Thinking Clearly

As discussed in his recent book: "The Know-It-All Society", Michael P. Lynch, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Connecticut, helps us take another look at the current state of dialogue in contemporary American culture as we discuss how polarization, conviction and intellectual arrogance has led us to believe that we have nothing to learn from those whose convictions are different from ours and rewards us for displaying emotional outrage, rather than more deliberative, rational thinking.

This episode focuses on the power of understanding statistics and probability, including how avoiding base rate neglect can help you make better decisions. Also discussed are: superforecasting (what it takes to make more accurate predictions of future events) and the power of understanding the statistical principle of regression toward the mean.

In this episode, guest philosopher, educator and author Lee McIntyre discusses his latest book, "The Scientific Attitude", and explains that the concept he calls "the scientific attitude" offers the best way to both describe what is special about science while it also solves the demarcation problem of separating science from non-science and pseudoscience. A host of other topics, including science denialism and the myth of the scientific method, are also discussed.

In this episode Bob and Julia discuss a variety of critical thinking mini-topics, including the skill of being able to identify and distinguish different kinds of claims (descriptive vs. normative and claims that are conclusions of arguments) and emphasize the power of using this skill in this age of information pollution. They also explore the difference between opinions and beliefs, the relation of skepticism to critical thinking and what is meant by the "Skeptic's Sniff Test".

Bob and Julia discuss the nature of skepticism and its relationship to critical thinking and the nuts and bolts of using and editing Wikipedia with guest Susan Gerbic, science advocate and activist skeptic. Susan is a co-founder of Monterey County Skeptics, founder and leader of the Guerrilla Skepticism on Wikipedia Project and a regular contributor to Skeptical Inquirer.

Have you ever wondered why some people have such different opinions than you on certain hot button issues; for example: climate change or gun control? Why don’t we all just objectively look at the evidence and weigh the risks against the benefits? To help answer these types of questions, Bob and Julia along with guest, Professor John Gastil from Penn. State University, explore the concepts and research in an intriguing area of human studies called Cultural Cognition.

With simple explanations and a dash of humor, John Allen Paulos, Mathematics Professor from Temple University, unpacks some topics from statistics that are essential for critical thinkers in navigating the complex terrain of our modern world. Professor Paulos has authored nine books including "Innumeracy", the classic book on statistics and critical thinking.

This episode with guest Benjamin Shaffer, Professor of Philosophy from Humboldt State University, features a discussion of how critical thinkers can best identify, understand, and reason through values-based/moral/ethical arguments.

Richard Parker, Professor Emeritus of philosophy at California State University, Chico and co-author of the textbook: "Critical Thinking", joins hosts Bob and Julia to discuss the challenges of teaching critical thinking, difficulties learners have mastering the subject, and why critical thinking skills matter. Resources for learning critical thinking are also discussed.

This New Year edition of "Thinking Clearly" taps into the humor, good nature, and deep thinking of musician, song writer, podcaster, skeptic and advocate for science and critical thinking, George Hrab.