First, an apology as this comment is going to be frustratingly lacking much in the way of concrete examples. I have the kernel of an idea, but it would require more thought than I’m willing to put into it to expand it. I post it to get it out of my head and in case maybe someone else will want to think about it more...
I kind of understand the categories you’re trying to carve out, but I’m also leery of them. It feels like your descriptions of the categories make assumptions about meanings and these assumptions are hidden and a person could trick themselves.
I’d have to think about it a lot more to really pin down the ephemeral idea I’m trying to get at, but it’s similar to the observation I’ve made here before that Sherlock Holmes’s observation that “Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.” is dangerous because its too easy to convince yourself that you’ve explored all the possible explanations.
In a similar manner, your description of why something should be considered engineering or scientific knowledge feels as if a person could convince themselves without realizing it that a thing belongs in one category or another where from an objective standpoint you’d be able to make a rational argument for something appearing in either category.
It also feels as if many things will switch between categories depending upon your priors. Your system as stated seems like it would put reciting the steps to make bread and making bread with those steps into separate categories. As an avid bread maker, I’m currently unconvinced of the utility of a category system that would put reciting the steps to make bread and actually making bread with those steps into different categories. I guess I would ask what is the goal of putting those two things into separate categories? What do you hope to get out of doing so?
On the other hand, I’m also unconvinced that a category system has to be so rigorous to be useful. It might be that a category system can be just rigorous enough to help a person...but, like I said, I’m leery that it will lead a person astray from their goals of using such a system without them realizing it.
First, an apology as this comment is going to be frustratingly lacking much in the way of concrete examples. I have the kernel of an idea, but it would require more thought than I’m willing to put into it to expand it. I post it to get it out of my head and in case maybe someone else will want to think about it more...
I kind of understand the categories you’re trying to carve out, but I’m also leery of them. It feels like your descriptions of the categories make assumptions about meanings and these assumptions are hidden and a person could trick themselves.
I’d have to think about it a lot more to really pin down the ephemeral idea I’m trying to get at, but it’s similar to the observation I’ve made here before that Sherlock Holmes’s observation that “Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.” is dangerous because its too easy to convince yourself that you’ve explored all the possible explanations.
In a similar manner, your description of why something should be considered engineering or scientific knowledge feels as if a person could convince themselves without realizing it that a thing belongs in one category or another where from an objective standpoint you’d be able to make a rational argument for something appearing in either category.
It also feels as if many things will switch between categories depending upon your priors. Your system as stated seems like it would put reciting the steps to make bread and making bread with those steps into separate categories. As an avid bread maker, I’m currently unconvinced of the utility of a category system that would put reciting the steps to make bread and actually making bread with those steps into different categories. I guess I would ask what is the goal of putting those two things into separate categories? What do you hope to get out of doing so?
On the other hand, I’m also unconvinced that a category system has to be so rigorous to be useful. It might be that a category system can be just rigorous enough to help a person...but, like I said, I’m leery that it will lead a person astray from their goals of using such a system without them realizing it.