Blog post #6: Intuition, Ethics, and Biases

Due date:  Tuesday, March 3rd for periods B, C, and E.  [75 points total]


Resources for this unit:
Textbook chapter on intuition as a WOK (pp. 193-205)
Intuition article
Intuition PPT
Cognitive bias song
Pickled ethics


Directions:  Create a blog post and title it "Intuition, Ethics, and Biases."  After reading the chapter on intuition in your textbook (and reviewing any other resources), please do the following:

Part A:  Choose one of the first nine cognitive biases listed on pp. 200-203.  (If you know of others, you may use a different one.)  Watch out for it in your own thinking and try to notice its effect on what you see and hear around you.  Also pay attention to whether other people and companies (media, advertisements, etc.) appeal to the bias.  Write about any examples of that bias that you have noticed during the week.  Be specific please!  Use real examples only.  [25 points summative]

Part B:  Write a short response to answer the following question:  How might intuition act as both a lens (helps you see the truth) and as a filter (prevent you from seeing the truth) in making moral and ethical decisions?  In your response, please refer to a real, moral dilemma that you have encountered (recently or in the past).  You may include multiple examples if needed to illustrate your point.  [25 points formative]

Part C:  Please respond to the following statement, "The possession of knowledge carries an ethical responsibility."  This is a former IB essay prompt in which students had to write 1600 words evaluating this claim.  In your own response, please use at least one specific, real example to support your response. [25 points summative]