TrueSciPhi

Podcast Profile: Critical Reasoning for Beginners

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6 episodes
2010
Median: 68 minutes
Collection: Philosophy

Description (podcaster-provided):

Themes and summary (AI-generated based on podcaster-provided show and episode descriptions):

This podcast is a short introductory course in critical reasoning focused on understanding, analyzing, and evaluating arguments. It begins by clarifying what an argument is and how to recognize when someone is offering reasons meant to support a conclusion. From there, it develops a practical framework for breaking arguments into their component parts—premises and conclusions—and for rewriting them in a clear, “logic book–style” format that makes their structure easier to inspect.

A major theme is distinguishing different kinds of arguments, especially deductive and inductive forms. The podcast explains what it means for a deductive argument to be valid and how validity relates to the truth or falsity of the premises and conclusion. It also addresses how inductive arguments are assessed, emphasizing standards for judging whether the evidence provided makes a conclusion more or less plausible.

Across the series, the focus is on concrete evaluative skills: determining whether an argument is well-formed, whether it succeeds on its own terms, and how to avoid being persuaded by reasoning that only appears strong. The course culminates in an overview of common fallacies—patterns of bad reasoning that can be mistaken for good arguments—aimed at helping listeners spot errors and weaknesses in everyday discourse, such as arguments encountered in news, media, or informal discussion.