Saying that something is 100% true o real because it's a "tried and tested" fact - which is based off experimentation - does not seem quite right to me, to begin with, we are creatures that cannot fully perceive their surroundings, our universe, in it's entirety, we facilitate and factualize something based on information that is rather incomplete then call it a fact, yet there's almost always a missing piece/s of the puzzle.
As a race, in order for us to know, we experiment, then we try to hypothesize, experiment some more, a process of trial and error and, after reaching results that seem stable enough we make a specific law, then in order to convey it in scale, we simplify our already flawed data, we mitigate the sophisticated nature of things in words that are oft perceived in a different light by those we try to convey them to, as each and every one of us is shaped by his life, his experiences and his reaction to it all.
Not to exclude our unique sense of whimsy, heck, even one's MOOD could be a factor in how we relay information, take how a lot of people inflate news, then spread them like wildfire as a slight example.
Current form of social media and the internet are the ultimate forms of what a double edged sword can be, while they can be a powerful voice, a place where civilians can "unite" and have a powerful effect on well, everything they can create trends, stigmas, stereotypes and ultimately.. hate. They spread the information as they see fit, whether it comes to it's amount or credibility.
Recent psychological studies reached the conclusion that reality is shaped by our how our brains perceive them and that, our brains ( Or minds ? the splitting lines blur ) are so fundamentally different to the point that we might perceive what we call reality differently, some by how their instincts perceive their surroundings and their basic nature, the ones we're born with, the ones that are passed down from someone in our family's line.
Others, shaped by their experiences, their friction with people, our reaction towards all this, there's a nearly infinite number of variables that takes part in shaping our minds and in turn, brains and even body and ultimately, perception.
Morality, and oh how spectacularly can two colors mash when it comes to this subject, the siblings that clash to create a magnificent ace of spades, the ones that mix to create each and everyone's own unique shade of grey, their dark and light - black and white. Morality, which is one of the big shark factors of creating how people live their lives or, eating at it and, in turn, form a big part of their respective perceptions of how the world spins.
In the end, keeping an open mind is key.
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
- Aristotle
Awareness that whatever is human is relative, thus imperfect and incomplete - is the key to evolution, as knowing one's weaknesses always is.
Luckily though, adaptation and flexibility is also one of our many traits.. elsewise we'd have been in dire straits by now.
This is by no means an educational post, just personal thoughts that seeped through my fingers, thanks for reading.
(image courtesy of Google search, as usual.)