Guide to Critical Thinking

Hume’s essay Of the Standard of Taste 
stated that taste depends on the 
refinement of sensory properties, 
but recent neurobiological research 
suggests that taste may actually be 
dependent on language.
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Section 1.6 
Logic and Philosophy
Indeed, even what may seem like a meaningless little comma can dramatically change the 
meaning of a sentence. If we want to make sure others understand our written meaning, we 
need to be mindful of relevant punctuation, grammatical correctness, and proper spelling. If 
something is difficult to read because the grammar is faulty, punctuation is missing, or the 
words are misspelled, these obstacles will betray the writer’s meaning.
1.6 Logic and Philosophy
By this point, you may have noticed that logic and philosophy are often mentioned together. 
There is good reason for this. Logic is not only an area of philosophy but also its bread 
and butter. It is important to understand the connection between these two fields because 
understanding the pursuit of philosophy will help clarify in your mind the value of logic in 
your life.
First, however, let us confront the elephant in the room. Some people have no idea what phi-
losophers do. Others think that philosophers simply spend time thinking about things that 
have little practical use. The stereotypical image of a philosopher, for instance, is a bearded 
man asking himself: “If a tree falls in the forest and there is no one else to hear it, is there 
sound?” Your response to this may be: “Why should anyone care?” The fact is that many do, 
and not only bearded philosophers: Such a question is also critical to those who work at the 
boundaries of philosophy and science, as well as scientists who investigate the nature of 
sound, such as physicists, researchers in medicine and therapy, and those in the industry of 
sound technology.
Spatial views regarding sound, for example, have given rise to three theories: (a) sound is 
where there is a hearer, (b) sound is in the medium between the resonating sound and the 
hearer, and (c) sound is at the resonating object (Casati & Dokic, 2014). Accordingly, the tree 
in the forest question would have the following three corresponding answers: (a) no, if sound 
is where there is a hearer; (b) no, if sound is in the medium between the resonating sound 
and a hearer; and (c) yes, if sound is located in the resonating object such as a human ear. This 
seemingly impractical question, as it turns out, is not only quite interesting but also bears 
tangible results that lead to our better understanding of acoustics, hearing impairments, and 
sound technology. The best part is that the results affect us all. Many modern technologies 
arose from a “tree in the forest” examination.