Epistemological Shift

Epistemological Shift
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Epistemological Shift
As new technologies continue to emerge every day, the way human beings take in knowledge changes. The way human beings take in knowledge in modern society is extremely different compared to the pre-technology ages. While there are still people that use physical reading materials, modern technologies such as computers, tablets, and smartphones have changed the way people acquire knowledge. The epistemological shift present in the modern world has wide-ranging implications for society. As a result of epistemological shift different opinions, spiritual beliefs, and values have been integrated into ‘knowledge’ in modern society. This paper argues that philosophers are right to be concerned with the epistemological shift and presents the pros and cons of the shift.
Philosophers are right to be concerned with the epistemological shift because it determines what the members of society consider to be true. As human beings navigate the planet, they are dependent on knowledge to understand their environment and survive better. With new technologies, human abilities, as well as the approach to knowing, are expanded. It is correct for philosophers to be concerned with the shift because it leads to solutions to some of the world’s problems. For example, the development of social sciences in the 20th century (Braman, 2012) led to the development of ways to solve challenges such as crimes, cybersecurity, and diseases. Therefore, it is significant for philosophers to focus on epistemological shift.
The epistemological shift in today’s world presents a number of pros and cons. One of the pros of epistemological shift is the challenging of political inaccuracies in history. As informed by Dede (2008), as a result of Web 2.0 that represents the modern epistemological shift, there have been documentations of politically motivated inaccuracies in books. Examples of such inaccuracies include the biases fronted against women and minority members of the society. The omissions of the interpretations and contributions of diverse groups like the people of color have also been documented (Dede, 2008). As a result of such documentations that have been made possible by epistemological shift, the issues of diverse and minority groups have been brought to light. The reliance on knowledge from experts in the past meant that biased knowledge was consumed by people. As described by Dede (2008), while experts may sometimes confront authority, too often they are funded, anointed, and rewarded to rationalize politically motivated actions. However, with the epistemological shift, opportunities to challenge such inaccuracies emerge.
Another pro of epistemological shift is that it pro...