User:PanosKratimenos/sandbox/BASC001/2020-21/Thursday2-3/Truth

Truth in Consciousness: Neuroscience and Philosophy

Neuroscience and Monism

Neuroscience adopts a positivist viewpoint when approaching consciousness, based on the notion that it can be studied directly through observing neural activity, as neuroscientists predominantly believe consciousness is a function of the brain - this approach is called monism in philosophy of mind. Neuroimaging techniques such as EEG and fMRI scans are often employed to demonstrate the neural correlates of consciousness, much of the focus on neural activity falls on the prefrontal cortex, which is involved in higher functions known as executive functions. A monist theory called physicalism argues that all psychological phenomena and experiences can be reduced to physical, traceable activity within the brain.

Laterization of Brain Function Evidence

Split-brain studies, in which the right and left hemispheres are physically separated by a severed corpus callosum (the connecting tissue between the hemispheres), have been carried out as a way to demonstrate the principles of physicalism. When the brain is split in half, it is observed that the two hemispheres work independently of each other, producing different, distinct conscious personalities and experiences, due to the physical alteration of the brain.

Another example is an experiment which helped reach the conclusion that functions in the brain are split in the two hemispheres, carried out in the 1960s by Roger Sperry, Michael Gazzaniga et al. During this time they conducted research on epileptic patients with a severed corpus collosum. Participants were asked to describe an object in their left or right hand. When the object was in the right hand, the object could easily be named due to the left hemisphere being a centre for language, but when the object was in the left hand it could not be named and only described. Through these experiments it was also found that the right hemisphere dealt with nonverbal stimuli better than with written tasks, unlike the left hemisphere which fared well with written tasks.

These studies demonstrate how experience, perception and interpretation are influenced by the physical alteration of the brain, such as the ability to name and describe an object, and personality development, supporting the principles of physicalism that the mind and conscious experience arise as a function of the brain.

Philosophy and Dualism

There are multiple theories of mind in philosophy, however the most contradictory to monism is dualism, founded by René Descartes: the notion that the mind and conscious experience cannot be reduced to neural activity within the brain. Substance dualists argue that the mind and body are separate, distinct phenomena and that the mind is a substance independent of the brain, while property dualists argue that the mind emerges from the brain, but it cannot be reduced to a function of the brain. Therefore, substance dualists believe that after death, the mind is a separate identity from the body which will continue to exist after the body deteriorates, yet property dualists believe that the mind is a different substance to the physical body, but it will cease to exist following death.

A major critique of monism is a form of property dualism, known as epiphenomenalism, which revolves around the idea that physiological events occurring within the body are causal in relation to psychological events; physiological events cause psychological events but psychological events cannot influence physiological events.Another focus within epiphenomenalism is the issue of reducing individual experiences to physiological activity, as it argues that even if someone knew everything there was to know about how a phenomenon is perceived by an individual, they will still not know what it is like to perceive it. For example, a neuroscientist can know everything about how someone perceives colours on a cellular level, but if they are colour-blind, they still do not know what it is like to perceive colours. These experiences are called "qualia" and are based on the phenomenological approach that subjective experiences, interpretation and perception cannot be reduced to physically observable, directly measurable phenomena such as physiological mechanisms of the body.

Interdisciplinarity

Theories of consciousness frequently integrate neuroscience, which is largely based on monism, and other philosophy of mind theories which revolve around dualistic principles. However, it is clear that this generates a large amount of interdisciplinary tension; the approach of neuroscience in monism is very much based on positivism, using empirical data from direct observations to infer a conclusion. On the other hand, philosophy of mind theories such as those of dualism, which are more phenomenological, argue that subjective experiences cannot be reduced to empiricism; knowing what constitutes an experience does not equate knowing what it is like to experience it.

Truth in Social Anthropology and Biology: Constructivism versus Positivism

Knowledge in Social Anthropology

Social/cultural anthropology focuses on the behaviour of individuals in specific groups or systems known as cultures and therefore, the truth that anthropology sets out to discover is knowledge concerning human behaviour.

This knowledge is obtained through the qualitative method of ethnographical research, where the researcher integrates themselves into the environment they are studying, carrying out observations, interviews, and interpretations of their surroundings in order to write up a description of their findings.

Knowledge in Biology

Biology focuses on the mechanisms of life through studying living organisms, physiological processes, and molecular interactions. It employs the scientific method to produce its truth. Firstly, observations are carried out regarding a specific phenomena and information is collected, leading to the formulation of a hypothesis. Afterwards, empirical data is obtained through quantitative experiments that are carried out. If the results of the experiments match the expected results of the hypothesis, the results are then reported, and a truth is established regarding the phenomenon in question. If the results are not the same as the expected results, then the hypothesis is refined, and the process is repeated.

Truth in Social Anthropology and Biology and How They Compare

The theory of Cultural Relativism created by Franz Boas and popularised by his students, Margaret Mead, Ruth Benedict, Zora Neale Hurston and many others, was extremely influential in Social Anthropolgy.This theory proposed that cultures should not be judged from a single perspective and was a rebuttal of ethnocentrism. It looks at the idea that there are no universal truths but rather, each culture imposes meaning on its cultural norms and therefore, truths are dependent on cultural perspectives and societies.This is a constructivist approach to knowledge. Constructivism looks at the idea that reality is affected by the human mind and therefore, truth will differ depending on the person or culture that this “truth” is produced by. On the other hand, Biology can be said to take a positivistic approach to knowledge. Positivistic approaches argue that truth must be created in a way to mirror reality. If data is generated by the scientific method and the hypothesis is true, then there can be no alternative explanations for the phenomena that is being studied. The positivistic approach assumes that knowledge creation lacks in researcher bias and hence, is completely objective.

Interdisciplinary clashes

Biology tends to not consider the idea that a researcher’s background may have an effect on the truth produced while anthropology, when applying a constructivist approach, would argue that a researcher can never be fully detached from their research and because of this, truth is produced by the scientists applying the scientific method rather than the scientific method itself. This meaning that the truth brought about is in fact affected by the researcher’s background, beliefs and motives and isn’t fully objective.

Biological Anthropology and Race

Biological anthropology integrates the approach of social anthropology and biology; these clashes between constructivism and positivism have been seen to cause many issues in conducting and interpreting research. For example, social anthropology understands race as a social construct and often considers the researcher's bias when interpreting data. However, historically, those who have had more of a biological background with a more empirical, positivist approach may see race as an example of clear divisions between humans, based on biology, which can be studied through direct observation alone, not considering possible bias. This approach lacks the insight of social anthropology in recognising that race is a social construct, as there is more variation within a group of people than between groups of people, and when considering all human biological diversity e.g. South-East Asia as well as East Asia and South Asia, you cannot form clear-cut categories. However, biology is also useful to understand why certain diseases appear more in certain groups of people due to history of migration influencing allele frequency and selection, such as sickle cell anaemia, which is more common in those of Caribbean and African descent. The lack of recognising race as a social construct and the researcher's bias when conducting genetic research has resulted in detrimental impacts on society, such as attempts to justify racism and perpetuation of ideas surrounding innate characteristics in certain races.

Conclusion

Boas, who initially was trained as a psychophysicist, through his research of colour concluded that our understanding of the world, like our interpretation of colour, depends on the circumstances and the researcher’s expectations which are learnt through socialisation.Through this we can see the importance of applying an interdisciplinary approach to knowledge in the quest for truth. While scientific experiments can provide extremely powerful empirical data, it is not enough to consider a positivistic approach, but also a constructivist approach to observe what potential researcher bias could be affecting the ‘truth’ obtained.

Truth in Videography: the Future of Fake News

The time when a photo or a video could be used as a certain proof is now behind us. Photo manipulation was developed long time ago and now only moving forward, while the manipulations with videos is becoming more and more common. Deepfake is a new format of videos in which faces on the original video are replaced with other faces. Generative-adversarial neural networks (GANS) are used to create such videos. Generative Adversarial Networks are an approach to generative modeling using deep learning methods, such as convolutional neural networks. The mechanism is as follows: one part of the algorithm learns from real photos of a certain person and creates an image, literally "competing" with the second part of the algorithm, until it begins to confuse the copy with the original.

GAN technology was developed in 2014 by Stanford University student Ian Goodfellow, and for a long time it was used only among AI researchers and developers. The latest software and the spread of machine learning have simplified the process of creating fake videos. The Internet learned about deepfakes in 2017, when porn videos began to appear on Reddit, in which the faces of porn actresses were replaced with the faces of celebrities.

Given a training set, this technique learns to generate new data with the same statistics as the training set. For example, a GAN trained on photographs can generate new photographs that look at least superficially authentic to human observers, having many realistic characteristics.GANs enable algorithms to move beyond classifying data into generating or creating images. This occurs when two GANs try to fool each other into thinking an image is “real.” Using as little as one image, a seasoned GAN can create a video clip of that person.

Malicious Applications of Deepfake Technology

At first, most of the deepfake content was used only for entertainment purposes. However, during the last few years, the technology has developed so much that the materials created with it have become frighteningly convincing. The dissemination of false information, invasion of privacy, destruction of reputation — this is only a small part of what deepfakes can cause. Large corporations, such as Facebook, Microsoft, Google, are trying to fight the spread of fake videos by creating datasets using which the developers will be able to train algorithms to detect deepfakes.This technology makes it easy to manipulate audio and video content, and with its development, it becomes much more difficult to figure out where the truth is and where the fake is.

A recent study by Deeptrace, a Netherland based cybersecurity company, showed that nearly 96% of deepfake videos are porn.With the spread of deepfakes, there were cases of discreditation of public figures, whose images can be easily found on the internet. For example, in the spring of 2019, the network published a deepfake video with the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi. The author of the video with the help of AI changed Pelosi's speech so that she did not pronounce words well, and those who watched the video thought that the politician was drunk. The situation turned into a loud scandal, and only after some time it was proved that Pelosi's speech was generated by AI.

Laws against the Misuse of the Technology

In 2019 the state of California passed on October 3, 2019 the bill AB-602, which bans depiction of individual using digital or electronic technology that can be used as sexually explicit material without the consent of the people depicted.

Interdisciplinary View

The use of Deepfakes and issues with Truth in technology do not only impact this discipline. As previously mentioned, law now needs to get involved to establish new rules regarding this recent phenomena and in order to stop innocent people from being harmed by this technology. Furthermore, photo and video evidence in court now has to be evaluated to a set of different standards than it was in the past.. Additionally, the world of politics now needs to change to understand the availability of this technology and in order to find a way to protect its politicians, as well as fellow civilians from it.

Truth within Astrology: The conflict between a Positivist and Interpretive approach

What is astrology?

Astrology argues that terrestrial processes regarding an individual or a community, can be predicted by observing and tracking stars, planets, the moon and the sun. The subject field claims there is a link between humans and the universe, and while it has played a role in history for more than 6000 years, a recent increase in popularity has kick started new discussions. Once again, its validity is being questioned, and whether it should be considered a science or religion, let alone a discipline at all.

The roots and development of astrology

Astrology in its simplest form, began by humans correlating patterns in the sky with the changing in seasons. The constellations were named after the animals that faced a change in behaviour, when they were visible, and mapping out the sky was thus used to forecast weather and temperature. The idea to use these same observations to predict personal faith first arose in Alexandria, and slowly the applicability of astrology expanded, beyond simply predicting environmental factors. The study began to involve calculations, technical skills and observational methods, similar to those used in scientific research. Astrologers were called “mathematicians”, and for a while astrology was recognised as highly as science. Nevertheless, doubt crept into the field very quickly, with even cicero arguing that stars are too far away to have any impact on the earth.

Truth as viewed by Positivism

To this day, astrologers use statistical analyses and quantitative methods in attempt to explain the study scientifically. Some such studies propose that an individual's choice in profession can be linked to the planetary arrangement recorded on the day they were born, yet from the rationalists point of view such research always leaves out on a multitude of factors and only proves correlation, not causation. While past practitioners, including well renowned scientists such as Robert Boyle, believed in astrology’s potential to show truthful insights into our world, skepticism surrounds the topic today which may be linked to how astrologys definition changed over time. Science agrees with the basic claim that celestial bodies influence terrestrial processes, evident in how the moon creates tides,but the seemingly far fetched concept of horoscopes as studied by modern astrology, has impacted the perception on the entire disciplines validity.

Truth as viewed by Interpretivism/Constructivism

From a realists point of view, astrology therefore does not appear to carry much truth. It is not empirically based, and describes a providential universe, rather than reflecting facts about the reality humans live in. Yet, this does not mean it is untrue, and when taking a more interpretive perspective, its value may be most visible when believing in a participatory world. Astrology, although interpreted differently across cultures, points out a relationship between the universe and the individual and so can help people find their place. In many cultures it is used as a precautionary tool, to foreshadow bad omens and prevent tragedies from happening, and whether or not one chooses to assume these predictions are true, they provide individuals with a sense of control. Considering acting on such predictions, theoretically prevents them, the facts as portrayed by astrology become untestable in the eyes of the positivist. This may indicate that it is more appropriate to regard astrology as a religion rather than a science, and so appreciate it for its general insight into the idea that a connection could be possible, rather than focusing on how this connection works.

Truth versus Value

With different approaches having different outlooks on what truth is, debates as to whether astrology provides any realistic insight into the world, continue. In india, some universities offer a degree in astrology, demonstrating its recognition as a discipline, while others merely see it as a protoscience. Nevertheless, no matter whether it is based on falsely constructed correlations or not, the field helped modern science develop by building the foundations for astronomy. In many different ways, astrology can offer individuals stability, and thus its value should be attributed to its usefulness, rather than proven accuracy. Truth appears to be malleable, dependent on whether one chooses to believe in a scientific or participatory world, but the truth within astrology may simply be linked to its applicability within societies, all throughout history.

Truth in beauty: Beauty from different approaches

Throughout history, philosophers and scientists have struggled to find a proper definition of beauty. Some argue that beauty is based on objective characteristics, and could be defined as the harmony between volume and form, and the balance between content and continent. Others argue that beauty is based on more subjective traits, and even though we all live with similar eurocentric beauty standards, our physical and superficial preferences are very different and can be based on experience, taste, and memories; and are not necessarily related with symmetry or proportions. In this sandbox exercise, we will try to find a way to universalize beauty and look at the different ways true beauty can be interpreted depending on the truth criterion.

Positivist approach

From a realist perspective, beauty would be understood as something objective that, using natural sciences, can be measured and quantified. In this sandbox exercise, we will try to look at ways of measuring beauty from both a mathematical and biological point of view.

The mathematics behind beauty

A determinant factor in traditional beauty when it comes to facial beauty is symmetry and the distance between the different elements that one´s face is comprised of. By using several facial traits and the distance between them, mainly the nose, the eyes, the mouth, and the eyebrows, algorithms can tell us how objectively beautiful a face is and how far is it from achieving perfection. This was a point first made by Grammer and Thornhill in their publication titled “Facial attractiveness and Sexual selection”

Their method consisted of establishing 12 different points ( 4 for both eyes, 2 for each side of the nose, 2 for each side of the mouth, 1 for each cheekbone, and 2 for the jaw.) across the face and drawing lines between them. Depending on the level of symmetry between these lines, and the location of the mediatrix of these segments, the algorithm would quantify the beauty of the said face. In a perfectly symmetrical face, that would be considered the peak of beauty by the said algorithm, all lines would be parallel, and all the mediatrixes would be aligned in the center of the face.

However, using this algorithm, we achieve very interesting conclusions when analyzing the beauty standards from each time period, using their paintings and portraits. It was concluded that while the most symmetrical female faces were achieved in the 15th century, the most symmetrical male faces were achieved in the 18th century. Apart from that, there has been a significant decrease in facial beauty during the last two centuries, with the emergence of modern art movements such as cubism.

Beauty from a biological viewpoint

Recent research suggests that people's perceptions of facial beauty are significantly consistent, regardless of race, ethnicity, or age. Facial features influence how we act and interact with each other, and psychologists suggest that the reaction to these characteristics is primitively related to health and a well-adapted morphology.

An example of this is the condition of the skin. Regarding female’s skin, men usually find more desirable hairless skin, because that would be a sign of high estrogen and androgen levels, which are linked to high fertility. Skin condition also plays a huge role when it comes to the suffering of illnesses. Parasites and illnesses have played a crucial role in sexual behavior throughout human evolutive history. Science has proved that people have different resistance to a parasite and bacterial attack depending on their genetic information, and that would mean that the offspring of those said people would have as well more possibility of surviving a parasite infection than the offspring of more susceptible individuals. A great number of illnesses present abnormalities in the skin such as spots or tumors, that could primitively be linked with lower health.

Social Constructionism

Social constructionists, such as sociologists and anthropologists, see beauty as a social construct. Social constructivists use the changing beauty standards throughout time, and cross-cultural differences in beauty standards to demonstrate this perspective. The notion of beauty in human traits is seen to be dictated by popular culture, social media and advertising, through which different body types trend and become the new ideal appearance, deemed the most beautiful.

Historical beauty standards

Women's ideal body types have changed endlessly throughout history, reflecting the commercialisation of women's bodies as being comparative to a product. One example of this is how women's ideal body types have changed throughout US history; in the 1920s, the body type deemed most beautiful for women was boyish with a flat chest and narrow waist - many women wore clothes which would hide their hips and bras which would flatten their breasts. During the 1930-50s, the ideal body type for women was the opposite: curvaceous with large breasts and wide hips. Yet in the 1960s, an adolescent-like physique was seen as the most beautiful - thin with a flat chest and narrow hips; this persisted until the 1980s, during which the ideal female body type was athletic, healthy, and curvaceous but toned. However, during the 1990s, the new ideal body type was extremely thin, pale and waifish, once again favouring the androgynous appearance. From the 2000s onwards, the ideal female body type has been revolving more around the idea of being thin with a flat stomach, but retaining assets such as wide hips and large breasts, despite these characteristics being highly incompatible and unlikely to occur naturally, reflecting the notion that beauty is a social construct.

Cross-cultural beauty standards

One example of different cultural beauty standards is BMI - Zulu men, based in South Africa, have a strong preference for an overweight BMI in women, whereas in the UK, at the time the study was conducted, an underweight BMI (<17) was the preference. One study found that Zulu men whose parents had migrated from South Africa to the UK had completely different BMI preferences compared to previous generations born and raised in South Africa. Zulu men raised in the UK were found to have a preference for the underweight BMI body type, reflecting socially constructed cultural differences in what is considered beautiful. Furthermore, the Westernisation of Eastern culture demonstrates how beauty standards have changed as a result of cultural imposition. For example, in East Asia, one of the most popular plastic surgery procedures is double-eyelid surgery, in which eyes with mono-lids (as seen in those of East Asian descent) are transformed into eyes which resemble those of European descent. A similar popular phenomenon is seen in South Asia, where skin-bleaching is often carried out as an attempt to lighten dark skin. However, these acts only became popular following globalisation of Eurocentric popular culture, with Eurocentric beauty standards being set as the preference in many Eastern countries.

Perspectivist approach

Some philosophers, on the contrary, consider beauty a purely subjective matter. This would mean that if beauty is relative to the eye of the beholder, the concept of beauty would be worthless in comparison to other philosophical concepts such as truth or good. One of the first philosophers to coin this idea was David Hume. Hume's aesthetic theory is closely related to his ethical theory, for him, both moral judgments and aesthetic judgments about beauty are based on the feeling that actions and works trigger in us.

Both the ethical and aesthetic dimensions of human beings are based on sensation, emotions, and feelings. Just as good and beauty of actions generate in us a feeling of pleasure, evil and ugliness would similarly generate a feeling of pain Beauty then becomes a personal matter, an interpretation that one makes about people or objects. That is why we say that Hume's aesthetics is an example of perspectivism and subjectivism, because beauty would depend on personal appreciation and individual feelings.

Truth in intelligence

There is an ongoing debate about what intelligence actually is and how we should best measure it, yet there is little hope that consensus will be reached in the near future. The discipline of Biology however, offers numerous theories that attempt to capture what 'intelligence' may refer to.

Biology of Intelligence

Although there is no direct evidence that intelligence is influenced purely by biological factors, there appears to be a correlation between the two. Tendencies show that factors such as brain size , sensory ability, speed and efficiency of neural transmission, and working memory capacity impact intelligence to some extent, but we cannot solely rely on measures from a positivist approach.

Psychology of Intelligence

When people refer to intelligence, it often appears that they have IQ in mind. However, there is a lot of debate among psychologists on how to define intelligence. One might argue that traditional intelligence tests primarily assess a person’s ability for reasoning and problem solving, as they measure long-term and short-term memory and analyse logical thinking . These features are referred to as analytical intelligence, but tests often omit the evaluation of creative and practical intelligence (yet a theory of intelligence suggests intelligence is composed of three parts) . I.e. Research suggests that there is no significant correlation between IQ test results and exceptional creativity . All these measures of intelligence are based on how we perceive intelligence and since approaches to intelligence might vary depending on for the theorist's background. Therefore, each theory has its limitations.

Another form of intelligence that is considered pivotal in the XXI century is emotional intelligence. It is defined as an ability to identify, express, and understand emotions, effect emotions to thought and have a control over one’s and others’ emotions. This broad definition and perceptive nature of emotional intelligence makes it rather difficult to measure. Further, emotional response highly depends on the circumstances, as does its evaluation as rational or irrational. Personal values can act as biases that makes it even more complicated to understand what is behind emotional intelligence. If we therefore look at intelligence from an emotional perspective, we utilise a perceptive, phenomenological approach.

Truth in Oneirology

A dream is defined as a “series of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations occurring involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep”. Dreaming is a universal human experience. The earliest recorded dream (account of dreams in texts) dates back to 2500BC.

Dreaming in Neurosciences

Neuroscience follows a positivist approach and generates knowledge through experimentation. The use of Electroencephalography allows for the study of brain activity during the different sleep stages (the neurological conditions the brain is in) and determine when dreaming occurs. Most dreaming is thought to occur during a stage of sleep described as Rapid Eye Movement sleep, a phase discovered in the mid 20th century by Eugene Aserinsky. But there is no consensus with this model: both Freud and Folkes argue that dream-like experiences occur in the non-rapid eye movement (NREM) phase of sleep.

Interpreting Dreams in Psychology

According to Freud, when it comes to the interpretation of dreams, a positivist approach can be adopted: “there exists a psychological technique (...) and upon application of this method every dream will show itself to be a senseful psychological structure which may be introduced into an assignable place in the psychic activity of the waking state”. This both implies access to rational data, as the method can be applied rigorously and its application can be replicated through numerous experiments; and allows the dream to transcend the boundaries of consciousness, as it finds itself in an observable place: the conscious.

Interpreting Dreams in Philosophy

Sartre, on the other hand, takes on a phenomenological approach: “The dream is a consciousness that is incapable of leaving the imaginative attitude [...] the dream consciousness is completely deprived of the faculty of perceiving”. And so the dream becomes the utmost imaginary experience, it does not rely on our conscious perception of the world, and the dreamer finds himself alienated from reality and unfree. According to Sartre interpreting dreams is unconstructive as it does not give any insight on the dreamer’s reality.

Truth in Economics

Normative and positive economics are two branches within economics which have differing views on what truth is. The epistemological differences are that normative economics, with a constructionist view of the world, values interpretation and testimony, whereas positive economics has a realist view, valuing positive facts as valid, objective truths. The distinction was clarified by John Neville Keynes, who argued that normative economics is the "criteria of what ought to be, and concerned therefore with the ideal as distinguished from the actual", the 'actual' being the realist science of positive economics. Keynes then argued that a third branch, the 'art' of economics, is the combination of the two; this has largely been ignored in modern economics, which has divided into normative and positive.

Normative Economics

Normative Economics has a constructionist approach to truth, which is regarded as relative rather than objective. Normative economics forms value judgements of economic policies and considers what ‘should’ be done. These judgements are not completely divorced from positivist knowledge; if the knowledge of facts changes, the normative truths are reconsidered. While statistical analysis influences the sub-discipline, moral reasoning and interpretation are also valued as ways of finding truth. There is also an understanding that what is considered to be true is relative to the economist’s beliefs and the era in which they are formed. Statistics are viewed not as a way of producing objective truth, but as a tool that can be used to quantify qualitative data for easier interpretation. Objective truths are influenced by the individuals and societies that created them.

Positive Economics

Positive economics attempts to explain and describe phenomena through developing and testing theories. It is viewed as objective and places an emphasis on being verifiable. For something to be considered true in positive economics it must be proved empirically. This is done through statistical analysis. Quantified evidence is considered to be objective and therefore true. Truth in positive economics is created when there is a consensus around the statistical methods used and the maths is deemed to be correct.

This branch of economics often thinks of itself as a science producing universal objective truths. Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner write in 'Freakonomics' “Morality, it could be argued, represents the way that people would like the world to work – whereas economics represents how it actually does work.” However, Economics and Physics have conflicting interpretations of exponential growth. Economists believe that the economy will continue to grow indefinitely. Physicists rebut this as impossible. Economists disagree with this interpretation. While Physics itself cannot be entirely free from societal influence, it is commonly considered to have a positivist, scientific approach. What is considered true in each discipline fails to align. This shows that what is an objective truth is not necessarily universal.

The Use of Statistics

What positive economics thinks of as true is proven using statistics, which are often flawed. As a mathematical method to interpret the world they simplify complex systems to a point where they can be understood. Statistics as quantified evidence lends credence and the impression of scientific importance. However, different methods of analysis can be chosen to give a statistical significance, which can not distinguish between correlation or causation. The interpretation of this, as well as what factors to include in the statistics is done by a person, who is influenced by society and their own preconceptions. Additionally, it has been found that the statistical analysis in many papers is highly flawed. and frequently economists interpret the statistics to have scientific importance.

An Example of Flaws in Statistical Analysis

A 2010 paper by two highly respected Harvard Professors was found to have handled the data used poorly and therefore had come to the wrong conclusions. Five of the twenty countries analysed in the paper has been accidentally excluded from the data and there were other significant data gaps. After further scrutiny, the statistical methods used were criticised – the way it was averaged gave one year of debt in a small country disproportionate weight compared to a longer period in a larger country. Once it was reinterpreted, the data gave much less extreme results. The initial findings were that a public debt to GDP ratio over 90% caused GDP growth to shrink by 0.1%, which was used by George Osborne and Paul Ryan as the basis for austerity programmes in response to the 2008 financial crash. The critique of the original paper found that GDP grew by 2.2%. This demonstrates that ‘statistics’, whether intentionally or accidentally misused, do not show a single, objective representation of the world.

An example of conflict between positive and normative economics

Positive and normative economics might come into conflict when considering GDP. GDP is ‘Gross Domestic Product’ and is used as a proxy for the wealth and welfare of a nation, although it can only measure the value of the goods and services produced in a country. Many argue that GDP is not a true measure of an economy as sectors and values of economic worth are under-counted or excluded. For example, unpaid childcare and domestic duties, often done by women, are not included, despite the economic and societal value. Normative economists might argue that GDP fails as a measure of a country’s prosperity because it does not indicate the wealth distribution or ‘fairness’ of economics in a country, nor does it include measures of happiness. Positive economists, however, are be more inclined to consider GDP a useful and accurate measure. This is demonstrated by the use of GDP as to quantify and compare economic success by countries and the IMF, amongst other large institutions.