Information, Facts, Truths and Falsehoods
Bob Staretz
Information can be based on anything including fictions, opinions, beliefs or truths. Anyone can fabricate and promote a fiction. These stories require very little effort to create and to spread. All that’s needed is an imagination and the motivation to do it. Falsehoods are often created because of hidden or unspoken intentions relating to status, power, influence, control or monetary gain of the person or group promoting them over some other individual or group. Unfortunately, it is not always easy to discern fiction from truth especially if it is repeated often enough or told by a so-called authority or respected person or institution in our lives. And now, with modern technologies, it’s easier than ever to create and disseminate fiction masquerading as truth.
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Promoting information based on truth requires much more effort than falsehoods. It has to be researched, analyzed, validated and verified. In the process related information has to be verified or tossed out. These are all tasks which require much more effort than creating a falsehood. Promoting them is much more time consuming, demanding and expensive than spreading a convenient fictional account no matter the subject. Sometimes truths can be hurtful but without discernment of truth from fiction, there can be no real understanding nor opportunity for improvement of the human condition without it.
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The scientific method is a methodology that has been developed and refined over the last 350 years to discern truth from falsehood. An observation of some objective aspect of nature is made and a hypothesis (an educated guess) is then developed to determine the cause of the observational results. The hypothesis leads to an actual experiment in a controlled environment to determine if the hypothesis can stand up to further scrutiny. ​If the hypothesis is experimentally falsified either the underlying assumptions, the experimental procedures used to validate the hypothesis, or the interpretations of the results are invalid. A new hypothesis must be developed. Rewash, rinse and repeat.
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On the other hand, if repeated experimentation by peers leads to the same conclusion over and over, then the hypothesis is assumed to be true and may become a theory. In science theories can only be falsified, they can never be proven as absolute truth. Theories require independent and repeatable validation by peers (people who are acknowledged as experts in their field with similar education, training and experience). This becomes the consensus view of a group of recognized experts. Theories are often refined over time; Newton’s Theory of Gravity was refined by Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity which is now undergoing further refinements (ex. Quantum Loop Gravity) to accommodate recent new scientific observations that were impossible to make in earlier times.
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The scientific method relies on a rigorous procedure that is objective, measurable, repeatable and subject to peer review. Unfortunately, there are many things in life that cannot use the scientific method to validate them. In medical research, sociology, finance and other similar fields, the scientific method is more difficult to use because it is very difficult to control the experimental environment so statistical methods must be used which are not nearly as accurate.
Any subjective experience (first person perspective) falls into the category which, unfortunately, is very difficult to use with the scientific method. This also includes fictional accounts, opinions and beliefs. None of these can be objectively measured and can change simply with a person’s state of mind or intention. They are also impossible or very difficult to reproduce since they only occur in the mind of the beholder.
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Truths are the consensus reality of recognized experts in a field. They are usually backed up by objective facts. Facts are expensive to develop, are often nuanced or complex, time consuming and expensive to research, develop and validate. And, they can be falsified as additional evidence becomes available or as underlying assumptions are proven incorrect.
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Fiction is usually deliberately made up – it can be a story for entertainment or a falsehood presented as truth. If presented as a story without intentional harm it is called misinformation. If the intention of the story was to cause harm it is called disinformation. Fiction is cheap and usually simple to develop. Just because it is told over and over does not make it truth but lazy people will often accept fictional stories as truth if they are repeated often enough.
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Misinformation – information that is misconstrued, misunderstood or misinterpreted – is usually not done maliciously but often out of ignorance. Misinformed people often unknowingly use their own biases and ignore valid evidence that conflicts with their beliefs or opinions.​​
An opinion is a personal view that may or may not be factual – may or may not have any basis in reality. They are often presented by the holder as factual. Opinions are often based on beliefs, unquestioned assumptions that are often programmed into us by authority figures in our lives, many at an early age before we have developed the cognitive abilities to judge the veracity of it for ourselves. Confirmation bias occurs when we look for information that confirms our opinions and beliefs and ignore or reject information that does not. Unfortunately for many of us, we too often seek out or reject information based on these biases to prevent cognitive dissonance and having to deal with the conflicting thoughts they may represent.
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Information is not synonymous with truth. We are drowning in information in the 21st century due to the widespread use of information technologies which all of us now have immediate access to with our smart phones, computers, websites, the Internet, and social media platforms. Much of it is tailored to our personal interests and our likings (and our biases) by AI or other computer algorithms. And, so much of it is BS. And, most importantly, they are often not truthful and created to gain some type of advantage over another individual or group.
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So, beware. Good people receiving bad information (e.g. untruthful or inaccurate information) can unknowingly make bad decisions that either hurt themselves or hurt other people. Worse yet they may even cause a lot of needless and unnecessary physical or emotional suffering.
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In the age of the proliferation of misinformation and disinformation, learn how to identify and discern truth from falsehood, no matter how difficult the effort… your wellbeing or that of your loved ones may depend upon it.
Click here for more information on misinformation (no pun intended - nothing but the truth...)