ARKANSAS PARANORMAL & ANOMALOUS STUDIES TEAM

08/07/2009 MONTHLY GROUP MEETING

Media/Misc. Updates

Investigation Review

Upcoming Events

Training: Critical Thinking

08/13 Sphinx Radio, 7PM CST

08/18– Paranormal Podcast, 8PM CST

08/25 – Journeys with Rebecca, 8PM CST

08/30 – Richard Syrett Show, 7PM CST

07/11– Charity Event

Forrest City, AR.

07/18 – Historical Location

Hot Springs, AR.

08/01 – Private Residence

Maumelle, AR.

08/07 – Monthly Meeting

08/08 – Private Residence, NLR, AR.

08/14 – Private Residence, Clarksville, AR.

08/28 – Private Residence, Mabelvale, AR.

08/29 – Historical Location, Booneville, AR.

Introduction to Critical Thinking

• Psychology is an empirical

science

• Empirical: Our knowledge

is based on objective

observation, evidence,

and data

Assumptions

• Assumptions: that which we take for

granted or accept at face value

• We make many assumptions in psychology

– For example: What is the assumption in the

statement “Our knowledge is based on

objective observation, evidence, and data.”

The “Objective” Assumption

• It must be true, I saw it with my own eyes!

• The data speak for itself

– Or, the facts speak for themselves

“It must be true, I saw it with my own eyes!”

“Larry tried (pretended) to debunk it…therefore it must be real…”

Eyewitness Testimony

• “Did you see the broken headlight”

– More likely say they had seen a broken

headlight, when none existed

• “Did you see a broken headlight”

• Loftus & Zanni (1975)

An Error of Assumption

• The “breakup”

• Devastated over the end of a romantic

relationship

• Assumption: she had been dating the

object of her romantic interest

• I observed signs of sadness about ending this relationship

• I inferred she had met, and dated, the man in question

• My bias was that one could not fall in love unless one had actually met the object of interest

– Based on my experience

• Inference: When the dinner with her

boyfriend’s parents was over, Chandra

was so anxious to leave and go home

that she left her coat behind.

• Observation: When the dinner with her

boyfriend’s parents was over, Chandra left

her coat behind

• Inference: When Chandra left Reggie’s car to go inside, he sat silently in front of her house for awhile, daydreaming and pondering their future.

• Observation: When Chandra left

Reggie’s car to go inside, he sat silently in front of her house for awhile.

Does the data speak for itself?

• “I have been in rooms full of data and

never heard them say a word” Anonymous

• After we have collected data, we make

inferences about that data

• Data is subject to

interpretation

– Interpretation is

influenced by

assumptions which

can be biased

Guidelines to Critical Thinking

(Wade & Tavris, Psychology, 5th edition (Longman Publishers, 1998) and Tavris & Wade, Psychology in Perspective, 2nd edition (Longman, 1997).

• Ask questions; be willing to wonder

Always be on the lookout for questions

that have not been answered in the

textbooks, by the experts in the field or by

the media. Be willing to ask "what's wrong

here?' and/or "Why is this the way it is,

and how did it come to be that way?"

• Define the problem

An inadequate formulation of question can

produce misleading or incomplete answers.

Ask neutral questions that don't presuppose

answers.

• Examine the evidence

Ask yourself, "What evidence supports or

refutes this argument and its opposition?" Just

because many people believe, including so-

called experts, it doesn't make it so.

• Analyze assumptions

and biases

All of us are subject to

biases, beliefs that

prevent us from being

impartial.

• Evaluate the assumptions

and biases that lie behind

arguments, including your

own.

• Avoid emotional reasoning: "If I feel this

way, it must be true."

Passionate commitment to a view can motivate

a person to think boldly without fear of what

others will say, but when "gut feelings" replace

clear thinking, the results can be disastrous.

• Don't oversimplify

Look beyond the obvious, rest easy

generalizations, reject either/or thinking.

Don't argue by anecdote.

• Consider other interpretations

Formulate hypotheses that offer reasonable

explanations of characteristics, behavior,

and events.

• Tolerate uncertainty

Sometimes the evidence

merely allows us to draw

tentative conclusions.

Don't be afraid to say

"I don't know."

Don't demand "the" answer.

Occam's razor - all things being equal, the

simplest solution tends to be the best one.

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NEW PRODUCT TESTS FIND LEAD IN LIPSTICK

Top brands L’Oreal, Cover Girl and Christian Dior test positive for lead!

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Lead in Lipstick

The Food and Drug Administration states that there is only a miniscule of harmful substances in cosmetics, not enough to have any adverse effect.

• The secret is out – and studies show

that higher cholesterol could slash

your stroke risk by nearly 300%!

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High Cholesterol Healthy?

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D. is a famous alternative doctor who is sending a free booklet to many people to get them to buy his Douglass Report. William Campbell Douglass (M.D.) says a diet in low fat is actually killing everyone. He is saying a diet high in red meat will reduce your risk of heart disease. He claims drinking water will do more harm than good.

Is high cholesterol healthy? That would be a question for you and your doctor to decide.

Help Find This Missing Girl: Ashley Flores

A 13 year old girl, Ashley Flores has been missing for two weeks. An email bearing her picture and a plea for help has been circulated.

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Help Find Ashley Flores

The text of the email does not include the most basic information in a missing child plea: where the young girl went missing, when she went missing, when and where she was last seen, a description of her, her parents contact information, and contact information for the police handling the case.

Judge sentences rap music fan to Bach, Beethoven

A defendant had a hard time facing the music. Andrew Vactor was

facing a $150 fine for playing rap music too loudly on his car stereo in July. But a judge offered to reduce that to $35 if Vactor spent 20 hours

listening to classical music by the likes of Bach, Beethoven and

Chopin.

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Judge sentences rap music fan to Bach, Beethoven

Champaign County Municipal Court Judge Susan Fornof-Lippencott says the idea was to force Vactor to listen to something he might not prefer, just as other people had no choice but to listen to his loud rap music.

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Woman Says She Was Shot In The Leg By Her Stove

A woman said she was shot in the leg by her stove. Cory Davis told the Peninsula Daily News she had just stoked her cast-iron heating stove Sunday when she heard a loud bang and was struck in her left calf.

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Woman Says She Was Shot In The Leg By Her Stove

A case of shotgun shells spilled about a month ago at her home and one must have landed in the newspapers she used to light the stove.

She removed a metal fragment herself and was treated Monday at Forks Community Hospital.

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The Centaur Excavations

In the Jack Reese Galleria of the great Hodges Library of the University of Tennessee the art and artifacts of the Centaur excavation at Volos has found a permanent home. This reconstruction of a Centaurian burial site was assembled by Professor William Willers of the University of Wisconsin in the mid-1980s before being moved to the University of Tennessee.

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The Centaur Excavations

Very well done, with photographs, created in a good academic style with an .edu domain. Actually explaining a hoax, but from a quick look it's easy to be fooled.

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Dehydrated Water

A commercial website selling dehydrated water.

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Dehydrated Water

Very well put together. They are seeking financial help in gaining market penetration throughout local supermarkets around the world. The site requests a handful of investors to help pay the required $6.5 million slotting fee to get on the shelves. If you are interested, please contact investors@buydehydratedwater.com

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Dehydrated Water

"I can't believe you invested so much time and money to create a web site like this. Don't you have anything better to do with your life?" Response: And we can't believe you took so much time to reply and vent your disbelief. You obviously have never tried our water. Our customers have a tendency to become dedicated followers. Don't be a cheapo. Send us $5 and try it out for yourself.

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