First, let me direct you to the CT Forum Rules:
http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/...wtopic&t=10983
Or, since most of you are not going to click that link... here is the information in the thread:
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Jewpin in the CT Rules Thread
1. Only post if you can contribute something to the topic/debate. This means no more: "What <insert name> Said" , or "I agree/disagree".
2. Do not take anything personally. No flaming.
3. Please, use spellcheck, or atleast form sentences that make sense. Pretend that you are writing an Essay for class.
4. Since this is a Critical Thinking Forum use evidence to back up your statement if needed. This means no more: "The Bible says so." Actually find the verse that says so (just an example).
Happy debating.
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Now, that covers the basics. But alot of you still don't seem to understand this, so I'll take 1 subject matter and make mock threads about it in different styles to explain what is expected. I'll use College Basketball, as it is something I'm thinking alot about right now.
The locked thread on College Basketball, Extreme Case
Hay Guyz duke is da best, dey gona win da hole tihng dis yrea
---As is obvious, there is misspelling, poor grammar, almost zero content, and nothing to back up his claims, nor any statement for anyone else to comment on or give opinions.
The locked thread on College Basketball, Case 2
Adam Morrison would school all of you in one-on-one! He should be Player of the Year.
---Proper spelling and grammar, but again, nothing to back up his claims. No facts and little do debate about. No reason for it to be a thread.
The poor thread on College Basketball
Guys, I go to Baylor and can't stand what the NCAA has done to our program. Its wrong. We shouldn't be punished for what happened years ago. Nobody who did anything wrong is still with the program. It sucks.
---Still nothing asking us for opinion, although it is more implied here. More to the point is that there is no explanation of what happened to Baylor. No facts. More like a rant.
Example thread:
http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/...wtopic&t=43432
The average thread on College Basketball
OK, so the NCAA Tourney is coming up. With the moving of 5 C-USA teams to the Big East, increasing the conference to 16, how do you all think the selection committee will respond to the mega-conference? Never has 1 conference had more than 6 bids to the Big Dance, but this year the Big East is expected to have 8/9 and the Big Ten to have 7. Do you see even less parity in College Basketball than in prior years between the major and mid-major conferences? But then how do you explain the Missouri Valley Conference slated for 5 bids and those 5 teams all having an RPI in the top40? I see a movement more from the West and South to the North and East than from Major to Mid-Major. The Pac-10, SEC, Big 12, WCC, MWC, and WAC are all down this year yet the Big East, Big 10, and MVC are up. Even the ACC is down somewhat this year, overall.
---I consider this average, because this is what I EXPECT from a CT thread. It covers multiple bases, gets some facts out about the topic, voices questions to other people (asking for their opinion), and gives some opinion as well. The biggest downfall is that it is short and therefore lacking in the substance that it could have.
The excellent thread on College Basketball
So how is it that Memphis, with a 24-2, slated to be a #1 seed(4th of the #1s)... yet George Washington is 22-1 and only slated a #4 seed(15th overall)? Well, the reasoning behind it is that while both are mid-majors, and GW has a better in-conference RPI (Ratings Percentage Index, a measure of ranking teams based on quality on wins both in-conference and out-of-conference and home vs road, amongst other factors) (Memphis is #38, GW is #21), in-conference SOS (Strength of Schedule) (125th vs 280th), and plays in a tougher conference (11th vs 14th), the other factors are much more important. Memphis played the 4th hardest out-of-conference schedule and only lost 2 games, to Texas at home and vs Duke on a neutral court (#1 and #7 teams in the nation) and has the 2nd best non-conference RPI. GW on the other hand played the 322nd hardest non-conference schedule (there are only 334 D-1 teams, and Baylor didn't get to play a non-conference game) and lost the only game they played against a top25 RPI team (at NCSt by 21), giving them a non-conference RPI of 21st. On the other hand, Memphis is 3-2 vs RPI top25, beating UCLA, Gonzaga, and Tennessee.
Basically, what I'm getting at is whether you feel that Memphis' wins vs those 3 teams is worthy of a #1 seed, when all other factors would lead to GW better the higher ranked team? Should so much emphasis be placed on those games played in December, as opposed to all the cupcake games both teams have played for the past 6 weeks. Frankly, I don't think either team is worthy of a #1 seed. Memphis won a few games early, and lost a few as well (to 2 of the best teams in the nation), but they haven't had a challenge at all. It is like their record is really 10-2 (3-2 vs top25, 2-0 vs 26-50, 5-0 vs 51-100). GW, naturally, is even worse... 7-1 (0-1, 3-0, 4-0). To compare... Duke would be 14-1 (4-0, 6-1, 4-0), Villanova would be 15-2 (3-1, 5-1, 7-0), and UConn would be 14-2 (4-2, 7-0, 3-0).
---You can see how in depth it goes, and while the question asked is small... everything needed to discuss this topic is given in the inital post (for the most part). Someone could do further research for themselves, but anyone reading this can get a solid foundation for the topic and be able to contribute their opinion (well, someone who doesn't understand the RPI system might be a little confused).
2 examples of above average threads, from the 1st post AND the replies:
http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/...wtopic&t=42671
http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/...wtopic&t=39347
The examples above are given using data from 2/21/06 and may not be correct on future dates.
Comments/Suggestions on improving this guide? Anything not worthwhile will be deleted.