Albert Rutherford

inherent skill needed for critical thinking—asking questions. We need to be able to ask questions, sometimes very difficult ones that cause the personal evaluation of values

Emotions and "gut instincts" tend to guide us to conclusions that

part of critical thinking is being able to hold a well-reasoned, calm, intellectual debate.

Arguments from authority are the "because I said so" argument; the argument that just because someone is in charge, their argument is correct. This type of fallacy can also apply to people who seem believable just because they have traits perceived as positive; for example, "Shelly volunteers at a shelter and is a good person, therefore what she believes about organic food is right." The darkest side of this fallacy is often found in cults, where people fall prey to the tendency to believe people in authority who are charismatic. People evolved to want to exist in cohesive social groups where they can follow a leader. This respect helps keep society together, but it cannot override rational thinking

you can separate your head from your heart, you will be able to take a step back from your emotions to resolve a situation in a way that is most advantageous for you.

you find yourself questioning why you think or perceive something and the only reason you can think of to justify that knowledge or perception is, “it’s how I was raised,” then push yourself to critically examine that part of yourself.

biggest challenge we face is determining the good sources from bad ones.

1: Readiness to Learn - This step is a personal assessment of where you are in the learning process. It requires the student to be honest with themselves about their shortcomings and be willing to take constructive feedback.

He learned the language of music – what the notes on the staff mean, how to read and play chords, what makes a good harmony – and then he thought about it...a lot

He learned the language of music – what the notes on the staff mean, how to read and play chords, what makes a good harmony – and then he thought about it...a lot