Austin Kohlman January 29, 2012 (3R Holguin) TOK Knowledge Essay I know that in 1969, human kind,

through the experiences of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, first set foot upon the moons surface. The knowledge that man has walked on the moon, however, seems to be a generally accepted fact rather than a justifiable claim in the minds of all who believe it to be so. Even credible, contemporary history sources such as PBS and The Journal of Contemporary History celebrate the event with anniversaries and special documentations. That obsession with mans first steps on the moon gives the impression of a common agreement, with commemorations of the event having more to do with the influential statements it carried than the facts of the matter. For example, the 40th anniversary page on NASAs own website, memorializes the Apollo landing by mentioning the global impact space exploration has had on our modern world and featuring multiple links to testimonials by people who felt strongly about the landing itself, but only recognizes the actual event through a range of pictures from Apollo missions from the past and modern day, with most of them not having captions too. In 2001, most of the hoax theories developed from a televised special event on Fox News, where theorists, championed by Bill Kaysing, battled the claims of NASA. The evidence and speculations made by the televised event, however, were so contradictory and without basis that Fox News itself had a disclaimer at the beginning of the program that warned viewers of the conflictive nature of any statements made, and how they do not at all reflect the channel itself. All other evidence and credibility of such evidence put forward, though, is enough for me to know and recognize that the act took place. NASA, standing for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is distinguished as Americas foremost leader on space information. They also spearheaded the efforts of the Apollo 11 mission, allowing for the astronauts to finally take their steps on the moon. Publicly, what NASA says, goes. As for me, I take them at their word most of the time. Not only are they a government appointed branch, they are staffed with some of the most incredible and ingenious scientists produced in and out of our country such as Charles Bolden, and Lori Garver, the Primary and vice administrators. Not only does this administration provide massive amounts of scientific data to back up its findings from the Apollo missions, and as a leading authority on all space exploration, NASA can typically be construed an honest figure in the scientific world. The knowing that the mission actually took place does not only come from the backing up of the NASA community, as the credibility of NASA on the subject is what has been called into effect by hoaxers and theorists. For one, we see the flag moving side to side in the video of the astronauts planting the American symbol into the ground. The explanation found not only coheres to common sense, but has been put into effect by many outdoorsmen before. Whenever constructing a tent, grounding the blunt tips of the poles can sometimes prove difficult, and one

must wiggle, jostle, and rotate the ends into the ground. When doing so, wind or no wind, and protruding material such as tent flaps, will sway back and forth in the air. Therefore, even in the zero gravity and zero air environment, the flag waving in the air is rather commonplace. Another point of justification for the knowledge that man first placed foot on the moon comes from the explanation to another piece of evidence famously cited by theorists, which can actually be put into practice. Conspiracy theorists have consistently said that the whole ordeal must have been faked, due to the video and pictures lacking any starry skies above, though on the moon which wouldve had no light filters, allowing for easy viewing of the stars. Firstly, the nearly 841 pounds of lunar rocks that the astronauts carried back with them (more evidence) gave insight into the reasons the astronauts were never quoted as to seeing a wonderful star-full night. Lunar dust, lacking any residues of water, reflects light particles much better than earth rocks and foliage. This not only explains that the astronauts would have seen a tremendous amount of glare from the sun to the moons surface, but also explains why we see the moon light up the sky nearly every night instead of complete darkness. This evidence is fully encompassing of the topic, and extremely applicable to real life situations, verifying it to nearly anyone with the ability to see. However, theorists took it one step further, and mentioned that since none of the pictures had stars, it still must have been faked, since cameras surely must have picked up the bright stars. Explanations for this have been verified by photographers nonetheless. The cameras that the astronauts operated function similarly to the human eye, which gives insight into the development of their pictures. Since the astronauts were not only dealing with the glare of the sun when taking photos, but also the same massive fireball on the horizon, exposure and aperture had to be adjusted in order to provide pictures that werent completely white. This can be easily put into practice, and is typically doe so every morning to any unsuspecting teenager. For example, when my mother walks in on occasion to wake me from a peaceful slumber, she opens the blinds to my windows, allowing light to flood the room. When I open my eyes, the brightness is overwhelming and almost completely white at first glance. The same goes for the pictures taken with background light. Photographers, or the astronauts in this case, have to adjust the exposure and aperture of the camera, much like the pupil of your eye does, to let less light in. So, the sun, which is much brighter than any star in the sky, would be the only shining object in any photo or video. Often people take knowledge less seriously than we should, and represent stories without any credibility as knowledge without the justification to back it, as exampled by the countless rumors and tales of melodramatic high school life. The same is displayed here, where many of the people that NASA models can remember where they were at the time and the profound impact the event had, but none really say how they knew it happened just that it did. Conspiracy theories as a whole sometimes feel like they can be true, as some are supported by mysteriously convincing evidence, such as the YouTube videos on the conspiracy about tunnels underneath Denver International Airport. Other times, however, the hoaxes seem ridiculous, like

the fact that Elvis would still be alive after 35 years of disappearance. In all cases, however, we have to actually look closer into theories to see the truth in them, and in the process we can learn some interesting things too, as I have. When one says I know, they must have the same kind of justification for that knowledge they would for saying that they know that their name is what it is. Thats why I can say I know that in 1969, human kind, through the experiences of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, first set foot upon the moons surface.