflect the structural character, in some way, of some other logical system - either artificial or natural. Often times, an analog focuses on the manner in which some other system operates or on the kind of relationships that tend to govern the other system, and, usually, the form of an analog keys in on the idea of using the continuous modulation of one, or more, variables as its manner of establishing congruency with the structural character of that system to which the analog makes identifying reference.
3.115 Abstraction is a process of stripping away the details of a given event, object, phenomenon, experience, process, or context, and so on in order to focus on a limited aspect, facet or dimension of such an event, object, phenomenon, experience, process, or context - often times such abstractions are embodied within systems of symbols (e.g., linguistic, mathematical, logical) that are said to represent, or give expression to, the properties or qualities which have been pared down or abstracted in one way or another.
3.1151 Although thinking about objects, phenomena, events, and so on, in the simplified way made possible through abstraction often helps make analysis, evaluation, exploration, experimentation, and/or gaining insight into such objects, phenomena, or events easier to do, the value of such a process tends to depend on the nature of the abstraction, how such abstractions are used, and remembering that simplified systems cannot hope to manifest all of the qualities, properties, and possibilities inherent in the more complex context from which the abstraction has been extracted, and, as a result, various kinds of error may be introduced into one's mapping program when using data, ideas, information, and so on which have been generated through processes of abstraction.
3.1152 Symbols are often used to signify the presence of certain modalities of abstraction. A symbol is not the same as, or synonymous with, that to which it makes identifying reference but, instead, is part of a system of logic which gives expression to a set of abstractions through which hermeneutical spaces are generated that are intended to establish varying degrees of congruency with certain aspects or dimensions of the structural character of experience, or that which makes experience of such structural character possible.
3.11521 Symbols do not necessarily remove one from the context being explored. Rather, they give expression to characterizations of such contexts - characterizations from which certain details, themes, and so on of the original context have been removed. Symbols permit one to simply the ways in which hermeneutical spaces are described.
3.115211 Some forms of the foregoing sort of simplification have heuristic value, while other forms do not.
3.116 A dialectic is a process of hermeneutical mapping which gives expression to a form of argument that links ideas, events, objects, processes, propositions, phenomena, and/or situations in accordance with some rule or principle or set of such rules and principles. One cannot know the nature of the dialectic involved until one understands the character of the rules and principles being used to shape the linkages among ideas, events, objects, and so on, but, usually, the linkages of a given form of dialectic have to do with the manner in which structural relationships are said to direct the flow of unfolding or manifestation of some given set of ideas, events, objects, and so on.
3.1161 The Hegelian dialectic is different from that of Marx's dialectical materialism, and both of these are different from the dialectic of a Socratic dialogue. Each of the foregoing forms of dialectic uses different sets of rules and principles to establish linkages within their respective systems of thought. Moreover, the epistemological value of a given instance of dialectics depends on the extent to which the set of rules and principles shaping the flow of hermeneutical linkages within a given kind of dialectic is capable of reflecting the structural character of the way some aspect, facet, dimension, or plane of being actually operates or is manifested and with respect to which the dialectic is being used as a means of explicating the structural character of the aspect or dimension to which the dialectic is giving reference.
3.117 Implication is a process of mapping which points in the direction of other possibilities being connected or related, in some way, to the context out of which the indication of implication arises. The extent and character of such a connection or relationship depends on the nature of the implication and the possibilities to which the implication is being juxtaposed.
3.1171 For example, if one were to enter into a house and find dinnerware and food on the dining room table, then, this information implies there may be a group of people somewhere, nearby, who are preparing to eat. On the other hand, one may have wandered into a nuclear test site in which an atomic bomb is about to be exploded and the table has been set to see what, if any, effects (both short-term and long-term) may result with respect to such a house that contains a dining room with a table set with food and dinnerware.
3.11711 Implications may be strong, weak, or unwarranted. In the latter case, although someone has proposed that a relationship or connection exists between two contexts, events, processes, and so on, in reality, no such relationship or connection exists.
3.118 Inferences are conclusions drawn by an individual concerning some given set of data or body of information or array of propositions. Such conclusions may be causal, relational, hierarchical, or correlational in nature.
3.1181 Inferential conclusions are not always correct or warranted.
3.119 Entailment refers to mapping processes which purport to establish that one fact, proposition, event, phenomenon, idea, context, object, or process supports the truth, validity, reality, or existence of some other fact, proposition, event, phenomenon, idea, context, object or process. The nature and strength of such support will depend on the structural character of the entailment relationship which is being proposed.
3.1191 Like mappings involving inference, implication, dialectic, abstraction, analogy, deduction, and induction, an entailment proposal may, or may not, be warranted.
3.120 A tautology is a special form of entailment proposal. According to this kind of mapping technique, if one unpacks or delineates the structural character of some given fact, proposition, state of affairs, context, process, event, phenomenon, or object, then, the truth of a given tautology is contained within the structural character being unpacked or delineated. Tautologies are merely re-statements, in altered form, of what is already known about the structural character of some fact, proposition, and so on.
3.1201Thus, one might say that a tennis ball is yellow, and, then, go on to say that the ball is round and colored. The latter statement is entailed by the first statement because the latter statement is merely re-stating, in altered form, what is known by means of the first statement, and, therefore, is tautological with respect to the first statement.
3.1202 Tautologies are not necessarily about the nature of what makes the structural character of some given experience possible. Tautologies may be part of artificially constructed logical systems (e.g., models, paradigms, frames of reference, world-view, theories, beliefs) which although true in the context of such logical systems have no reference to anything beyond the horizons of such systems.
3.121 Validity is a mapping operation which focuses on the relationship between a given set of data or information and one, or more, deductions, implications, or entailment proposals that are made in conjunction with that set of data or information. The nature of this relationship concerns the degree to which deductions, conclusions, implications, entailments, and/or inferences are warranted as one moves from a given set of data or information to certain deductions, implications, and so on, involving that set of data. Relationships which are warranted, or follow from, or are evidentially supported tend to be referred to as valid.
3.1211 Determining whether, or not, the aforementioned relationships are warranted, or follow from, or are evidentially supported is not always easy or straightforward.
3.1212 Determining validity within artificially constructed systems of logic tends to be an easier problem to solve than trying to determine the validity of statements involving the relationship between ideas or statements about certain dimensions of experience and that which makes experience of such structural character possible.
3.122 Consistency is one test of validity. In order for a series of ideas, propositions, experiences, understandings and so on, to be consistent with one another, there must not be anything within any of the given ideas, propositions, etc., which contradicts - in part, or in whole - any aspect, dimension, or facet of any of the other ideas, experiences, or propositions which are in the set or series being considered. In addition, one must be capable of showing there is some degree of relationship among the ideas, propositions, or experiences that ties together, in some fashion, the various items in the series or set.
3.1221 Unrelated ideas, issues, experiences, events, or propositions are neither consistent nor inconsistent. However, there may be varying degrees of consistency - depending on how weak or strong the relationship is which is said to tie the set or series of ideas, experiences, events, propositions, and so on, together.
3.123 Coherency is an indication of the internal validity of a system of logic. Coherency refers to the manner in which a hermeneutical space hangs together to serve as an account, story, description, or explanation and, as such, appears to possess few, if any, lacunae or gaps in its structural structure - gaps which would tend to discredit the possible value of the account, story, description, or explanation.
3.123001 The reliability of a methodology, measurement process, or modality of hermeneutical activity points in several directions. On the one hand, reliability concerns the capacity of, say, a given form of methodology to produce results which are relatively consistent with respect to a given phenomenon under similar conditions of engagement. On the other hand, reliability raises the issue of whether, or not, a given methodology or form of measurement has the capacity to accurately reflect, mirror, or establish congruency with some aspect or dimension of the structural character of some given experience, or that which makes experience of such structural character possible.
3.123002 Replication, confirmation, and verification are all different ways of referring to the issue of reliability in both its inward pointing sense (the first aspect noted above), as well as its outward pointing sense (the second aspect outlined in the foregoing.)
3.124 Necessity gives expression to the way logical systems manifest themselves such that the manifesting could not have been other than what it is. The necessity of artificial and natural systems of logic both are functions of the structural character of such systems.
3.1241 The necessity of artificial systems of logic may not extend beyond the horizons of that system.
3.1241 Necessary conditions refer to those facets of a logical system - whether artificial or natural - which, if not present, will impede something within that system from taking place or being manifested or continuing or proceeding, but, if present, may help provide for the possibility of something transpiring without necessarily guaranteeing such an outcome. Thus, with respect to the lighting of a match - oxygen, a match head with the right composition and quality of sulphur and phosphorus, a minimal degree of dryness, a striking surface of the appropriate properties, and the presence of someone or something to strike the match against such a surface - all of these conditions are considered necessary since if any of them are absent, the lighting of the match may be impeded, and, yet, if they are all present, there is no guarantee that the match will light since the person or device used to strike the match may not be active, or even if active, the match may not strike the surface in the way which is required for the match to light.
3.125 Assumptions are mapping operations which serve as starting points for exploration, analysis, evaluation, measurement, methodology, and, in general, constructing or creating hermeneutical spaces. Initially, assumptions tend to be unprovable but provide one with conceptual direction with respect to subsequent hermeneutical activity and one proceeds 'as if' the assumption were true in order to see where - conceptually or hermeneutically speaking, one might journey from such a starting point.
3.1251 Assumptions may, or may not, accurately reflect - partly or wholly, the structural character of some aspect, facet, or dimension of experience or that which makes experience of such structural character possible. However, assumptions - even if not true - may be utilized for their heuristic value in suggesting possible avenues of hermeneutical consideration that, eventually, may lead to results which do bear on some dimension, facet, or aspect of being in an accurately reflective manner. Thus, the idea of a geometric point which is without dimension does not necessarily have any counterpart in reality, but it serves as a starting point of considerable heuristic value in relation to constructing artificial systems of geometric logic.
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