Sebastian Kletzl (Vienna): Thermometers and Telescopes – Towards an (Social) Epistemology of Instruments

Thermometers and Telescopes – Towards an (Social) Epistemology of Instruments

Abstract: How do I know the exact temperature? Or the exact time? Or the exact transition times of stars? Often one arrives at such knowledge by way of various instruments. The outputs of numerous instruments are an important way of acquiring knowledge; especially in science but also in our everyday lives. Given this importance it is my contention that philosophy of science and also epistemology has hitherto largely ignored the extent to which this brings a social component into our (scientific) knowledge. To show this I want to use two instruments as an example – thermometers and telescopes – and compare them to testimony as a source of knowledge. I try to show how instruments and testimony as sources of knowledge share some interesting features and how this can be made relevant for an epistemology of instruments.