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Are some types of knowledge more useful than others? - Coggle Diagram
Are some types of knowledge more useful than others?
The usefulness of knowledge is dependent on many factors, such as the knower's goals, the applicability of the knowledge (size of knowing population), and context (time and space)
But perhaps more objectively, knowledge that can be applied to a large group of people to fulfill dire needs such as health, wellbeing, and life is more important than satisfying an individual knower
Goals: Abstract theoretical knowledge or niche historical knowledge
Such knowledge rarely have direct relevance to contemporary issues and are not always useful in utilitarian problem-solving. However, obtaining such knowledge may fulfill other goals important to the knower
Point: knowledge that is seemingly useless to the general public can actually be perfectly useful
Objects: my research papers on snuff bottles and comparative philosophy
Context:
Knowing how to start a fire was far more useful in prehistoric times than in modern society.
That is because we have alternate solutions to solving issues of warmth and protection (and to start a fire). E.g. stoves, lighters, heaters
Perhaps this point about context is more closely related to the idea of goals. The goals of the knower changes depending on the context. Prehistoric humans had a dire goal of protecting themselves, whereas we don't today.
Knowing how to code is more useful for college students hoping to pursue computer science than youth in the countryside pursuing agriculture
Again, the goals of these different groups are different and so the usefulness of such knowledge is also different. CS-majors will gain utility from knowing how to code because it will grant them better job offers and offer a better quality of life. People who don't want to study computer science will gain less utility from knowing how to code because they enjoy other things far more or can make a living without needing to know how to code
It can be said that context shapes goals, and goals determine the usefulness of knowledge
Applicability
First aid is very useful knowledge because everyone in the world can use it to solve the key issue of health
Useful knowledge can be applied in a large range of contexts by a large range of knowers to solve extremely important issues
Object: first aid manual
Definitions
Useful: has the potential to help the knower reach a desired goal
Types of knowledge: procedural, explicit, tacit, explicit, implicit