philosophy class

The first place to start is to turn to the dictonary for the definition of the noun fact. The Random House Unabridged Dictionary, found on Factmonster.com defines fact as:

1. something that actually exists; reality; truth: Your fears have no basis in fact.
2. something known to exist or to have happened: Space travel is now a fact.
3. a truth known by actual experience or observation; something known to be true: Scientists gather facts about plant growth.
4. something said to be true or supposed to have happened: The facts given by the witness are highly questionable.
5. Law.Often, facts. an actual or alleged event or circumstance, as distinguished from its legal effect or consequence. Cf. question of fact, question of law.
6. after the fact, Law.after the commission of a crime: an accessory after the fact.
7. before the fact, Law.prior to the commission of a crime: an accessory before the fact.
8. in fact, actually; really; indeed: In fact, it was a wonder that anyone survived.

As one can see, clearly the definition of what is makes a fact a fact is not a cut and dry issue "infact" they list 8 different meanings, tranlations, interpitations, or terms of conditions. There seems to a problem with pin pionting the proof of fact. There are a reasonable number of "terms of conditions. What is condition of proof of fact?: Witnessed fact, told fact, taught fact, written fact, proven fact. One must look at what is believes to be true fact: Historical fact, scientific fact, unaltable fact. Where and from whom does one get thier fact finding from: our parents, teachers, scientist, church leaders, politions, books, the nightly news, the newspaper, and of course now a days one has the highway of truths the internet. (The divice that has made my fact finding definitions possiable, as well as this transmition.) The infinite knowledge of what is believed to be" fact" and what "fact" is to be proven in the future, is to be base on the observation of others. How does one determin that what is believed to be true is reality at all. Does one strickly have faith in what can be proven infront of ones own eyes. History has proven time and time again that fact can change, the world is no longer flat, drilling a hole in ones head nolonger releases our demons, witches with sand bags tied to thier ankles will not float, that damn retinal cream didn't take ten years of my face, and of coures the big 20th century debockel, cigarrets DO cause cancer. So there it is, ponder, ponder, ponder, the fact of today may not be the fact of tomorrow, the sun may not rise in the east tomorrow, and maybe some day (hopefully soon) we will find a cure so humanity does not have to go old and die. The questioning of fact a leads only to more and more questioning of belief, which inturn leads one to questioning the true meaning of reality. Mind consuming

Workes Cited

"Http://www.factmonster.com/ipd/.html." Random House Unabridged Dictionary.
© 1997 by Random House, Inc., on Fact Monster.
© 2000–2007 Pearson Education, publishing as Fact Monster.
02 Oct. 2007 .