“Oh no! If only I hadn’t….” I doubt there are many people who haven’t thought ruefully or regretfully of things they’ve done and the unexpected, unintended consequences. There are probably few people, as well, who look back without thinking, “Thank ____ I did that!” (though it seems to me sometimes that people notice unfortunate consequences more than fortunate ones).
Knowledge issues of cause and effect and of prediction run right through any course on critical thinking and, in so many ways, lodge themselves in student experience and reflection. In a class, there are plenty of interesting routes into concepts of causation and methods of establishing cause, and plenty into prediction. An article from last week provides one such route into the complexities, tracing serious consequences on ecosystems. “Predator Loss Can Start Food-Chain Reaction” by Elizabeth Wise in Sci-Tech Today gives a short, clear treatment of unintended consequences and failure of prediction. Its application to lions, wolves, and whales, animals that often capture the popular imagination, could make it appealing to students.
