Perception and Testimony as Data Providers
Luciano Floridi · 2019
Abstract The first part of this chapter articulates an answer in terms of a re-interpretation of perception and testimony as data providers rather than full-blown cases of knowledge. But then, if perception and testimony are correctly understood as data providers, how is one supposed (to apply this analysis in order) to understand the semantic value of the data provided by such processes? The second part of the chapter argues in favour of a constructionist hypothesis about how data may become meaningful for human cognitive agents through a process of repurposing of natural data/signals. The conclusion of the chapter is that, from a non-naturalistic, constructionist perspective, human agents are natural-born data hackers.