Originally Posted by indigo
Originally Posted by Dude
Finally, the appeal to authority is a fallacy, and the term "experts" loses some of its authority in reference to About.com.
Some may say that your change of focus from the specific author (Carol Bainbridge) to the generalization of the overall website (About . com) is perhaps flawed logic? Ms. Bainbridge has both education credentials and experience with the gifted sufficient to write expert articles. She is listed several times on the Davidson Database, and is also one of recognized names endorsing the book "A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children".

A fallacy is still a fallacy.

Ms. Bainbridge has a bachelor's degree in psychology, and has published no peer-reviewed research papers on gifted psychology that I've found. That does not make an expert. She volunteers for a gifted organization, and has a gifted child of her own, which doesn't make her any more of an expert in the topic than many of us here.

So yeah, she fits the profile of About.com "expert" very nicely. And since I'd already verified that about her specifically before making the comment about About.com generally, there was no mistake.

Originally Posted by indigo
In summary, parents tend to know when they are hot-housing their kids.

They do?? Keeping in mind Ms. Bainbridge's definition of hothousing as teaching a child something before they're cognitively ready for it, Amy Chua doesn't seem to know when she's doing it: Why Chinese Mothers are Superior

"Chinese parents demand perfect grades because they believe that their child can get them."

"Chinese parents believe that they know what is best for their children"

"Jed took me aside. He told me to stop insulting Lulu—which I wasn't even doing, I was just motivating her—"

Etc.