Category Archives: Booklets, Handouts and Worksheets

Material that gives some background to a topic. A useful teacher resource. Can often include worksheets and handouts for students.

The Ethics of Robot Cars

Posted on August 20, 2014 by Peter Ellerton

How about robot cars with ethics settings adjusted to suite the driver? Here’s a Terrible Idea: Robot Cars With Adjustable Ethics Settings Here’s a PDF

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Another resource for Fallacies of Reasoning

Posted on September 24, 2013 by Peter Ellerton

Great resource and very accessible to students.  

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Science and Conspiracy

Posted on May 1, 2013 by Peter Ellerton

A useful resource produced by NASA debunking claims that the moon landings were faked. Debunking moon landing conspiracies

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Fallacies Poster

Posted on May 17, 2012 by Peter Ellerton

A lovely job from http://yourlogicalfallacyis.com/  please visit the site for interactive presentation.

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The Language of Science

Posted on May 1, 2012 by Peter Ellerton

Listen and learn: the language of science and scepticism Peter Ellerton Making sure what’s intended is what’s heard can be more difficult than it seems. Melvin Gaal (mindsharing.eu) As scientists, one of our responsibilities should be to promote clarity. A lot … Continue reading →

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Philosophy — What’s the Use?

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Peter Ellerton

Are you looking to see why teaching philosophy is important?  Another great article from NYTimes The Stone Almost every article that appears in The Stone provokes some comments from readers challenging the very idea that philosophy has anything relevant to … Continue reading →

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Another Double Blind Test surprise

Posted on January 5, 2012 by Peter Ellerton

Stradivarius Fails Sound Test Versus Newbie Violins Download pdf (from sciam) Can you tell the difference between modern violins and antiques crafted by Italian masters? Don’t feel too bad – expert players can’t do it either. In a double-blind test, 21 experienced … Continue reading →

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When Should Science be Censored?

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

Calls to censor details of potential killer flu via ABC News The suppression of breakthrough research into deadly bird flu strains has been labelled scientific censorship by some, but others say it is a necessary step to prevent a possible … Continue reading →

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The Backfire Effect

Posted on November 10, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

When people believe more strongly in something AFTER they have been given information that refutes it…. Good explanation here http://youarenotsosmart.com/2011/06/10/the-backfire-effect/ And paper by Brendan Nyhan here (pdf).  Abstract below. An extensive literature addresses citizen ignorance, but very little research focuses … Continue reading →

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Suing for Being Born

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

ISRAELI children with birth defects are increasingly suing the medical authorities for ever allowing them to be born. The rise in such “wrongful life” lawsuits, which the medical profession estimates at 600 since the first case in 1987, has prompted … Continue reading →

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Animal Actors – Animal Rights, Human Perceptions

Posted on October 13, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

Chimpanzees Should Not Be Used in TV or Movies (via Scientific American) Does the use of chimps in movies distort the conservation message? By Jason G. Goldman | October 12, 2011 | 3 Lots of people mistake bonobos for chimpanzees, despite the fact that they’re really … Continue reading →

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Why do humans reason? Arguments for an argumentative theory

Posted on October 3, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

Great paper on Reasoning Why Do Humans Reason? (pdf) Abstract and authors below… Abstract: Reasoning is generally seen as a means to improve knowledge and make better decisions. However, much evidence shows that reasoning often leads to epistemic distortions and poor … Continue reading →

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Tips on Writing a Philosophy Paper/Essay

Posted on October 3, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

A nice overview from  Douglas W. Portmore Tips on writing a philosophy paper (pdf) The full text is below…

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Developing critical thinking skills

Posted on September 19, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

A useful handout that talks about reading, writing and thinking critically with examples of how to achieve this. via http://sydney.edu.au/stuserv/documents/learning_centre/critical.pdf Critical Thinking Skills (pdf)

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Critical Thinking – An Introduction (Alec Fisher)

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

This ebook is widely available for download on the web.  I got it here www.axzopress.com/downloads/pdf/1560526483pv.pdf  Critical thinking introduction (pdf) A good resource for referencing what we mean by critical thinking.

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What’s logic got to do with it? – Some of the greatest flashes of scientific inspiration were sparked by utterly illogical thinking.

Posted on September 10, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

POPULAR belief has it that science is the preserve of logical Mr Spocks. A great scientific discovery must surely spring from a series of logical steps, each taken coolly and calmly, in the rational order. But take some time to … Continue reading →

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Top Ten Evolution Myths – and how we know it really happened (pdf)

Posted on September 10, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

Often misunderstandings about evolution are really misunderstandings about how science operates.  This document deals with both rather nicely.  Philosophy of Science. From the Skeptics Society.    Top Ten Evolution Myths (pdf)

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Hooked on Horoscopes (pdf)

Posted on September 9, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

We may not be able to persuade people that astrology and graphology are nonsense, but psychology, with the help of a showman, reveals why they are so popular.  The Barnum effect.  Psychology and critical thinking. Hooked on horoscopes (pdf)

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Consciousness – science tackles the self (pdf)

Posted on September 9, 2011 by Peter Ellerton

We know that we are aware of ourselves. But we don’t know how. And we are not even sure why. The answers may lie in the physical processes of consciousness 01 April 1989 by SUSAN BLACKMORE New Scientists Magazine issue … Continue reading →

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Teaching the Nature of Science

Posted on February 19, 2011 by admin

Three Critical Questions By Randy L. Bell, Ph.D. Teaching the Nature of Science

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