Epistemology is the study of knowledge – how we know things, what it means to know something, and the limits of what we can know. Epistemology can often seem like an abstract philosophical pursuit, but it has many important applications in underpinning our ideas about assessing evidence in science, law, politics, and elsewhere. This page contains an introduction to key concepts in epistemology, providing a basic introduction and the basis for further reading in particular topics of interest.
Knowledge and Skepticism
Theories of Justification
Knowledge Acquisition
Deduction, induction, and abduction
Scientific Knowledge
Theory dependence of observation
Additional Resources
Theory of Knowledge: comprehensive lecture notes for university course on epistemology
Understanding Science: An overview: great web series produced by UC Berkley
Epistemology: useful introduction
Epistemology: Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
What is epistemology: useful introductory article
What is philosophy of science: Scientific American article outlining the importance of philosophy of science for scientists
Epistemology: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Epistemology resources: useful set of materials from Importance of Philosophy
James Fodor 