We will meet in room MB-11 at 1:00 p.m.
Bring with you to class today:
1. A reflection paper on The Power of Mindful Reflection. What about your work as a student makes you more mindful, what less? In what situations or contexts are you most mindful? How could you lead a more mindful life? Please be specific about the characteristics of mindfulness that you experience. Keep the three characteristics of mindfulness in mind as you consider this; don't start thinking of mindfulness as sort of a vague term for "thoughtfulness." Keep your eye on its specific meaning. Feel free to refer to examples and cases from the Light book or your other reading in your response, as well as your own experience.
2. A printed copy of The Power of Mindful Reflection.
Complete the following reading by Monday:
Mc Henry: Introduction, Chapters 1 and 2.
Complete the following writing by Monday:
Two copies of a reflection paper on Mc Henry: Introduction, Chapters 1 and 2.
McHenry describes several disastrous cases of poor thinking. What went wrong? Were these people just "stupid"? Or did they use flawed thinking strategies? Discuss at least two of the examples and try to identify the mistakes in thinking that led to the unfortunate results. Be as specific as you can. See if you can think of how these errors could have been avoided.
Many of us use the terms "know," "believe," "think," and "feel" interchangeably, or almost so.
Sometimes we make distinctions, but often it is hard to tell exactly what they
mean. McHenry reflects on what we can or should "really mean" by these terms, and what their significance is. One point that comes out is that the strength of our conviction doesn't really assure the truth of our beliefs. Several of you gave examples of mistakes you had made by overestimating your knowledge, or underestimating it. Even if I know for sure that Elvis was born in Memphis, he wasn't. A wise person is probably one who has more confidence in some beliefs than others, who can adjust the strength of beliefs in light of changing evidence.
Feel free to comment on any of the ideas in chapter 2, but at least comment on this: Unless you are a very unusual person, you have had an experience like discovering the mistake about Elvis's birthplace; you have discovered that you were wrong about something. Does that discovery undermine your confidence in your beliefs in general, in your ability to know?
Why or why not? (It will be clear, I hope, that the "why or why not?" is the most important part of this question. Give it some real thought.)
Reminder. You should have completed the following reading by today:
1. Two essays, as assigned in the Peer Review List for Essay 1.
2. The Power of Mindful Reflection
You should have completed the following writing by today:
1. Your self-evaluation for essay 1.
2. You should also have submitted your Safe Assign originality report.
3. Peer reviews of two essays, as assigned in the Peer Review List for Essay 1.
4. A reflection paper on The Power of Mindful Reflection.
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This page was last edited:
03/04/09