“The essence of mathematics is not to make simple things complicated, but to make complicated things simple.” - S. Gudder
When you hear the phrase “quantitative reasoning,” does it bring you back to days of high school Algebra and Calculus? Does it make you remember the anguish of learning formulas without a purpose explained to you? If so, it may be time to look rethink your presumptions about math and logic.
Students seeking a classical education study quantitative reasoning in order to better understand the world around them. Every day we are confronted with advertisements, news reports, and arguments that twist numbers for their own purposes. If you don’t understand what the manipulators are doing, you may end up making faulty decisions and holding incorrect ideas.
In part six, we discussed some of the ways people can make philosophically moral decisions. This post gives an overview of how to use quantitative reasoning to fairly evaluate claims and make sound arguments of your own.
In the field of quantitative reasoning the three most important subjects you can focus on are: logic, statistics, and economics.
Assignment #1: Master the Basics of Logic
“Logic is the anatomy of thought.” - John Locke
Logic has been called the science of reasoning. Learn the basics of logic and you’ll be prepared to evaluate the arguments of others and make sound arguments of your own.
Aristotle was one of the most important thinkers on the subject of logic. His collection of logic-related works, The Organon, is considered one of the classic texts in the field and is available online at no cost. It explains several key principles including syllogism, induction, deduction, and logical fallacies. You can read an overview of these principles and general Aristotelian logic in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
Because logic is a rather complicated subject, you may also want to check out a book or two about it. Most public libraries offer plenty of volumes on the topic. You may also want to look into the logic curriculum from Memoria Press . The advanced books are aimed at homeschooling high school students, but they’re in-depth enough for adults new to the subject. [click to continue…]
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