Tok- everything had a reason for the cause

LAWS OF THOUGHT

1. The law of identity ( if you use scissors as a different thing it is still

scissors)

2. The law of the excluded middle (something has to be black or white)

nothing in between. you must be one or the other

3. The law of non contradiction ( a thing cannot be simentouneously and not

be) can’t be you can’t be both at the same time

4. The law of causality - everything must have a cause

I think, therefore I am

law one- I
law three- therefore I am ( he or she exists)

infinity

a circle is not a line, in infinity it is a line

AREAS OF KNOWING (AoK)

⁃ mathematics `
⁃ ethics `
⁃ natural science`
⁃ human science `
⁃ history`
⁃ art
⁃ religion
⁃ indigenous knowledge

Inductive reasoning (starts from observing) and then look for a pattern
hypothesis and theory

helpful (and is very valuable)

it snowed on December 3, 2012

it snowed on December 1, 2013

it snowed on December 5, 2014

it snowed on December 2, 2015

therefore it will snow snow in December 2016

inductive reasoning makes it simple, makes it easier to understand

Deductive reasoning ( begins with a theory,

there is a major premise- general statement

and minor premise - particular statement

there is a conclusion- conclusion

ALL MEN ARE MORTAL

KYU IS A MAN

KYU IS MORTAL

HUMAN ACTIVITIES CAUSE CO2 TO BE RELEASED INTO THE

ATMOSPHERE

CO2 RELEASED INTO THE ATMOSPHERE BY HUMAN ACTIVITY DISTURBS

THE NATURAL ATMOSPHERIC CO2 CO2 BALANCE

A DISTURBANCE OF THE NATURAL ATMOSPHERIC CO2 BALANCE

INDUCES CLIMATE CHANGE

THEREFORE, HUMAN ACTIVITIES INDUCT THE CLIMATE

4th February 2016

 ⁃ Anchor bias: is a genuine problem associated with reasoning

People tend to believe what they’ve heard the first the same if if there is
information contradicting it

People are over reliant on the first information they hear

Example- how first piece of information sets boundaries?

12 February

20 cognitive biases

Bias is an influence on your reasoning. it comes from our experience. it is not

possible to analyze something without the influence of bias.

⁃ Blind spot bias: failure to recognize your bias

⁃ Availability Heuristic: it is right there, good enough for me…

⁃ Bandwagon Effect (groupthink): the probability of one person adopting

a belief increases based on the number who hold this belief

⁃ Choice- supportive Bias: your tend to support the thing you chose…
rationalize your choice

⁃ Clustering Illusion: find patterns that you think there are, but its actually
not there.

⁃ Conformation Bias: We tend to accept information that is confirmed, the

information you believe. You tend to contradict the information that
contradicts what you believe.

⁃ Conservative Bias: we are less likely to accept new information.

⁃ Information bias: you cannot make a decision until u need more

information. You don’t want to make a decision. You don’t want to make
information
You either fish or not…

⁃ Ostrich effect: seek less information as the information becomes

 negative. Restrict information in dangerous situation

⁃ Outcome Bias: is when we make a judgment based on some obvious

observation that might distort our judgment.

⁃ Overconfidence is when someone is confident because they have a

the…. History teacher thinks he is right but he was not

⁃ Placebo affect is when believe the effect of something because you

believe it (might not be always true of what you believe)

⁃ Pro-innovation bias when you introduce something new that the negative
aspect of the thing becomes nothing (don’t consider the negative affect).

⁃ Recency believes something that the evidence is most recent. The latest
information is what you believe.

⁃ Salience The image that is the most obvious (not likely)

⁃ Selective perception is when you see things because it explains the

things you see.

⁃ Stereotyping is a way we protect ourselves. a stereotype is a thought that

can be adopted about specific types of individuals or certain ways of doing
things. These thoughts or beliefs may or may not accurately reflect reality.

⁃ Survivability bias

⁃ Zero risk bias is a tendency to prefer the complete elimination of a risk

even when alternative options produce a greater reduction in risk (overall).

24th February 2016

Deduction:

The conclusion comes from the premises

“Metals are attracted to a magnet. Iron is a magnet. Therefore, Iron is attracted to a
magnet”.

Deduction works from premises

General to specific

Inductive:

Metal A is magnetic

Metal B is magnetic

Metal C is magnetic therefore all metals are magnetic.

Specific to general

Induction is based on observation (more reliable in natural science)

Generalization is inferior. There are exceptions. Create labels for generalizations. We

know what to expect from them.

Good generalization

 Observe something (greater the number of observation)

 Look for the exceptions

 Coherence: the more unlikely the generalization to more observations needed

 The more likely the generalization, the less observations needed

 Subject area: natural science are more reliable than human sciences

 Variations: the more variations you can identify the better the generalization

1st March 2016

All penguins are orange

mitka is a penguin
 therefore, mitka is orange

If premises are not true the conclusion is not true.

It is valid because the conclusion comes from the premises.

We assume that are thought have relationship with reality……

11 March 2016 – counterclaim

How reliable is deductive reasoning

1. Deductive reasoning relies on the Laws of thoughts

Do the laws of Thought describe reality, or do they describe the way we think?

G.K. Chesterton- “It is an act of faith to assert our thoughts have any relation to reality

at all”

“Reason itself is a matter of faith”

2. Logic depends on language (which is verbal symbolism), because logic depends

on our ability to create clear and absolute categories

Bertrand Russell- “The law of the Excluded Middle is true when pressure symbols are

employed, but it is not true when symbols are vague, as in fact, all symbols are.”

3. If change is a constant, can any two things be exactly the same?

16 March 2016

PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE

Informal knowledge flocks of crows is called a murder

Experiential knowledge Ben measured (doing things)

Academic knowledge SWOT analysis

Secret knowledge don’t want anyone to know

Incommunicable knowledge you can’t say it

Shared Knowledge

Relationship between personal knowledge and shared knowledge

(it is like personal knowledge and shared knowledge) protects us from everyone

thinking the same

-- It is like a group think

Group think can be dangerous…

The myth of the lonely thinker knowledge is the heroic achievement of isolation,

moment of knowing

There is shared knowledge that is not personal

Knowledge Question

The questions that are asked about what knowledge is, and how what we claim to know
Example- To what extent might reason is more reliable then emotion as a way of

knowing?

A good knowledge question might have many answers

7th April 2016

Inert knowledge- like Greek fire (the knowledge is lost)

Shared knowledge

Personal knowledge

April 28th

What characteristics result in credibility being a source?

1. Experience

2. Credentials (bonafides) – the record of your experience

3. Evidence

4. History

5. Corroboration

6. Neutrality of the source

3 May 2016

PERSPECTIVE- BIAS, or PERCEPTION

Shared or personal knowledge comes through language

Perspective is key component of language

Communication has

- Authority: the person communicating has an authority over the information

- Validity: it has to have that element of validity (has some truthfulness)

-
TOK IS PERCEPTION, AN ASUUMPOTION, THE WAY WE PRECIEVE THE

WORLD, BASED ON OUR BIAS.

- COMMON SENSE MIGHT BE ABOUT PERCEPTION

- KNOWLEDGE FROM OUR SENSE, MORE CONFIDENT

- SENSORY KNOWLEDGE IS FRST HAND,