4
UNIT
1
Life and logic
Section B Why do smart people do dumb things?
Objectives
To master the reading skill
To understand the text
To practice the phrases and patterns
To learn about writing a survey report
Section
B Why do smar t people do
dumb things?
Contents
Warming-up
Reading Skills
Text Study
Comparative Study
Unit Project
Section
B Why do smar t people do
dumb things?
Warming-up
Lead-in
Background Information
1. What are the two examples of Sunk Costs Fallacy
mentioned in the video?
Tips
2. According to the speaker, what are Sunk Costs
and what is the meaning of Sunk Costs Fallacy ?
Tips
Video Watching
Back
1. What are the two examples of Sunk Costs
Fallacy mentioned in the video?
Tips
Example one: go to a store / closed / 10 blocks
/ wasted
Example two: career / not fulfilling / stick
with it / don’t want past ten years / effects,
time and money / wasted
2. According to the speaker, what are the Sunk
Costs and what is the meaning of Sunk Costs
Fallacy?
Tips
Sunk Costs: Time, money, effects or whatever
you’ve spend.
Sunk Costs Fallacy: make choice / not base
on / best / desire / not / past investment /
wasted.
1. What is Cognitive Bias?
Tips
2. What is Fundamental Attribution Error?
Tips
3. What is Confirmation Bias?
Tips
1. What is Cognitive Bias?
Tips
A cognitive bias is a pattern of deviation in
judgment that occurs in particular situations, leading to
perceptual distortion, inaccurate judgment, illogical
interpretation, or what is broadly called irrationality.
Many cognitive biases (认知偏差) are often studied for
how they affect business and economic decisions and
how they affect scientific and experimental researches.
2. What is Fundamental Attribution Error?
Tips
A Fundamental Attribution Error (基本归因错误)
is a cognitive bias in social psychology. It refers to the
tendency to judge a person in an unpleasant situation
in a bad light and attribute his behavior to internal
causes and qualities rather than consider the situation
or circumstances that may have caused the person to
behave in that manner. But, if we ourselves made the
same errors, we would easily attribute the causes to
external factors.
3. What is Confirmation Bias?
Tips
A Confirmation Bias (确定性偏差) is a cognitive
bias whereby one tends to notice and look for
information that confirms one’s existing beliefs,
whilst ignoring anything that contradicts those
beliefs. It is a type of selective thinking. For example:
After having bought a piece of clothing, you will look
for the same clothing in a more expensive store to
confirm that you have bought a bargain.
Section
B
Why do smar t people do
dumb things?
Reading Skills
Presentation of the Skill
Reading Skill Practice
Skimming
Skimming is a method of rapidly moving
the eyes over a text with the purpose of
getting the main idea or a general overview
of its content. For example, many people
skim read a newspaper article just to get a
quick overview, or a text to see whether it’s
worth reading in detail. The key word for
skimming is “general”.
Skimming
Some steps to help you to skim an article
1 Read the title – it is the shortest possible
summary of the content of the article.
2 Read the introduction or lead-in paragraph(s).
3 Read any sub-headings, and identify the
relationships between them.
4 Read the first sentence of each remaining
paragraph; the main idea of most paragraphs
appears in the first sentence.
Skimming
Some steps to help you to skim an article
5 Alternately read and “float” over the body
of the article, looking for the following:
• Clues about who, what, when, where,
how many, how much
• Connective words and phrases such as
furthermore, also, however and on the
contrary
6 Read the concluding paragraph(s) completely.
Skimming
Practice
Skim Text B to find answers to the
following questions.
1 What is this text mainly about?
2 What common cognitive biases can cause
smart people to make bad decisions?
3 How can we avoid being affected by
various types of cognitive biases when
making a decision?
Section
B
Why do smar t people do
dumb things?
Text Study
Text Comprehension
Language Focus
Critical Thinking
1. What is the traditional view about smart people according to
Paragraph 1? (Para. 1)
2. What is the most typical characteristic of the fundamental
attribution error? (Para.3)
3. What will you be affected if you are only interested in
evidence that is in agreement with your own belief? (Para.5)
4. When does the overconfidence bias usually occur?
(Para.7)
5. Why does the availability bias leads to strange and
inaccurate conclusions? (Para.8)
6. Why don’t people want to leave a bad investment situation
and commit the sunk cost fallacy? (Para.11)
7. What is the purpose of this text?
1. What is the traditional view about smart
people according to Paragraph 1?
00
Tips
Smart people, by virtue of what they’ve
learned, will formulate better decisions.
原句：
Orthodox views prize intelligence and intellectual
rigor highly in the modern realm of universities
and tech industry jobs. (Para. 1, L1)
解释:
Intelligence and the ability to think logically have
long been regarded as important qualities in
modern universities and in jobs related to the
technology industry.
译文：
传统观念将智力和思维的缜密性看作现代大学领域和
科技产业工作的重要素质。
2. What is the most typical characteristic of the
fundamental attribution error? (Para.3)
Tips
One of the most common biases is what is known as
the fundamental attribution error. Through this people
character flaws and
failures of others to _____________
attribute the ______________
their
own
to
mere circumstance
________________,
subconsciously
stainless
considering their own characters to be ________.
3. What will you be affected if you are only interested
in evidence that is in agreement with your own
belief? (Para. 5)
Tips
Choose the best answer to the question.
A The fundamental attribution error.
B The confirmation bias.
C The overconfidence bias.
D The availability bias.
原句：
Outwitting confirmation bias therefore requires
exploring both sides of an argument with equal
diligence. (Para. 6, L5)
解释:
Therefore, to be able to use your intelligence
to overcome the confirmation bias requires you
to analyze both sides of an argument with
equal efforts.
译文：
所以，要克服“确定性偏差”，就要以同样的努
力认真探究论点的正反两面。
4. When does the overconfidence bias usually
occur? (Para. 7)
Tips
Overconfidence bias most frequently comes
no direct
into play in areas where someone has _______
evidence
and must make a guess – estimating
____________________________
how many people are in a crowded plaza, for
example, or how likely it will rain.
5. Why does the availability bias leads to strange
and inaccurate conclusions? (Para. 8)
Tips
Because
it
causes
people to use evidence
that is not so convincing
and strong.
6. Why don’t people want to leave a bad investment
situation and commit the sunk cost fallacy? (Para. 11)
Tips
Choose the best answer to the question.
A Because they don’t want to admit that they
have made a poor decision.
B Because they will lose more money if they
decide not to continue it.
C Because they will have greater chances to
win if they are patient.
D Because they don’t want their previous
investments to be wasted.
原句：
Gamblers with a high threshold for risk put money
into a slot machine hoping for a big return, but with
each pull of the lever they lose some money
playing the odds. (Para. 11, L2)
解释:
Gamblers who engage themselves into highly risky
situations put money into a slot machine, expecting
to get big amounts of money back. But each time
they pull the lever on the machine, they lose some
money trying their luck.
译文：
赌徒们冒着高风险，把钱投入老虎机，期望能够
得
到很大的回报，但随着一次次拉动拉杆，他们也
一
原句：
When a decision matters, it is best to rely on
watertight logic and a careful examination of the
evidence and to remain aware that what seems like
good intuition is always subject to errors of judgment.
(Para. 14，L1)
解释:
When you make an important decision, it is always
best to rely on sound logic and a careful analysis of
the evidence and to keep in mind that what seems to
be good at first can often lead to errors of judgment.
译文：
当涉及重要决策时，最好是依靠严密的逻辑并仔细审
查证据；同时，要保持警惕，那些看上去良好的直觉
总是很容易导致判断失误。
7. What is the purpose of this text?
Tips
The purpose of this text is try to help us learn
about cognitive biases and be better at decisionmaking.
cognitive
fundamental attribution error
circumstance
Confirmation
pre-existing hypotheses
overconfidence
100 percent sure
correct 80 percent
errors
biggest plane crash in history happened there
damaging situations
watertight logic
remain aware
Practical Phrases
Specific Meanings
1. by virtue of
2. factor sth. into sth.
3. attribute sth. to sb. / sth.
4. come into play
因为；由于；凭借
把…考虑在内
把…归因于
开始起作用
5. in that
6. in a row
7. be / get stuck on sth.
因为；由于
连续地
被…困住；被…难住
8. subject to sth.
易受…影响的
因为；由于；凭借
短语逆译
by virtue of
短语应用
由于工作原因，他有机会接触这一领域可以得到的大
量的最新数据。
意群提示
(has access to / available)
By virtue of his work, he has access to a tremendous
amount of the latest data available in this field.
把…考虑在内
短语逆译
factor sth. into sth.
短语应用
现在人们在选择食物时把热量考虑在内已变得更加
普遍了。
意群提示
(calories)
Now it has become more popular for people to
factor calories into their food choices.
把…归因于
短语逆译
attribute sth. to sb. / sth.
短语应用
公司把亏损归因于原料及劳动力成本的上涨。
意群提示
(material and labor)
The company attributed the loss to higher material and
labor costs.
开始起作用
短语逆译
come into play
短语应用
在这一看似简单的决定的外表之下，有许多其他细节
都起了作用。
意群提示
(underneath / seemingly)
Underneath the surface of this seemingly easy decision,
there were so many other details that came into play.
因为；由于
短语逆译
in that
短语应用
市场竞争是好事，因为它往往会使价格下降,这必定给
消费者带来福利。
意群提示
(market competition / keep prices down/consumer)
Market competition is good in that it tends to keep
prices down, which will definitely benefit all consumers.
连续地
短语逆译
in a row
短语应用
反欺诈小组的工作人员突击搜查了这家公司的办公
室后这家公司的股价已连续三天下跌。
意群提示
(share price / fraud squad officer / raid )
The company’s share price has fallen for three days
in a row after fraud squad officers raided its offices.
被…困住；被…难住
短语逆译 be / get stuck on sth.
短语应用
如果谈判确实在一些重大问题上陷入僵局，我会去找
大使帮忙。
意群提示
(negotiation / key issues / ambassador )
If the negotiations did get stuck on a number of key
issues, I’d ask the ambassador for help.
易受…影响的
短语逆译
subject to sth.
短语应用
海外度假游的价格受各种附加费的影响。
意群提示
(overseas holiday / surcharges)
The prices of overseas holidays are subject to
some surcharges.
Functional Patterns
Functions & Usages
1. Doing sth. give sb. an
awareness of sth./ doing sth.
用于表达“做某事使某人
意识到其他事情” 。
2. Sb. might assume that…,
because…
用于表示“某人由于某些
原因而假定某事”。
3. Doing sth. calls for sth. else，
not…
用于表达“做成某事的首
要因素，排除错误因素”。
原句译文
只要知道这些偏差如何发生及在何种情况下
发生，你就能意识到自身的缺陷。
逆译练习
Understanding how and in what situations
they occur can give you an awareness of
your own limitations. (Para. 2)
句型提炼
句型提炼
Doing sth. give sb. an awareness of
sth./ doing sth.
应用提示
用于表达“做某事使某人意识到其他事
情”。
句型应用
典型例句
在狱中接受法律的制裁使他意识到知法守法的重要性。
意群提示
(legal sanction / jail / abiding )
Receiving the legal sanction in the jail gives him
an awareness of the importance of knowing the
laws and abiding them.
原句译文
你可能会毫无根据地假定自己的房子会升
值，哪怕周围百分之九十的房子都已经贬
值了，因为你总认为自己的能力更强。
逆译练习
You might assume, without evidence,
that the price of your house will go up
even though 90 percent of them have
dropped in price, because you yourself
are more competent. (Para. 4)
句型提炼
句型提炼
Sb. might assume that…, because…
应用提示
用于表达“某人由于某些原因而假定某事”。
句型应用
典型例句
你可能认为股市不会跌入新低，因为企业拿出留存盈利
来投资股市。
意群提示
(stock market / retained earning)
You might assume that the stock market will never
fell to a new low, because companies have invested
their retained earnings.
原句译文
要排除“可得性偏差”，就必须在作某一具
体决定时，以实证方法所取得的证据为依据，
而不是以与现实不太相符的某个鲜明的记忆
为依据。
逆译练习
Repelling the availability bias calls for an
empirical approach to a particular
decision, one not based on the obscured
reality of vivid memory. (Para. 10)
句型提炼
句型提炼
Doing sth. calls for sth. else, not…
应用提示
用于表达“做成某事的首要因素,排除错
误因素” 。
句型应用
典型例句
要想在锦标赛中获胜就必须不断的努力练习，而不
是把精力放在关注你的对手上。
意群提示
(championship / constant / opponent)
Winning the championship calls for constant
practice, not focusing your energy on your
opponent.
1.认知偏差
2.意识到自身的缺陷
3.基本归因错误
4. 心胸狭窄地对别人评
价
5.忽略了某些要点
6.有可能起作用
7.出庭作证
8.冒着高风险
9.沉没成本谬误
10.依靠严密的逻辑
cognitive biases
awareness of own limitations
fundamental attribution error
petty judgments about other people
fail to recognize valid points
comes into play
testify in a court trial
with a high threshold for risk
sunk cost fallacy
rely on watertight logic
1. Do you often listen to experts when you are in
doubt of something? Why or why not?
Tips
2. Are people smart in the same way or in different
ways? Explain your answer with details.
Tips
3. What do you think determines one’s intelligence? Is
it genes or is it environment?
Tips
1. Do you often listen to experts when you are in
doubt of something? Why or why not?
Tips
• Yes. There are several reasons:
-Experts are people who have gained a lot more knowledge
in a particular field；
- Experts have more skills and experience in that field.
• No. There are several reasons:
- Experts could have biased opinions toward a specific issue；
- We need to think critically about other people’s opinions.
2. Are people smart in the same way or in different
ways? Explain your answer with details.
Tips
•People are smart in different ways because there are
different types of intelligence, such as:
- verbal (linguistic) intelligence;
- numerical intelligence.
•People can be smart in similar ways because smart
people have many common qualities. For example,
they are all willing to learn and can learn quickly. They
are all highly curious, and keen to solve problems.
3. What do you think determines one’s intelligence?
Is it genes or is it environment?
Tips
•Genes. Many stories have proved that if one’s genes
are not good enough, no matter what favorable
environment he is exposed to, he will not be able to
learn as quickly as those whose genes are good.
•Intelligence. Children who are well-nurtured, that is,
those who have more life experiences, who read more,
learn more and travel more, can usually get much
higher scores in intelligence tests, which, as we know,
are important indications of their intelligence.
Talk about
cognitive biases
1. Can you give an example to illustrate that you
have also been affected by cognitive biases when
making a decision?
Tips
2. What do you think are the best ways to avoid
cognitive biases?
Tips
1. Can you give an example to illustrate that you
have also been affected by cognitive biases
when making a decision?
Tips
Yes, certainly. For example, last summer, I dropped in a
clothing store in Nanjing Road and found a dress with a
fashionable style and really good price. I bought the dress
and liked it very much. Because of this happy experience,
this year I decided to go to the store again. I bought another
fashionable dress and happily paid the price asked by the
salesgirl. I believed I had got another good bargain. But later,
to my disappointment, I found the price I had paid was
actually much higher than in other stores. I made the wrong
decision owing to my overconfidence.
2. What do you think are the best ways to avoid
cognitive biases?
Tips
To avoid such cognitive biases, we should:
• Improve our thinking process. Think carefully and
critically. Avoid making unqualified generalizations
or jumping to conclusions；
• Learn from our past mistakes. Avoid being affected
by the same cognitive bias again and again.
Section
B Why do smar t people do
dumb things?
Comparative Study
Thematic Study
Language Features Analysis
1. Comparison the logical fallacies motioned in
Text A and Text B.
Tips
2. How do you comment on the quote “Knowing a
lot of facts is not the same as being smart”?
Tips
1. Comparison the logical fallacies motioned in
Text A and Text B.
Text A
1. Dicto Simpliciter;
2. Hasty Generalization;
3. Ad Misericordiam;
4. False Analogy.
Text B
1. Fundamental attribution;
2. Confirmation bias;
3. Overconfidence bias;
4. Availability bias;
5. Sunk cost fallacy.
2. How do you comment on the quote “Knowing a
lot of facts is not the same as being smart”?
Tips
I agree with the saying, because being smart
does not simply mean the ability to learn facts. It
includes many other abilities, such as the ability
to analyze, the ability to think abstractly, the
ability to reason, the ability to generalize, the
ability to solve problems, the ability to
communicate, etc.
Based on your study of
the two texts, compare
the writing styles of the
two texts in terms of their
typical language features.
1. What are the typical language features of the two texts?
Tips
2. List more examples from the text to support your ideas.
Tips
1. What are the typical language features of the two texts?
Tips
Text A is a piece of narrative writing following
the chronological approach and developed in
the form of light conversation mixed with
descriptions.
Text B is an expository essay, employing the
listing method of writing.
2. List more examples from the text to support your ideas.
Tips
Text A is developed in the form of light
conversation mixed with descriptions:
She nodded with delight.
“Listen closely,” I said. “A man applies for a job.
When the boss asks him what his qualifications
are, he says he has six children to feed.”
“Oh, this is awful, awful,” she whispered in a
choked voice.
Section
B Why do smar t people do
Unit Project
Survey Report
Report Writing
dumb things?
Survey Report
Writing a survey report on
logical fallacies
Survey Report
Text A introduces four types of logical fallacies. In
reality, there are many other types of logical
fallacies that are also very common. You will be
given a list of most common types of logical
fallacies and work in small groups on them.
Survey Report
1 Form small groups of four or five. Each group will be assigned
two logical fallacies from the following list. Work together with
your group members to define the two fallacies your group has
got and provide their Chinese names as well.
Red Herring
Begging the Question Hasty
Generalization
Slippery Slope
Dicto Simpliciter
Bandwagon
False Dilemma
False Cause (post hoc)
False Analogy
Ad Hominem
Ad Misericordiam
Appeal to Authority
Survey Report
2 Discuss a few examples for each type, and explain
why they are fallacies. You may refer to the following
sources for examples:
• Daily life
• Advertisements
• Political arguments
• Newspaper articles
3 Discuss some tips on how to avoid such fallacies.
4 Prepare a report about what you
have found and discussed.
5 Present your report to the class
and vote for the best one.
Report Writing
Writing a Report on False Dilemma
You may include the following points:
 Beginning:
The purpose of the report.
 Body:
1. Definition of False Dilemma.
2. Examples of False Dilemma.
3. How to avoid the fallacy.
 Conclusion:
Benefits of the report.
Report Writing
You may use the following
expressions in your writing.
The report provides an introduction to…
According to the recent research / investigation …
It is a common misconception that…
The phenomenon is attributable/due to…
A case in point is…
The following are the recommendations …
I'm sure the implications of this are clear to all of us.
Section
B
Why do smar t people do
dumb things?
The end