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Table of ContentsRational / Critical Thought

Rational / Critical Thought - 11 / 19 / 2002
deductive logic
    Aristotle
    syllogism
        - a particular kind of argument containing three categorical propositions,
            two of them premises, one a conclusion
        categorical statement
            - a statement about the relationship between categories
        four basic relationships between two categories
            one category is a subset of the other
            one category is not a subset of the other
            two categories intersect
            two categories do not intersect
        all, some & no
            256 combinations
            16 valid combination
critical thought
    know yourself
        personal biases
        cultural biases
            explicit
            implicit
    avoid simplistic explanations
        the failure of simplistic solutions
            prohibition
            the war on drugs
    assume nothing
        questioning the "accepted" knowledge
    accept nothing without independent verification
        preferably from two or more reliable sources
    double check new data that contradicts existing data
        trust your experience / paradigm [see Paradigms & Worlds]
    recognize assertions
        broad, sweeping statements
        everyone, everybody, anybody, we all, as you all — "know(s)"
    directly address the questionable data
        misdirection
        poisoning the well
            indirect attacks
    pressuring
    data selection
        what's not being examined
            omission
    how does the "proof" relate to the assertion
        even if the "proof" is true, is it relevant?
    rules & proof
        the general & the specific
    word choice
        redefinition
        ambiguous words
            fuzzy logic
            equivocal statements
            - open to two or more interpretations and often intended to mislead [AHD 3]
        accent & stress
    context
        quotations
    reputation of source
        reliability
    anthropomorphize
        - to ascribe human characteristics to [AHD 3]
fuzzy logic  
    intuition [see  Intuitive Thought]
general semantics
    Alfred Korzybski
    the map is not the territory
    emotional loading
    message & metamessage [see Communication]
        implicit message
        framing
            context
  
Deepening Witchcraft - Grey Cat
Science and Sanity: An Introduction to Non-Aristotelian Systems
    and General Semantics - Alfred Korzybski

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