Fallacy Research Articles

A technocognitive approach to detecting fallacies in climate misinformation.

Misinformation about climate change is a complex societal issue that requires holistic, interdisciplinary solutions at the intersection between technology and psychology. One proposed solution is a "technocognitive" approach, involving the synthesis of psychological and computer science research. Psychological research has identified that interventions that counter misinformation require both fact-based (e.g., factual explanations) and technique-based (e.g., explanations of misleading techniques and logical fallacies) content. However, little progress has been made on documenting and detecting fallacies in climate misinformation. In this study, we apply a previously developed critical thinking methodology for deconstructing climate misinformation in order to develop a dataset mapping examples of climate misinformation to reasoning fallacies. This dataset is used to train a model to detect fallacies in climate misinformation. We evaluate the model's performance using the score, which measures how well the model detects relevant cases while avoiding irrelevant ones. Our study shows scores that are 2.5-3.5 times better than previous works. The fallacies that are easiest to detect include fake experts and anecdotal arguments, while fallacies that require background knowledge, such as oversimplification, misrepresentation, and slothful induction, are relatively more difficult to detect. This research lays the groundwork for development of solutions where automatically detected climate misinformation can be countered with generative technique-based corrections.

Plant intelligence dux: a comprehensive rebuttal of Kingsland and Taiz.

Intelligence is a fundamental property for all life enabling an increased probability of survival and reproduction under wild circumstances. Kingsland and Taiz (2024) think that plants are not intelligent but seem unaware of the extensive literature about intelligence, memory, learning and chromatin topology in plants. Their views are consequently rejected. Their claim of fake quotations is shown to result from faulty reasoning and lack of understanding of practical biology. Their use of social media as scholarly evidence is unacceptable. Darwin's views on intelligence are described, and their pertinence to the adaptive responses of plants is discussed. Justifications for comments I have made concerning McClintock and her "thoughtful" cell, von Sachs writings as indicating purpose (teleonomy) to plant behaviour, Went and Thimann's allusions to plant intelligence and Bose legacy as the father of plant electrophysiologyare described. These scientists were usually first in their field of knowledge, and their understanding was consequently deeper. The article finishes with a brief critical analysis of the 36 scientists who were used to condemn plant neurobiology as of no use. It is concluded that participants signed up to a false prospectus because contrary evidence was omitted.

Must Scientific Realists Respond to The Challenge of the PMI?

The Pessimistic Meta-Induction (PMI) says that because most past scientific theories turned out to be false, we have no reason to believe in the truthfulness of our current scientific theories. According to current consensus, this anti-realist argument presents a serious challenge to which proponents of the realist conception of science must give a response. In accordance with this requirement, some scientific realists try to demonstrate that PMI is a fallacious argument. Other realists make an attempt to block the pessimistic conclusion. The present paper offers a new perspective on the debate between scientific anti-realists and traditional scientific realists. The main argument consists of two interrelated steps. First, a structural analysis of the dialectical status of PMI is provided demonstrating that the anti-realists’ argument is internally unstable. Second, it is argued, on that basis, that an internally unstable argument like the PMI does not require any strategic response from the opponents’ side. This suggests that the consensus view is wrong: scientific realists need not respond to the challenge of PMI.

Late-life psychiatric factors and life satisfaction are associated with cognitive errors: evidence from an experimental module of a large-scale survey in India

Older adults are at risk of committing cognitive and decision-making errors due to the decline in cognitive functions. However, the understanding of the determining factors of cognitive errors among ageing adults is limited. In this study, we explored the role of various psychiatric factors, life satisfaction, and other socioeconomic, health and behavioural risk factors of committing cognitive errors among middle-aged and older adults in India. The study utilized the data from the experimental module of the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) Wave-1 (2017–2018) with a sample of 12,754 adults aged 45 years and above. The cognitive error was measured using logical fallacies committed in the activity-based experiments. The study employed descriptive, bivariate statistics and multivariable logistic regression models to identify the factors associated with cognitive errors among the study participants. Depression (aOR = 1.28, 99%, CI: 1.16–1.41), life satisfaction (aOR = 0.99, 99%, CI: 0.98–1.00), and cognitive impairment (aOR = 1.13, 90% CI: 1.00–1.30) self-reported psychiatric) were significantly associated with higher odds of committing cognitive errors among the middle-aged and older adults. Also, ageing adults with low educational levels, functional limitations, sleep disturbances, smoking history, living in rural areas and belonging to scheduled tribes had a higher probability of committing cognitive errors. However, involvement in physical activity, reading habits and social interactions reduced the odds of cognitive errors among this sample. Mental health and well-being indicators, including depression, life satisfaction, cognitive impairment, and other health and behavioural health factors, determine cognitive errors among ageing adults. Programs and policies should be initiated to address these factors, reduce cognitive errors, and ensure active ageing.

A Pragma-Logical Analysis of Manipulation Strategies Used by American and Arabic Attorneys in Selected Criminal Trials

This study is devoted to investigate the defense of American and Arabic attorneys from a pragma-logical perspective. It is hypothesized that manipulation is a dangerous pragmatic act which is practised by them when defending their clients in criminal trials. Therefore, this study aims to prove that their defense contains arguments which do not agree with the proof standard of criminal cases. Such a proof requires them to present logical evidences beyond a reasonable doubt to persuade the members of the jury that their clients are innocent, or at least they have logical reasons which led them to commit their murders. To achieve the aims of the study, six arguments are chosen for analysis. The first three are advanced by the American defense attorney Robert Rogers. The next three are advanced by the Arabic defense attorney Mustafa Ramadan. Their defense is analyzed qualitatively and tested according to the pragma-logical criteria discussed below. The results show that they both resort to different argumentation schemes, different logical components, and different logical fallacies. These differences indicate that their arguments are fallacious and serve a pragmatic manipulative intention.

Coupler-Assisted Leakage Reduction for Scalable Quantum Error Correction with Superconducting Qubits.

Superconducting qubits are a promising platform for building fault-tolerant quantum computers, with recent achievement showing the suppression of logical error with increasing code size. However, leakage into noncomputational states, a common issue in practical quantum systems including superconducting circuits, introduces correlated errors that undermine quantum error correction (QEC) scalability. Here, we propose and demonstrate a leakage reduction scheme utilizing tunable couplers, a widely adopted ingredient in large-scale superconducting quantum processors. Leveraging the strong frequency tunability of the couplers and stray interaction between the couplers and readout resonators, we eliminate state leakage on the couplers, thus suppressing space-correlated errors caused by population propagation among the couplers. Assisted by the couplers, we further reduce leakage to higher qubit levels with high efficiency (98.1%) and low error rate on the computational subspace (0.58%), suppressing time-correlated errors during QEC cycles. The performance of our scheme demonstrates its potential as an indispensable building block for scalable QEC with superconducting qubits.

ChatGPT as a prospective undergraduate and medical school student.

This article reports the results of an experiment conducted with ChatGPT to see how its performance compares to human performance on tests that require specific knowledge and skills, such as university admission tests. We chose a general undergraduate admission test and two tests for admission to biomedical programs: the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT), the Cambridge BioMedical Admission Test (BMAT), and the Italian Medical School Admission Test (IMSAT). In particular, we looked closely at the difference in performance between ChatGPT-4 and its predecessor, ChatGPT-3.5, to assess its evolution. The performance of ChatGPT-4 showed a significant improvement over ChatGPT-3.5 and, compared to real students, was on average within the top 10% in the SAT test, while the score in the IMSAT test granted admission to the two highest ranked Italian medical schools. In addition to the performance analysis, we provide a qualitative analysis of incorrect answers and a classification of three different types of logical and computational errors made by ChatGPT-4, which reveal important weaknesses of the model. This provides insight into the skills needed to use these models effectively despite their weaknesses, and also suggests possible applications of our analysis in the field of education.

THE ANALYSIS OF THE AUTHORITY OF THE CORRUPTION ERADICATION COMMISSION IN CONDUCTING STING OPERATIONS

The state suffers losses as a result of corrupt practices. The general populace shares the state's concern over this crime. The state and public are experiencing instability, and the Corruption Eradication Commission's position and power are crucial in overcoming and minimizing this. So, a sting operation is one of the things the Corruption Eradication Commission does. In this instance, it's important to consider not just the procedures followed by the Corruption Eradication Commission during sting operations, but also the operation's legal foundation and any elements that may have impeded its success. Opponents of the OTT point out that the Criminal Procedure Code only uses the phrase "caught red-handed," which they believe to be inadequate. The distinction thus leads one to the conclusion that being caught red-handed is indeed unlawful. I perceive a logical error in reasoning with respect to this issue. Although this phrase is not used in any Indonesian statute, it is true that the Criminal Procedure Code does not recognize it either. But that doesn't imply the operation is inherently unlawful.

Understanding fallacious reasoning via detecting moves of motivated criticism in Argument Continuity—a new strategy of circular reasoning in coping responses to disagreement within a distorted reasoning context

Reasoning asymmetry arises when biased argument production aligns with biased argument evaluation by the same arguer, a phenomenon commonly termed motivated criticism or biased assimilation. This practice, often wielded by individuals in positions of power, aims to advocate for specific decision options. Argument Continuity exemplifies this asymmetry within a distorted reasoning context, where a motivated critic incessantly reiterates arguments in counterarguments to discredit less powerful opponents, disregarding evidential priority in reasoning exchanges. When these restatements are bolstered by appeals to authority, uncertainty, or the unlikelihood of adverse effects of a decision option, they signify moves of motivated criticism, perpetuating Argument Continuity discursively. The paper seeks to identify and annotate instances of Argument Continuities in Indigenous consultation reports, reconstructing a discourse of motivated criticism among officials responding to resource concerns. By developing annotation guidelines, it aims to classify and predict Argument Continuity, providing a tool to preempt fallacious reasoning by authorities across diverse public policy contexts.

Hypothesis, Paradigm, Framework and Concept Evaluation and Testing Across Space and Time: A Revalidation of our Concepts of “Aeternitism” and “Omnimodism”

This paper is linked to our papers or our earlier work on neo-centrism, hypothesis formulation, the sociological ninety ten rule, cross-cultural research design, and inductive approaches to hypothesis formulation, all of which have been published by us over the years. Therefore, all the relevant papers are suitably referenced in this paper, and brief summaries and overviews of them provided. This is done in the interests of coherence, internal consistency and clarity, so that readers can understand and comprehend the core concepts easily. To emphasize and to reiterate here, all our papers are interrelated in a continuous chain, none of our papers conflict with each other in any way, and to any degree. We believe that there are no internal contradictions amongst our wide gamut and array of papers that we have been publishing over the years, and no logical fallacies and inconsistencies as well whatsoever. All our papers are therefore interrelated and mutually interdependent in a plethora of different ways; however, this paper offers a fresh perspective and takes the concepts proposed in our earlier papers in an altogether new trajectory. This is done through the means and mechanism of hypothesis, paradigm, framework and concept evaluation and testing across space and time. Likewise, axioms, principles, entities and assumptions, are also evaluated, tested, and revalidated for this purpose. A revalidation of our concepts of “aeternitism” and “omnimodism” is also carried out as a part of this paper. This exercise is done in the interests of better science and better reliabilism; it is also a core component of our “Globalization of science” mission and movement.

The logical fallacy at the core of patent law: what does non-obviousness really test?

The logical fallacy at the core of patent law: what does non-obviousness really test?

Security Analysis of Smart Contract Migration from Ethereum to Arbitrum

When migrating smart contracts from one blockchain platform to another, there are potential security risks. This is because different blockchain platforms have different environments and characteristics for executing smart contracts. The focus of this paper is to study the security risks associated with the migration of smart contracts from Ethereum to Arbitrum. We collected relevant data and analyzed smart contract migration cases to explore the differences between Ethereum and Arbitrum in areas such as Arbitrum cross-chain messaging, block properties, contract address alias, and gas fees. From the 36 types of smart contract migration cases we identified, we selected four typical types of cases and summarized their security risks. The research shows that smart contracts deployed on Ethereum may face certain potential security risks during migration to Arbitrum, mainly due to issues inherent in public blockchain characteristics, such as outdated off-chain data obtained by the inactive sequencer, logic errors based on time, failed permission checks, and denial of service (DOS) attacks. To mitigate these security risks, we proposed avoidance methods and provided considerations for users and developers to ensure a secure migration process. It is worth noting that this study is the first to conduct an in-depth analysis of the secure migration of smart contracts from Ethereum to Arbitrum.

The future of AI clinicians: assessing the modern standard of chatbots and their approach to diagnostic uncertainty

BackgroundArtificial intelligence (AI) chatbots have demonstrated proficiency in structured knowledge assessments; however, there is limited research on their performance in scenarios involving diagnostic uncertainty, which requires careful interpretation and complex decision-making. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of AI chatbots, GPT-4o and Claude-3, in addressing medical scenarios characterized by diagnostic uncertainty relative to Family Medicine residents.MethodsQuestions with diagnostic uncertainty were extracted from the Progress Tests administered by the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto between 2022 and 2023. Diagnostic uncertainty questions were defined as those presenting clinical scenarios where symptoms, clinical findings, and patient histories do not converge on a definitive diagnosis, necessitating nuanced diagnostic reasoning and differential diagnosis. These questions were administered to a cohort of 320 Family Medicine residents in their first (PGY-1) and second (PGY-2) postgraduate years and inputted into GPT-4o and Claude-3. Errors were categorized into statistical, information, and logical errors. Statistical analyses were conducted using a binomial generalized estimating equation model, paired t-tests, and chi-squared tests.ResultsCompared to the residents, both chatbots scored lower on diagnostic uncertainty questions (p < 0.01). PGY-1 residents achieved a correctness rate of 61.1% (95% CI: 58.4–63.7), and PGY-2 residents achieved 63.3% (95% CI: 60.7–66.1). In contrast, Claude-3 correctly answered 57.7% (n = 52/90) of questions, and GPT-4o correctly answered 53.3% (n = 48/90). Claude-3 had a longer mean response time (24.0 s, 95% CI: 21.0-32.5 vs. 12.4 s, 95% CI: 9.3–15.3; p < 0.01) and produced longer answers (2001 characters, 95% CI: 1845–2212 vs. 1596 characters, 95% CI: 1395–1705; p < 0.01) compared to GPT-4o. Most errors by GPT-4o were logical errors (62.5%).ConclusionsWhile AI chatbots like GPT-4o and Claude-3 demonstrate potential in handling structured medical knowledge, their performance in scenarios involving diagnostic uncertainty remains suboptimal compared to human residents.

Optimization of Decoder Priors for Accurate Quantum Error Correction.

Accurate decoding of quantum error-correcting codes is a crucial ingredient in protecting quantum information from decoherence. It requires characterizing the error channels corrupting the logical quantum state and providing this information as a prior to the decoder. We introduce a reinforcement learning inspired method for calibrating these priors that aims to minimize the logical error rate. Our method significantly improves the decoding accuracy in repetition and surface code memory experiments executed on Google's Sycamore processor, outperforming the leading decoder-agnostic method by 16% and 3.3%, respectively. This calibration approach will serve as an important tool for maximizing the performance of both near-term and future error-corrected quantum devices.

Reducing the error rate of a superconducting logical qubit using analog readout information

Quantum error correction enables the preservation of logical qubits with a lower logical error rate than the physical error rate, with performance depending on the decoding method. Traditional decoding approaches rely on the binarization (“hardening”) of readout data, thereby ignoring valuable information embedded in the analog (“soft”) readout signal. We present experimental results showcasing the advantages of incorporating soft information into the decoding process of a distance-3 (d=3) bit-flip surface code with flux-tunable transmons. We encode each of the 16 computational states that make up the logical state |0L⟩, and protect them against bit-flip errors by performing repeated Z-basis stabilizer measurements. To infer the logical fidelity for the |0L⟩ state, we average across the 16 computational states and employ two decoding strategies: minimum-weight perfect matching and a recurrent neural network. Our results show a reduction of up to 6.8% in the extracted logical error rate with the use of soft information. Decoding with soft information is widely applicable, independent of the physical qubit platform, and could allow for shorter readout durations, further minimizing logical error rates. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Mistakes in Thinking about Cognitive Science and How to Reduce Them.

This article allows readers to assess their ability to detect errors in thinking in seven case histories of psychologists' thoughts about cognitive science. It explains the nature of the errors and shows that some of them reflect faulty reasoning. It presents a "model method" to improve reasoning. It is based on the theory of mental models, which gives a general account of how individuals think, both deductively and indicatively, and which postulates that individuals construct mental models of possibilities in the world. The model method enhances both the accuracy and speed of reasoning. The article concludes with some general reflections on the role of knowledge of meanings, the world, and context in thinking.

FORMING DESIGN THINKING SKILLS DURING THE EDUCATION OF FUTURE SPECIALISTS

The article revealed the meaning of the concepts of «thinking», «design thinking» by theoretically analyzing the scientific works and identifying the psychological and pedagogical features of formation of students' design thinking skills in the educational process. The levels of development of design thinking skills of future specialists, the authors relied on the design thinking criteria, components, and terms cited by scientists in the research. Diagnosing design thinking using a three-level stage, components such as cognitive, analytical, and activity were distinguished by the improvement of the process of forming students' design thinking skills. The experimental part of the research was planned and experimental work was carried out using effective methods. Surveys were conducted to determine design thinking by methods of «critical thinking», J. Barrett's «Critical Analysis» methodology, and Michael Chaifitz's test to assess the ability to find logical errors. The results of the pedagogical experiment showed the low level of design thinking of students. It needs creation and usage for improving the educational process in HEI. A work plan was created, and during its implementation, the solution to the problem of determining the effectiveness of design thinking was demonstrated based on the analysis of the results of each of the conducted methods. Comparing the results, none of the stages of development of design thinking could exclude an insufficient level; showed the highest indicator of students' cognitive stage; the analytical component of design thinking posed the greatest challenge, with only 69% of students indicating they were ready to make logical connections, and 13% saying they had great difficulty making them. It is possible to influence students by encouraging responsibility and independence, realizing awareness, creativity, self-development, learning to monitor, generalize, compare, and increase their attention in order to form design thinking skills, and the formation of design thinking skills is not enough.

AI hallucination: towards a comprehensive classification of distorted information in artificial intelligence-generated content

Amidst the burgeoning information age, the rapid development of artificial intelligence-generated content (AIGC) has brought forth challenges regarding information authenticity. The proliferation of distorted information significantly impacts users negatively. This study aims to systematically categorize distorted information within AIGC, delve into its internal characteristics, and provide theoretical guidance for its management. Utilizing ChatGPT as a case study, we conducted empirical content analysis on 243 instances of distorted information collected, comprising both questions and answers. Three coders meticulously interpreted each instance of distorted information, encoding error points based on a predefined coding scheme and categorizing them according to error type. Our objective was to refine and validate the distorted information category list derived from the review through multiple rounds of pre-coding and test coding, thereby yielding a comprehensive and clearly delineated category list of distorted information in AIGC. The findings identified 8 first-level error types: “Overfitting”; “Logic errors”; “Reasoning errors”; “Mathematical errors”; “Unfounded fabrication”; “Factual errors”; “Text output errors”; and “Other errors”, further subdivided into 31 second-level error types. This classification list not only lays a solid foundation for studying risks associated with AIGC but also holds significant practical implications for helping users identify distorted information and enabling developers to enhance the quality of AI-generated tools.

Study of the one-dimensional consolidation and creep of clays with different thicknesses using different hypotheses and three elastic visco-plastic models

The one-dimensional consolidation analysis of clays considering creep compression is a classical issue in soil mechanics and geotechnical design. The major debate lies in how to predict the consolidation settlement for a thick layer in the field using parameters obtained from a thin specimen from the laboratory. Different hypotheses have been advocated, based on which various methods and constitutive models have been developed. However, there are still some questions unaddressed and concepts inconsistently used, which may mislead engineers in the selection of methods/models and may result in settlements underestimated on a risk design side. In this paper, a state-of-the-art review and a thorough comparison study are performed on the existing methods and models for the consolidation analysis of clays exhibiting creep, from theoretical derivations to numerical simulations in comparison with soil test data. An in-depth discussion is carried out on several key issues related to the thickness effects on the time-dependent compression behaviour of clays. The arguments of Hypothesis A and Hypothesis B are revisited based on the current development of constitutive theories. Three existing elastic visco-plastic (EVP) models that consider the creep compression implicitly during the whole consolidation process can perform well in predicting the settlement of clay layers with different thicknesses, and are in line with Hypothesis B. It is concluded that using existing EVP models based on porous-media continuum mechanics is a rigorous scientific method (also called “rigorous” Hypothesis B method), which is superior to the old Hypothesis A method which has logic errors and may result in unsafe underestimation of settlements.

Towards a national model of humus (carbon) budget management in soils of agroecosystems in the Russian Federation

The prospect of adapting two methods for monitoring the fertility of agricultural soils (humus balance, HB) under spring and winter wheat crops (hereinafter referred to as grain crops) developed in the Russian Federation (RF) for the purposes of climate projects has been studied. It was revealed that the RosNIIzemproekt method (1998) underestimates the HB average value to -7.7 c/ha for RF. The RosNIIzemproekt method (1998) has logical errors in the calculation model and is not recommended for use. The TsINAO method (2000) has a more logical calculation model. According to this method, the average value of HB in soils for RF is generally positive and amounts to 3.3 c/ha (0.71 tCO2-eq/ha carbon units). This value constitutes ≈0.3% of average humus reserves in arable soils of the RF (108 tС/ha). The annual value of change in humus content under spring and winter wheat is incommensurably less than the total humus reserves in the soil. Statistically reliable assessment of changes in humus content requires a huge number of soil samples. This makes the verification procedure economically inexpedient. Another option is proposed to increase the time of humus accumulation. It is considered (IPCC, 2003) that a 20-year accumulation period is sufficient, which corresponds to the duration of soil climate projects. A coefficient (0.216) has been proposed for converting humus reserves (c/ha) to the value of a carbon unit (tCO2-eq/ha). The total sequestration of carbon by soils under grain crops in 2022 was about 11 million 914 thousand tCO2-eq. HB accounting significantly compensates for calculated emissions from agricultural production and reduces them by almost 10% (from 116 to 105 million tons CO2-eq in 2022). For both models of fertility monitoring, an assessment was made of the quality of the regression dependence of HB on the total biomass of photosynthesis (TBP) in soils under grain crops. It is shown that according to Fisher's t-test at a 5% significance level, the studied relationship is significant and characterized by the squares of the correlation coefficient (R2) equal to 0.554 and 0.998. In accordance with the Chaddock scale, the closeness of the correlative relationship between HB and TPB for winter wheat is assessed as high, and for spring wheat as very high.