Uncertainty
The privative concept of uncertainty is more important in science, technology, and ethics than its positive root, certainty. (There is no entry in the encyclopedia on certainty.) This is the case for two reasons: Uncertainty is more common than certainty, and the implications of uncertainty for human action are more problematic than certainty. Uncertainty in science or engineering appears to call for an ethical assessment; uncertainty in ethics is a cause for moral concern. Nevertheless before discussing uncertainty, it is useful to begin with some considerations of certainty, the positive notion from which it is derived.
Certainty and Uncertainty in History
Concern for certainty as a distinct issue emerges at the same time as modern natural science. In premodern philosophy and science, it is difficult to find any term or concept that is strictly analogous. The Latin certus, the etymological root of certainty, is from the verb cernere, meaning to decide or determine; the Greek cognate krinein means to separate, pick out, decide, or judge. This sense remains in English when speaking of a certain X, indicating one item picked out from a group.
The concept of certainty in something approaching the modern sense is first given extended analysis in relation to religious faith.
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