lenny unencumbered

Absolute certainty is an illusion. Hence, I am almost always dealing with uncertainty, whether I’m aware of it or not.

French philosopher René Descartes is often quoted as claiming, “Cogito, ergo sum.” It is translated as “I think, therefore I am.” It is meant to mean that doubting or thinking proves your own conscious existence. However, that expression does not accurately convey what he meant because it is an incomplete quotation. The full and more accurate quotation is:

Dubito, cogito, ergo sum.

This translates to “I doubt, therefore I think, therefore I am.” This more accurately conveys a process in which doubt leads to thinking. Doubt invokes the scientific process, which deals in probabilities rather than absolute certainties. Doubt requires thinking, while certainty extinguishes the need for it.

I hope I haven’t explained that as obtusely as most philosophers do.