Problem Solving warm up

1
Problem Solvingwarm up

• True or False
• To be good at math, you need to have special
  powers.
• It takes a special brain to be good at math.
• Most people are capable of understanding enough
  about the mathematical basis of important issues
  to develop informed and reasoned opinions.
• Math tends to make people less sensitive to the
  romantic and aesthetic aspects of life.
• If you are good at math, youre probably not very
  creative.
• Math is relevant to my life.

2
Strategies for Studying

• Dont miss class.
• Budget your time effectively. An hour or two
  each day is more effective than cramming at the
  last minute.
• If you have trouble
• Do additional reading or problems beyond what has
  been assigned
• Ask for help friends, teachers
• Work with friends.

3
Preparing for Exams

• Rework exercises and other assignments.
• Do extra problems.
• Study your notes from lectures and discussions.
• Reread the relevant sections in the textbook
• Study individually before joining a study group
  with friends. Study groups are effective only if
  every individual comes prepared to contribute.
• Dont stay up too late before an exam.
• Dont eat a big meal within an hour of an exam.
• Try to relax before and during the exam.

4
Chapter 1 Thinking Critically
1A Recognizing Fallacies

• Logic the study of the methods and principles
  of reasoning.
• An argument uses a set of facts or assumptions,
  called premises, to support a conclusion.
• A fallacy is a deceptive argument an argument
  in which the conclusion is not well supported by
  the premises.

5
Hop in the Way-Back Machine

• Remember way back, when you were in Geometry??
• p and q were used in logic statements (We
  recognized logic statements by if-then.)
• p was the hypothesis and q was the conclusion.
• In this class, p is called premise, q is the
  conclusion.

6
Were going to analyze 10 fallacies

• Please turn to page 15

7

• Appeal to Popularity
• Many people believe p is true
• therefore
• p is true.
• False Cause
• A came before B
• therefore
• A caused B

Appeal to ignorance There is no proof that p is
true therefore p is false Hasty generalization A
and B are linked one or a few times therefore A
causes B (or vice versa)
8

• limited choice
• p is false
• therefore
• only q can be true.
• appeal to emotion
• p is associated with a positive emotional
  response
• therefore
• p is true

personal attack I have a problem with the person
or group claiming p. p is not true. circular
reasoning p is true
p is restated in different words.
9

• diversion (red herring)
• p is related to q and I have an argument
  concerning q
• therefore
• p is true.
• straw man
• I have an argument concerning a distorted version
  of p
• therefore
• I hope you are fooled into concluding I have an
  argument concerning the real version of p.

10
Assignment

• pg 19-20
• Discuss 5-10 all, 11-35 odds
• Do 11-20