Well, you've got the first part covered, "based on the available evidence, what is the most likely conclusion" and now you're working on the second part, "is it possible that there may be additional evidence that I'm not currently aware of that might be salient".
We are ever transitioning from "I know this much" to "I know this much plus 1." And we exist within that infinite period of transition, never stopping long enough in the start or finish state to be able to say, with any certainty, "There, that's the way things are."
Well, it feels to me as if I am learning to distrust my mind's ability to process information.
Well, you've got the first part covered, "based on the available evidence, what is the most likely conclusion" and now you're working on the second part, "is it possible that there may be additional evidence that I'm not currently aware of that might be salient".
We are ever transitioning from "I know this much" to "I know this much plus 1." And we exist within that infinite period of transition, never stopping long enough in the start or finish state to be able to say, with any certainty, "There, that's the way things are."
Science is merely a set of tools that provide provisional conclusions.
There are very few things that are permanent and unchanging.
For example,