Do
you think clearly?
You might wish to think that you can
think. Think again.
What is thinking? How does
non-thinking disguise itself?
Let
Mr. Lau Kwong Fook (the resident
philosopher of Gone Fishing) treat you to an feast for the mind,
titled ‘NOUS: A Practical Guide to Clear Thought’ (NOUS).
About NOUS ...
NOUS is a unique and powerful course designed for individuals that strive to master
the foundations of clear thought. Based on Mr. Lau’s extensive research and
experience in philosophy over the past 25 years, all questions can be reduced to
six generic questions. Participants will learn how to tackle these questions, which upon mastery, could enable them to follow any discussion
rigorously, evaluate arguments and think clearly. This course is
delivered in a series of four 2-hour talks.
Talk #1: Foundations and
Abdications
Clear thinking
begins with adopting the right attitude, captured in the acronym SEX. Find
out what this means. But many people do worse than start on the wrong
foot, they give up thought altogether. Discover the subtle ways by which
this abdication is disguised. You may be (unconsciously, of course) guilty
of it too!
Talk #2:
Finger the Fallacy
A fallacy is a bad
argument that is often accepted as a good one. The most popular ones
number about 40, and can be categorized into four groups. Discover what
these fallacies are—so you can reject them when you meet them, or think of
them. Prepare to be shocked.
Talk #3:
Conquer the Question
Do questions make
you confused or panicked? Take heart. All questions fit one or more of six
basic question forms, each with its own solution methods or heuristics.
Learn what all these are, and you can give every question (and whoever
asked it) a run for its money.
Talk #4:
Assess the
Argument
An assertion without
a good argument rests on quicksand. But what is a good argument? You’ll be
relieved to know that all arguments fit one or more of five basic argument
forms. Understand these forms, and you can correctly assess (or fatally
attack) any argument—and formulate only good ones.
