branhampaul
PAULPIPAR IN: WHAT IS A PROOF? WHAT IS AN EVIDENCE?
(Feb 02 2019 at 11:18am)
PAULPIPAR IN: WHAT IS A PROOF? WHAT IS AN EVIDENCE?
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Everyday, every moments and every time, humans do make all sorts of assertions, and it is usually blurry trying to separate the truth statements from the false claims.
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Now, if we are to believe every statements that people make daily, there would be much disorderliness and unwarranted consequences.
For the sake of avoiding these unmerited consequences, logic and mathematics developed a phenomenon called EVIDENCE & PROOF.
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The phenomena EVIDENCE & PROOF is what I will be expatiating on, in the paragraphs hereafter.
For EVIDENCE pertaining to COURT PROCEDURES, it is better you consult the Evidence Act or a Legal Practitioner personally.
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According to the Android English Dictionary called "English v.3.6", EVIDENCE is defined as "FACTS OR OBSERVATIONS PRESENTED IN SUPPORT OF AN ASSERTION."
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Here's my own definition of the word "EVIDENCE": "EVIDENCE IS ANYTHING RANGING FROM POINTS, WITNESSES, PHYSICAL FACTS, RECORDINGS, WRITTINGS, OR ANYTHING THAT TENDS TO SUPPORT A CLAIM MADE."
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An evidence could be true or false.
It is good if I point out herein that an evidence is different from a proof. Most people meant to say "evidence" when they use the word "proof".
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As stated hereinabove, "evidence" are things that support a claim, but a proof is something that is factual and has been already established.
A proof is any demonstration that says something is so and necessarily so. I say also that a proof is a "logical evidence". For example, finding a gun at a crime scene is an evidence but not a proof because we haven't tell yet if the gun was used by the accused or it was dropped there by someone else.
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The Android English Dictionary v3.6 defines PROOF as "THE DEGREE OF EVIDENCE WHICH CONVINCES THE MIND OF ANY TRUTH OR FACT, AND PRODUCES BELIEF".
For example, a claim that "Paul suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder" is a mere statement, providing evidence to support such claim is good, but if such evidence aren't logical in soundness, it isn't a proof that "Paul suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder", but if the contrary, then those evidence are proof that indeed "Paul suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder".
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Proof is always logical meanwhile evidence could be logical or illogical. For example, asserting that the Sun is smaller than the earth because many people can see it with their eyes from the earth that it looks smaller is an evidence, but it is untrue because science proves contrary, and therefore not a proof that the Sun is small.
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So whenever someone instructs you to prove a claim, all they are saying is that you should provide a logical evidence to support your claim.
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The importance of why every claim should be proven cannot be overemphasised, this will not only curb unnecessary claims, it will also enhance good reasoning and judgements.
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Rumours today fly because people are not well educated to ask for proofs of claims before telling it to the next man. And this is a very bad tradition for the society, especially in Africa where some people believe whatever without probing.
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Every claim must be proven to be true before one accepts it. Mere talks or because such claim was written in a book isn't truth of such claim. If relinquishing the asking for evidence should be condoned, it will lead to floodgates of false claims which people will believe and therefore can lead to unwarranted consequences.
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If one asserts that a picture is fake, it is paramount that such person provides evidence to prove his claim.
Merely saying the picture is fake or a certain element can't happen isn't an evidence. To provide an evidence for such claim will necessitate the person to either show how that certain elements can't happen, or provide a video showing when the so called picture was being edited, or do anything external that is necessary to strengthen one's claim.
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It will be pertinent if I point out that one merely stating that something happened to him/her isn't an evidence, anybody could assert such. For example, a person merely saying that he saw God in is bedroom without providing logical evidence to support such assertion is a joker.
You can't be the only witness to your own misfortune or fortunate circumstance. There have to be something external that validates your ground, either another person was around, or you have a video of such happening, which will also be subjected to testing to ascertain if such video isn't phony.
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Authorities could be an evidence to support your claim, but such authority must be well scrutinized.
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Whenever you don't know a thing say you don't know.
And whenever you air an opinion always tell your audience that it is an opinion.
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There's no harm in being humble.
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Always require an evidence before believing or passing out an information. And such evidence must conform to the rules of logic.
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Shalom!
# evidence #proof # paulpipar
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