1) One paragraph summary of the key idea summarizing the topic of the week.

Reason is one of the ways humans can come to learn something. Reason is "the power to think in such a way that we proceed from what we know to what we do not know."(RB, p.58) Even though some animal species possess a form of reason, all humans are set apart from the animal species in the area of reason with the gifts of self-consciousness and abstract thought. Reason is important in many areas of human study because it can help us understand the situations around us. For example, reasoned knowledge is central to the study of philosophy.

2) List and explain three of the most important ideas you want to remember from this week.
    

1. First, I want to remember the effect of our thoughts on our selves. I did not realize the immense power of thoughts and how they can affect our lives before this week. I want to remember this so that I can eliminate some of the negative attitudes in my life to help enrich the quality of my life.
2. Second, I want to be able remember the five common thinking errors. I want to remember these so that I can try and eliminate these faulty reasoning devices from my thoughts.

    
• Non sequitor- A conclusion does not follow logically from the premises that support it.
• False and/or Vague Premises- A conclusion does follow logically from the premises, but it is false and not valid because the premises used to support it were false or vague.
• Ad Hominem- Instead of judging the person's argument, we attack the person. One is guilty of this when, instead of dealing with the person's ideas, his or her arguments, one attacks a certain quality in the person which is not directly related to the argument itself.
• Begging the Question- A person does this when he or she tries to demonstrate that a point is true, but in the process already assumes his or her point is true.
• Red Herring- In an emotional situation, the person who is losing might throw a red herring. A red herring is an inflammatory or beside-the-point statement in order to distract everyone from the real issue.



3. Finally, I want to remember the dangers of not reasoning. The account of Richard Feynman saying that he was immoral in building the atomic bomb because he was no longer reasoning what its purpose would be makes me think about how I sometimes am so caught up in something, I no longer reason. I want to remember this so I can examine myself in a deeper respect in the future when I am doing something.

• Am I following Aristotle's plan for happiness? Am I really pursuing my needs instead of just my wants? At this stage in my life, am I trying to obtain bodily goods and the goods of the soul?