logic

Once upon a time, in a far-off land called the 20th Century, I studied Logic.

Yes, it was a course. No, really.

I studied Logic with the same man who taught me Sanskrit. People study strange things in college --at least they do in the U.S. because we want our university students to be well rounded. In the U.S., we have math and science requirements in college (university) even if you want to study basket weaving, and we have humanities requirements even if you want to be an engineer. There is a certain logic behind this (it suits me because I like everything), and yet, at the same time, it flies in the face of logic because, by age 18, presumably you know what you're good at and what you like and what area you never want to take a test in again.

I took Logic to fulfill a math requirement. I was never going to use higher-level math other than statistics, which I also studied, and Logic seemed to me both useful (for figuring out what makes logical sense in what the world presented me with) and useful (my school did not have a prescribed course for what I wanted to major in, and I could justify Logic as part of the coursework to the powers that be).

One interesting thing I learned while taking Logic: I don't think in a straight line. Ever. And yet, somehow, in my Logic class, I always ended up with the right answer. I circumnavigated the straight line every single time. For me, logic is a process of elimination that meanders. Other people can do it in a straight line, and I envy them in a way as it simplifies things. Other people have trouble with the thought process (but, as with many other things that are taught, I believe it can be learned to some extent).

Regardless of whether or not I did it 'right', I still see the study of logic as a very useful thing. I wish we taught it more in school, in balance with a social-emotional curriculum. Sure, there are some things in life that defy logic, but there are other things where logic is greatly needed. Take, for example, all of the recent political talk --regardless of your political affiliation, an ability to spot false equivalence and other logical fallacies is helpful.