Appeal to Ignorance Question Pack: Critical Thinking, Comic, Comprehension
Appeal to Ignorance Question Pack: Critical Thinking, Comic, Comprehension
Appeal to Ignorance Question Pack: Critical Thinking, Comic, Comprehension
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Description
In the 1940s, DDT was the miracle pesticide - safe because nobody had proven it wasn't. By 1972, it was in human breast milk, eagle eggs, and the soil of every inhabited continent.
The Appeal to Ignorance is the claim that something must be true - or safe, or acceptable - because nobody has proven otherwise. It's not evidence. It's the absence of evidence dressed up as proof. And the burden of proof quietly changes hands: instead of "prove it's safe," the argument becomes "prove it isn't."
You hear it everywhere: "Nobody's complained about it yet, so it must be fine." "If it was harmful, we'd know about it by now." "Show me a study that says it's bad and then we'll talk." The argument sounds reasonable. It just hasn't proven anything.
This free expansion pack teaches you to ask "but where's the actual evidence that it's safe?" - through a true historical story, real-life examples, and activities that feel nothing like homework. It's the companion to the full Appeal to Ignorance Activity Pack and a free preview of the upcoming book, 24 Fallacies and the Historical Disasters That Followed.
⭐ Rated 5.0 by people who now win arguments
THE STORY INSIDE
In the 1940s, DDT was everywhere. It killed insects efficiently. Soldiers used it. Farmers used it. Governments sprayed it over crops and towns. When people asked whether it was safe, the answer was always the same: no one had proven it was dangerous.
That was true - partly because no one had looked very carefully. Dead birds started appearing. Farmers got sick. The companies selling DDT had a lot to lose, and "no proof of harm" was a comfortable place to stand.
In 1962, a marine biologist named Rachel Carson published Silent Spring. She had spent years collecting data from scientists, field reports, and the bodies of birds that had not hatched. Her book made the case, methodically and in plain language, that DDT was accumulating in ecosystems, moving up the food chain, and causing serious harm.
The chemical industry called her hysterical and unqualified. The argument was not that her data was wrong. It was that no one had proven, definitively, that DDT was dangerous - and until someone did, the product was fine.
DDT was banned in 1972. By then it had already been found in human breast milk, eagle eggs, and soil on every inhabited continent. The damage took decades to accumulate. It took decades more to undo.
The pack closes with the question that exposes the Appeal to Ignorance every time: "But where's the actual evidence that it's safe?" Because not being proven dangerous isn't the same as being proven safe.
WHAT'S INSIDE
📖 Illustrated True Story - how DDT was sold to the world on "no proof of harm," and how Rachel Carson's Silent Spring finally made the cost impossible to ignore
🔍 Real-Life Examples - spot the Appeal to Ignorance Fallacy in advertising, social media, news, and everyday conversation
✏️ Activities - written questions, Going Deeper analysis, Spot it in the Wild, graphic organiser, and Draw Your Own Comic Strip
📋 Answer Sheet - for whoever's playing referee
WHAT MAKES THIS DIFFERENT
Most fallacy resources are a definition on a slide and a matching worksheet. This pack shows the fallacy destroy lives in a true story, makes you recognise it in your own conversations, then sends you hunting for it in the wild. That's how it sticks.
WHO IT'S FOR
→ Anyone 11+ who's sick of losing arguments they were right about
→ The smartest person you know - this is their gift (see also: the other 23)
→ Homeschool families and teachers who want critical thinking that doesn't feel like a chore - yes, it works in classrooms too
WHAT YOU'LL RECEIVE
Free digital download. Includes A4 and US Letter sizes at 300 dpi - print as a booklet or as individual pages. Arrives in your email.
COLLECT THE FULL SET
This is one of 24 free expansion packs - one for every logical fallacy in the series. Each has a matching full activity pack with an illustrated comic, true history story, and more activities. Find the full series at duchessandbruno.com.
Coming soon: 24 Fallacies and the Historical Disasters That Followed — the book behind the series.
FOR THE TEACHERS
Aligns with ACARA Critical and Creative Thinking, UK National Curriculum English/Citizenship, and US Common Core ELA (Grades 6+). We promise the students will never know it's curriculum-aligned.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "We're now catching ourselves using the fallacies which I didn't think would happen. A 10/10 resource!" - Kylie
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Really clever and funny comics. I wasn't expecting them to be so funny." - Sandra
NEED HELP?
Contact us at info@duchessandbruno.com - we'll sort it out.
TERMS OF USE
For personal or single-classroom use only. Not for sharing, reselling, or commercial use.
Connect with us:
Instagram: @duchessbruno
Facebook: Duchess and Bruno
Website: www.duchessandbruno.com
Description
In the 1940s, DDT was the miracle pesticide - safe because nobody had proven it wasn't. By 1972, it was in human breast milk, eagle eggs, and the soil of every inhabited continent.
The Appeal to Ignorance is the claim that something must be true - or safe, or acceptable - because nobody has proven otherwise. It's not evidence. It's the absence of evidence dressed up as proof. And the burden of proof quietly changes hands: instead of "prove it's safe," the argument becomes "prove it isn't."
You hear it everywhere: "Nobody's complained about it yet, so it must be fine." "If it was harmful, we'd know about it by now." "Show me a study that says it's bad and then we'll talk." The argument sounds reasonable. It just hasn't proven anything.
This free expansion pack teaches you to ask "but where's the actual evidence that it's safe?" - through a true historical story, real-life examples, and activities that feel nothing like homework. It's the companion to the full Appeal to Ignorance Activity Pack and a free preview of the upcoming book, 24 Fallacies and the Historical Disasters That Followed.
⭐ Rated 5.0 by people who now win arguments
THE STORY INSIDE
In the 1940s, DDT was everywhere. It killed insects efficiently. Soldiers used it. Farmers used it. Governments sprayed it over crops and towns. When people asked whether it was safe, the answer was always the same: no one had proven it was dangerous.
That was true - partly because no one had looked very carefully. Dead birds started appearing. Farmers got sick. The companies selling DDT had a lot to lose, and "no proof of harm" was a comfortable place to stand.
In 1962, a marine biologist named Rachel Carson published Silent Spring. She had spent years collecting data from scientists, field reports, and the bodies of birds that had not hatched. Her book made the case, methodically and in plain language, that DDT was accumulating in ecosystems, moving up the food chain, and causing serious harm.
The chemical industry called her hysterical and unqualified. The argument was not that her data was wrong. It was that no one had proven, definitively, that DDT was dangerous - and until someone did, the product was fine.
DDT was banned in 1972. By then it had already been found in human breast milk, eagle eggs, and soil on every inhabited continent. The damage took decades to accumulate. It took decades more to undo.
The pack closes with the question that exposes the Appeal to Ignorance every time: "But where's the actual evidence that it's safe?" Because not being proven dangerous isn't the same as being proven safe.
WHAT'S INSIDE
📖 Illustrated True Story - how DDT was sold to the world on "no proof of harm," and how Rachel Carson's Silent Spring finally made the cost impossible to ignore
🔍 Real-Life Examples - spot the Appeal to Ignorance Fallacy in advertising, social media, news, and everyday conversation
✏️ Activities - written questions, Going Deeper analysis, Spot it in the Wild, graphic organiser, and Draw Your Own Comic Strip
📋 Answer Sheet - for whoever's playing referee
WHAT MAKES THIS DIFFERENT
Most fallacy resources are a definition on a slide and a matching worksheet. This pack shows the fallacy destroy lives in a true story, makes you recognise it in your own conversations, then sends you hunting for it in the wild. That's how it sticks.
WHO IT'S FOR
→ Anyone 11+ who's sick of losing arguments they were right about
→ The smartest person you know - this is their gift (see also: the other 23)
→ Homeschool families and teachers who want critical thinking that doesn't feel like a chore - yes, it works in classrooms too
WHAT YOU'LL RECEIVE
Free digital download. Includes A4 and US Letter sizes at 300 dpi - print as a booklet or as individual pages. Arrives in your email.
COLLECT THE FULL SET
This is one of 24 free expansion packs - one for every logical fallacy in the series. Each has a matching full activity pack with an illustrated comic, true history story, and more activities. Find the full series at duchessandbruno.com.
Coming soon: 24 Fallacies and the Historical Disasters That Followed — the book behind the series.
FOR THE TEACHERS
Aligns with ACARA Critical and Creative Thinking, UK National Curriculum English/Citizenship, and US Common Core ELA (Grades 6+). We promise the students will never know it's curriculum-aligned.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "We're now catching ourselves using the fallacies which I didn't think would happen. A 10/10 resource!" - Kylie
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Really clever and funny comics. I wasn't expecting them to be so funny." - Sandra
NEED HELP?
Contact us at info@duchessandbruno.com - we'll sort it out.
TERMS OF USE
For personal or single-classroom use only. Not for sharing, reselling, or commercial use.
Connect with us:
Instagram: @duchessbruno
Facebook: Duchess and Bruno
Website: www.duchessandbruno.com