CI-163 A Course on Skepticism and Rationality
Magician James "The Amazing" Randi reminds us that "No matter how smart or how well educated you are, you can be deceived." In an age fraught with deception and misinformation, students need tactics and strategies in order to separate truth from falsity. This course encourages its participants to act as skeptics - not cynics, necessarily - by requiring evidence and proof before believing or accepting claims. Students are urged to identify the most-likely-to occur opportunities for deception in their major fields and draw from the tenets of classical rhetoric, logic, and the scientific method in order to develop safeguards. Frequent collaboration with classmates will allow for dynamic solutions to small and large-scale contemporary problems ranging from the personal (e.g. used car prices and avoiding fraud) to the universal(e.g. "fake news" and God).
Prerequisite
Restricted to students with less than 54 credits. Students with more than 54 credits needing to fulfill their CI requirement should seek approval from the Undergraduate Advising Office.