BEHV 3200 1st Edition Exam 2 Study Guide Lecture 1 23 September What do we value in science What are our misgivings Realism and Diversity Realism does not squash diversity Adopting a realist position does not mean losing respect for different opinions There are many ways to know the world Realism is open to new ideas but also to tossing out bad ones Realism and Personal Belief Relativism provides an out from being wrong Criticism hurts so our cultural response has been to build a mechanism that protects us from criticism but at what cost If someone has better knowledge than you would you want them to tell you Even if it hurts Science What is it A way of acquiring knowledge via experimentation Knowledge vs Belief Belief sums up one s tendencies habits and ways of acting in the world If a person doesn t act in accordance with their desired beliefs we say they don t believe Belief is not sufficient for knowledge just because you believe something doesn t make it true So what makes it knowledge l congruence with realism l evidence Knowledge People say they know something as in they sense it when something is off or wrong Is this actual knowledge No But do people still believe it Yes Belief founded in good reason A belief is necessary for knowledge because we must act but a belief is not sufficient for knowledge because it also needs good reasons for knowledge How do we get good reasons Through science Lecture 2 25 September Reasons Where do they come from Authority Personal experiences Personal feelings and Logical deductions Science is a way of gathering good reasons Eliminates bias Authority doesn t matter the data is the final arbiter Peer reviewed Criticism is at its heart Antiscience is a halting of the exchange of ideas Why do we distrust science Science is hard to understand l increased specialized language makes it more difficult for lay people to understand l pseudoscience explanations come to us in familiar language that can be easily grasped l Should we reject science because it s not easy Science seems wishy washy l Scientists always preface statements i e Evidence points to suggests in all likelihood l So called experts rarely agree l Such a statement misunderstands the nature of scientific disagreement and of theories l Science may disagree but progress is made overall l l l l Scientists have been wrong they have made mistakes evil has been produced Tuskegee Syphilis Study 1932 1972 followed natural course of syphilis 1945 penicillin known to be effective study continued anyway Are these criticisms only applicable to scientists Lecture 3 30 September Baloney Detection http herebedragonsmovie com Lecture 4 7 October Informal Fallacies People are prone to making several kinds of fallacies mistakes in their thinking Most Common Fallacies Begging the question an argument that assumes its conclusion l Ex The Creator must exist because everything comes from somewhere l Ex There are no water shortages there is just as much water on the planet now as there always has been l While the statements may be factual they don t serve as valid evidence for the argument False Dilemma Dichotomy proposes only two propositions wrongly implying that they are exhaustive when other propositions are possible l Ex We have to repeal the health care bill or lose this country l Situations are not always either or Appeal to Authority supporting or refuting a claim based on pseudo experts or popular figures l Ex I m not a doctor but I play one on tv Appeal to the person supporting or refuting a claim based on the presenter of the claim l Ex You can t seriously believe his stance because he s an atheist Appeal to Ignorance using opponents inability to disprove your position as evidence for it l Ex No one has ever disproved the evidence of God aliens etc l Not being able to disprove something doesn t as proof for it Straw Man attacking an opponents views by constructing a related weaker view and attacking it l Ex Senator X wants more government oversight and regulation but putting th government in charge is socialism Hasty Generalization concluding certain things about a class based on only a few observations l Ex I ve known some of these people you can t any of them Faulty Analogy Drawing weak resemblances to support a conclusion l Ex In the end there will be war and famine There is currently war and famine therefore this is the end False Cause concluding certain events are causally connected because they occur together l Ex I used conventional medicine for years and it didn t work then I started homeopathic treatments and felt better l This doesn t mean homeopathic medicines helped more there are numerous causes that could be attributed Slippery Slope
View Full Document