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An explanation is a set of statements constructed to describe a set of facts which clarifies the causes, context, and consequences of those facts.

This description may establish rules or laws, and may clarify the existing ones in relation to any objects, or phenomena examined. The components of an explanation can be implicit, and be interwoven with one another.

An explanation is often underpinned by an understanding that is represented by different media such as music, text, and graphics. Thus, an explanation is subjected to interpretation, and discussion.

In scientific research, explanation is one of the purposes of research, e.g., exploration and description. Explanation is a way to uncover new knowledge, and to report relationships among different aspects of studied phenomena. Explanations have varied explanatory power.

Explanations and arguments[link]

While arguments attempt to show that something is, will be, or should be the case, explanations try to show why or how something is or will be. If Fred and Joe address the issue of whether or not Fred's cat has fleas, Joe may state: "Fred, your cat has fleas. Observe the cat is scratching right now." Joe has made an argument that the cat has fleas. However, if Fred and Joe agree on the fact that the cat has fleas, they may further question why this is so and put forth an explanation: "The reason the cat has fleas is that the weather has been damp." The difference is that the attempt is not to settle whether or not some claim is true, but to show why it is true.

In this sense, arguments aim to contribute knowledge, whereas explanations aim to contribute understanding.

Arguments and explanations largely resemble each other in rhetorical use. This is the cause of much difficulty in thinking critically about claims. There are several reasons for this difficulty.

• People often are not themselves clear on whether they are arguing for or explaining something.
• The same types of words and phrases are used in presenting explanations and arguments.
• The terms 'explain' or 'explanation,' et cetera are frequently used in arguments.
• Explanations are often used within arguments and presented so as to serve as arguments.

Explanations and justification[link]

Justification is the reason why someone properly holds a belief, the explanation as to why the belief is a true one, or an account of how one knows what one knows. In much the same way arguments and explanations may be confused with each other, so too may explanations and justifications. Statements which are justifications of some action take the form of arguments. For example attempts to justify a theft usually explain the motives (e.g., to feed a starving family).

It is important to be aware when an explanation is not a justification. A criminal profiler may offer an explanation of a suspect's behavior (e.g.; the person lost their job, the person got evicted, etc.). Such statements may help us understand why the person committed the crime, however an uncritical listener may believe the speaker is trying to gain sympathy for the person and his or her actions. It does not follow that a person proposing an explanation has any sympathy for the views or actions being explained. This is an important distinction because we need to be able to understand and explain terrible events and behavior in attempting to discourage it.

Types of explanations[link]

There are many and varied events, objects, and facts which require explanation. So too, there are many different types of explanation. Aristotle recognized at least four types of explanation. Other types of explanation are Deductive-nomological, Functional, Historical, Psychological, Reductive, Teleological, Methodological explanations.

See also[link]

• Abductive reasoning
• Cogency
• Epistemology
• Explanatory gap
• Explanans
• Inductive reasoning
• Inquiry
• Knowledge
• Scientific method
• Unexplained
• Rationalization
• Theory
• Wesley Salmon

Further reading[link]

• Moore, Brooke Noel and Parker, Richard. (2012) Critical Thinking. 10th ed. Published by McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0-07-803828-6.

External links[link]

Look up explanation in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Explanations

• Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry on Scientific Explanation
• Explanation in several languages and meanings

Monty Hall
Monty Hall in the 1960s
Born	Monte Halperin (1921-08-25) August 25, 1921 (age 90) Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Occupation	Game show host, actor, producer, singer, sportscaster
Years active	1953–present
Spouse	Marilyn Hall (m. 1947-present)

Monte Halperin, OC, OM (born August 25, 1921), better known by the stage name Monty Hall, is a Canadian-born MC, producer, actor, singer and sportscaster, best known as host of the television game show Let's Make a Deal.

Early life[link]

The handprints of Hall in front of Hollywood Hills Amphitheater at Walt Disney World's Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park.

Hall was born in Winnipeg, the son of Rose (née Rusen) and Maurice Harvey Halperin, both of whom belonged to an Orthodox congregation of Judaism^[1] and who jointly owned a slaughterhouse.^[2] He was raised in Winnipeg's north end,^[3] where he attended St. John's High School.^[4] Hall started his career in Winnipeg in radio, moving to Toronto in 1946.

Career[link]

Early in his career, Hall hosted game shows such as Bingo at Home on WABD-TV and guest-hosted more established game shows such as Strike It Rich on CBS, before hosting the first show of his own, Keep Talking in 1958. Hall also did color-commentary on New York Rangers (NHL) radio broadcasts during the 1959-60 season. He succeeded Jack Narz as host of a well-received and unique game show called Video Village, which ran from 1960 to 1962 on CBS. On Video Village, contestants played on a giant game board consisting of three sections: Money Street, Bridge Street and Magic Mile. Players advanced with the roll of a large die. The further contestants advanced along the board, the better the prizes that were offered. A spinoff called Video Village Junior, featuring youngsters, was hosted by Hall and ran during the 1961–1962 regular television season.

Between 1956 and 1960, along with NBC Radio newsman, Morgan Beatty, Hall co-hosted the Saturday night segment of the NBC Radio Network weekend program Monitor from 8 PM until midnight.

Hall had also served as the host/performer of two local New York City TV film shows for children: "Cowboy Theater" for WRCA (Channel 4) in 1956 and "Fun In The Morning" for WNEW (Ch. 5) in the early 1960s.

In 1962, with co-producer Art Stark, Hall sold his first game show to NBC, Your First Impression, which ran for two years. Stefan Hatos was the producer of that show, and eventually, he and Hall formed a production company, at first called Hatos/Hall Productions and later renamed The Maltese Companies.^{[citation needed]} Hatos died in 1999. The company was still running as of April 2010.

[edit] Let's Make a Deal

Hall was the host of the game show Let's Make a Deal, which he developed and produced with partner Stefan Hatos. Let's Make a Deal aired on NBC daytime from December 30, 1963, to December 27, 1968, and on ABC daytime from December 30, 1968, to July 9, 1976, along with two primetime runs. It also aired in syndication from 1971 to 1977, from 1980 to 1981, from 1984 to 1986, and again on NBC briefly from 1990 to 1991, replacing Bob Hilton, who had been dismissed. He was producer or executive producer of the show through most of its runs. During the show's initial run, Hall became well known alongside model Carol Merrill and announcer Jay Stewart.

Other game show work[link]

Besides Let's Make a Deal, the game show Split Second, which originally ran on ABC from 1972-75 with Tom Kennedy as host, and again in syndication in 1987 with Hall hosting that version, was the only other successful program from Hatos-Hall Productions. Other game shows from Hatos's and Hall's production company included Chain Letter in 1966; a revival of the venerable 1950s-era panel quiz, Masquerade Party in 1974; 3 For the Money in 1975; It's Anybody's Guess in 1977, which reunited Let's Make a Deal announcer Jay Stewart with Hall, who also hosted the show, and the Canadian-based The Joke's on Us in 1983. Hall filled in as guest host on several daytime game shows while Let's Make a Deal was on NBC, most notably What's This Song? and PDQ. In 1979, Hall hosted the only game show since Video Village which he did not produce, Goodson-Todman's All-New Beat the Clock.

Up to date[link]

Though he retired in the early 1990s,^{[citation needed]} Hall still makes occasional television appearances. He appeared as himself on "The Promise Ring" episode of That '70s Show in 2001. He played the host of a beauty pageant who schemed to become "the world's most powerful game show host" in the Disney animated series American Dragon: Jake Long. Monty appeared on GSN Live on March 14, 2008, and hosted a game of Let's Make a Deal for Good Morning America on August 18, 2008, as part of Game Show Reunion week. He appeared with his wife on The Newlywed Game hosted by Bob Eubanks on May 18, 2010.

In summer 2009, CBS announced that it was reviving Let's Make a Deal as the replacement for the soap opera, Guiding Light. The show premiered on October 5, 2009, with Wayne Brady as host. Hall is credited as "Creative Consultant," and as co-creator of the format (with Stefan Hatos). Hatos/Hall Productions is credited as co-production company (with FremantleMedia).^[5] During the week of March 22, 2010, Hall hosted several segments of the "Deal" alongside Brady.

Honors[link]

Hall received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on August 24, 1973, a star on the Palm Springs Walk of Fame in 2000, and in 2002, he was also inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame.^[6] Hall thus became one of only two game show hosts on both Hollywood's and Canada's Walks of Fame, the other being Alex Trebek. In May 1988, the Government of Canada bestowed on him the prestigious Order of Canada for his humanitarian work in Canada and other nations of the world. For many years, he has been associated with Variety, the Children's Charity, helping to raise millions of dollars through their telethons and other related fund-raisers.

Hall was the recipient of the 2005 Ralph Edwards Service Award from Game Show Congress, in recognition of all the work the emcee-producer has done for charity through the years.

On October 13, 2007, Hall was one of the first inductees into the American TV Game Show Hall of Fame in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Personal life[link]

Education[link]

Hall graduated from St. John's High School. Hall also graduated from the University of Manitoba, where he majored in chemistry and zoology, receiving his Bachelor of Science degree.

Family[link]

He has been married since 1947 to the former Marilyn Plottel, and he has two daughters (actress and Tony Award winner Joanna Gleason and Sharon Hall, a television executive at Sony Pictures inc.) and one son (Richard Hall, a television producer).

Other[link]

In addition to his work on game shows, Hall was a radio analyst for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League during the 1959–60 season.^[7] Between 1956 and 1960, Hall worked as one of several rotating hosts of NBC Radio's Monitor weekend broadcast.^[8] At least one recording of Hall on Monitor is known to exist.

"The Monty Hall Problem"[link]

Because of his work on Let's Make a Deal, Hall's name is used in a probability puzzle known as "The Monty Hall Problem," which examines the counter-intuitive effect of switching one's choice of doors, one of which hides a prize, if "Monty" reveals an unwanted item behind a door the player did not choose. Hall himself gave an explanation of the solution to that problem, and why the solution did not apply to the case of the actual show, in an interview with The New York Times reporter John Tierney in 1991.^[9] Because Hall had control over the way the game progressed, he played on the psychology of the contestant. The puzzle was mentioned in an episode of the first season of the CBS drama NUMB3RS, in the 2008 movie 21, showcased on the show "Myth Busters," and also in the novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. A detailed explanation and rationale for the solution to this problem is presented in The World's 200 Hardest Brainteasers book by Gary Gruber ^[10]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Monty Hall at the Internet Movie Database
• Monty's Bio at letsmakeadeal.com
• CBC Television Archives profile of Monty Hall (1970)

Peter Cetera
Peter Cetera in 2004
Background information
Birth name	Peter Paul Cetera
Born	(1944-09-13) September 13, 1944 (age 67)
Origin	Chicago, Illinois, USA
Genres	Rock Adult contemporary
Instruments	Vocals Electric bass Guitar
Years active	1966–present
Labels	Warner Bros. Records River North Records
Associated acts	Chicago
Website	www.petercetera.com

Peter Paul Cetera ( /səˈtɛrə/ sə-TERR-ə; born September 13, 1944 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American singer, songwriter, bassist and producer best known for being an original member of the rock band Chicago, before launching a successful solo career.^[1] As a solo artist, Cetera has scored six Top 40 singles, including two that reached number 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart.

Early life[link]

Family[link]

Cetera was born and raised in the Morgan Park section of Chicago, Illinois, located on the far South Side.^[2] He was the second of six children and is of Polish descent. According to one source his father worked as a "machinist".^[3] Cetera's siblings include two brothers, Tim Cetera^[4][5] and Kenny Cetera,^[2] who are listed as contributing musicians on some of the recordings he made with Chicago and on some of his solo recordings.

Formal education[link]

Cetera attended Mendel Catholic Prep High School, graduating in 1962, and is listed among the "Notable Alumni".^[6]

Musical beginnings[link]

Cetera's interest in music began at 11 years of age when his parents bought him an accordion instead of the guitar he wanted. When he was 15, some older students from his high school took him to a club to see a band called The Rebel Rockers, which led to his purchasing an acoustic guitar at Montgomery Ward.^[2]

He eventually took up the electric bass, and with some high school friends—a drummer, guitarist and saxophone player—Cetera began playing the local dance circuit, dividing lead vocals with the guitarist. Cetera played in several groups in the Chicago area, including a popular local rock band named The Exceptions, which toured the Midwest in the mid 1960s, releasing two albums and several singles.^[2][7] Cetera is quoted as saying, "By the time I was 18 I was making more money than my dad."^[2]

Professional music career[link]

Tenure in Chicago[link]

In December 1967, Cetera arrived early for a show to watch a band called The Big Thing. Impressed by their use of a horn section combined with rock and roll, Cetera left The Exceptions to join The Big Thing within two weeks. The Big Thing, which soon changed its name to The Chicago Transit Authority (and eventually shortened it to Chicago after complaints by the actual CTA), released their self-titled debut album The Chicago Transit Authority on Columbia Records in 1969. Cetera sang lead vocal on three of the eleven songs on the album, with his tenor voice complementing the baritone voices of the two other lead singers in the group, keyboardist Robert Lamm and guitarist Terry Kath.

His trademark singing style would develop as a result of having to sing for a period of time with a wired-shut jaw after getting into a brawl at a Los Angeles Dodgers game in 1969.^[8]

The follow-up album, Chicago, vaulted the band to popular status throughout the world. The song "25 or 6 to 4" was the first major hit single with Cetera singing lead vocals. Chicago is also notable for featuring Cetera's first songwriting effort, "Where Do We Go From Here?"

As the 1970s progressed, Cetera would become a more prolific songwriter for the group, contributing the hits "Wishing You Were Here" (#11) and "Happy Man" from the 1974 album Chicago VII. His biggest singing and songwriting accomplishment with Chicago came in 1976 with their first worldwide No. 1 single, the ballad "If You Leave Me Now." Cetera's next composition in 1977, "Baby, What A Big Surprise" (#4), also became a major hit and cemented the band's status in the late 1970s as a "ballad band."

By the end of the 1970s, with the rise of disco music, Chicago's popularity declined, culminating in the release of the band's poorest-selling album Chicago XIV (#71) in 1980. Columbia Records subsequently bought out the remainder of Chicago's contract.

In 1981, Cetera released his first solo album, Peter Cetera, on Warner Bros. Records, after personally buying the rights from his previous contract with Columbia Records, who would not release the project. The album was, subsequently, a commercial failure, which Cetera attributed to Warner Bros.' refusal to promote him as a solo artist out of fear that he would leave Chicago, who had only recently signed with the label.^[1]

In 1982, David Foster was brought in as producer and the resulting group effort was Chicago 16 (#9). The album represented a major comeback for Chicago, and leading the way was the hit single co-written (with Foster) and featured Cetera on lead vocals, "Hard to Say I'm Sorry," which went to #1 in the charts. The song also featured in the movie 'Summer Lovers' starring Daryl Hannah. The second single, "Love Me Tomorrow," was also co-written (again with Foster) and sung by Cetera, reaching No. 22 on the singles chart. The third single, "What You're Missing," was yet again sung by Cetera. In 1983, he took a break from his duties as Chicago frontman to add backing vocals on Paul Anka's final U.S. Top-40 hit Hold Me Til The Mornin' Comes, which debuted in the summer of that year.

When Chicago 17 was released in 1984, it became the veteran band's most successful selling album in their history, eventually going on to sell over 6 million copies in the United States alone. All four singles released from the album were sung by Cetera, including three which he co-wrote, and all of them charted in the top 20: "Stay the Night" (#16), "Hard Habit to Break" (#3), "You're the Inspiration" (#3) and "Along Comes a Woman" (#14).

With the advent of the music video and the growing popularity of MTV, Cetera became the 'face' and public leader of the longtime faceless band that was Chicago.^[9]

Departure from Chicago[link]

With his newfound popularity, Cetera was interested in recording another solo album. In addition, he had stated his lack of interest for the extensive touring schedule of the band, especially to promote Chicago 17. When the 17 Tour concluded in May 1985, Chicago's management, along with several members of the band, had expressed a desire to book another tour for that summer and start work on the next Chicago album. Cetera insisted that they take a break from touring so that he could concentrate on a solo album and spend more time with his family.

After the band rejected his offer to stay in the band while recording a solo album (similar to the arrangement between Phil Collins and Genesis at the time), it was announced that Cetera and Chicago would go their separate ways in July 1985.^[1]

Solo career[link]

Almost immediately, Cetera continued his streak of success. His first single, "Glory of Love" (the theme to the movie The Karate Kid, Part II), was a US No. 1 hit in 1986, and achieved similar success throughout the world.^[1] It went on to win an ASCAP Award for Most Performed Songs from Motion Pictures and a BMI Film & TV Award for Most Performed Song from a Film. It was also nominated for both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe in the category of Best Original Song, as well as a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Male Artist.^[10]

His album, Solitude/Solitaire, released in 1986, was also successful, selling over 1 million copies and producing another No. 1 hit single, "The Next Time I Fall," a duet with Amy Grant,^[11] which was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. In fact, Solitude/Solitaire outsold Chicago 18 (#35), the first Chicago album without him.

In 1988 he teamed up with producer Patrick Leonard and released his third solo album, One More Story, who contained the No. 4 hit single "One Good Woman" and "Save Me," the original opening theme for the television show Baywatch. Leonard co-wrote 8 of 10 songs, including the title song "One More Story", and he also played piano and synthesizers on the album. "Save Me" was co-written with David Foster, who also co-wrote the previous hit "Glory of Love".

The album also included another duet, "Sheherazade", this time with Madonna in cameo as 'Lulu Smith'. They were brought together by Patrick Leonard who had written and produced several of Madonna's hits.

In 1989, Cetera recorded another duet, this time with Cher, called "After All,"^[7] which was included on the soundtrack of the movie Chances Are. It reached #6 on the US charts..

In 1992, his final album on Warner Bros. Records, World Falling Down, was released. It featured the Adult Contemporary #1 hit, "Restless Heart", as well as two other successful singles: "Even a Fool Can See" and a duet with Chaka Khan, "Feels Like Heaven."

In 1995, Cetera released his first album for River North Records, One Clear Voice, and featured the hit single, "(I Wanna Take) Forever Tonight," a duet with actress Crystal Bernard. Following the release of the album, Cetera launched his first solo tour—accompanied by his River North labelmate, country singer Ronna Reeves – lasting into 1996.^[7]

1997 brought You're the Inspiration: A Collection, a collection of all his duets from over the years, along with three re-recorded songs he had written while a member of Chicago, and two brand new recordings.

2001 saw the release of Another Perfect World.^[7]

In 2002, Cetera performed a medley of four of his songs at The Concert for World Children's Day, backed by David Foster and an orchestra at Arie Crown Theater in Chicago. Subsequently, this led to his appearance, in 2003, with the Chicago Pops Orchestra on the PBS music program Soundstage, which was broadcast throughout the United States and released on DVD.

From 2003 until the summer of 2007, Cetera performed a very limited number of concerts each year with a 40 piece orchestra, playing re-arrangements of songs from throughout his career, including several from his tenure as a member of Chicago.

In 2004, Cetera released a collection of holiday classics, You Just Gotta Love Christmas, which featured background and duet vocals by his eldest daughter, Claire.

Cetera has sung "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" at Wrigley Field for a Chicago Cubs game at least three times: in 2003;^[12] on August 16, 2007, for a game that was televised on WGN-TV;^[12] and again on May 2, 2009 on Comcast Sports Net.

In December 2007, Cetera embarked on the You Just Gotta Love Christmas tour of the United States. It marked his return to a traditional rock band show, his first since 1996, featured songs from his 2004 Christmas album and from throughout his career.

Shortly after Cetera was featured in the cover story of the December 2007 issue of Bass Player magazine he saw Mike Huckabee, former governor of Arkansas, playing bass guitar on television. Cetera sent his compliments, along with an autographed copy of the issue, to Huckabee, who was at that time a presidential hopeful in the 2008 Republican primaries. Huckabee said, “I was totally awestruck to get a letter from Peter Cetera. …having one of the greatest bass players in my generation give me a compliment is like winning New Hampshire." ^[13]

Acting credits[link]

Cetera has appeared in two movies: Electra Glide in Blue, filmed in 1973, where he played the character of Bob Zemko; and Sidney Sheldon's Memories of Midnight, a 1991 television movie made for the USA Network, where he played the role of Larry Douglas. He appeared in the 2010 Adult Swim program Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!.

Personal life[link]

In 1982, Cetera married Diane Nini, with whom he had his first daughter.^[14] Claire, born in 1983, graduated from the University of Southern California in 2006 and is currently an artist, actor, singer and producer living in Los Angeles. She was previously a competitive snowboarder.^[15] This was Cetera's second marriage. An earlier marriage to first wife Janice ended in divorce. Cetera and Nini divorced in 1991. For a period of time, Cetera was brother-in-law to bandmate Robert Lamm, who had married Diane's sister, Julie.^[3] They have since been divorced.

His second daughter, Senna, born in 1997 by an ex-girlfriend, Blythe Weber, who was an A&R executive for his former records label, River North Records/Platinum Entertainment. Senna lives in Nashville, where in 2006, she starred in the music video for country singer Josh Turner's song, "Would You Go with Me," which was a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot Country Songs Chart.

Cetera has lived in Sun Valley, Idaho, since the mid-1980s, where he routinely participates in numerous sports, including basketball, mountain biking, soccer, ice hockey and motorcycling.^[14][16]

Cetera was mentioned in an advertisement for Heineken beer. A young man at an assisted living home asked one of the residents why he liked Peter Cetera. The older resident replied that he didn't like Cetera, but the ladies did, "and if you like the ladies, then by default, you like Cetera."

Discography[link]

^[17]

• 1981 – Peter Cetera #143 US
• 1986 – Solitude/Solitaire #23 US (Platinum), #56 UK
• 1988 – One More Story #58 US
• 1992 – World Falling Down #163 US
• 1995 – One Clear Voice
• 1997 – You're the Inspiration: A Collection #134 US
• 2001 – Another Perfect World
• 2004 – You Just Gotta Love Christmas

Singles[link]

Featured singles[link]

Movie soundtracks[link]

• 1982 – Summer Lovers – "Hard to Say I'm Sorry"
• 1986 – The Karate Kid, Part II – "Glory of Love"
• 1987 – Princess from the Moon (jp) – "Stay With Me"
• 1987 – Three Men and a Baby – "Daddy's Girl"
• 1989 – Chances Are – "After All" (with Cher)
• 1990 – Pretty Woman – "No Explanation"

Television[link]

• 1990 – Baywatch – opening credits (original NBC Season 1 only) "Save Me"
• 2010 – Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! – Greene Machine^[23]

Music videos[link]

Notes and references[link]

External links[link]

• Peter Cetera official website
• Peter Cetera at the Internet Movie Database
• Peter Cetera PBS Soundstage show
• All songs lyrics