Talk:2009 Philosophy Proseminar Instructional Notes of Method

Study Questions Based on Instructional Notes on Method

1. Understand basic terms for discussion of rationales.

2. Be prepared to distinguish arguments from explanations.

3. How can you use social psychology and interpersonal communication as a kind of philoosphical method?

4. What is a reconstruction? What are the qualities of good reconstructions?

5. Distinguish between deductive and inductive reasoning. Recognize instances.

6. Learn the basic deductive argument forms: modus ponens, etc.

7. What kinds of patterns do we find in inductive reasoning? How do inductive analogies work?

8. How are explanations structured? What should you attend to in reconstructing them?

9. Study the main forms of definition from the wiki page we compile on this.

10. What is validity?

11. What are the three main strategies for assessing rationales?

12. How do thought experiments work? Identify several points of view that philosophers take about thought experiments.