Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
fat discrimination
this is in light of some discriminatory comments that some of my students made at a certain facebook account. i think i am going to file libel cases against them.
bigots that they are.
bigots that they are.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
yearbook write up
( from my block in UP law)
Block E 2010 is a mix of professionals and employees from the government and the private sector. We have doctors, a surgeon, a young lady officer in the military, investigators from the Office of the Ombudsman, NGO workers, bank managers, university lecturers, clerks of court, officers in Congress, company executives, accountants, writers and editors.
If you think that we talk only about serious matters, you are wrong. Although we can debate with anyone about real-world issues better than other students because of our experience, behind our serious-sounding professional labels are hunks, sirens, stand-up comedians, karaoke addicts, athletes, food lovers, lovaholics, certified drunkards, sex gurus, playboys and playgirls. Yes, potential defendants in criminal cases, especially those involving moral turpitude. (That is why we are studying law.)
It is difficult juggling work and law school (and family life for breadwinners). But the block has established a strong sense of esprit de corps, which has made law school life easier, or at least, more tolerable. Block unity is so strong that we staged the only known dropping en masse from a course in recent memory. We are not lemmings who will blindly follow superiors. Including professors. (To this day. we still don’t know what he was talking about!)
Another thing that distinguishes this block is that there are no annoying know-it-all divas and dicks among us. It also helped that we have a Mama Mi who keeps the block together by arranging dinners and fun trips (mind you, we don’t spend mommy and daddy’s hard-earned money for our gimmicks!) and who never fails to remind us of the things we need to do.
Given the enormous responsibilities we have at work and at home, you would think that evening students are slackers in law school. Well, you’re right. But, three slackers from this block somehow managed to land in the Top 20 of the graduating batch. The chairman and two members of the PLJ editorial board this year are also evening students.
We are survivors of the DanGat-Barry-Vicky carnage.
We are the real-life League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Women, and Everything Else In Between.
We are UP Law evening students, making sure that our taxes are well spent.
On us.
Block E 2010 is a mix of professionals and employees from the government and the private sector. We have doctors, a surgeon, a young lady officer in the military, investigators from the Office of the Ombudsman, NGO workers, bank managers, university lecturers, clerks of court, officers in Congress, company executives, accountants, writers and editors.
If you think that we talk only about serious matters, you are wrong. Although we can debate with anyone about real-world issues better than other students because of our experience, behind our serious-sounding professional labels are hunks, sirens, stand-up comedians, karaoke addicts, athletes, food lovers, lovaholics, certified drunkards, sex gurus, playboys and playgirls. Yes, potential defendants in criminal cases, especially those involving moral turpitude. (That is why we are studying law.)
It is difficult juggling work and law school (and family life for breadwinners). But the block has established a strong sense of esprit de corps, which has made law school life easier, or at least, more tolerable. Block unity is so strong that we staged the only known dropping en masse from a course in recent memory. We are not lemmings who will blindly follow superiors. Including professors. (To this day. we still don’t know what he was talking about!)
Another thing that distinguishes this block is that there are no annoying know-it-all divas and dicks among us. It also helped that we have a Mama Mi who keeps the block together by arranging dinners and fun trips (mind you, we don’t spend mommy and daddy’s hard-earned money for our gimmicks!) and who never fails to remind us of the things we need to do.
Given the enormous responsibilities we have at work and at home, you would think that evening students are slackers in law school. Well, you’re right. But, three slackers from this block somehow managed to land in the Top 20 of the graduating batch. The chairman and two members of the PLJ editorial board this year are also evening students.
We are survivors of the DanGat-Barry-Vicky carnage.
We are the real-life League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Women, and Everything Else In Between.
We are UP Law evening students, making sure that our taxes are well spent.
On us.
Friday, January 15, 2010
the problem
Problem
1. In a certain mythical community, politicians never tell the truth, and nonpoliticians always tell the truth. A stranger meets three natives and asks the first of them, “ Are you a politician?”. The first native answers the question. The second native then reports that the first native denied being a politician. The third native says that the first native is a politician. How many of these three natives are politicians?
2. On a certain train, the crew consists of the brakeman, the fireman, and the engineer. Their names listed alphabetically are Jones, Robinson and Smith. On the train are also three passengers with corresponding names, Mr. Jones, Mr. Robinson, and Mr. Smith. The following facts are known:
a. Mr. Robinison lives in Detroit
b. The brakeman lives exactly halfway between Detroit and Chicago
c. Mr. Jones earns exactly $20,000 a year
d. Smith oncea beat the fireman at the billiards
e. The brakeman’s next door neighbor, one of the three passengers mentioned, earns exactly three times as much as the brakeman
f. The passenger living in Chicago has the same name as the brakeman.
What is the engineer’s name?
3.The Waiter
Three men in a cafe order a meal the total cost of which is $15. They each contribute $5. The waiter takes the money to the chef who recognizes the three as friends and asks the waiter to return $5 to the men.
The waiter is not only poor at mathematics but dishonest and instead of going to the trouble of splitting the $5 between the three he simply gives them $1 each and pockets the remaining $2 for himself.
Now, each of the men effectively paid $4, the total paid is therefore $12. Add the $2 in the waiters pocket and this comes to $14.....where has the other $1 gone from the original $15?
4. The Double Jeopardy Doors
You are trapped in a room with two doors. One leads to certain death and the other leads to freedom. You don't know which is which.
There are two robots guarding the doors. They will let you choose one door but upon doing so you must go through it.
You can, however, ask one robot one question. The problem is one robot always tells the truth ,the other always lies and you don't know which is which.
What is the question you ask?
due next meeting...
explain on how you solve the problem
no copying
1. In a certain mythical community, politicians never tell the truth, and nonpoliticians always tell the truth. A stranger meets three natives and asks the first of them, “ Are you a politician?”. The first native answers the question. The second native then reports that the first native denied being a politician. The third native says that the first native is a politician. How many of these three natives are politicians?
2. On a certain train, the crew consists of the brakeman, the fireman, and the engineer. Their names listed alphabetically are Jones, Robinson and Smith. On the train are also three passengers with corresponding names, Mr. Jones, Mr. Robinson, and Mr. Smith. The following facts are known:
a. Mr. Robinison lives in Detroit
b. The brakeman lives exactly halfway between Detroit and Chicago
c. Mr. Jones earns exactly $20,000 a year
d. Smith oncea beat the fireman at the billiards
e. The brakeman’s next door neighbor, one of the three passengers mentioned, earns exactly three times as much as the brakeman
f. The passenger living in Chicago has the same name as the brakeman.
What is the engineer’s name?
3.The Waiter
Three men in a cafe order a meal the total cost of which is $15. They each contribute $5. The waiter takes the money to the chef who recognizes the three as friends and asks the waiter to return $5 to the men.
The waiter is not only poor at mathematics but dishonest and instead of going to the trouble of splitting the $5 between the three he simply gives them $1 each and pockets the remaining $2 for himself.
Now, each of the men effectively paid $4, the total paid is therefore $12. Add the $2 in the waiters pocket and this comes to $14.....where has the other $1 gone from the original $15?
4. The Double Jeopardy Doors
You are trapped in a room with two doors. One leads to certain death and the other leads to freedom. You don't know which is which.
There are two robots guarding the doors. They will let you choose one door but upon doing so you must go through it.
You can, however, ask one robot one question. The problem is one robot always tells the truth ,the other always lies and you don't know which is which.
What is the question you ask?
due next meeting...
explain on how you solve the problem
no copying
Saturday, January 9, 2010
interesting links for academics
Smorgasbord sites
iTunes U. Apple has been building this online “university” and filling it with free content—at last count, more than 100,000 educational video and audio files—from top universities (London School of Economics), NPR stations (Minnesota Public Radio’s “Grammar Grater,” a weekly podcast about English words, grammar and usage), famous museums and other cultural institutions all over the world.
Academic Earth. Here you’ll find thousands of video lectures from the world’s top scholars—from Yale’s Shelly Kagan on the “Philosophy on Life and Death” to investment banker Stan Christensen and former San Francisco 49er quarterback Steve Young on “Football vs. Business Negotiations.”
YouTube. The rapidly expanding default site for user-generated video now includes an education “channel” called YouTube EDU, with content from top universities and other institutions.
ResearchChannel. Where on the Web can you find Milton Masciadri, professor of double bass at the University of Georgia, discuss the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument used in the modern symphony orchestra? Here! A consortium of leading research and academic institutions share with the public more than 3,500 videos produced by its members.
Videolectures.Net. The site offers video lectures presented by distinguished scholars and scientists at conferences, seminars, workshops and the like. A project of the Jožef Stefan Institute in Slovenia, it has a decidedly international feel.
Standalone university sites
webcast.berkeley. The University of California-Berkeley records in lecture halls and classrooms equipped with video- and/or podcast-capture systems. In addition to hundreds of courses, the site offers on-campus lectures, debates, symposiums and other events.
Harvard@home. The site features more than 60 multimedia-rich programs on topics ranging from stem cells to Beethoven.
OpenCourseWare. Here you’ll find 1,800-some academic courses—complete with syllabuses, assignments, exams, and, in many cases, audio or video lectures—that the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has put online.
How-to ...
Learning center. Acquire lots of different skills—from organizing your daily life to mastering Google Desktop—from Hewlett Packard’s online classes. Each class includes up to 10 lessons and may also include interactive demos, assignments and quizzes.
WonderHowTo. Curators scour more than 1,700 websites and hand-pick instructional videos—from how to live longer (with University of Cambridge researcher Aubrey de Grey) to teaching your dog to roll over and play dead.
Howcast. Its videos run the gamut from “How to Look Great in Photographs” to “How to Jump-Start Your Car.” Make your own how-to shorts in Howcast’s Emerging Filmmakers Program.
Videojug. This British entry features thousands of “how to” and “ask the expert” videos on a seemingly endless array of topics.
Deep thinkers
TEDTalks. Since 1984, the annual conference that goes by the acronym TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) has brought together some of the world’s top thinkers and doers and challenged them to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes or less. This site aggregates the best of those, including Australian science writer Margaret Wertheim’s presentation about the beautiful mathematical links among coral, crochet and hyperbolic geometry.
Nobel Prize winners. The online home of the Nobel Prizes is packed with interviews with and lectures by some of the world’s smartest people. There’s an interview, for example, with Italian neurologist Rita Levi-Montalcini, the first Nobel laureate to reach the age of 100. (She and a colleague won the 1986 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for their discovery of nerve growth factor.) In it, Levi-Montalcini talks about why this latest period of her life has been the best.
Forum National Network. A consortium of public television and radio stations offers live and on-demand lectures by some of the world’s foremost scholars, authors, artists, scientists, policymakers and community leaders. Recent lecture webcasts included Harvard sociologist Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot discussing her new book, The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk, and Adventure in the 25 Years After 50. The best starting point for accessing all the multimedia content is through the website of one of its members, the Boston-based WGBH Forum Network.
Big Ideas. This site, courtesy of TVO, Canada’s largest educational broadcaster, presents lectures on a variety of thought-provoking topics that range across politics, culture, economics, art, history, science, and other fields. There’s even a “Best Lecturer Competition.”
Arts and sciences
Health. Three trustworthy stops: WebMD’s Videos A-Z library, which has thousands of videos, catalogued by topic; HealthCentral.com’s Video Library; and the University of Maryland Medical Center’s Audio/Video Library, which includes interviews with UMMC experts, patient success stories and surgical webcasts.
Languages. The BBC offers audio and video language courses for beginners and intermediates in more than two dozen languages–French, German, Japanese ... even Urdu.
Cooking. Tempting sites: “Around the World in 80 Dishes” is a series of video-based cooking classes at Epicurious.com; the Culinary Institute of America, the famous school for chefs in Hyde Park, N.Y., offers classes on its YouTube network and its podcasts on iTunes; the Food Network, allrecipes.com and the Williams-Sonoma Video Library and Look and Taste, have lots more recipes and how-to videos.
Literature. LibriVox’s goal is to make all books in the public domain available as free audiobooks. Volunteers record the books, chapter by chapter, and release the audio files back onto the net.
Jazz profiles. Take the I-Train to the archive of NPR’s Jazz Profiles, a documentary series hosted by singer Nancy Wilson. You can listen to the shows as podcasts, read profiles of the performers featured in the series and download the playlists for each show.
Finding Your Ancestors. The Mormon Church is well known for its repository of genealogy records, so it makes sense that Brigham Young University would offer online courses in how to research your family history.
History. The online counterpart of television’s History Channel, History.com has a video library well worth checking out.
Computer programming. Maybe you’ve read about Ethan Nicholas, who earned $800,000 by writing an artillery game called “iShoot” for the iPhone. If you want to try your own hand, consider auditing Stanford’s Computer Science 193P: iPhone Application Programming. The 10-week undergraduate course attracted 150 students for only 50 spots when it was introduced on campus last fall. Online viewers see the same lectures as classroom students.
iTunes U. Apple has been building this online “university” and filling it with free content—at last count, more than 100,000 educational video and audio files—from top universities (London School of Economics), NPR stations (Minnesota Public Radio’s “Grammar Grater,” a weekly podcast about English words, grammar and usage), famous museums and other cultural institutions all over the world.
Academic Earth. Here you’ll find thousands of video lectures from the world’s top scholars—from Yale’s Shelly Kagan on the “Philosophy on Life and Death” to investment banker Stan Christensen and former San Francisco 49er quarterback Steve Young on “Football vs. Business Negotiations.”
YouTube. The rapidly expanding default site for user-generated video now includes an education “channel” called YouTube EDU, with content from top universities and other institutions.
ResearchChannel. Where on the Web can you find Milton Masciadri, professor of double bass at the University of Georgia, discuss the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument used in the modern symphony orchestra? Here! A consortium of leading research and academic institutions share with the public more than 3,500 videos produced by its members.
Videolectures.Net. The site offers video lectures presented by distinguished scholars and scientists at conferences, seminars, workshops and the like. A project of the Jožef Stefan Institute in Slovenia, it has a decidedly international feel.
Standalone university sites
webcast.berkeley. The University of California-Berkeley records in lecture halls and classrooms equipped with video- and/or podcast-capture systems. In addition to hundreds of courses, the site offers on-campus lectures, debates, symposiums and other events.
Harvard@home. The site features more than 60 multimedia-rich programs on topics ranging from stem cells to Beethoven.
OpenCourseWare. Here you’ll find 1,800-some academic courses—complete with syllabuses, assignments, exams, and, in many cases, audio or video lectures—that the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has put online.
How-to ...
Learning center. Acquire lots of different skills—from organizing your daily life to mastering Google Desktop—from Hewlett Packard’s online classes. Each class includes up to 10 lessons and may also include interactive demos, assignments and quizzes.
WonderHowTo. Curators scour more than 1,700 websites and hand-pick instructional videos—from how to live longer (with University of Cambridge researcher Aubrey de Grey) to teaching your dog to roll over and play dead.
Howcast. Its videos run the gamut from “How to Look Great in Photographs” to “How to Jump-Start Your Car.” Make your own how-to shorts in Howcast’s Emerging Filmmakers Program.
Videojug. This British entry features thousands of “how to” and “ask the expert” videos on a seemingly endless array of topics.
Deep thinkers
TEDTalks. Since 1984, the annual conference that goes by the acronym TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) has brought together some of the world’s top thinkers and doers and challenged them to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes or less. This site aggregates the best of those, including Australian science writer Margaret Wertheim’s presentation about the beautiful mathematical links among coral, crochet and hyperbolic geometry.
Nobel Prize winners. The online home of the Nobel Prizes is packed with interviews with and lectures by some of the world’s smartest people. There’s an interview, for example, with Italian neurologist Rita Levi-Montalcini, the first Nobel laureate to reach the age of 100. (She and a colleague won the 1986 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for their discovery of nerve growth factor.) In it, Levi-Montalcini talks about why this latest period of her life has been the best.
Forum National Network. A consortium of public television and radio stations offers live and on-demand lectures by some of the world’s foremost scholars, authors, artists, scientists, policymakers and community leaders. Recent lecture webcasts included Harvard sociologist Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot discussing her new book, The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk, and Adventure in the 25 Years After 50. The best starting point for accessing all the multimedia content is through the website of one of its members, the Boston-based WGBH Forum Network.
Big Ideas. This site, courtesy of TVO, Canada’s largest educational broadcaster, presents lectures on a variety of thought-provoking topics that range across politics, culture, economics, art, history, science, and other fields. There’s even a “Best Lecturer Competition.”
Arts and sciences
Health. Three trustworthy stops: WebMD’s Videos A-Z library, which has thousands of videos, catalogued by topic; HealthCentral.com’s Video Library; and the University of Maryland Medical Center’s Audio/Video Library, which includes interviews with UMMC experts, patient success stories and surgical webcasts.
Languages. The BBC offers audio and video language courses for beginners and intermediates in more than two dozen languages–French, German, Japanese ... even Urdu.
Cooking. Tempting sites: “Around the World in 80 Dishes” is a series of video-based cooking classes at Epicurious.com; the Culinary Institute of America, the famous school for chefs in Hyde Park, N.Y., offers classes on its YouTube network and its podcasts on iTunes; the Food Network, allrecipes.com and the Williams-Sonoma Video Library and Look and Taste, have lots more recipes and how-to videos.
Literature. LibriVox’s goal is to make all books in the public domain available as free audiobooks. Volunteers record the books, chapter by chapter, and release the audio files back onto the net.
Jazz profiles. Take the I-Train to the archive of NPR’s Jazz Profiles, a documentary series hosted by singer Nancy Wilson. You can listen to the shows as podcasts, read profiles of the performers featured in the series and download the playlists for each show.
Finding Your Ancestors. The Mormon Church is well known for its repository of genealogy records, so it makes sense that Brigham Young University would offer online courses in how to research your family history.
History. The online counterpart of television’s History Channel, History.com has a video library well worth checking out.
Computer programming. Maybe you’ve read about Ethan Nicholas, who earned $800,000 by writing an artillery game called “iShoot” for the iPhone. If you want to try your own hand, consider auditing Stanford’s Computer Science 193P: iPhone Application Programming. The 10-week undergraduate course attracted 150 students for only 50 spots when it was introduced on campus last fall. Online viewers see the same lectures as classroom students.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Sunday, January 3, 2010
happy new year
happy new year to all.
Unfortunately the earliest flight i got back to Manila is on Tuesday 8:00 AM. It means that I would not be able to meet my Monday class and Tuesday 7:00 class.
Unfortunately the earliest flight i got back to Manila is on Tuesday 8:00 AM. It means that I would not be able to meet my Monday class and Tuesday 7:00 class.
Monday, December 21, 2009
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
anouncement
wont be able to meet my class accountancy class tomorrow 11:30-1:00 as well as my friday class. i will be out of town.
for the presidents of the affected classes, please send me an email ASAP of your available time for make up classes. my email is cris25rivero@yahoo.com. thank you.
for the presidents of the affected classes, please send me an email ASAP of your available time for make up classes. my email is cris25rivero@yahoo.com. thank you.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Syllabus for Political Science
Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila
(University of the City of Manila)
Intramuros, Manila
College of Liberal Arts
Politics and Governance with Philippine Constitution Christian E. Rivero
Second Semester, SY 2009-2010 Department of Humanities
Course Description
The course is an introduction to the concepts, theories and principles of political science, types of political systems, development of political institutions and the processes involved in a larger international world system. The course specifically provides an understanding on Philippine government and politics as it gives highlights on studying and examining the development, organization and operation of the Philippine political system with special emphasis on the Philippine Constitution. Likewise, the course will also deal with the current issues confronting the students taking the course.
Course Objectives
1. Provide the students with the theories and principles in the course of political science;
2. Provide the students with the knowledge on the development, organization and operation of the Philippine government;
3. Strengthen the students' awareness on the formal structure for political participation and their role as citizens of the country;
4. Provides the students with the understanding on the importance of public opinion and the emergence of the civil society;
5. Reinforce the students' understanding on the constitution as the basis of all political institutions and processes.
Course Content
I. Nature of Politics and Governance
Nature of Politics and Governance Definition of Political Science
Scope of Political Science
Political Science and Its Related Fields
II. State and Its Elements
Meaning of the State
Theories on the Origin of the State Elements of the State
State Distinguished from Nation
Inherent Powers of the State Rights and Obligations of the State
III. Government and Political Ideology
Definition of Government
Forms of Government
Best Form of Government
Concept and Definition of Ideology Popular Kinds of Ideologies
IV. Constitution
Nature and Concepts of the Constitution Meaning of the Constitution
Purposes and Functions of the Constitution Classification of the Constitution
Requisites of a Good Written Constitution History of the Philippine Constitution
V. Bill of Rights
Political Rights
Civil Rights
Social and Economic Rights Rights of the Accused
VI. Citizenship
Concepts of Citizenship
Kinds of Citizens
Citizens and Aliens Distinguished Modes of Acquiring Citizenship
Loss of Citizenship
Duties and Responsibilities of Citizens
VII. Suffrage and Election
Nature of Suffrage
Right of Suffrage in the Philippines Kinds of Election in the Philippines Qualification of Voters
Disqualification of Voters
Absentee Voting
VIII. Political Parties and Interest Groups
Definition of Political Party
Functions of Political Parties Definition of Interest Group
Interest Groups in the Philippines
IX The Philippine Government
Principle of Separation of Powers Principle of Checks and Balance Legislative Branch of the Government Executive Branch of the Government Judicial Branch of the Government Local Government in the Philippines
X. International Relations
Definition of Foreign Policy
Requirements of a Foreign Policy International Relations
Definitions of International Law Importance of International Law United Nations Organizations
Reference
Any Book on the Constitution of the Philippines
(University of the City of Manila)
Intramuros, Manila
College of Liberal Arts
Politics and Governance with Philippine Constitution Christian E. Rivero
Second Semester, SY 2009-2010 Department of Humanities
Course Description
The course is an introduction to the concepts, theories and principles of political science, types of political systems, development of political institutions and the processes involved in a larger international world system. The course specifically provides an understanding on Philippine government and politics as it gives highlights on studying and examining the development, organization and operation of the Philippine political system with special emphasis on the Philippine Constitution. Likewise, the course will also deal with the current issues confronting the students taking the course.
Course Objectives
1. Provide the students with the theories and principles in the course of political science;
2. Provide the students with the knowledge on the development, organization and operation of the Philippine government;
3. Strengthen the students' awareness on the formal structure for political participation and their role as citizens of the country;
4. Provides the students with the understanding on the importance of public opinion and the emergence of the civil society;
5. Reinforce the students' understanding on the constitution as the basis of all political institutions and processes.
Course Content
I. Nature of Politics and Governance
Nature of Politics and Governance Definition of Political Science
Scope of Political Science
Political Science and Its Related Fields
II. State and Its Elements
Meaning of the State
Theories on the Origin of the State Elements of the State
State Distinguished from Nation
Inherent Powers of the State Rights and Obligations of the State
III. Government and Political Ideology
Definition of Government
Forms of Government
Best Form of Government
Concept and Definition of Ideology Popular Kinds of Ideologies
IV. Constitution
Nature and Concepts of the Constitution Meaning of the Constitution
Purposes and Functions of the Constitution Classification of the Constitution
Requisites of a Good Written Constitution History of the Philippine Constitution
V. Bill of Rights
Political Rights
Civil Rights
Social and Economic Rights Rights of the Accused
VI. Citizenship
Concepts of Citizenship
Kinds of Citizens
Citizens and Aliens Distinguished Modes of Acquiring Citizenship
Loss of Citizenship
Duties and Responsibilities of Citizens
VII. Suffrage and Election
Nature of Suffrage
Right of Suffrage in the Philippines Kinds of Election in the Philippines Qualification of Voters
Disqualification of Voters
Absentee Voting
VIII. Political Parties and Interest Groups
Definition of Political Party
Functions of Political Parties Definition of Interest Group
Interest Groups in the Philippines
IX The Philippine Government
Principle of Separation of Powers Principle of Checks and Balance Legislative Branch of the Government Executive Branch of the Government Judicial Branch of the Government Local Government in the Philippines
X. International Relations
Definition of Foreign Policy
Requirements of a Foreign Policy International Relations
Definitions of International Law Importance of International Law United Nations Organizations
Reference
Any Book on the Constitution of the Philippines
Thursday, November 26, 2009
arguments
MODULE: Argument Analysis
An important part of critical thinking is being able to give reasons, whether it is to support or to criticize a certain idea. To be able to do that, one should know how to identify, analyse, and evaluate arguments.
Identifying Arguments
A01.1 What is an argument?
To be able to think critically, it is very important that you can identify, construct, and evaluate arguments.
We shall be using the word "argument" in a way that is somewhat different from its ordinary meaning. In its ordinary usage, the word is often used to refer to a quarrel between two or more parties. But here we shall understand an argument as a piece of language. In particular, we shall take an argument to be a list of statements, one of which is the conclusion and the others are the premises or assumptions of the argument.
To give an argument is to provide a set of premises as reasons for accepting the conclusion. To give an argument is not necessarily to attack or criticize someone. Arguments can also be used to support other people's viewpoints.
As an example, suppose I want to convince you that you should be hardworking. I might give the following argument:
If you want to find a good job, you should be hardworking. You do want to find a good job. So you should be hardworking.
The first two sentences here are the premises of the argument, and the last sentence is the conclusion. To give this argument is to offer the premises as reasons for accepting the conclusion.
Dogmatic people tend to make assertions without giving reasons. When they are criticized they often fail to give arguments to defend their own opinions. To become a good critical thinker, you should develop the habit of giving good arguments to support your claims. Giving good arguments is one of the most important ways to convince other people that certain claims should be accepted.
A01.3 How to look for arguments
How do we identify arguments in real life? There are no easy mechanical rules, and we usually have to rely on the context in order to determine which are the premises and the conclusions. But sometimes the job can be made easier by the presence of certain premise or conclusion indicators. For example, if a person makes a statement, and then adds "this is because ...", then it is quite likely that the first statement is presented as a conclusion, supported by the statements that come afterwards. Other words in English that might be used to indicate the premises to follow include :
• since
• firstly, secondly, ...
• for, as, after all,
• assuming that, in view of the fact that
• follows from, as shown / indicated by
• may be inferred / deduced / derived from
Of course whether such words are used to indicate premises or not depends on the context. For example, "since" has a very different function in a statement like "I have been here since noon", unlike "X is an even number since X is divisible by 4".
Conclusions, on the other hand, are often preceded by words like:
• therefore, so, it follows that
• hence, consequently
• suggests / proves / demonstrates that
• entails, implies
Here are some examples of passages that do not contain arguments.
When people sweat a lot they tend to drink more water. [Just a single statement, not enough to make an argument.]
Once upon a time there was a prince and a princess. They lived happily together and one day they decided to have a baby. But the baby grew up to be a nasty and cruel person and they regret it very much. [A chronological description of facts composed of statements but no premise or conclusion.]
Can you come to the meeting tomorrow? [A question that does not contain an argument.]
Presenting arguments in the standard format
When it comes to the analysis and evaluation of an argument, it is often useful to label the premises and the conclusion, and display them on separate lines with the conclusion at the bottom :
(Premise 1) If you want to find a good job, you should be hardworking.
(Premise 2) You do want to find a good job.
(Conclusion) So you should be hardworking.
Let us call this style of presenting an argument a presentation in the standard format. Here we rewrite two more arguments using the standard format:
We should not inflict unnecessary pain on cows and pigs. After all, we should not inflict unnecessary pain on any animal with consciousness, and cows and pigs are animals with consciousness.
(Premise 1) We should not inflict unnecessary pain on any animal with consciousness.
(Premise 2) Cows and pigs are animals with consciousness.
(Conclusion) We should not inflict unnecessary pain on cows and pigs.
If this liquid is acidic, the litmus paper would have turned red. But it hasn't, so the liquid is not acidic.
(Premise 1) If the liquid is acidic, the litmus paper would have turned red.
(Premise 2) The litmus paper has not turned red.
(Conclusion) The liquid is not acidic.
In presenting an argument in the standard format the premises and the conclusion are clearly identified. Sometimes we also rewrite some of the sentences to make their meaning clearer, as in the second premise of the second example. Notice also that a conclusion need not always come at the end of a passage containing an argument, as in the first example. In fact, sometimes the conclusion of an argument might not be explicitly written out. For example it might be expressed by a rhetorical question:
How can you believe that corruption is acceptable? It is neither fair nor legal!
In presenting an argument in the standard format, we have to rewrite the argument more explicitly as follows:
(Premise) Corruption is not fair and it is not legal.
(Conclusion) Corruption is not acceptable.
If you want to improve your reading and comprehension skills, you should practise reconstructing the arguments that you come across by rewriting them carefully in the standard format.
An important part of critical thinking is being able to give reasons, whether it is to support or to criticize a certain idea. To be able to do that, one should know how to identify, analyse, and evaluate arguments.
Identifying Arguments
A01.1 What is an argument?
To be able to think critically, it is very important that you can identify, construct, and evaluate arguments.
We shall be using the word "argument" in a way that is somewhat different from its ordinary meaning. In its ordinary usage, the word is often used to refer to a quarrel between two or more parties. But here we shall understand an argument as a piece of language. In particular, we shall take an argument to be a list of statements, one of which is the conclusion and the others are the premises or assumptions of the argument.
To give an argument is to provide a set of premises as reasons for accepting the conclusion. To give an argument is not necessarily to attack or criticize someone. Arguments can also be used to support other people's viewpoints.
As an example, suppose I want to convince you that you should be hardworking. I might give the following argument:
If you want to find a good job, you should be hardworking. You do want to find a good job. So you should be hardworking.
The first two sentences here are the premises of the argument, and the last sentence is the conclusion. To give this argument is to offer the premises as reasons for accepting the conclusion.
Dogmatic people tend to make assertions without giving reasons. When they are criticized they often fail to give arguments to defend their own opinions. To become a good critical thinker, you should develop the habit of giving good arguments to support your claims. Giving good arguments is one of the most important ways to convince other people that certain claims should be accepted.
A01.3 How to look for arguments
How do we identify arguments in real life? There are no easy mechanical rules, and we usually have to rely on the context in order to determine which are the premises and the conclusions. But sometimes the job can be made easier by the presence of certain premise or conclusion indicators. For example, if a person makes a statement, and then adds "this is because ...", then it is quite likely that the first statement is presented as a conclusion, supported by the statements that come afterwards. Other words in English that might be used to indicate the premises to follow include :
• since
• firstly, secondly, ...
• for, as, after all,
• assuming that, in view of the fact that
• follows from, as shown / indicated by
• may be inferred / deduced / derived from
Of course whether such words are used to indicate premises or not depends on the context. For example, "since" has a very different function in a statement like "I have been here since noon", unlike "X is an even number since X is divisible by 4".
Conclusions, on the other hand, are often preceded by words like:
• therefore, so, it follows that
• hence, consequently
• suggests / proves / demonstrates that
• entails, implies
Here are some examples of passages that do not contain arguments.
When people sweat a lot they tend to drink more water. [Just a single statement, not enough to make an argument.]
Once upon a time there was a prince and a princess. They lived happily together and one day they decided to have a baby. But the baby grew up to be a nasty and cruel person and they regret it very much. [A chronological description of facts composed of statements but no premise or conclusion.]
Can you come to the meeting tomorrow? [A question that does not contain an argument.]
Presenting arguments in the standard format
When it comes to the analysis and evaluation of an argument, it is often useful to label the premises and the conclusion, and display them on separate lines with the conclusion at the bottom :
(Premise 1) If you want to find a good job, you should be hardworking.
(Premise 2) You do want to find a good job.
(Conclusion) So you should be hardworking.
Let us call this style of presenting an argument a presentation in the standard format. Here we rewrite two more arguments using the standard format:
We should not inflict unnecessary pain on cows and pigs. After all, we should not inflict unnecessary pain on any animal with consciousness, and cows and pigs are animals with consciousness.
(Premise 1) We should not inflict unnecessary pain on any animal with consciousness.
(Premise 2) Cows and pigs are animals with consciousness.
(Conclusion) We should not inflict unnecessary pain on cows and pigs.
If this liquid is acidic, the litmus paper would have turned red. But it hasn't, so the liquid is not acidic.
(Premise 1) If the liquid is acidic, the litmus paper would have turned red.
(Premise 2) The litmus paper has not turned red.
(Conclusion) The liquid is not acidic.
In presenting an argument in the standard format the premises and the conclusion are clearly identified. Sometimes we also rewrite some of the sentences to make their meaning clearer, as in the second premise of the second example. Notice also that a conclusion need not always come at the end of a passage containing an argument, as in the first example. In fact, sometimes the conclusion of an argument might not be explicitly written out. For example it might be expressed by a rhetorical question:
How can you believe that corruption is acceptable? It is neither fair nor legal!
In presenting an argument in the standard format, we have to rewrite the argument more explicitly as follows:
(Premise) Corruption is not fair and it is not legal.
(Conclusion) Corruption is not acceptable.
If you want to improve your reading and comprehension skills, you should practise reconstructing the arguments that you come across by rewriting them carefully in the standard format.
make up class
for my 7:00-8:30 Monday-Thursday logic class GL 402, please contact me at 09284725352 or email me at cris25rivero@yahoo.com and tell me when you are free next week so that we can schedule a make up class. Sorry for meeting you this week, there was a mix up with my room and class sched.
november 30, monday, is a national holiday.
november 30, monday, is a national holiday.
Friday, November 20, 2009
TOTAL WRECK
Young Blood Article
TOTAL WRECK
Published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer
(published 2004 but I think this essay I wrote way back is still relevant)
IN TIMES of doubt I always like to remember the trials of our heroes and the sacrifices they made for us.
Jose Rizal is foremost among my heroes. He was a man whose love for the country is unparalleled. Of course, many others died for the cause of freedom and democracy. But what I like most about Rizal was that he wrote, got hurt, fell in love, made mistakes and dreamt nice things for the country.
Nowadays, it appears that his aspirations of having a great and independent country remain just that: aspirations. We are still a country weak and vacillating. Our leaders are at best a joke. They know nothing about real governance, but they have mastered the art of politicking that wins elections. Our elections are similar to fiestas. By route and by custom, they happen every three years.
Our politicians are little more than entertainers. Only a few deserve our respect. Most of them are people who are popular and bored with their lives, people who need to feed their insatiable hunger for power and prey on our weaknesses. They think that by securing seats in the government, they become better persons. Their delusion sadly costs us our future.
As for us, overwhelmed by all the campaign glitz, we have forgotten the need to remain critical. We are drowned in apathy. Platforms of government are treated as if they mean nothing. Many of us are bored by speeches. What is important to us is that the candidates can sing and dance.
While we are held in suspense by the latest controversy involving Kris Aquino, we neglect to examine the personal stand and views of the candidates on the different issues confronting us.
Show biz is the rage, and sadly, we cannot distinguish what is real from fantasy. As a consequence, we troop to the voting precincts with fatalistic prayers that though the candidates we're voting into office are a bunch of walking mistakes, they will perform very well when they win.
Such a hope always ends up unfulfilled. Politicians look after their own interests. Afterwards do we not feel like a prostitute, who has been cast away after the carnal act? In politics, ethics is esoteric while power and money mean might.
I do not think our politicians are giving the youth a good example. I see no Rizal in our midst. Very few among our leaders deserve our respect and confidence.
A few years ago an American writer said that ours was a "damaged culture." I disagree. Instead, I say that we are nothing less than a total wreck. With the quality of our leaders, it is hard denying what is obvious. For instance, our country is far from what a functioning democracy should be. We do not learn from our past. How many EDSAs do we need before we get our act together? Let us face it, ours is barely a functioning state and our politicians are further imperiling our chances of
recovery.
Is this the country Rizal wanted? I hope that our politicians ask themselves that question.
It is also incumbent upon us, as citizens, to stop and look at ourselves. Consider what we have contributed so far to improve our lot. We were once a proud people. Now we just heap insult on ourselves, dismissing our faults as something embedded in our character. While this attitude helps us sometimes to survive, what is more useful is for us to act in the interest of our country. In consonance with the dreams instilled in us by our heroes, we must realize that the term "Filipino" is not just a word, it is also a state of mind: revolutionary, proactive, responsible and conscious of his acts.
Our country is in disarray. Some things need to be done and fast. I doubt if we can trust our politicians alone to rectify the country's mistakes. Instead, let us think that we all can contribute positively. We must not remain impotent and accept things passively. Otherwise we will not make the country any better than it is today. By now we should have grown tired of engaging in wishful thinking. We must act now while we still can.
TOTAL WRECK
Published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer
(published 2004 but I think this essay I wrote way back is still relevant)
IN TIMES of doubt I always like to remember the trials of our heroes and the sacrifices they made for us.
Jose Rizal is foremost among my heroes. He was a man whose love for the country is unparalleled. Of course, many others died for the cause of freedom and democracy. But what I like most about Rizal was that he wrote, got hurt, fell in love, made mistakes and dreamt nice things for the country.
Nowadays, it appears that his aspirations of having a great and independent country remain just that: aspirations. We are still a country weak and vacillating. Our leaders are at best a joke. They know nothing about real governance, but they have mastered the art of politicking that wins elections. Our elections are similar to fiestas. By route and by custom, they happen every three years.
Our politicians are little more than entertainers. Only a few deserve our respect. Most of them are people who are popular and bored with their lives, people who need to feed their insatiable hunger for power and prey on our weaknesses. They think that by securing seats in the government, they become better persons. Their delusion sadly costs us our future.
As for us, overwhelmed by all the campaign glitz, we have forgotten the need to remain critical. We are drowned in apathy. Platforms of government are treated as if they mean nothing. Many of us are bored by speeches. What is important to us is that the candidates can sing and dance.
While we are held in suspense by the latest controversy involving Kris Aquino, we neglect to examine the personal stand and views of the candidates on the different issues confronting us.
Show biz is the rage, and sadly, we cannot distinguish what is real from fantasy. As a consequence, we troop to the voting precincts with fatalistic prayers that though the candidates we're voting into office are a bunch of walking mistakes, they will perform very well when they win.
Such a hope always ends up unfulfilled. Politicians look after their own interests. Afterwards do we not feel like a prostitute, who has been cast away after the carnal act? In politics, ethics is esoteric while power and money mean might.
I do not think our politicians are giving the youth a good example. I see no Rizal in our midst. Very few among our leaders deserve our respect and confidence.
A few years ago an American writer said that ours was a "damaged culture." I disagree. Instead, I say that we are nothing less than a total wreck. With the quality of our leaders, it is hard denying what is obvious. For instance, our country is far from what a functioning democracy should be. We do not learn from our past. How many EDSAs do we need before we get our act together? Let us face it, ours is barely a functioning state and our politicians are further imperiling our chances of
recovery.
Is this the country Rizal wanted? I hope that our politicians ask themselves that question.
It is also incumbent upon us, as citizens, to stop and look at ourselves. Consider what we have contributed so far to improve our lot. We were once a proud people. Now we just heap insult on ourselves, dismissing our faults as something embedded in our character. While this attitude helps us sometimes to survive, what is more useful is for us to act in the interest of our country. In consonance with the dreams instilled in us by our heroes, we must realize that the term "Filipino" is not just a word, it is also a state of mind: revolutionary, proactive, responsible and conscious of his acts.
Our country is in disarray. Some things need to be done and fast. I doubt if we can trust our politicians alone to rectify the country's mistakes. Instead, let us think that we all can contribute positively. We must not remain impotent and accept things passively. Otherwise we will not make the country any better than it is today. By now we should have grown tired of engaging in wishful thinking. We must act now while we still can.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
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