# data[].attributes.headline
Post #10- Critical Thinking Process Question Responses (Word Document)

# data[].attributes.subject
Post #10- Critical Thinking Process Question Responses (Word Document)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Critical Thinking Step-by-Step Process Assignment 1

# data[].attributes.body
Definition: the act of assigning an agent or assigning meaning to something that cannot be easily understood.

Connection- As an example, some might see the photo below as "sign from god". This is a perfect example of agenticity because they are assigning an agent to something they are seeing and cannot explain.

# data[].attributes.body
Definition: the human tendency of discovering meaningful patterns in an otherwise meaningless noise. ( Photo or Back round etc.)

Connection:
This photo is an example of patternicity. Technically it is just a photo of a green pepper cut in half. But you can supposedly see two scared/shocked faces on each side

# data[].attributes.body
Definition: to believe whatever is most simple to understand, to find the simplest answer.

Connection:
When something happens to you,things that you can not understand. You will try to find the simplest explanation. When you have dream that something will occur, and then it does, you automatically assume you must be psychic because how else would you know!? It is the first, simplest explanation, rather than a complex scientific explanation of coincidence.

# data[].attributes.body
Definition: the tendency to believe something simply because someone of authority has stated it or endorsed it.

Connection: The comic attached perfectly represents the effects of Appeal to Authority. Someone of authority can be some one we look up to, or the way they are attracts us to wanting to be like them as well, making us believe and act the same way as they do/would.

# data[].attributes.body
Definition: strategy of relaying irrelevant information used to distract from the actual answer.
Connection: The red fish represents the "red herring" the distraction from what the little fish are doing at the bottom.

# data[].attributes.body
Definition: The misunderstanding that simply because something states it is "all natural" does not mean that it does not have the potential to be harmful.

Connection- In the article attached below Dr.Mark Lorch goes into detail describing how there ARE chemicals in everything, even potentially harmful ones. Lorch explains that even in All Natural products there are small amounts of chemicals that are present a potential threat, depending on the amount ingested. I believe this is a perfect example of the All Natural Red Flag.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Chemicals are bad, right? Otherwise why would so many purveyors of all things healthy proudly proclaim their products to be "chemical-free" and why would phrases such as "it's chock full of chemicals" be so commonly used to imply something is unnatural and therefore inherently dangerous?

On one level these phrases are meaningless - after all, chemicals are everywhere, in everything. From the air that we breathe to the pills we pop, it's all chemicals. Conversely, many would argue (the Advertising Standards Agency included) that we all know perfectly well what "chemical-free" means and those who rail against the absurdity of the phrase are just being pedantic. Even the Oxford Dictionary defines a chemical as "a distinct compound or substance, especially one which has been artificially prepared or purified."

So "chemical-free" products are adhering to a recognised usage.

But pedantry and definition aren't really the point. The point is that every time anti-chemical slogans are used people are being misinformed. The implication is always that the terms "chemical" and "poison" are interchangeable. This is a perception that permeates our subconscious to the extent that chemists themselves have been guilty of exactly the same lazy language.

As a result of this common usage of "chemicals" the whole subject has been tainted with unpleasant connotations. And while physics and biology have their celebrity scientists extolling the wonders of bosons, bugs and big bangs, chemists are left floundering in their wake or are left completely unrepresented in the mainstream media ( where's the Guardian's chemistry blog?).

This is all despite the modern world having been built on the innovations of chemists. For example, most of the world's population is sustained by the innovations of one of them. Fritz Haber invented a means to turn the nitrogen in the air into useful agricultural fertiliser (40% of the nitrogen in you comes from Haber's reaction). Meanwhile the chemists who artificially prepared or purified antibiotics are responsible for a treatment that saves more lives than any other medical intervention.

All these arguments are trotted out by chemistry bloggers on a regular basis, but these writers are only preaching to the converted. The good news is that on Monday the campaign group Sense about Science joined the discussion with the publication of a guide entitled Making Sense of Chemical Stories. Sense about Science is a respected charitable organisation that "equips people to make sense of scientific and medical claims in public discussion". In short, it facilitates discussions between concerned/interested groups and relevant experts.

'A common misconception is that all manmade chemicals are harmful, and all natural chemicals are good for us. However, many natural chemicals are just as harmful to human health, if not more so.' Photograph: Compound Interest/Sense About Science Photograph: Compound Interest/Sense About Science

The aim of its guide is to bridge the disconnect between the lifestyle view (and popular definition) of chemicals and the realities of how chemistry is used to sustain the modern world. The guide does this by tackling common misconceptions about chemistry.

A key misconception is that natural chemicals are somehow safer than manmade ones. The wrongheadedness of this is nicely illustrated by a pair of infographics (above) created by Compound Interest that don't shy away from admitting synthetic chemicals are often toxic, but also make it clear that whether a chemical is naturally occurring or manmade tells us precisely nothing about its toxicity.

Not only that, but where harmful chemicals do occur (be that in potatoes or lethal injections) the dose is the really important thing to consider.

Making Sense of Chemical Stories is being promoted to the public, journalists, lifestyle press and policymakers. It, along with the infographics, are freely available to download from Sense about Science, or if you prefer a hard copy (or a box full of them) email enquiries@senseaboutscience.org or call 020 7490 9590 with your contact details.

Order some and spread the word: chemicals are good for you!

Mark Lorch is a senior lecturer in chemistry at the University of Hull. He blogs at www.chemistry-blog.com and tweets as @sci_ents

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Manmade or natural, tasty or toxic, they're all chemicals ... | Dr Mark Lorch

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Chemicals are bad, right? Otherwise why would so many purveyors of all things healthy proudly proclaim their products to be "chemical-free" and why would phrases such as "it's chock full of chemicals" be so commonly used to imply something is unnatural and therefore inherently dangerous?

# data[].attributes.headline
Post #3 Red Flag: Confusion of Correlation

# data[].attributes.subject
Post #3 Red Flag: Confusion of Correlation

# data[].attributes.body
Defintion- When people confuse causation (the reason something has happened) with correlation (something that happens together with no actual cause).
Connection:
The picture below depicts the difference between Causation- when people cant breathe they die. And Correlation- People who breathe die, meaning all people breathe, and all people die, but breathing is not the cause of death.

# data[].attributes.body
Definition: the tendency of searching for evidence that only supports or contributes to ones already existing belief/theory.
Connection:
When those in emotional distress are searching for answers for their loved ones they commonly go to a medium or "psychic"(As pictured below). All a median has to do is make a couple guesses correctly for said person to believe them, regardless of any incorrect guesses. This is a perfect example of confirmation bias, someone looking for an answer that agrees with them. Also is an example of emotional connections.

# data[].attributes.headline
Post #1 Title- The Paranormal and Pseudoscience Assignment #1

# data[].attributes.subject
Post #1 Title- The Paranormal and Pseudoscience Assignment #1

# data[].attributes.body
Made by Maegan Parmentier, working individually