What is Critical Thinking?
Critical thinking is an effort to develop reliable, rational evaluations about what is reasonable for us to believe and disbelieve. Critical thinking makes use of the tools of logic and science because it values skepticism over gullibility or dogmatism, reason over faith, science of pseudoscience, and rationality over wishful thinking. Critical thinking does not guarantee that we will arrive at truth, but it does make it much more likely than any of the alternatives do.
A person who wishes to think critically about something like politics or religion must be open-minded. This requires being open to the possibility that not only are others right, but also that you are wrong. Too often people launch into a frenzy of arguments apparently without taking any time to consider that they may be mistaken in something. Of course, it is also possible to be too “open-minded” because not every idea is equally valid or has an equal chance of being true. Although we should technically allow for the possibility that someone is correct, we must still require that they offer support for their claims — if they cannot or do not, we may be justified in dismissing those claims and acting as if they weren’t true.
Because we often have an emotional or other psychological investment in our beliefs, it isn’t unusual for people to step forward and try to defend those beliefs regardless of whether the logic or evidence for them are weak. Indeed, sometimes people will defend an idea even though they really don’t know a great deal about it — they think they do, but they don’t.
A person who tries to practice critical thinking, however, also tries to avoid assuming that they already know everything they need to know. Such a person is willing to allow that someone who disagrees can teach them something relevant and refrains from arguing a position if they are ignorant of important, relevant facts.
Do I believe that I am a critical thinker? Yes, I believe we all use critical thinking one way or another, we use this type of thinking without knowing.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Sunday, April 26, 2009
tfys ch 11
TFYS CH. 11 Inductive reasoning and inductive fallacies
Inductive reasoning consists of inferring from the properties of a sample to the properties of a population as a whole. All inductive reasoning depends on the similarity of the sample and the population. The more similar the same is to the population as a whole, the more reliable will be the inductive inference. On the other hand, if the sample is relevantly dissimilar to the population, then the inductive inference will be unreliable.
No inductive inference is perfect. That means that any inductive inference can sometimes fail. Even though the premises are true, the conclusion might be false. Nonetheless, a good inductive inference gives us a reason to believe that the conclusion is probably true.
Inductive reasoning, or induction, is reasoning from a specific case or cases and deriving a general rule. It draws inferences from observations in order to make generalizations.
Inductive reasoning consists of inferring from the properties of a sample to the properties of a population as a whole. For example, suppose we have a barrel containing of 1,000 beans. Some of the beans are black and some of the beans are white. Suppose now we take a sample of 100 beans from the barrel and that 50 of them are white and 50 of them are black. Then we could infer inductively that half the beans in the barrel (that is, 500 of them) are black and half are white. All inductive reasoning depends on the similarity of the sample and the population. The more similar the same is to the population as a whole, the more reliable will be the inductive inference. On the other hand, if the sample is relevantly dissimilar to the population, then the inductive inference will be unreliable. No inductive inference is perfect. That means that any inductive inference can sometimes fail. Even though the premises are true, the conclusion might be false. Nonetheless, a good inductive inference gives us a reason to believe that the conclusion is probably true.
The false analogy is the fallacy of basing an argument on a comparison of two things that my have the same similarities, but also significant difference that are ignored for the sake of the argument.
Inductive reasoning consists of inferring from the properties of a sample to the properties of a population as a whole. All inductive reasoning depends on the similarity of the sample and the population. The more similar the same is to the population as a whole, the more reliable will be the inductive inference. On the other hand, if the sample is relevantly dissimilar to the population, then the inductive inference will be unreliable.
No inductive inference is perfect. That means that any inductive inference can sometimes fail. Even though the premises are true, the conclusion might be false. Nonetheless, a good inductive inference gives us a reason to believe that the conclusion is probably true.
Inductive reasoning, or induction, is reasoning from a specific case or cases and deriving a general rule. It draws inferences from observations in order to make generalizations.
Inductive reasoning consists of inferring from the properties of a sample to the properties of a population as a whole. For example, suppose we have a barrel containing of 1,000 beans. Some of the beans are black and some of the beans are white. Suppose now we take a sample of 100 beans from the barrel and that 50 of them are white and 50 of them are black. Then we could infer inductively that half the beans in the barrel (that is, 500 of them) are black and half are white. All inductive reasoning depends on the similarity of the sample and the population. The more similar the same is to the population as a whole, the more reliable will be the inductive inference. On the other hand, if the sample is relevantly dissimilar to the population, then the inductive inference will be unreliable. No inductive inference is perfect. That means that any inductive inference can sometimes fail. Even though the premises are true, the conclusion might be false. Nonetheless, a good inductive inference gives us a reason to believe that the conclusion is probably true.
The false analogy is the fallacy of basing an argument on a comparison of two things that my have the same similarities, but also significant difference that are ignored for the sake of the argument.
ch. 10 fallacies
TFYS CH.10 Fallacies: What’s a faulty argument?
A fallacy is a kind of error in reasoning. Fallacies should not be persuasive, but they often are. Fallacies may be created unintentionally, or they may be created intentionally in order to deceive other people. The vast majority of the commonly identified fallacies involve arguments, although some involve explanations, or definitions, or other products of reasoning. Sometimes the term "fallacy" is used even more broadly to indicate any false belief or cause of a false belief. The list below includes some fallacies of these sorts, but most are fallacies that involve kinds of errors made while arguing informally in natural language. There are a number of competing and overlapping ways to classify fallacies of argumentation. For example, they can be classified as either formal or informal. A formal fallacy can be detected by examining the logical form of the reasoning, whereas an informal fallacy depends upon the content of the reasoning and possibly the purpose of the reasoning.
A fallacy is a kind of error in reasoning. Fallacies should not be persuasive, but they often are. Fallacies may be created unintentionally, or they may be created intentionally in order to deceive other people. The vast majority of the commonly identified fallacies involve arguments, although some involve explanations, or definitions, or other products of reasoning. Sometimes the term "fallacy" is used even more broadly to indicate any false belief or cause of a false belief. The list below includes some fallacies of these sorts, but most are fallacies that involve kinds of errors made while arguing informally in natural language. There are a number of competing and overlapping ways to classify fallacies of argumentation. For example, they can be classified as either formal or informal. A formal fallacy can be detected by examining the logical form of the reasoning, whereas an informal fallacy depends upon the content of the reasoning and possibly the purpose of the reasoning.
tfys ch.9
TFYS CH. 9 Argument: What is a good argument?
One important aspect of critical reading is our ability to evaluate arguments, i.e., to judge and assess an argument’s persuasiveness. If you are persuaded by an argument, you will accept it based on the strengths of the reasons provided. Someone who offers a ‘good’ argument is giving you REASONS and EVIDENCE to accept their claim. Therefore, if you look only at the conclusion and accept or reject it without looking at the reasons (premises), you are ignoring the argument.
Arguments represent the bias, interests, and objectives of the viewpoint. To assess an argument, we first must determine the issue, An issue is a controversial problem that evokes different arguments pro and con.
Arguments and reports have very different objectives. We cannot analyze one according to the standards of the other. Although arguments and reports have very different objectives and forms they can be mistaken for one another if their differences are not fully understood.
A quick method for analyzing an argument is to disassemble its structure, first identifying its conclusion and then separating the statement from the reason offered to support it.
One important aspect of critical reading is our ability to evaluate arguments, i.e., to judge and assess an argument’s persuasiveness. If you are persuaded by an argument, you will accept it based on the strengths of the reasons provided. Someone who offers a ‘good’ argument is giving you REASONS and EVIDENCE to accept their claim. Therefore, if you look only at the conclusion and accept or reject it without looking at the reasons (premises), you are ignoring the argument.
Arguments represent the bias, interests, and objectives of the viewpoint. To assess an argument, we first must determine the issue, An issue is a controversial problem that evokes different arguments pro and con.
Arguments and reports have very different objectives. We cannot analyze one according to the standards of the other. Although arguments and reports have very different objectives and forms they can be mistaken for one another if their differences are not fully understood.
A quick method for analyzing an argument is to disassemble its structure, first identifying its conclusion and then separating the statement from the reason offered to support it.
crcb ch. 1
CRCB CH.1 Reading in College
Most of us think of reading as a simple, passive process that involves reading words in a linear fashion and internalizing their meaning one at a time. But reading is actually a very complex process that requires a great deal of active participation on the part of the reader. The first thing you should know about reading in college is that it bears little or no resemblance to the sort of reading you do for pleasure, or for your own edification.
Reading does require concentration. If you find that you are distracted then the ability to concentrate on the text at hand will suffer. Remember, you're reading with a purpose, so focus on the purpose and the material. If you lose interest or keep losing the place, take a break or read something else. You can keep track of where you are by following along with the hand. This simple technique helps you focus and increase concentration skills.
After three or four paragraphs stop and ask yourself whether or not you understand the text. You might need to reread the text in order to:
mark the words/terms you didn’t understand,
find some key words,
find main/specific points
and isolate supporting evidence
Learning with purpose occurs when you actively engage with what you are reading. Learning styles are points along a scale that help us to discover the different forms of mental representations; however, they are not good characterizations of what people are or are not like.
Most of us think of reading as a simple, passive process that involves reading words in a linear fashion and internalizing their meaning one at a time. But reading is actually a very complex process that requires a great deal of active participation on the part of the reader. The first thing you should know about reading in college is that it bears little or no resemblance to the sort of reading you do for pleasure, or for your own edification.
Reading does require concentration. If you find that you are distracted then the ability to concentrate on the text at hand will suffer. Remember, you're reading with a purpose, so focus on the purpose and the material. If you lose interest or keep losing the place, take a break or read something else. You can keep track of where you are by following along with the hand. This simple technique helps you focus and increase concentration skills.
After three or four paragraphs stop and ask yourself whether or not you understand the text. You might need to reread the text in order to:
mark the words/terms you didn’t understand,
find some key words,
find main/specific points
and isolate supporting evidence
Learning with purpose occurs when you actively engage with what you are reading. Learning styles are points along a scale that help us to discover the different forms of mental representations; however, they are not good characterizations of what people are or are not like.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
ch. 12 identifying and evaluating arguments
CRCB CH. 12 IDENTIFYING AND EVALUATING ARGUMENTS
When people create and critique arguments, it's helpful to understand what an argument is and is not. Sometimes an argument is seen as a verbal fight, but that is not what is meant in these discussions. Sometimes a person thinks they are offering an argument when they are only providing assertions. An argument is a deliberate attempt to move beyond just making an assertion. When offering an argument, you are offering a series of related statements which represent an attempt to support that assertion — to give others good reasons to believe that what you are asserting is true rather than false. The purpose of an argument: to offer reasons and evidence for the purpose of establishing the truth value of a proposition, which can mean either establishing that the proposition is true or establishing that the proposition is false. If a series of statements does not do this, it isn’t an argument.
Another aspect of understanding arguments is to examine the parts. An argument can be broken down into three major components: premises, inferences and a conclusion. Premises are statements of (assumed) fact which are supposed to set forth the reasons and/or evidence for believing a claim. The claim, in turn, is the conclusion: what you finish with at the end of an argument. When an argument is simple, you may just have a couple of premises and a conclusion. Inferences are the reasoning parts of an argument. Conclusions are a type of inference, but always the final inference. Usually an argument will be complicated enough to require inferences linking the premises with the final conclusion.
Unfortunately, most arguments aren’t presented in such a logical and clear manner as the above examples, making them difficult to decipher sometimes. But every argument which really is an argument should be capable of being reformulated in such a manner. If you cannot do that, then it is reasonable to suspect that something is wrong.
When people create and critique arguments, it's helpful to understand what an argument is and is not. Sometimes an argument is seen as a verbal fight, but that is not what is meant in these discussions. Sometimes a person thinks they are offering an argument when they are only providing assertions. An argument is a deliberate attempt to move beyond just making an assertion. When offering an argument, you are offering a series of related statements which represent an attempt to support that assertion — to give others good reasons to believe that what you are asserting is true rather than false. The purpose of an argument: to offer reasons and evidence for the purpose of establishing the truth value of a proposition, which can mean either establishing that the proposition is true or establishing that the proposition is false. If a series of statements does not do this, it isn’t an argument.
Another aspect of understanding arguments is to examine the parts. An argument can be broken down into three major components: premises, inferences and a conclusion. Premises are statements of (assumed) fact which are supposed to set forth the reasons and/or evidence for believing a claim. The claim, in turn, is the conclusion: what you finish with at the end of an argument. When an argument is simple, you may just have a couple of premises and a conclusion. Inferences are the reasoning parts of an argument. Conclusions are a type of inference, but always the final inference. Usually an argument will be complicated enough to require inferences linking the premises with the final conclusion.
Unfortunately, most arguments aren’t presented in such a logical and clear manner as the above examples, making them difficult to decipher sometimes. But every argument which really is an argument should be capable of being reformulated in such a manner. If you cannot do that, then it is reasonable to suspect that something is wrong.
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