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[Ecrofirt]

I've got to take one at my college.

My professor says they're a very common thing in the western US, but it's very uncommon to find a critical thinking class in the eastern US.

Anyway, I'm asking because he and two other professors at my college wrote the book, and he said it's the second most highly used critical thinking book in the US.

 

[Gek54]

It will ruin you for a year or so....if you are lucky.

 

[Dyne]

My Teamwork/Communication course teaches Critical Thinking. I didn't know you could have a whole COURSE on it, though. Wow.

 

[Ecrofirt]

yea, it's pretty crazy.

Everyone seems to be having a really easy time with it, but I'm constantly mixing things up.

 

[Quadrophenic]

yeah, I think we did a lot of critical thinking type stuff in the advanced writing and communications class....but I didnt have one class which concentrated on it.

Whats the name of the text book your professor wrote?

 

[Socreges]

Yes. It was actually the first course in Philosophy. 101. But it may be completely different from what they teach in the US. Our textbook was "A Practical Study of Argument". I've found what I learned pretty useful, but rarely in just 'arguments'.

 

[Ecrofirt]

Critical Thinking: A Student's Introduction - Second Edition

it's got a wind surfer on the front

 

[Quadrophenic]

yeah, that book doesn't ring any bells. I dont remember having to buy any text books for the advanced writing/communications classes, just expensive course readers.

 

[Zaptruder]

I did what socreges did...

It was good stuff, but it was presented really dryly. Scrapped through that unit.

 

[wandering goat]

I took one just last semester. The terms and such can be confusing, but the concepts are fairly easy being based entirely on simple logic. Mine was a first year course though, so yours may differ. I skipped quite a few classes in it (we had 3 hour classes) so I wasn't completely familiar with all of the different terms, but the exams were easy anyway.

 

[slayn]

I'm in the my senior year and... the fuck is critical thinking?

I mean to me critical thinking just sounds like half my CS courses...

 

[McLesterolBeast]

It's usually classified as a philosophy course. I took one last term, also a 3 hour lecture like that other guy. If you have any background in math, it'll seem retardedly easy. Some friends of mine in CS looked at the material and apparently, at least where i go (UW), there's a required course that covers the same material for the course, in about two weeks. You're probably well past it.

 

[ge-man]

It sounds like a Logic class if I'm not mistaken. At least, that's what my school calls it.

 

[Richard Cranium]

I took one a couple of years ago, which was classified as a psychology course for some reason. We were given IQ test type problems at the beginning of every class. Material started with a little bit of psychology, then went into venn diagrams, basic logic, and finally argument analysis. I've had most of the material before in other classes, but it seemed like a good course for freshmen.

 

[Ecrofirt]

I'm in a logic and axiomatics class as well.

Critical Thinking seems to be more figure out whether arguments are valid, and things of that nature.

Logic class though, good lord. That's some crazy shit right there. It's like Geometry proofs x 100 in hardness.

I got a 67 on my last test. It was a B.

 

[slayn]

ah... logic class then. deductive arguments vs inductive, validity, soundness, strength, cogentness.

I'm in a philosophy course that is that right now to kill a final gen ed requirement. No class like that is actually required though I have had the material like 20 times now in different CS classes.

 

[slayn]

I always loved this logic question:

a man wants to learn to be a relly good lawyer. He goes up to his professor and wants to know if he will tutor him and act as a mentor. However, he doesn't have much money for payment. They strike up a deal where once the student has won his first actual case, he will pay the professor. So the student gets to learn.

After becoming a lawyer, the student decides he doesn't want to pay his professor so he loses all of his cases. The professor gets pissed and sues the student. They both defend themselves in court.

the professor gives his argument:
I will either lose this case or I will win it. If I win, well then I've won and he has to pay me. If I lose, then he will have won his first case and will still have to pay me. Therefore, no matter the outcome he will have to pay me the money he owes.

the student gives his argument:
I will either lose this case or I will win it. If I win, then I have won this case and don't have the pay th emoney he is suing me for. If I lose, then I still will not have ever won a case and as per our original agreement, I still don't have to pay him.



who is right?

 

[Ecrofirt]

I'd say the professor is right.

 

[Mermandala]

Critical Thinking: A Student's Introduction - Second Edition

it's got a wind surfer on the front

Critical Thinker: John Kerry - Next President

 

[Brannon]

who is right?

The judge will chastize the fuck out of the lawyer and make him pay the professor, then the lawyer will be investigated for incompetence or something similar because if his condition was that he had to win to pay the professor, and he kept losing all this time so he wouldn't have to pay, then his clients also got screwed. The lawyer loses big time.

GIVE ME SOMETHING HARDER

 

[Escape Goat]

If there is no written contract then the original agreement is irrelevent. If the student wins, he doesn't have to pay. If the professor wins, well, he can't win because it was all off paper.

 

[RaymondCarver]

my critical thinking prof watches and wanted us to watch that "Special Victims Unit" show that CourtTV plays in syndication(sic).

 

[slayn]

bah, you people are thinking frmo a law point of view and not a logic point of view.

the correct answer is they are both right.