空中英语教室060921[Think for yourself] (1/3)

Think for yourself
Imagine a stranger approaches you one day and says: “I can make you rich if you do what I say.” Would you immediately follow his instructions, or start asking questions? Most likely, you would request some evidence from the stranger to prove his claims. By asking questions, you’re using a skill called “critical thinking.”
Critical thinking refers to a special technique that helps you evaluate and judge information. With this skill, you can form your own opinions and make your own decisions. In short, you can think for yourself.
Living in the information age, we receive all kind of information every day. Some comes from people or sources we know and trust. But much of it comes from less credible sources—Web sites, advertisements, television. Critical thinking helps us determine whether this information is reliable or not.
Let’s use an example to illustrate critical thinking. Imagine you’re deciding whether to further your education or not. On a college Web site, you read: “The higher your education, the more likely you will be to succeed.” How would a critical thinker react to this statement?


Word Bank
Evaluate (v) 评估
Mr. Smith evaluates his students’ improvement over the semester to decide their grades.

In short (idiom) 简而言之
Tea has little caffeine and many health benefits. In short, drinking tea is good for you.

Credible (adj.)可信的；可靠的
I didn’t believe his story. It wasn’t very credible.

Illustrate (v) 说明；阐明
Miss Ebert showed us a drawing to illustrate how water travels from one place to another.