Smart thinking: skills for critical understanding and writing

Cover......Page 1
Copyright page......Page 6
Contents......Page 7
Preface to First Edition......Page 10
Preface to Second Edition......Page 11
How to Use this Book......Page 13
What is smart thinking?......Page 15
Reasoning......Page 17
Thinking about thinking......Page 19
Thinkers with attitude......Page 20
Why do we need to 'think smart'?......Page 21
2  Claims: The Key Elements of Reasoning......Page 23
A basic look at language......Page 24
Statements that are claims......Page 25
Claims as elements of reasoning......Page 27
Connections within claims......Page 28
Claims that include claims......Page 29
Scope and certainty......Page 30
Descriptive and value claims......Page 31
Using claims as conclusions and premises......Page 32
More on conclusions......Page 34
More on premises......Page 35
Review......Page 36
3  Linking: The Key Process in Reasoning......Page 39
Evidence of the linking process......Page 40
The problem of understanding linkages......Page 41
Representing the analytical structure......Page 42
What the analytical structure format offers......Page 43
Casting......Page 45
Using the analytical structure for planning......Page 47
Complex analytical structures......Page 49
Review......Page 51
Using a group of premises......Page 53
Using independent premises......Page 55
The weakness of independent premises......Page 57
Premises that provide a framework......Page 58
Premises that provide a definition......Page 60
The link from premises to conclusion......Page 61
The importance of internal connections......Page 62
Covering scope and certainty......Page 64
Thinking about values......Page 65
Review......Page 67
5  More Effective Reasoning I: Better Claims......Page 69
Writing clear claims......Page 70
Controlling the key properties of claims......Page 71
The problem of 'true' claims......Page 74
Claims whose truthfulness is not in question......Page 76
Claims supported by authority......Page 78
Claims supported by reasoning......Page 80
Review......Page 81
6  More Effective Reasoning II: Better Links......Page 83
Dependent premises providing one reason......Page 84
Avoiding implied premises......Page 86
What is relevance?......Page 88
Ensuring premises are relevant......Page 90
The special role of framing premises......Page 91
The burden of proof......Page 94
Justifying all aspects of the conclusion......Page 96
Breadth of premises......Page 97
Coherence in scope and certainty......Page 99
Review......Page 100
A common error......Page 103
Deduction......Page 104
Induction......Page 105
Categorical and propositional logic......Page 106
Five types of reasoning......Page 107
Causal reasoning......Page 108
Reasoning from generalisation......Page 109
Reasoning from specific cases......Page 111
Reasoning from analogy......Page 112
Reasoning from terms......Page 113
Review......Page 114
8  Research, Reasoning, and Analysis......Page 116
Reasoning and knowledge......Page 117
Reasoned analysis as questions......Page 118
Information understood by where we find it......Page 120
Relations of similarity and difference......Page 122
Information classified by the topic under investigation......Page 123
Information as it relates to how we are using it......Page 125
Direct sources......Page 127
Indirect sources......Page 128
Five possible outcomes......Page 130
Review......Page 131
9  Planning and Creating Your Reasoning......Page 134
Context: analysing the external dimensions of reasoning......Page 135
Text: the internal dimensions of reasoning......Page 137
Different sorts of plans......Page 141
The analytical structure format as a plan for writing......Page 143
Review......Page 146
The value of referencing......Page 148
Casting and notes on each paragraph......Page 151
Capturing the essence of the text......Page 160
Overall narrative flow of the text......Page 161
Summary......Page 163
Exercise 1.2......Page 164
Exercise 2.5......Page 165
Exercise 3.1......Page 166
Exercise 3.4......Page 167
Exercise 3.5......Page 169
Exercise 3.6......Page 173
Exercise 4.1......Page 175
Exercise 4.4......Page 176
Exercise 5.1......Page 177
Exercise 5.3......Page 179
Exercise 5.4......Page 180
Exercise 6.2......Page 181
Exercise 6.4......Page 182
Exercise 6.6......Page 183
Exercise 7.1......Page 184
Exercise 8.3......Page 186
Exercise 9.2......Page 187
Exercise 9.3......Page 188
Glossary of Key Terms and Concepts......Page 189
Further reading on knowledge and philosophy......Page 201
Further reading on reasoning......Page 202
Further reading on writing and communicating......Page 204
General questions......Page 205
Specific questions......Page 207