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    If epistemic uncertainty approaches zero as a mathematica... — Carmelics
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    Challenges→Uncertainty in epistemic states cannot be eliminated even with infinite past observations

    If epistemic uncertainty approaches zero as a mathematical limit under infinite observation, the practical and theoretical distinction between 'eliminated' and 'asymptotically eliminated' collapses for any finite evidentiary purpose.

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    Reasons For

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    Reason for
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    • 1.Practical decision-making requires confidence thresholds, not absolute certainty; asymptotic elimination meets any finite threshold.
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    • 2.The distinction collapses operationally: we cannot empirically detect difference between uncertainty of 10^-100 and zero.
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    • 3.Finite agents with finite lifespans cannot access infinity; treating limits as practical equivalents avoids paralyzing skepticism.
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    Reasons Against

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    Reason against
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    • 1.Mathematical limits describe infinite processes; finite observation never instantiates the limit itself, only approaches it.
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    • 2.Residual uncertainty, however small, retains epistemic significance: it grounds justified doubt and intellectual humility about finitude.
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    • 3.Conflating limits with values enables false confidence; treating asymptotic elimination as elimination obscures remaining error risk.
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    Key Terms

    Asymptotically eliminated(contrasted with 'eliminated' to describe uncertainty)
    Reduced so close to zero (or complete removal) that for practical purposes it's basically gone, even though technically a tiny bit might remain.
    Epistemic uncertainty(as used in epistemology (the study of knowledge))
    The doubt or lack of confidence we have about whether something is actually true or whether we really know it.
    Evidentiary(describing what purposes we actually care about)
    Relating to evidence—the facts, observations, or data we use to support or prove something.
    Mathematical limit(describing how uncertainty shrinks with infinite observation)
    A value that a number gets closer and closer to as you keep doing something (like taking more measurements), even if it never quite reaches that exact value.
    epistemology(Contrasted with purely descriptive scientific inquiry)
    A normative enterprise that tells us how we ought to reason from evidence and how we ought to justify our beliefs, as distinct from merely describing how we do reason or justify beliefs

    Connections

    2 topics

    Truth & Knowledge1 linkedSkepticism1 linked

    Related

    Conflating limits with values enables false confidence; treating asymptotic elim...Finite agents with finite lifespans cannot access infinity; treating limits as p...Mathematical limits describe infinite processes; finite observation never instan...Practical decision-making requires confidence thresholds, not absolute certainty...
    +3 moreShow less
    Residual uncertainty, however small, retains epistemic significance: it grounds ...The distinction collapses operationally: we cannot empirically detect difference...

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    Uncertainty in epistemic states cannot be eliminated even with infinite past obs...