(Originally Written October 26, 2006 in Book 8)
[Observations passive and private or active and public]
Many philosophers view observation as passive and private. It is passive because we open our eyes and direct them to a certain spot and simply let the info flow in. If perceptions were truly like this, then it is overtly private.
The view of perception/observation as private and passive is totally inadequate. Perception is both consciously and subconsciously an active affair.
Perceptions are also public because they are shared by statements and then checked by other people.
[Galileo and the moons of Jupiter]
Galileo discovered four moons orbiting Jupiter. Opponents of heliocentricism argued that if the earth rotated around the sun then the moon would be left behind. But, if Jupiter, (which obviously revolved around something, earth or the sun or anything else) and had moons this would cause heliocentric objections on the account of the moon to collapse. In order to prove that these moons really did revolve around Jupiter, Galileo made observational procedures for Copernicus advocates to follow. They all followed and a majority of advocates and opponents validated Galileo's findings. This observational procedure was obviously public and active, rather than passive and private.
[Observable facts objective, but fallible]
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