Saturday, May 13, 2006

Bonus Final Information

The bonus final/makeup time will be

3:30-5:30 pm
Monday
15 May 2006
in the usual room

I've sent out email recommendations to those who should take the bonus final, but anyone may. If you score worse on the bonus final than you did on the exam you were attempting to improve on, I won't use it for substitution.

If I don't see you at the final, it was a pleasure having all of you in class.

Tuesday, May 09, 2006

Final Paper hints

Try looking at the Skeptical Inquirer magazine for inspiration. Their website is at

Skeptical Inquirer

or you can come by my office and borrow one or many of the Skeptical Inquirer magazines I have.

Once you have chosen your topic. Read up on it. If there is a Wikipedia article on it, read it. Find out what you can. Then just right me a paper telling me about the topic. Don't think of it as formal, think more like a friend of yours asked you to explain the important ideas to them about a subject (because your friend knows that now you are a fairly good expert on the topic) and what you would tell them so that they would understand it.

Think of your paper as being more conversational than fancy. You're just telling me about an interesting idea you've done some reading on.

Final Paper announcement

As you know, I'm pretty easy going about format. If you want to write in the 5 paragraph essay format (I don't know why anyone would, because it's an ugly way to write) you may. I would almost prefer stream of consciousness to 5 paragraph essay format.

The paper needs to be 4-6 pages, at least 3 sources, the sources should be reputable unless the point of the paper is to contrast reputable information with information that is not reputable.

There must be a bibliography. I don't care if the format of the bibliography is correct (according to the various standards) as long as it has the required information and is roughly self consistent.

I would rather the paper be a little late rather than incomplete or filled with filler. Hastily constructed papers often have more filler than content and are not only are not nice to read but is an easy way for students to lose points. If you've painted yourself into a corner and things look bad for time, let me know as soon as possible.

The paper should contain no fallacies, unless it is the point to debunk an argument because it contains fallacies. Using an fallacious argument to support your point is the quickest way to lose points on your paper.

You will probably have a persuasive element to your paper. Remember that you are addressing an audience that is in the range of roughly -5 to +5 on the 10/10 scale, that is people who think the conclusion is probably not true (-5) through people who think it's hard to tell (0) to people who think the conclusion is probably true (+5). Addressing the paper to people who think the conclusion is definitely true (+10) is "preaching to the choir". Addressing the paper to people who think the conclusion is definitely not true (-10) is just "butting heads".

Monday, May 08, 2006

Final Announcement

The ordinary final will be
Wednesday, 10 May 2006
the usual room
the usual time, 3:00 to 4:15 pm

The bonus final for Natural Science 4 will be on
Monday, 15 May 2006
the usual room
3:30 to 5:30 pm

As usual, if you know what you are doing, the exam will not typically take the entire class period, but you do have the entire time available if you need it.

Please note: The fake photo assignment has been changed from a required activity to an extra credit one.

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

Midterm announcement

In case you haven't been to class lately, please note that the second midterm will be this Wednesday, 3 May 2006.

As always, ff you have a severe emergency that precludes you from taking the exam, let me know as soon as physically possible.

Monday, May 01, 2006

Fallacy Worksheet #5

If the statement isn't a fallacy write “no fallacy”. Otherwise if the statement is a fallacy, write which one(s). Some statements may contain more than one fallacy.

The list of fallacies I'm drawing from are:

Genetic Fallacy
Begging the Question
Wishful thinking
Appeal to ignorance
Appeal to consequences
Appeal to the masses
Appeal to tradition
Appeal to force
Appeal to authority
Equivocation
Hasty Generalization
False Dichotomy
Ad Hominem
Straw Man
Slippery Slope


In a wedding, a bride is given away by her father, which is a holdover from the olden days when she was her father's possession. As a liberated woman, you should reject such an act and stand proud as no man's possession and abandon such a demeaning tradition.


Islands have been blown up by volcanic activity in the past, so how do we know there wasn't a lost city of Atlantis? If ancient legends say there was a great civilisation, who are we to disagree?



I have to believe we bombed the correct target. The alternative is unthinkable. Besides, if I doubt this order, why should I believe the next or the next after that? If I doubt my superiors, why should anyone else believe their superiors? Before you know it, this hole division would be in anarchy.



Considering how different Chinese culture is from Western culture and how many different solutions they came up with that parallel ours, but are still unique, how do we know that the Altanteans didn't come up with a unique technology that we are completely ignorant of? Where we have a technology based on silicon, they had a technology based on another crystal, quartz. We already know that quartz has some amazing properties. Imagine what else there is to discover.



If the genetic evidence shows that people and chimps are related, then the evidence must be wrong, because the idea that we have anything in common with a soulless animal is unthinkable.



Everyone know that right handed people are more common than left handed ones.




Who are you to fly in the face of thousands of years of our culture? If we don't perform this operation on your daughter, she will discover very quickly that she likes sex. One thing will lead to another and your daughter will be lost to you, a girl no better than a common whore.



You have been ordered by this court not to hold or advocate ideas that the Earth moves around the sun. You have been found guilty of violating this order so now you have a choice. Recant your beliefs now, or face the inquisition.



The best minds in surgical medicine have come to a consensus, based on the overwhelming evidence and analysis. They have found that the surgical procedure in question more often than not does more harm than good. It is, therefore, the recommendation that use of that surgical procedure be suspended for the time being.



A child born out of wedlock bears the sin of that conception on his soul and will therefore almost inevitably have a dark and troubled life, reflecting that unsanctioned union. It is only through a stalwart dedication to a life of chastity that that child might overcome his sinful conception.


Only a fool says the Earth moves.


Considering the tones that can be produced by striking one of the large stones that made the pyramids and that scientists are now discovering ways to use sound to levitate small objects, how do we know that the ancient Egyptians didn't use sound to levitate the massive stone blocks and by this way construct the pyramids. We don't know precisely how they did this, so isn't this an important possibility, one that we can't yet rule out?