Hack 72. Detect Cheaters (2)
Say there’s a rule that you must be over 21 to drink beer. Whose drinks and ages would you need to check to see if this bar is flouting the rules?
By simply swapping drinks and ages for cards A, K, 2, and 7, it’s obvious this time around that there’s no point checking what the 21 year old (think 2 card) is drinkingit wouldn’t make any difference to the rule if she were drinking cola or beer, whereas the 16 year old’s (think 7 card) drink is of much more interest.
7.4.2. How It Works
Why are logic problems so much easier when they’re expressed as real-life situations rather than in abstract terms? One early hypothesis called memory cuing proposed that we solve logic problems by drawing on personal experience, without using any deductive reasoning. We’ve all experienced the problems of drinking ages enough times that we don’t even have to think about who should be drinking what, unlike playing with letter and number cards.
Despite the substantial evidence behind memory cuing,2,3 many scientists believe that in practice we use more than just experiencethat there is in fact some thinking involved. Instead, researchers such as Cheng and Holyoak4 think that, while we might not be so good at pure logic, we’re excellent at the logic we need in real liferules, permissions, and obligations. This type of logicdeontic logicis what helps us solve everyday logic problems, by developing what they call “pragmatic reasoning schemas.” Therefore, it shouldn’t be surprising that our ability with logic is domain-specific, that is, limited to analyzing the complex web of permissions and obligations we encounter in life.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
