philosophy
the study of thought, “love of wisdom”
“jamilla loves to learn. she is enthralled by ideas“
“elizabeth is studying anthropology because she loves to learn about ancient people“
Logic
distinguishing correct from incorrect
“a is equal to b. b is equal to c. c must be equal to a“
“what you’re saying doesn’t make sense. your conclusion must be wrong“
Inductive reasoning
specific example to general conclusion
“the car has not started the last two times. it will never start”
“every dust particle we have analyzed from the moon has zinc on it. it is our conclusion that all the dust on the moon contains zinc”
Deductive reasoning
General example to specific conclusion
“all cats are carnivores. i guess my cat will be a meat eater too”
“all water is H2O. this droplet of water is H2O”
cosmology
study of the universe
“janis is fascinated by the mechanisms of the universe”
“the study of nature reveals universal laws of physics”
epistemology
study of human knowledge
“the human brain tends to categorize information in groups of seven”
“human beings learn and gain
metaphysics
study of things that are outside of human perception
“if the universe has order, a supreme being must have created it”
“time is relative”
ontology
study of being and existence
“sometimes i wonder about the nature of existance”
“how do i know if a desk truly exists”
wisdom
judgement, intellectual virtue
“knowledge with understanding makes for a person of true character”
“the truth is out there; we must learn to approach it with awe”
morality
right and wrong in light of faith
“if a man asks for your shirt, give him your cloak as well. jesus calls us to such generosity”
“sexuality is a gift from god. it will not be abused”
knowledge
justified true belief
“i saw you throw a book at her. i know you did it”
“i measured the volume of the tank. it hold 5 cubic litres of water”
ethics
evaluating human conduct in light of reason
“we can’t be killing each other anytime we want, or no one will be safe”
“i guess ill help you because i may need your help someday
truth
concept of way things are
“you do seem insensitive. how could you yell at that old woman”
“we can accomplish more if we get along. look at the beautiful building we just built together”
absolute truth
true no matter the circumstances
“no means no”
“it is never okay to punch a three month old baby”
relative truth
true under specific social environments
“Sometimes it’s okay to yell and get mad”
“being a stay-at-home mom was expected of women a generation ago”
natural theology
study of divine through human nature
“the more i discover about the human brain, the more i discover about god”
“the environmental studies course led me to a deeper appreciation of the marvels of connection”
semantics
theory of meaning, signification of symbols
“the cross is a symbol which reminds us of our brokenness”
“words have the power to heal or hurt”
syllogism
conclusion following two or more premises
categorical syllogism
3 propositions, two premises, and conclusion
“all persons need love. i am a person. i need love.”
“all water is H2O. this is a drop of water. This water is H2O”
premise
factual statement that provides reason to proposition
“some people like to eat bananas”
“all men and women are afraid of the dark”
conditional syllogism
if antecedent, then precedent
“if you love me, then you’ll be nice to me”
“when you come inside, you’ll get dried off”
antecedent
condition, IF…, then…
“IF YOU LOVE ME, you’ll be nice to me”
precedent
outcome, if…, THEN…
“if you love me, YOU’LL BE NICE TO ME”
fallacy
a mistake in reasoning
“all men are pigs. hence, you are a pig”
“you only have such stupid ideas because you’re ugly”
formal fallacy
invalid arguements, wrong structure
informal fallacy
attempt to persuade that fails, wrong words