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82 Cards in this Set

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Define Explanation
A statement (or set of statements) asserting why or how something is the case.
- ‘The bucket leaks because there’s a hole in it.’
- ‘She did better this time by studying harder.’
- These are intended to clarify, to help us understand (rather than to convince us).
Define Procedural explanation
Explains how something is done.
- ‘To sweeten it, add a little honey.’
- ‘I got here by taking North St to Robie St, and then following Robie all the way to school.’
Define Interpretive explanation
Explains the meaning of terms or states of affairs.
- ‘To “posit” means to suggest, or to assume.’
- ‘When she laughed, it meant she was nervous.’
Define functional explanation
Explains how something works or functions.
- ‘The heart circulates blood through the body.’
- ‘This medicine works by neutralizing stomach acids.’
Define teleological explanation
Explains the purpose of something, or why it’s there, or how it fits into a plan.
- ‘This switch is for turning the lights on and off.’
- ‘We studied inductive logic so that we can understand science better.’
- ‘Rain falls in order to make the flowers grow!’
Define theoretical explanations
Theories, or hypotheses, that try to explain:
- Why something is the way it is;
- why something is the case; or
- why something happened.
This kind includes all causal explanations.
What 4 terms are used in categorical statements
Subject, predicate, copula and quantifier term
ex: All cats are carnivores
subject term = cats
predicate term = carnivores
copula = are (or are not)
quantifier = all (no or some)
What are the 4 forms of categorical statements?
All S are P. (All cats are carnivores.)
No S are P. (No cats are carnivores.)
Some S are P. (Some cats are carnivores.)
Some S are not P. (Some cats are not carnivores.)
What is a universal affirmative statement?
Given the symbol A
All S are P
ex: ‘All students are trouble-makers.’
What is a universal negative statement?
Given the symbol E
No S are P
ex: ‘No “A-students” are slackers.’
What is particular affirmative statement?
Given the symbol I
Some S are P
ex: ‘Some people are liars.’
What is particular negative statement?
Given the symbol O
Some S are not P
ex: Some profs are not meanies.’
What is a deductive argument?
A deductive argument is intended to provide logically conclusive proof for its conclusion.
What is an inductive argument?
An inductive argument is intended to supply only probable support for its conclusion.
What are the types of inductive reasoning?
- Enumerative induction
- Statistical syllogisms
- Analogical induction
- Causal arguments
What is enumerative induction?
Reason from characteristics of the group to those of a member of that group:
- Most Philosophers I’ve met are nerds.
- MacDonald is a Philosopher.
- So, MacDonald is probably a nerd too!
Start with premises about individual members of a group and reason to conclusions about the group as a whole.
- The movement is from particular to general.
ex: ‘I’ve owned 2 Dell computers, and both sucked. I’m starting to think all Dell computers are crap.’
What is the target population/target group?
The group as a whole.
It’s what we’re aiming to reach a conclusion about.
What is the Sample?
The observed members of the target group.
What is relevant property/property in question?
The property or characteristic we’re interested in.
What is an example of enumerative induction with the target group, sample and relevant property?
‘40 per cent of people in our survey said they support the Conservative Party. So, we expect the Conservatives to get 40 per cent of votes in this election.’
- Target group: Canadian voters
- Sample: people surveyed
- Property: voting/supporting conservative
What does sample size help with? in enumerative induction
The reliability of a generalization depends partly on the size of the sample used.
- Basing a conclusion on inadequate sample size results in hasty generalization
- Generally: the larger the sample, the more likely it is to reliably reflect the nature of the larger group.
How does representativeness affect enumerative induction?
To be useful in enumerative induction, a sample must be representative.
- It must represent the target group.
- If it doesn’t, then it’s a biased sample.
What is an example of enumerative induction?
‘Nova Scotians are strongly in favour of a freeze on tuition. We surveyed 500 university students, and they said . . .’
What is a statistical syllogism?
Use inductive reasoning to move from at statistical generalization (about a group) to a conclusion about some member of that group
What is the pattern to statistical syllogism?
- Premise 1: A proportion X of the group M have characteristic P.
- Premise 2: Individual S is member of group M.
- Conclusion: Individual S has characteristic P.
How do you analyze a statistical syllogism?
To analyze a statistical syllogism, we need to be able to identify:
- the individual being examined,
- the group to which that individual is said to belong,
- the characteristic being attributed, and
- the proportion of the group said to have that characteristic.
What are the steps to evaluating statistical syllogisms?
1) Are the premises acceptable?
Good reason to believe the initial generalization?
Result of a good argument from enumerative induction?
If the grounding of the generalization is weak, then the argument is weak.
2) What’s the statistical strength of the generalization?
‘99% of M are P’ is not as powerful as ‘70% of M are P’ or ‘most M are P’.
The stronger the generalization, the stronger the argument.
3) Is the individual being discussed typical or randomly selected?
A statistical generalization will allow us to reach a conclusion about ‘typical’ or ‘normal’ members of the group.
If reason to believe that this individual is not typical, then reason to doubt the conclusion.
If individual randomly selected, gives reason to expect it to be typical.
What is an analogy?
A comparison of two or more things that are alike in specific ways.
What is analogical induction? (Argument by analogy)
Analogies used to argue inductively for a conclusion.
- It works like this: ‘Because these two things are similar in several ways, they must be similar in some further way.’
What is the structure for analogical induction?
- Thing A has properties P1, P2, P3, and P4.
- Thing B also has properties P1, P2, and P3.
- Therefore, thing B likely has property P4.
What are some examples of analogical induction?
- ‘Animals, like humans, have nerves, a spinal cord, and a brain. So, like humans, animals must feel pain.’
- ‘Humans can move, do math, and fall in love. Robots can move, and do math. So, robots can fall in love.’
What do we consider when judging arguments of analogy?
- Relevant similarities
- Relevant dissimilarities
- Number of instances compared
- Diversity among cases
What things make analogical induction stronger?
- relevant similarities
- more comparisons
- greater diversity with similarities
All of these make the induction more probable
What is a causal claim?
A causal claim is an assertion about the cause of something.
Answers things like: 'What causes breast cancer?'
What is a causal claim?
A causal argument justifies, or supports such a claim (causal claim) about the cause of something
What are the 2 patterns of causal arguments?
Enumerative induction
Analogical induction
What is an example of a causal argument following the form of enumerative induction?
- One time, I stuck my finger in the spinning fan and it caused me pain.
- Another time, I stuck my finger in the spinning fan and it caused me pain.
- A bunch of other times, I stuck my finger in the spinning fan and it caused me pain.
- So, I conclude that sticking my finger in the spinning fan causes me pain.
What is an example of a causal argument following the form of analogical induction?
- Two years ago when we had a huge winter storm it caused the university to close down for a day.
- Last year, when we had a huge winter storm it caused the university to close down for a day.
- Therefore, similarly, a huge winter storm this year will cause the university to close down for a day.
What are methods to evaluate causal arguments?
Method of agreement:
- ‘If two or more occurrences of some phenomenon have only one relevant factor in common, that factor must be the cause.’
- Imagine three people in your residence all feel sick one night.
- All ate at different restaurants; hung out with different people, worked out at different gyms . . .
but all took sips from ONE bottle of water.
What are methods to evaluate causal arguments?
Method of difference:
- The relevant factor that is present when the phenomenon occurs, and absent when it doesn’t occur, is likely the cause.
- Six players on the team are playing well; three others are not.
- The ones not playing well missed a practice last week.
- If missing practice is the only relevant difference, then that’s probably the cause.
What is the difference between necessary and sufficient conditions under causal arguments?
- A necessary condition for the occurrence of some event is one without which the event cannot occur.
- A sufficient condition for the occurrence of some event is one that guarantees that the event occurs.
How is an explanation different from an argument?
- Explanations are not arguments, but they can be part of an argument
- Explanations are explaining what happened
- Arguments try to convince you that something is or is not the case
What is inference to the best explanation?
- When using inference to the best explanation, we reason from premises about a state of affairs to an explanation for that state of affairs.
What is the pattern for inference to the best explanation?
- Phenomenon Q. [A description of it.]
- E provides the best explanation for Q.
- Therefore, it is probable that E is true.
For example:
A lot of people did poorly on Quiz 8.
Lots of people would do poorly if they didn’t study.
So, it’s likely that a lot of people didn’t study
What is the value of explanations?
- We try to understand the world by constructing explanations and asking which ones are best.
- We use this to increase our understanding, by taking experiences and background knowledge and fitting it all into a coherent pattern
Why are scientific theories significant in inference to the best explanation?
Some famous scientific theories are examples of inference to the best explanation
What is Darwin’s Theory of Evolution?
- The best explanation of how the living things you see around you got the way they are.
= Thoroughly compared to other explanations by thousands of scientists, making millions of observations, and declared ‘best’.
What is Einstein’s Theory of Relativity?
- The best explanation of why physical objects—from protons to planets—move the way they do.
- Tested and debated by physicists for decades.
- Best among available alternatives.
What is the difference between internal and external consistency in theories?
- Internal consistency: Is the theory consistent with itself?
- I.e., is it free of contradictions?
- External consistency: is it consistent with the data it’s supposed to explain?
What are some of the requirements for theories?
- Criteria of Adequacy
- Testability
- Fruitfulness
- Scope
- Simplicity
- Conservatism
What is fruitfulness?
Does the theory successfully predict new, previously unknown phenomena?
- A theory that predicts unexpected things is even better than merely ‘testable’.
What is scope?
The more things a theory explains, the greater its scope.
- A biological theory that only explains how fish got gills isn’t as impressive as one that explains fish’s gills, the human ‘tailbone’, and why monkeys share food
What is simplicity?
A ‘simple’ theory makes relatively few assumptions.
What is conservatism?
Other things being equal, a theory should fit with our established beliefs.
- ‘Conservative’ is not political here! It’s about ‘conserving’ (keeping) well-established beliefs by not accepting (easily) theories that conflict with them.
What is criteria of adequacy?
The best theory is the eligible theory that meets the criteria of adequacy better than any of its competitors
What is the TEST formula for theories?
These four steps can help you find the best explanation:
- State the (T)heory and check for consistency,
- assess the (E)vidence for the theory,
- (S)crutinize alternative theories, and
- (T)est the theories with the criteria of adequacy
How does criteria of adequacy help to evaluate theories?
- Eliminate some theories right away,
- assign more weight to some theories than to others
- distinguish between theories that seem, at first glance, equally strong.
What does science do?
Science seeks to acquire knowledge, to understand reality, by formulating, testing, and evaluating theories.
- Whenever that kind of search for answers is (a) systematic and (b) careful, science is being conducted.
What is science NOT?
- Science is NOT technology
- Science is NOT ideology
- Science is NOT scientism
What is science?
Self correcting
- Looks at alternative explanations,
- tests them
- opens conclusions to criticisms from scientists everywhere
What is technology?
Technology is not about truth.
- It’s about knowing how to make stuff
Why is science not ideology?
Science has no worldview.
- Worldviews change.
- The nature of science as a way of searching for truth has not changed
What is scientism?
Scientism: the view that science is the only reliable way to acquire knowledge.
- Science is not scientism because it acknowledges there are other ways to acquire knowledge
ex: simple observations without scientific method
What are the steps to the scientific method?
1) Identify the problem or pose a question.
2) Devise a hypothesis to explain the event or phenomenon.
3) Derive a test implication or prediction.
4) Perform the test.
5) Accept or reject the hypothesis.
What is morality?
Morality is a set of concerned beliefs about right and wrong, good and bad, just and unjust
Why is critical thinking important for morality?
In all kinds of situations, we need to figure out what to do, and what it would be right to do.
To do so, we must:
- Accept or reject moral statements,
- make and criticize moral arguments, and/or
- wrestle with moral theories
What is a moral worldview?
To be intellectually mature, we must try to integrate our views on various moral questions into a worldview.
- A ‘worldview’ is a philosophy of life, a set of beliefs and theories that helps us make sense of a wide range of issues in life.
What does a critical thinker do when making a worldview?
A good critical thinker tries to ensure that his or her worldview
- contains no internal contradictions, and
- offers reliable guidance in dealing with the world.
What is the difference between a moral argument and an argument?
In moral arguments, the conclusion will be a moral statement.
- Not a descriptive, or factual, statement.
What is a moral statement?
A moral statement is a statement asserting that an action is right or wrong (moral/immoral), or that something (such as a person, event, or motive) is good or bad.
Give some examples of moral statements
- ‘Rahul should keep his promise to you.’
- ‘Profs should punish cheaters severely.’
- ‘Cloning is very wrong.’
- ‘My mom is a good person.’
Give some examples of non-moral statements
‘Rahul did not keep his promise to you.’
‘Prof. M punishes cheaters severely.’
‘Some people think cloning is wrong.’
‘My mom tries to be a good person.’
What makes up a standard moral statement?
A standard moral argument is a mixture of moral and non-moral statements.
- At least one premise is a moral statement that asserts a general moral principle.
- At least one premise makes a non-moral claim.
- The conclusion is a moral statement, or judgment, about a particular case.
What is an example of a standard moral statement?
It is wrong to inflict unnecessary pain on any sensitive creature.
- A general moral principle.
A pig is a sensitive creature.
- A factual claim.
Therefore, inflicting unnecessary pain on a pig is wrong.
A moral statement about a specific kind of action.
Give an example of a faulty non moral premise
- It’s wrong to cause pain to innocent beings.
- Aborting a one-day-old fetus causes it pain.
- So, it’s wrong to abort a one-day-old fetus.
Problem:
Factual Error: Actually, there’s no good reason to believe day-old fetuses feel pain.
They lack a nervous system at that stage.
Give an example of a faulty moral purpose
- Rebecca is a woman; I am a man.
- Women are not men’s moral equals.
- Men should only do business with equals.
So, I should not do business with Rebecca.
Problem:
Faulty moral premise: No good reason to believe that women are not morally equal to men.
Give 4 examples of controversial moral statements
- ‘Abortion is always wrong.’
- ‘The death penalty is a good thing.’
- ‘Freedom of speech should be absolute.’
- ‘Anything unnatural is wrong.’
What is a moral theory?
- Tries to explain why certain actions count as right or wrong, and why we should call certain people good or bad.
- Tries to specify what features unites examples of right/wrong behaviour, and good/bad people.
- Provides ultimate reasons and guidance
How does the criteria of adequacy affect evaluating moral theories?
- A good moral theory should be consistent with considered moral judgments.
- A good moral theory should be consistent with our experience of the moral life.
- A good moral theory should be workable in real-life situations.
Why study logic?
The study and use of logic is an exercise in:
- Exactitude
- Precision
- Clarity
- And, above all, definite answers, which can be very satisfying.
- logic is the study of good reasoning or thinking and is therefore concerned with every decision and every judgment we make.
What is propositional logic?
Propositional logic (or truth-functional logic) is a branch of deductive reasoning.
- It deals with the logical relationship among statements (‘propositions’).
- Symbols are used to clarify and represent these relationships
What is the truth value of conditional statements? (if..then)
A conditional says: ‘If p is true, then q will also be true.’
- As always, the truth value of this compound statement depends on the truth values of its parts.
- The only way we can call a conditional false, is if p actually is true, and q actually is false.
- In all other circumstances, we call the conditional true.