| Skills |
Simple
Techniques |
| 1. Ask
questions: be willing to wonder. |
Start
by asking "Why?" |
| 2.
Define the problem. |
Restate
the issue several different ways so it is clear. |
| 3.
Examine the evidence. |
Ask
what evidence supports of refutes the claim. Is it reliable? |
| 4.
Analyze assumptions and biases. |
List
the evidence on which each part of the argument is based. The
assumptions and biases will [then] be unsupported [by evidence] and
[thus] should be eliminated from further consideration. |
| 5.
Avoid emotional reasoning. |
Identify
emotional influence and "gut feelings" in the arguments and exclude
them. |
| 6.
Don't oversimplify. |
Do not
allow generalization from too little evidence. |
| 7.
Consider other interpretations. |
Make
sure alternate views are included in the discussion. |
| 8.
Tolerate uncertainty. |
Be
ready to [provisionally] accept tentative answers when evidence is
incomplete [i.e. most of the time], and new answers when further
evidence warrants them. |
| Rules
for evidential reasoning. |
What
to do |
| 1. Falsifiability | Conceive of all evidence that would prove the false claim. |
| 2. Logic |
Argument
must be sound |
| 3.
Comprehensiveness |
Must
use all available evidence |
| 4.
Honesty |
Evaluate
evidence without self-deception. |
| 5.
Replicability |
Evidence
must be repeatable |
| 6.
Sufficiency |
A.
Burden of proof rests on the the claimant. B. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence C. Authority and/or testimony is always inadequate |