
wiki wrote: despite the fact that chocolate is not a fruit[citation needed]
hackenslash wrote:I've actually been thinking about that a bit. How about Oh, Really? (An Everyday Guide To Assessing Claims)?
Audley Strange wrote:shh wrote:I'd agree with that, I think I'd link it to something on language generally, and contradictions as well though, because I can also think of times where people say "that's not what I mean" but I know it's what they said.Audley Strange wrote:One of my major pet peeves might be worth pointing out, that the only thing one should take from words written, is the explicit meaning of the words written. To project and extrapolate and infer that which is not written may provide some form of meaning but that meaning is often erroneous and biased based on the flawed assumptions of the reader.
Well even a brief understanding of what general semantics is () would seem essential to me. But you are right. When people do that to me. I find it annoying when the say something, I hear what they say, question it and they say "oh you know what I mean" when I clearly don't. In communication, one shouldn't have to fucking guess.
ikster7579 wrote:Being rational is just an excuse for not wanting to have faith.
hackenslash wrote:I've actually been thinking about that a bit. How about Oh, Really? (An Everyday Guide To Assessing Claims)?
Darwinsbulldog wrote:Hmmm..., a vital part of critical thinking is loading up the brain with relevant information on the topic. The best way to get information is from original research and the papers that present that information. I think I will write a little piece on how to read scientific papers. We all know that there is a "literature" [cough!] of pseudo-scientific clap-trap, and so being able to tell the difference is vital.
Calilasseia wrote:my_wan wrote:Ever notice how extremely common it is for religiously oriented people to call that a personal attack? So common I think it's why they get in trouble so easy here. Could it also have something to do with the way the claims of Matt are considered good arguments? I have my blind spots to, but just wondering if there's a common thread in this....
This is a frequently observed part of the supernaturalist aetiology, which points to another important difference betweeen supernaturalists and the critical thinkers here. Namely, that the critical thinkers regard ideas as disposable entities. If appropriate critically robust evidence is presented, that informs us that a particular ideas is a bad idea, then the critical thinkers toss that idea into the bin, and look for a better replacement. A process that mirrors the way science works, namely, test one's postulates against reality, and if reality says that the postulates in question are plain, flat wrong, then the postulates are tossed into the bin, and a new set brought into the arena for testing. Amongst the bad ideas that science has discarded via this process include the alchemical view of the elements, phlogiston, vitalism etc. Indeed, one can visualise the scientific process of discarding bad ideas, and keeping the ones that survive test to destruction, as being akin to a Darwinian selection process, but I digress [...]
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