Elements of Reason
Chapter 3
Previous Chapter: Communication
of Skills.
About the Next Chapters
Chapters four to eight describe the basic elements of rule- and pattern-based
thought and hint at their benefits and limitations. In particular, the next
three chapters, Implication
Rules, Deception and Chains
of Reason describe basic ideas in reason and logic which everyone should
master. The practice of deception is not encouraged.
- The chapter Implication
Rules presents two logic puzzles to test or improve your reading and
writing. Each consists of a rule and five questions. Answers are
given.
- The chapter Deception
describes faulty and misleading ways of reason and persuasion. It describes
the hype, hype and hype approach too often used for persuasion in
advertisements and public debate.
- The chapter Chains of Reason
describes how to directly use rules one at a time or chain them together,
one after another, for arriving at conclusions and judgments.
These three chapters on reason develop skills needed in daily life. They
provide a standard or model for arriving at conclusions and making decisions:
how to argue politely if you must. They also strengthen basic skills needed in
mathematics, science, technology, writing, persuasion and communication. Reason
and persuasion touch all skills and all disciplines. The further description of
reason and logic relies on the method described and offered in these three
chapters.
The chapter Longer Chains of
Reason indicates the special role of rule-based reason in mathematics. It
describes in a very non-mathematical fashion, the concept of induction, a method
used in mathematics to arrive at conclusions. This concept of induction is an
example of reason used mainly in mathematics or mathematical subjects.
The chapter A Change of Language
introduces the if and only if and iff forms of writing
two-way implication rules.
When ideas in mathematics or another discipline are described instead of
being drawn from implication rules, the role of implication-rule based reason or
logic may be forgotten. But in every discipline including mathematics, signs of
rule- and pattern-based reason are given by the word and phrases from this,
therefore, thus, because, since, as, gives, yields etc. Their presence in
any line of thought indicates a demonstration perhaps of why this or that should
be.
Next Chapter: (4) Implication
Rules - seeing the difference is one way to improve reading, writing and
thinking abilities.
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