I love this collection of favorite science myths (humans use only 10% of their brains, a penny dropped off a tall building will kill, etc.) and I wonder if there's a way to use such stuff in critical thinking exercises. Any ideas?
Another good site to use for critical thinking is Snopes.com, an urban legends reference (also a great place to check if you get an email saying your entire computer will explode if you don't do x,y,z; or Bill Gates will give you a million dollars if you ask; or NPR is going to be destroyed by Congress; or refugees in northern Siberia need your bikinis; or...).
What sorts of activities might be possible with this material?
Friday, February 16, 2007
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I had a math teacher convincingly prove that 2=1, something I tried to duplicate once as an intro to the JUA.
It's quite easy to find simply false information on the internet without even looking in the political realm (google the world is flat for example).
Much about learning seems to be rooted in convincing someone of something or if not convincing then at least sharing convincingly - an idea in English, a hypothesis in science, a feeling in the arts.
Critical thinking would also help someone avoid being hoodwinked by poor or deliberately misleading logic!
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