Journal entry for week of 04/21/2009

I had a nice weekend up until I injured myself on Sunday while gardening. It has been incredibly hot the last couple of days. I started out with the TFY book and the chapter wasn't difficult but for some reason it jumbled my brain. All I could manage to do was write out the summary on paper and post the mind map. I will type up the summary in the morning. As far as the CRCB work is concerned I will do that another day. Maybe it's the heat getting to me, I'm so done for right now.

TFY-Ch.12 Deductive Reasoning mind map

Journal for week of 04/14/2009

The chapters for this week weren't to exciting. THe information in the chapters was information I have already learned in the past. I had a nice relaxing weekend, my boyfriend bought me a very nice purse, we watched a movie and went to a carnival.

TFY. ch. 11 Inductive Reasoning and Inductive Fallacies mind map

TFY. ch. 11 Inductive Reasoning and Inductive Fallacies

Inductive reasoning in some sense is similar to inference making. Both methods are used to connect the dots or to fill in missing facts. Inductive reasoning is a method used to discover new information or to supply missing information. Inductive reasoning is an open-ended method of learning and discovering. It is not a trial and error process or a hit or miss. It has its own rules for arriving at the most reliable answers. Though the empirical or scientific method, you observe, gather data, then draw inferences about the patterns, configurations, and meanings. Findings are then recorded and reported. Several methods are mentioned in this chapter by the author that have traditionally been used to learn about the whole from a study of its parts. These methods include sensory observation, enumeration, analogical reasoning, pattern recognition, causal reasoning and statistical reasoning. Hypotheses can also be used to explain and predict phenomena. A hypothesis can be used to further an investigation in an inductive study. Finally, the conclusion of an inductive study generalizes to produce a universal claim based on empirical findings. The study may or may not confirm the hypothesis tested, but the conclusion remains probable rather than completely certain because further evidence could come to light that challenges its findings. One set of professionals that use inductive reasoning constantly, on a daily basis are police officers and detectives. A couple of weeks ago when Sandra Kantu, disappeared from her home in Tracy, CA several FBI agents flew in to assist with the investigation. These agents were not from the town, they didn’t know the residents, they had no prior knowledge of the girl or her family prior to the investigation. Through the scientific method they observed, gather data, and drew inferences. Within a couple a weeks they found Sandra’s body and made an arrest. If there wasn’t such a method as inductive reason who knows if they would have ever found out what happened to her. In my opinion this is a highly valuable method to be learned and utilized for many different purposes.

CRCB CH. 1- Reading in College summary

According to the author the average student who reads a book without using any learning strategies will remember only 10% of what they read two weeks later. However, if the student uses the strategies presented in the book then they will be able to remember up to 90% of what they read two weeks later. Reading is an active process that depends on both the author’s ability to convey meaning using words and your ability to create meaning from them. To become a successful reader you must constantly connect what you already know about the information to the words the author has written. A reader’s ability to read college-level texts can be greatly enhanced if they learn, practice, and apply specific reading strategies. Concentration is a skill that can be learned with patience and perseverance. It is the ability to focus exclusively on a project and to ignore all else. Learning with purpose occurs when you actively engage with what you are reading. A reader can develop effective study habits and increase their concentration by learning about themselves and their preferred learning style.
Internal and external concentration blocks are things that distract you when you are reading or studying. Internal distracters come from inside. They are feelings, worries, and thoughts. External distracters come from your environment; they include music, television, and phone calls. There are techniques to help a reader improve their concentration. The author also lists several tips for creating a successful study environment, such as don’t read or do homework in bed, which is something I use to do quite often. I would end up falling asleep and not finishing my homework, that unhealthy habit would stress me out so much. Having a positive mental attitude helps a great deal. It is so hard to study or complete homework when you’re angry, or down in the dumps. The information in this chapter was useful but over the past several months I learned these tips and techniques on my own. I don’t do homework in bed anymore, I turn the TV off when I’m studying, I don’t talk on the phone while studying. One area I could improve in is retaining the information I read for longer periods of time.

Journal entry for week of 04/06/2009

The chapters for this week were pretty easy and straight forward. I do enjoy reading the TFY book more than the CRCB book, although the CRCB book is easier. I learned what fallacies are and that I have been using them almost all my life

CRCB, Ch. 8 mind map- Textbook Methods of Organization

CRCB, Ch. 8 summary- Textbook Methods of Organization

When a reader is able to recognize organizational methods they will have a better understanding of the ideas in their textbooks and will be able to see the connections between them. Recognizing organizational methods will also help a reader remember what they read. There are six main types of methods of organization authors use to present information. One: listing, authors use this method of organization to enumerate events, idea, or other concepts. Their lists can be organized numerically, alphabetically, by order of importance, or by category. Two: analysis, this method is used by authors to break down concepts into specific basic elements, characteristics, and properties. The purpose of the analysis method is to show different parts or details of a complex issue in order to make it easier to understand. Three: Authors use the cause/effect method of organization to show why something happened, the effects of something that occurred, or the outcome of an event. Four: The comparison/contrast method of organization is used by authors to examine the similarities or differences between two or more ideas, such as, objects, events, people, or other things. Five: The definition/example method of organization is used by authors to clarify the meanings of key concepts. To help the reader understand they use analogies, provide definitions with examples, or give descriptions. Six: sequence, this method is used to show the steps in a process or the chronological order of certain events. According to this chapter, “This organizational method is used not just to list ideas or events, but to highlight the fact that the order in which they occurred is important.” When you have to read a great amount of material make sure to look at the reading in its entirety, and come to a conclusion about the overall method of organization. Completing this will help you confirm the main idea of the reading material, which in turn will enable you to create effective practice test questions. Finally OWCs or organizational word clues are used to indicate the overall organization of a reading passage, journal, article, or textbook chapter. I used the listing organizational method to organize the information in my summary. I thought a numerically listing of the methods would be most suitable for summarizing this chapter.

TFY, Chapter 10 mind map- Fallacies: What's a Faulty Argument?

TFY, Chapter 10 summary- Fallacies: What's a Faulty Argument?

Before I started this class the word fallacy was new to me. I had never heard it before, or if I ever had then I wasn’t paying attention. I was surprised to learn that there are twenty different types of fallacies discussed in this book. A fallacy is a statement or argument that presents itself as soundly reasoned when it is not. Fallacies may be accidental or intentional, some are amusing and some are manipulative. Learning the names and the characteristics of the different fallacies will help people learn more about the rules for good reasoning, if we can learn to avoid using them, then we won’t be influenced by arguments containing them. Fallacies cause confusion and intentional manipulation. In this chapter twelve fallacies are described. They are broken up into three groups. The first group is: Manipulation through Language, 1.) Word ambiguity: seeks to gain an advantage in an argument by using vague or undefined words. 2.) Misleading euphemisms: hides meaning by creating words that make a less acceptable idea seem positive or unrecognizable. 3.) Prejudicial language: attempts to persuade through the use of loaded words that convey a bias. The second group is: Manipulation through Emotions, 4.) Appeal to fear: seeks to persuade by arousing fear. 5.) Appeal to pity: seeks to persuade by arousing pity. 6.) Appeal to false authority: seeks to persuade by citing a fake or inappropriate authority. 7.) Appeal to Bandwagon: seeks to persuade by appealing to the wisdom of popular momentum. 8.) Appeal to Prejudice: a.) Personal attack: attacks a person’s character on matters irrelevant to the issue. b.) Poisoning the Well: seeking to prejudice others against a person, group, or idea so that their arguments will not be heard on their own merits. The third group is: Manipulation through Distraction, 9.) Red herring: instead of proving a claim, diverts attentions into other issues. 10.) Pointing to another wrong: distracts attention from an admitted wrongdoing by claiming that similar actions went unnoticed or unpunished. 11.) Straw man: misrepresents or caricatures an opponent’s position, then refutes
the false replica created; also attacks a minor point in an argument, then claims this maneuver invalidates the whole argument. 12.) Circular reasoning: assumes what it is supposed to prove by reasserting a conclusion as though this claim needs no supporting reasons or by repeating the same conclusion in different words. After reading the chapter I came to the realization that although I hadn’t heard the word fallacy before this class I sure used them a great deal. For example, in the past I did not like to be called out on my wrong doings, so whenever I was in the wrong and my parents or boyfriend would called me out on it, a lot of times my response was “oh yah what about you, what about the things you do.” I was trying to divert the attention away from me and onto them. I knew I had done something wrong but hey who likes feeling cornered. I’ve also played the pity card so much that now when I fake cry to make my boyfriend feel bad he just laughs at me. I’m not the only guilty one though; he’s used some of the same tactics against me in the past. When I was younger it was hard for me to apologize because I felt like if I apologized then I was admitting guilt and essentially losing, and I hated losing, so I would always divert the attention from myself and onto someone else. As I get older and wiser it’s become easier for me to own up and apologize for my mistakes. Fallacies dirty up an argument, you fight dirty when you use fallacies.