In today’s media-driven world, the line between fact and fiction has been severely blurred. Marketers embellish the truth about their products to stimulate demand. Politicians often tell half-truths or outright lies to inflame emotions, deflect from the real issues, or spin their narrative. Banks and other corporations seem to think that lying and cheating are acceptable as long as you don’t get caught (and less regulation = more to get away with). Indeed, this type of behavior has become the norm in our society.
Whatever happened to ethics? What are we teaching our children with this type of behavior? We clearly need to demand from ourselves and our fellow citizens a more ethical, logical, and well-reasoned public discourse. But where do we start? Where can we find common ground.
To answer these questions, we must begin at the beginning. There need to be ground rules. Obviously, we need to use the rules of logic, reasoning, and the scientific method. Then we must ask ourselves: What is truth? What are the characteristics of truth? Are there different kinds of truths? If there are, then how can we define them? Can they be tested and proven? Are there any exceptions?
What occurs to me is that there seem to be three kinds of truth: Ultimate TRUTH, Relative Truth, and personal truth. Let us look at each in turn and see whether you agree.
Ultimate TRUTH
To me, Ultimate TRUTH has specific characteristics that can be defined as follows:
It is Always True, and by extension, it is Never Not True.
It doesn’t change with time or circumstances.
It doesn’t depend on your belief to make it True.
It’s the same for everyone, at all times.
It is testable, provable, and repeatable.
There is no evidence to contradict it or put limits on it.
In this book, we will spell Ultimate TRUTH in all caps (TRUE, TRUTH) to distinguish it from other kinds. We will also accept something to be an Ultimate TRUTH if it holds TRUE within the bounds of the known universe (and state it as so with that caveat), since that is the only frame of reference we have to go by. Other universes or dimensions of existence may or may not exist, but without concrete evidence, they must be considered mere speculation at this point.
Relative Truth
A Relative Truth is always True within certain bounds but is not necessarily True outside of those bounds. A good example is the difference between Newtonian Physics and Quantum (Particle) Physics. Newtonian Physics holds True within the bounds of the macroscopic world and at non-relativistic speeds (relativistic = speeds approaching the speed of light) but breaks down at the quantum (subatomic) level and at speeds approaching the speed of light.
Quantum Physics, on the other hand, does a very good job characterizing the world of the very small, very fast, and very high energy.
Another example that may be more familiar is the normal state of water at various temperatures. When the temperature is below the freezing point at sea level (32°F or 0°C), liquid water will gradually freeze into a solid (ice). When it is above the freezing point and below the boiling point (212°F or 100°C), it will turn into its liquid form, and when above the boiling point, it will turn into a gas (steam).
But we also know that when not in a closed system (such as in a closed bottle), liquid water will evaporate over time, and ice will sublimate (the term for the transition of a substance from solid directly into a gas) over time. There is also a fourth state of water between solid and liquid that most people know nothing about. Like ice but missing a hydrogen ion, it acts like a gel and liquid crystal.
This example is good in that it illustrates how important it is to see the larger picture and recognize how other factors we might not be aware of might influence the validity of our thinking.
From here on out, when we say that something is True
(capitalized, but not all caps), we are referring to a Relative Truth and NOT an Ultimate TRUTH. From a practical point of view, most of the things we believe to be TRUE are Relative Truths at best, as we shall show.
Personal truth (belief, opinion, conviction)
A personal truth is something you believe to be true but does not meet all of the criteria of an Ultimate TRUTH or a Relative Truth. It is usually a belief, opinion, or conviction, and may be a result of delusional thinking. But a personal truth can also result from a profound personal experience.
For example, when I was around 8 years old, something happened to me that to this day I cannot explain away. It has become a part of my own personal truth.
When I was that age, we used to spend two months of the summer on the beach at Ocean City, MD. I was a little water rat and loved being in the ocean or in the Olympic-sized pool next door. One of my favorite things to do in the pool was to see how far I could swim underwater. To feel more like a fish, I liked to swim near the bottom of the pool while testing myself. As I recall, my limit was just under the length of the pool. I would blow out the air in my lungs at the very end to relax my chest and get another stroke or two in before surfacing. Additionally, it meant I didn’t have to exhale once I reached the surface; I could just breathe in. This method helped—I could go marginally farther. But it set me up for what happened next.
One day, I was at the pool and again testing my limits. This time, I went too far and breathed in underwater about two or three feet below the surface. The thing is, no water came in—it was like breathing air! Even at 8, I KNEW that wasn’t right! I got out of the pool and told my mom what happened, but she just brushed it off, saying I must be imagining things. To her, I looked fine.
But I knew I didn’t imagine it. It REALLY HAPPENED! In fact, about two weeks later, I was back in the same pool, testing my limits yet again, and the same thing happened! I didn’t bother telling my mom that time, but I also decided not to press my luck and push myself that far anymore.
So, my personal truth from that moment on was that things can happen that are outside of the bounds of what is supposed to be possible. It also sparked my interest in the unexplained and enhanced my desire to learn as much as I could about how things really worked. That is partly why I later became an electrical engineer.
Personal truths can result from profound personal experiences but must be recognized as not readily testable, provable, or repeatable. Others may or may not have had similar experiences. The important thing to remember is that no matter how strongly we feel about our personal truths, they are only yet-to-be-proven theories at best and have not risen to the level of a Relative Truth or an Ultimate TRUTH.