The limits of knowledge

Abstract

The definition of knowledge encompasses various meanings, from the process by which we have the perception of the outside world, through the stimuli that we receive from this, when that perception becomes part of our system of awareness and experience. When awareness of ourselves and the outside world is acquired and recorded, we can define it as learning. In the broader, philosophical sense, knowledge consists in learning and retaining in the mind a notion, an information. In use, however, it has a more concrete semantic value, and can indicate the various degrees of knowledge, from the initial perception of the existence of a thing to the full cognition of its being, its modes and qualities. Whatever the subject, cell, organism, neuronal network, and so on, the process always takes place by the use of specific receptor systems, adapted to the reception of different stimuli from the environment. Because they are calibrated only on the stimuli they receive, the receptor systems have limited sensitivity. This limitation is extended to all living beings, who therefore have partial and incomplete knowledge of the world. In this work we are going to examine these limitations and invite scholars to become aware of them.