phil 1504: reading chunk 1

virginia tech fall 2026... gokies

question asked →

→ issue raised

answer of a question + …

position on an issue

what’s the truth of a factual statement?

(if true,) true regardless of what anyone thinks

truth of a non-factual statement?

maybe true for the person making it, but not universal

factual or non-factual?
“Nonalcoholic beer tastes worse than milk.”

non-factual

factual or non-factual?
“Dogs can’t mate with chickens.”

factual

moral/ethical subjectivism

the belief that a statement of moral/ethical value is true for the person that asserts it, not necessarily for everyone else

relativism

the idea that truth is relative to the standards of a given culture

belief-bias

a predisposition to evaluate an argument by how plausible its conclusion seems

confirmation bias

predisposition to ignoring beliefs that contradict one’s own — or to attach extra importance to supporting beliefs

in-group bias

reflexicely agreeing w/ beliefs of those we identify/association with + assuming the beliefs are well-grounded

popularity bias

predisposition to accepting populat beliefs/behaviors

repetition bias

predisposition to accepting constantly repeated messaging

availability bias

the tendency to confuse how easily something comes to mind w/ how often it actually happens

false-consensus bias

the assumption that others think & behave like we do

deductive reasoning

arguments whose ccl presumably is derivable from the premises by the meanings or definitions of the words in the argument

deductive/inductive reasoning?
“Winston lives on the equator. Therefore, he lives halfway between the poles.”

deductive

valid deductive argument

an argument whose ccl is derivable from the premises by the definitions of the premises’ words

valid/invalid deductive argument?
“All cats are animals. Cathy is an animal. Therefore, Cathy is a cat.”

invalid

invalid deductive argument

the ccl doesn’t logically follow the premises, even if the premises are factually true

(t/f): a valid deductive argument must have true premises

false

valid argument

argument whose ccl is derivable from the premises by definition — isn’t necessarily true

(for deductive args.) sound = _

true

an unsound deductively valid rests on a _ premise

false

inductive reasoning

ccl made more likely based on the facts asserted by the premises

deductive/inductive reasoning?
Winston lives on the equator. Therefore, he lives where it doesn’t freeze.

inductive

categoriacal reasoning uses _

quantifiers

words that can be used for categorical reasoning

“all”; “no”; “some”

categorical reasoning relies on categories, which are _

groups/populations

what type of reasoning might use:
“chickens”
“people who like tea more than coffee”
“the tallest living person”

categorical reasoning

truth-functional reasoning

used in arguments to relate sentences by compound operators

“not,” “and,” “or,” and “if… then…” are commonly used with _ reasoning

truth-functional

what type of reasoning is being used in this example?
Either Winston or his brother let the cat out, and it wasn’t Winston. Therefore, Winston’s brother let the cat out.

truth-functional reasoning

generalizing (define plus what type of reasoning is it)

coming to a general conclusion about the members of a population by considering a few specific members of the population

inductive reasoning

instantiating

coming to a conclusion about specific members of a population by considering what is generally true of the members of the population

argument by analogy

ccl regarding one thing is thought more likely by a fact about a similar thing

causal reasoning

inductive reasoning to support a causal statement

what type of reasoning is this example?
A reduced rate of infection was observed only in the group that received the vaccine. Therefore, the reduced rate of infection in that group was caused by the vaccine.

causal reasoning