What is truth?

[Joeshie]

What is truth?
Where can we find truth?
Why do we want truth?
Who knows what truth is?
How do we know when we have gained truth?

Let's see what you got AN.

[inuyasha_junkie]

truth is when a person can say somthing and not feel ashamed afterwards.
we can find truth everywhere(except most t.v shows).
we want truth to know what it is we should be doing.
we know we have gained truth when we can truly say we are happy.

[Meson]

Truth is any concept that is true independently of its observers.

[Haro!]

Truth is one of those antismoking websites.
More abstractly, truth is whatever you want it to be.

[superplough]

Truth is what is.

[Ketaru]

Truth is any concept that is true independently of its observers.

Agreed.

Truth are any concepts that aren't relative.
It depends on what sort of information we are looking for (We may never be able to prove if God exists. But there is no mistakening that if kill somebody, there is one more person dead in the world.)
We want truth because truth are what we want to use to make our guidelines for living. Without truth, we're all living life on thin ice with unfounded guidance.
People are always arguing about what truth is. One's own truths are relative, but one's own beliefs about certain things just won't change those things, no matter how much they will it to happen.
I should wonder if society is a measure of how close we are to truth (is there order? Are people generally happy? Do laws protect the vast majority from substantial harm?)

[Atriede]

Truth is mass and/or energy and/or particles and/or antimatter, that simply do, or, do not exist in a dimensional continium of which there are anywhere from 3, 11, 26 to an infinite number, the exact truth of which is unknown ( uncomprehensible by stimuli and energy to be existing in a particular order (amalgamation) of dimensions).
When the existence of truth is stated by someone then they are telling of truth, but if the order of dimensions they state do not exist (again in a collaboration or sequence of dimensions) , then it can not be defined as truth and is termed untruth, lie, e.c.t.
Contrary to popular belief, truth is uncomprimising, meaning if it is stated by a person who has no intention of lying, yet they state an untruth, then they are liars of that untruth regardless of intent.
Truth and untruths are always sequenced in the existence and non existence of man, they are ever flowing and interlinked i.e. me typing words now are a sequence of mass, stimulus, particles,time space e.c.t, all collaborating in a particular sequence. I am in turn writing about the nature of thing that determining wether I am able to write about them or not.
Furthermore, what I write about now, may be subjected as a truth or untruth, i.e. its nature may exist or not.

[Atriede]

In other words, yes, truth is what it is........or is not

[tenshi_a]

Truth is everything that is not null, zero or an empty string.

That's the perl way.

Everything else just confuses me a little.

[Sendo Takeshi]

What is truth?

That great herbal remedy that reveals it all.

Where can we find truth?

Local drug dealer on your block or someone on campus.

Why do we want truth?

Because it clears the mind and inspires a lot of thought.

Who knows what truth is?

See first question.

How do we know when we have gained truth?

When you've smoked to the point of no return and can't think of anything else to talk about.


Edit: Wait, we're talking about actual truth. As in the opposite of lying.

[Rain]

What is truth?

Truth is one's perception of reality; it can be objective, subjective, or relative. Technically, truth can be defined—rather loosely at that—as a general consensus and/or concurrence about a particular event which is in agreement with the "majority." There are no absolute truths in this world since there are no absolutes that define reality. Moreover, reality is whatever you perceive it to be, thus making it subjective.

Note: there is no single definition of truth which everyone can agree upon.

Where can we find truth?

From within.

Why do we want truth?

Because everyone seeks true (factual) knowledge.

Who knows what truth is?

No one knows what constitutes truth.

[Ikari Warrior]

What is truth?
Where can we find truth?
Why do we want truth?
Who knows what truth is?
How do we know when we have gained truth?

Let's see what you got AN.

You're bored again, aren't you?

People have gone nuts looking for the truth, as it is. From a philosophical perspective, the truth is impossible to completely define. You could say there are mathematical truths, like "2+2=4", but the mathematical bigwigs could always dispute that and rip it apart and blah blah blah.

For fuzzier, non-mathematical truths, it becomes further difficult to define, for investigation generally breeds more questions than answers. For example, the solar system has a certain number of planets and planetoids. That number is ever growing and shrinking (case in point: pluto). Before Copernicus, people thought that the earth was the center of the universe, then people thought that the sun was the center, but the planetary orbits were perfectly circular. Today, we still believe that our system is solar-centric, but that the planetary orbits are elliptical. Now, we question what defines a planet? What truly defines a planet? It's so ambiguous, how can we truly know? Simple answer: we can't.

As an analogy, let's compare the truth to the universe. We can explore the universe with probes, spacecraft, and telescopes. For the purposes of this analogy, let us assume the universe is expanding at the speed of light: the fastest possible speed. If the universe is indeed expanding infinitely, then no matter how much of the universe we learn about, we can never fully explore the universe. The same applies to "the truth". The more we learn about a truth, the more we have yet to know. This continues exponentially as questions are answered, more beg for the same. As we grow and mature as a species, we advance technologically, and in many other ways, so that we can answer more questions, while at the same time, asking even more. It becomes a cycle of questions and answers, and it's seemingly neverending, for once we've answered all the questions, why bother finding any more answers?

[Alice Catherine]

What is truth?
Where can we find truth?
Why do we want truth?
Who knows what truth is?
How do we know when we have gained truth?

Let's see what you got AN.


Truth is when you don't have butterflies after hearing it.
We can only find truth in the one person we care for.
We want truth because it is a sense of security/
Only Justice knows what truth is.
When we gain truth, our minds will be at peace.

[GreatNekoKoneko]

...want to know the truth? don't watch the news. watch the Daily Show.

[DEMON212]

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/truth

[Holy Knight]

I agree with Meson's definition. Truth is, it is not proven. Truth is true for itself and not necessarily for the observer, who may (and can) appropriate any truth he wants from it.

People have gone nuts looking for the truth, as it is. From a philosophical perspective, the truth is impossible to completely define. You could say there are mathematical truths, like "2+2=4", but the mathematical bigwigs could always dispute that and rip it apart and blah blah blah.

Mathematical truth is true for itself, but not necessarily for the world at large. 1+1=1 is true is you look hard enough for it.

[Joeshie]

[color=royalblue]Truth is one's perception of reality; it can be objective, subjective, or relative. Technically, truth can be defined—rather loosely at that—as a general consensus and/or concurrence about a particular event which is in agreement with the "majority." There are no absolute truths in this world since there are no absolutes that define reality. Moreover, reality is whatever you perceive it to be, thus making it subjective.

Reality...
1. the state or quality of being real.
2. resemblance to what is real.
3. a real thing or fact. (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/reality)

So reality is everything that has the quality of being real. But what is real?

Real...
1. true; not merely ostensible, nominal, or apparent
2. existing or occurring as fact; actual rather than imaginary, ideal, or fictitious
3. being an actual thing; having objective existence; not imaginary (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/real)

So reality is everything that has the quality of being true/having and objective existence/not part of the imagination, ideal, or fiction.

From this we can safely say that reality is not subjective since it a is a quality of having an objective existence.

Also, your experiences and senses can be imaginative. Since reality is not part of imagination, your perception is not always in line with reality.

Perhaps you have a different definition of reality, but I'm going with the official definition.

[Samurai Drifter]

Truth is several things, depending on what the term is being applied to.

In terms of what we know about the world, truth is that which has been investigated and proven using the scientific method.

In terms of everything else, it is the events that transpire in our lives, as they would be without any 3rd party influence.

[Rain]

Reality...
1. the state or quality of being real.
2. resemblance to what is real.
3. a real thing or fact. (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/reality)

So reality is everything that has the quality of being real. But what is real?

Real...
1. true; not merely ostensible, nominal, or apparent
2. existing or occurring as fact; actual rather than imaginary, ideal, or fictitious
3. being an actual thing; having objective existence; not imaginary (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/real)

So reality is everything that has the quality of being true/having and objective existence/not part of the imagination, ideal, or fiction.

From this we can safely say that reality is not subjective since it a is a quality of having an objective existence.

Also, your experiences and senses can be imaginative. Since reality is not part of imagination, your perception is not always in line with reality.

Perhaps you have a different definition of reality, but I'm going with the official definition.

I'd say in this case, then, that perception is reality. Okay, not really, but still...

Reality is real in the eyes of whom? Who gets to decide?

Each individual perceives reality in a way that is strictly subjective. It is only "real" to onself.

How do you know if something is true? Let me rephrase: how is something true? How does something come to be true? It isn't true because it is, it's true because you know it is. How, then, do you know it is? Your cognition (not to be confused with intuition) tells you it is. In this sense, your perception of this particular "truth," reached logically either by logos or thymos, becomes reality.

No one is omniscient; no one is all-seeing. And even if you were an omniscient being, you would still be subjected to your internal or external perceptive senses, so to speak.

In actuality, our definitions of reality are the same. Reality is not subjective in itself, but it becomes subjective when applied to the human mind and/or senses. The act of perception is the process of knowing by means of the cognitive senses, per se, so that which you perceive to be true is truth.

How can one's personal experiences be imaginative (stem from one's imagination)? Well, they could, I suppose, but that's only if: 1) said person suffers from a mental illness, thus is mentally incapable from distinguishing between fact and fiction, or 2) said person experiences recurring hallucinations. In any case, these are special cases, and do not in any way constitute the norm.

Reality is whatever you perceive it to be (make of it,) which means that your perception is your reality. With that said, this makes your point of "perception not being in line with reality" irrelevant.

Conclusion: something isn't true/real because it is, it's true/real because you know it is, or perceive it to be so.

[The Million Dollar Prons]

What is truth?


http://animenation.net/forums/search.php?searchid=753883

[Joeshie]

Reality is real in the eyes of whom? Who gets to decide?

Noone gets to decide. Reality is simply what exists or happens in this physical realm. Reality existed prior to lifeforms and will probably continue to exist long after we are gone.

Each individual perceives reality in a way that is strictly subjective. It is only "real" to onself.

Our perceptions of reality are indeed subjective, but these are our perceptions, not reality.

How do you know if something is true? Let me rephrase: how is something true? How does something come to be true? It isn't true because it is, it's true because you know it is. How, then, do you know it is? Your cognition (not to be confused with intuition) tells you it is. In this sense, your perception of this particular "truth," reached logically either by logos or thymos, becomes reality.

Your interpretations of your perceptions are correct, but your perceptions may not always be in line with that of reality.

Technically, you really can't know that something is 100% true. Pretty much everything in this world we take as the truth is really what we believe to be true. I don't know for certain that I am typing on my computer. My perceptions are telling me that I am, so I take that as the truth because I have high confidence in my sight.

However, reality is still 100% real/true, because the definition of reality is that it must be real/true/existing. If it isn't real/true/existing, then it is not reality.

No one is omniscient; no one is all-seeing. And even if you were an omniscient being, you would still be subjected to your internal or external perceptive senses, so to speak.

I agree.

In actuality, our definitions of reality are the same. Reality is not subjective in itself, but it becomes subjective when applied to the human mind and/or senses. The act of perception is the process of knowing by means of the cognitive senses, per se, so that which you perceive to be true is truth.

Here is where our disagreement stems. You believe that truth can only be achieved through perception. However, I see truth as independent of perception and is just another word for reality.

How can one's personal experiences be imaginative (stem from one's imagination)? Well, they could, I suppose, but that's only if: 1) said person suffers from a mental illness, thus is mentally incapable from distinguishing between fact and fiction, or 2) said person experiences recurring hallucinations. In any case, these are special cases, and do not in any way constitute the norm.

You are forgetting one very important imaginative experience that every single person experiences during their lifetime: Dreaming. If what you say is true, then our dreams must all contribute to reality.

Reality is whatever you perceive it to be (make of it,) which means that your perception is your reality. With that said, this makes your point of "perception not being in line with reality" irrelevant.

I say that your perception influences your interpretation of reality.

On the note of making my earlier point irrelevant, I call upon the aid of The Matrix. Neo's perception is simply the data the machines feed him so that his interpretation (there it is again) of reality is different from what is actually happening to him (reality). This is just one example of when a person's perception does not fall in line with reality.

Conclusion: something isn't true/real because it is, it's true/real because you know it is, or perceive it to be so.

Something is real simply because it exists. It doesn't need to percieve it in order for it to exist.

[neXus]

Truth is a paradox. What we think of as truth is little more than speculation, formulated by a species that defines its reality by what is currently perceivable or measurable. As our understanding evolves, so does the meaning of these so-called truths; hence the paradox. Understanding doesn’t equal truth. Understanding is relative. Truth is absolute, but we, as a species, have no way to comprehend this absolution.

Truth, for us, is at best an illusion. It’s what we believe because we haven’t been told any different or can’t see it differently. 500 years ago, the world was believed to be flat. That was “truth”. Once that was disproved, the perception of truth was altered, and a new reality was implemented.

Until we exist on another plane of existence, changing not only our perspective but the way though is manifest; we have no hope of understanding the intangible concept of truth. Asking “what is truth” is like asking “what is God”. It can’t be answered.

[{NG}Fidel]

Truth is one thing that perception taints.
Their is one truth in reality with many diffrent truths per individual as everyone has a bias.

[Ketaru]

How do you know if something is true? Let me rephrase: how is something true? How does something come to be true? It isn't true because it is, it's true because you know it is. How, then, do you know it is? Your cognition (not to be confused with intuition) tells you it is. In this sense, your perception of this particular "truth," reached logically either by logos or thymos, becomes reality.

There is a truth that exists in people's minds. But it more follows the lines of "Neo-Nazis believe that the Holocaust didn't happen." And there is another statement like "The Holocaust didn't happen." But completely separate from what people believe is the truth, it either happened, or it didn't. And no matter how much an opposing viewpoint wills for it to or to not have happened, it won't change whether it actually did or did not. If 100% of the population suddenly said tomorrow morning, "The Holocaust didn't happen", that will never change the fact that it either did or didn't. (by the way, I'm in the overwhelming majority that believes that it did)

Of course, now it comes to wondering whether our jdugement about truth is to be trusted or not. But for some things, the "truth" is not relative. One person can believe one thing about something, and another person will believe the other. But both will not be right. One of them is wrong. People will go on arguing about it forever, but one person's statement is the accurate representation of the truth, while another person's is not.

[The Million Dollar Prons]

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Truth

That's truth. Thread over.

Damn it Ketaru stop it with the holocaust.

[Ketaru]

(...I don't see any mention of it anywhere else in the thread... :P)

Just wanted to see some more Universality in this thread...

[CrossboneGundam]

What is truth?
Where can we find truth?
Why do we want truth?
Who knows what truth is?
How do we know when we have gained truth?

Let's see what you got AN.

I take it you are unfamiliar with the English Dictionary.

[Spadesy]

Truth is either just as how someone sees it or a well disguised lie justified by relativism.

[Tiiba]

Very good thread. An excellent solution for people of mediocre intellect who wish to seem advanced.

What is truth?

1) Facts about external reality, independent of human opinion. 2) Facts about human opinions.

Where can we find truth?

1) What does that mean?

Why do we want truth?

1) Because it allows us to make good decisions.

Who knows what truth is?

1) What does that mean?

How do we know when we have gained truth?

1) If questioning what you currently know leads to you going to jail, it's best not to. Otherwise, nothing is true, but some things are very likely.

[Neo0tak0n]

truth is obtained through ecstasy

[Leader Desslock]

Very good thread. An excellent solution for people of mediocre intellect who wish to seem advanced.
I just laughed aloud. Thank you. :lol:

[{NG}Fidel]

Truth is the truth.
I get what your trying to get at but individual beliefs do not change the truth.
To some Hitler was a hero, but the truth is he was a coward.
We may not always know the truth but its always their.

[Neo0tak0n]

1 <- true
0 <- false

[Spadesy]

Very good thread. An excellent solution for people of mediocre intellect who wish to seem advanced.

That's the net for you. The cool thing about it is that people can take all the time in the world they want to think up of a logical and eloquent response to anything.

...Trouble is, a lot of people still don't.

[CrossboneGundam]

You could say there are mathematical truths, like "2+2=4", but the mathematical bigwigs could always dispute that and rip it apart and blah blah blah.

What? One of the fundamental concepts of mathematics is that it's not subjective or open to interpretation.

[Spadesy]

^ Yeah. The only purpose of it is so that people could make numerical concepts out of things. It's a big freaking organizationed folder is all it is.

[Evil_Koala]

What is Truth?! Baby don't hurt me. Don't hurt me. No more.

[NyogoZ]

I think creation comes from imagination, therefore, imagination can either create reality (our world) or fantasy (your choice).