67 In Teaching, Learning, and Thinking, Examples Are Key episode artwork

EPISODE · Apr 17, 2026 · 47 MIN

67 In Teaching, Learning, and Thinking, Examples Are Key

from The ReasonRx Podcast · host Michael Gold

Teaching, learning, and understanding -- examples are critical, not just in school, but in life and at work.After all, we all have to sometimes teach and sometines learn -- it's part of being a social animal. And we frequently have to think. So we should know how to do them well.No matter what -- Acid. Base. Titration. Redox. Quantum mechanics.  Maxwell’s equations.  Navier-Stokes equations. Turbulence. Government. Psychopath. Discipline. Friend. Money. Honesty. Integrity. Reason. Logic. Induction. Deduction. Wisdom. -- in forming concepts of these things and understanding them, we should have examples, preferably a wide, varying range of examples. Here are two cases where I've used examples to teach concepts and understanding of them.I. Adjectivesnouncat, human, wisdom, reason, emotion, victory, oak, butterfly, friend, physics, grammar, philosophy, logic, steak, hamburger, home, school--> a noun is a word that names a person, place, or thingverbthink, understand, feel, run, throw, lift, jump, cook, eat, digest, rest, sleep, move, is, was, smells--> a verb is a word that names an action or stateadjectivered, blue, big, small, fast, slow, strong, weak, wise, unwise, capitalistic, communistichis, her, theirthree, five, most, all, some, nonethis, that, a, the--> an adjective is a word that modifies a noutadverbslowly, quickly, wisely, intelligently, unsmartly, very, soyesterday, yesterday, tomorrow, on my birthday,here, there, on the corner, under the rooffor the team, because I said so, --> an adverb is a word that modifires a verbprepositionthrough, to, out, upon, because of, in, over, across, in spite of, up, down--> a preposition is a word that connects a noun to the rest of the sentenceThe Adjectives QuestionsWhich one(s)?What kind?How many?Whose?The Adverb QuestionsHow?When?Where?Why?Notice some logical features in what we did. We identified these things:What are they?How are they similar?How are they different from related things? What’s the contrast?What’s the context?We should do that in forming concepts of other things, and in understanding those things.II. Projectiles. horizontal: ball pushed on ground, etc.vertical: ball dropped, etc.projectile: rock thrown, coin flicked off a table, cannobal fired, bulllet firedself-propelled: bird, jet airplane, helicopteraffected by air resistance: feather dropped or thrown, piece of paper (not crumpled) droppedGalileo: just as ramp/incline slowed down free fall so he could study it, so also a ramp slowed down projectile motion so he could study it. Notice some logical features in what we did. We identified these things:What are examples?In contrast to what?What is definitive? How do we characterize it? Why do they do what they do? How can we understand it?We should do that in forming concepts of other things, and in understanding those things.Galilean Spiral: i. https://mathcurve.com/courbes2d.gb/galilee/galilee.shtmlii https://mathworld.wolfram.com/GalileanSpiral.htmlKepler's Lawshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler%27s_laws_of_planetary_motionExamples are key in forming concepts and in studying the things for understanding. And it is in the real things where we find their rich variety and all sorts of actions and causation. And it is in focusing on the examples that we stay tied to reality. Contact Michael at [email protected] or [email protected] consider liking us on your podcast app, and leaving a rational review.Email us at [email protected], [email protected], or [email protected]: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-gold-2883921/Gold Academy: https://goldams.comTotal Human Fitness: https://total-human-fitness.com

Teaching, learning, and understanding -- examples are critical, not just in school, but in life and at work.After all, we all have to sometimes teach and sometines learn -- it's part of being a social animal. And we frequently have to think. So we should know how to do them well.No matter what -- Acid. Base. Titration. Redox. Quantum mechanics.  Maxwell’s equations.  Navier-Stokes equations. Turbulence. Government. Psychopath. Discipline. Friend. Money. Honesty. Integrity. Reason. Logic. Induction. Deduction. Wisdom. -- in forming concepts of these things and understanding them, we should have examples, preferably a wide, varying range of examples. Here are two cases where I've used examples to teach concepts and understanding of them.I. Adjectivesnouncat, human, wisdom, reason, emotion, victory, oak, butterfly, friend, physics, grammar, philosophy, logic, steak, hamburger, home, school--> a noun is a word that names a person, place, or thingverbthink, understand, feel, run, throw, lift, jump, cook, eat, digest, rest, sleep, move, is, was, smells--> a verb is a word that names an action or stateadjectivered, blue, big, small, fast, slow, strong, weak, wise, unwise, capitalistic, communistichis, her, theirthree, five, most, all, some, nonethis, that, a, the--> an adjective is a word that modifies a noutadverbslowly, quickly, wisely, intelligently, unsmartly, very, soyesterday, yesterday, tomorrow, on my birthday,here, there, on the corner, under the rooffor the team, because I said so, --> an adverb is a word that modifires a verbprepositionthrough, to, out, upon, because of, in, over, across, in spite of, up, down--> a preposition is a word that connects a noun to the rest of the sentenceThe Adjectives QuestionsWhich one(s)?What kind?How many?Whose?The Adverb QuestionsHow?When?Where?Why?Notice some logical features in what we did. We identified these things:What are they?How are they similar?How are they different from related things? What’s the contrast?What’s the context?We should do that in forming concepts of other things, and in understanding those things.II. Projectiles. horizontal: ball pushed on ground, etc.vertical: ball dropped, etc.projectile: rock thrown, coin flicked off a table, cannobal fired, bulllet firedself-propelled: bird, jet airplane, helicopteraffected by air resistance: feather dropped or thrown, piece of paper (not crumpled) droppedGalileo: just as ramp/incline slowed down free fall so he could study it, so also a ramp slowed down projectile motion so he could study it. Notice some logical features in what we did. We identified these things:What are examples?In contrast to what?What is definitive? How do we characterize it? Why do they do what they do? How can we understand it?We should do that in forming concepts of other things, and in understanding those things.Galilean Spiral: i. https://mathcurve.com/courbes2d.gb/galilee/galilee.shtmlii https://mathworld.wolfram.com/GalileanSpiral.htmlKepler's Lawshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler%27s_laws_of_planetary_motionExamples are key in forming concepts and in studying the things for understanding. And it is in the real things where we find their rich variety and all sorts of actions and causation. And it is in focusing on the examples that we stay tied to reality. Contact Michael at [email protected] or [email protected] consider liking us on your podcast app, and leaving a rational review.<br...

NOW PLAYING

67 In Teaching, Learning, and Thinking, Examples Are Key

0:00 47:24

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of The ReasonRx Podcast?

This episode is 47 minutes long.

When was this The ReasonRx Podcast episode published?

This episode was published on April 17, 2026.

What is this episode about?

Teaching, learning, and understanding -- examples are critical, not just in school, but in life and at work.After all, we all have to sometimes teach and sometines learn -- it's part of being a social animal. And we frequently have to think. So we...

Is there a transcript available for this episode?

Yes, a full transcript is available for this episode. You can read the complete transcript on the episode page.

Can I download this The ReasonRx Podcast episode?

Yes, you can download this episode by clicking the download button on the episode player, or subscribe to the podcast in your preferred podcast app for automatic downloads.
URL copied to clipboard!