Din So Argument

1) A recent study shows that people living on the continent of North America suffer 9 times more chronic fatigue and 31 times more chronic depression than do people living on the continent of Asia. Interestingly, Asians, on average, eat 20 grams of soy per day, whereas North Americans eat virtually none. It turns out that soy contains phytochemicals called Isoflavones, which have been found to possess disease-preventing properties. Thus, North Americans should consider eating soy on a regular basis as a way of preventing fatigue and depression.

Solution: The above argument tries to establish a direct link between soy consumption and chronic fatigue and depression. The underlying basis of the argument is that soy protein contains phytochemicals called Isoflavones, which are found to possess disease-preventing properties.However, disease is a much larger term, which does not cover only fatigue and depression, but also a host of other medical conditions. Moreover, it is seen that chronic fatigue and depression are also the results of high profile life, which leads to insomnia and stress. Chronic fatigue and depression can be the symptoms of some other diseases also. The weather conditions, economic stature and work environment of Asia and North America are very different from each other. People in these continents have different lifestyles. Their attitude towards life is also very different. These health related problems could not be certainly related with the intake of a certain kind of food that is soy foods. Therefore, it is very important to establish a direct relation between soy foods and chronic fatigue and depression before arriving at any conclusion.The second point is that fatigue and depression are totally different from each other as scientifically they are treated differently. You cannot categorize them in the same group. You need to consult a psychologist to treat depression and a doctor for fatigue related problems. Hence, there cannot be the same solution for two different problems. Above all, according to the author, chronic fatigue is 9 times and depression is 31 times more in North Americans as compared to their Asian counterparts. There is a huge difference between 9 and 31. Therefore, you cannot relate or treat them together. There are definitely going to be different reasons for the two diseases.According to the author, soy foods contain a chemical called Isoflavones, which have disease preventing properties. However, there is no study, which reveals that it is relevant for all types of diseases. Hence, a research has to be done to establish that the drugs used to treat these two diseases contain Isoflavones. However, it is a known fact that soy foods are good for human health as soy foods contain many nutrients required for the human body. Again, there is no solid evidence that eating soy foods on a regular basis is a solution for chronic fatigue and depression. The author has not even mentioned about any side effects of Isoflavones. Hence, the suggestion to take soy foods daily, without any detailed study about soy food, does not hold any ground.Hence, it can be said that one should take soy foods for overall health. It is a possibility that soy foods can be helpful in treating or preventing some diseases, which further have chronic fatigue or depression as its symptoms. That way one can link these two diseases with Isoflavones. However, there is no direct relation between soy proteins and chronic fatigue and depression; it is not justified in the given argument. The author should have provided a few proofs and data to establish this relationship.2) "In order to save a considerable amount of money, Rockingham's century-old town hall should be torn down and replaced by the larger and more energy-efficient building that some citizens have proposed. The old town hall is too small to comfortably accommodate the number of people who are employed by the town. In addition, it is very costly to heat the old hall in winter and cool it in summer. The new, larger building would be more energy efficient, costing less per

square foot to heat and cool than the old hall. Furthermore, it would be possible to rent out some of the space in the new building, thereby generating income for the town of Rockingham."Solution: According to the conclusion of this editorial, the new and larger building of town hall in place of the old one will help in saving money and energy. However, many points given in support of the views of the writer are not very convincing. Although, there is no doubt that the new proposed building will have many advantages over the old town hall, but the author has ignored to mention many important points. He has completely failed to provide evidence for his reasons to build the new building. The points given by the author have no relevant relation among themselves. For example, the cost effectiveness and the fact that the old building is not able to accommodate its employees are not related anywhere. He has tried to explain the need of the new town hall but has neglected to suggest the alternative measures that can be taken to solve the problems faced by the old town hall.The author has talked about the larger and the energy efficient new building. According to him, it would cost less per cubic foot to heat and cool the new building as compared to the old town hall building. However, he has easily forgotten to mention the overall cost of heating and cooling the much larger new building. This cost might be much higher than the current expenses. In addition, there will be the costs of constructing the new building and installing new systems. The author has not even mentioned the option of installing new heating and cooling systems in the old building. The upgradation of the old system might be more cost effective. Besides, the new building might also need some maintenance fee to maintain the new facilities added to the building.The second point on which the author is insisting is that the current building cannot comfortably accommodate all the people who work in it. This point is anyways not related to the money saving measures the author is talking about. Here again, the author has ignored other more effective solutions for this problem. For example, adding another structure for the employees.Another point is about the renting out of the parts of the new property to generate some income. However, the views of the author are contradictory as on one hand, he is explaining the need of a larger building and on the other hand, he is talking about the renting out some part of property. Hence, if the new and larger building is the need of the hour then there is no scope of additional income. The author has failed to give enough and strong evidence for the requirement of the new building. He has also forgotten to consider the heritage value of the Rockingham's century old town hall.Hence, the author has to collect more information about the old building. The author must search for some solid evidence. He should do a complete and detailed study of comparing the cost effectiveness of both the options including the initial cost of setting up the new building and replacing the old heating system in the old building. The author has to work towards making his editorial logically more correct.

3) Claitown University needs both affordable housing for its students and a way to fund the building of such housing. The best solution to this problem is to commission a famous architect known for experimental and futuristic buildings. It is common knowledge that tourists are willing to pay money to tour some of the architect's buildings, so it can be expected that tourists will want to visit this new building. The income from the fees charged to tourists will soon cover the building costs. Furthermore, such a building will attract new students as well as donations from alumni. And even though such a building will be much larger than our current need for student housing, part of the building can be used as office space.

Solution: This argument is about hiring a famous architect to build a cost effective building to house the students of Claitown University. However, it seems from the author's statement that the University does not have enough funds to construct this kind of building. The author's line of thought is not very convincing. He has not been able to give logics for his reasons. He should have gone in details of the cost of the new building and other costs and the source of this money.This argument has many loopholes as the author is talking on the basis of his assumptions. First of all, he is talking about commissioning a famous architect, who might charge a heavy amount for his work. It will add a heavy burden on the University's budget. The author has simply skipped this line of reasoning. He has not included this expenditure in the cost. The author is assuming that all the expenditure related to the building will be taken care of by the funds coming from the students' fee, donations coming from the alumni and the amount paid by tourists to visit the new building.However, all these are just assumptions. The author has not considered the possibility that the tourists might not be interested in visiting a building that is meant for students' housing. Once the students start using the building, tourists will not be attracted towards the building or they might be happy by watching it from outside only. That way there will not be any income from the tourists. Hence, the argument's claim fails to prove that a famous architect's work will generate income for the balancing of costs.The author has not even explained the source of money to construct the building. The building will receive the funds from students in the form of fee and other funds only when the building will be in use. Hence, this argument holds base only if the architect agrees to take his payment later on and the supplier also supplies the construction material without taking any advance.Further, the author has talked about attracting new students and the old students who can make donations. However, he has not provided any evidence to support his views neither he has given any example of some other university. It might be possible that the old alumni are more attached to the existing building. Therefore, one cannot accept this conclusion without any proof.In short, we can say that the author could not support his argument. He has not supplied any evidence to prove his point. He should have studied similar cases of other college buildings that were designed by famous architects and tourists are interested in visiting and paying to watch them. The author should also have emphasized on the detailed explanation of the financial aspects of the building project. A survey of old students and alumni also would have been a good idea as then we will know how interested students are to make donations.

4) As a result of numerous consumer complaints of dizziness and nausea, Promofoods requested that eight million cans of tuna be returned for testing last year. Promofoods concluded that the cans did not, after all, contain chemicals that posed a health risk. This conclusion is based on the fact that the chemists from Promofoods tested samples of the recalled cans and found that, of the eight chemicals most commonly blamed for causing symptoms of dizziness and nausea, five were not found in any of the tested cans. The chemists did find that the three remaining suspected chemicals are naturally found in all other kinds of canned foods.

Solution: This argument is based on the complaints of nausea and dizziness from the consumers who have used canned tuna. Although Promofoods had recalled eight million cans of tuna and also some samples of tuna to lab for testing, it concluded that the cans did not contain any chemical, which can cause any health hazard.

The results of the tests done by chemists from Promofoods do not hold any ground, as these results are not supported by any strong evidence. As per the chemists from Promofoods, there are eight chemicals responsible for dizziness and nausea and five of them were not present in the tested cans of tuna. However, they have not considered the possibility that certain chemicals in contact with other chemicals can also cause dizziness and nausea. The results of this testing can also be biased as the testing has been done only on a few samples. Hence, it cannot be said that five chemicals not present in the tested samples were not present in the cans consumed by the affected buyers. Promofoods should have collected the cans from where tuna was consumed and that caused health risk for many people. It might be possible that those cans contained these chemicals. When it comes to testing, you cannot generalize the results.According to Promofoods, five suspected chemicals were not present in the tested samples and the other three are present in the other canned foods and do not cause any bad effect. However, this is again without any strong evidence. It is just an assumption that the chemicals, which do not cause any bad effect in one canned food, will not cause any ill effect in canned tuna. It might be possible that one of these chemicals causes health risk when exposed to some specific chemical present in tuna. Hence, it is not right to say in general that tuna cans were not responsible for the symptoms of dizziness and nausea. It can be said the whole conclusion of Promofoods is based on weak evidence. The results of the tests done by the chemists are not very convincing.Promofoods should have done tests on a large number of canned tuna. It should have gathered more results to make its study more convincing. However, it cannot be said that the study done by Promofoods is baseless. It is entirely possible that there are some other chemicals, which are responsible for the symptoms of nausea and dizziness and it is not found yet. Promofoods should also take this possibility into account.In the end, it can be said that the entire study of this argument is based on assumption that the eight chemicals responsible for nausea and dizziness were not present in the tuna cans. This is an important study and Promofoods should work on providing stronger evidence. They have to prove that there was no biased sampling and the testing was correct. The chemists have to prove that the three chemicals, which are normally found in other canned foods, do not cause any harmful effect in tuna.

5) People should not be misled by the advertising competition between Coldex and Cold-Away, both popular over-the-counter cold medications that anyone can purchase without a doctor's prescription. Each brand is accusing the other of causing some well-known, unwanted side effect: Coldex is known to contribute to existing high blood pressure and Cold-Away is known to cause drowsiness. But the choice should be clear for most health-conscious people: Cold-Away has been on the market for much longer and is used by more hospitals than is Coldex. Clearly, Cold-Away is more effective.

Solution: This argument is about the two competing products, Coldex and Cold-Away. Both the medicines are cold medicines available over-the-counter. Both the brands compete with each other and accuse each other for some side effect. According to the author, Coldex is responsible for causing high blood pressure and Cold-Away causes drowsiness. Here, the author seems a little biased as without providing any evidence, he is suggesting that as Cold-Away is in the market for a longer period, it is more effective and it should be the clear choice of customers.

The logic provided by the author is very dubious and unconvincing. The author is simply trying to boost the consumer's ego by saying that the choice should be clear for most health-conscious people. Though it is a good advertising tactic used by the company, it cannot be considered as enough proof of Cold-Away being more effective.The author is giving one more logic that Cold-Away is in the market for a longer period. However, this fact also does not add any effectiveness to the argument. The new medicine might have new effective ingredients. It is not necessary that well-established products are better than newer ones. Moreover, latest medicines often make use of new pharmaceutical developments than the existing products. Instead of this, the author should have concentrated on the plus and minus points of the two medicines.According to the author, Cold-Away is used by more hospitals than Coldex, that is the reason enough to consider Cold-Away more effective. This is again an advertising gimmick and not a proof that it is more effective. There might be some other reasons for hospitals using Cold-Away. It is just an assumption of the author that the hospitals are recommending Cold-Away because it is better than Coldex. It might be that doctors are using this medicine because of its drowsiness inducing effect to calm their patients. For that matter, perhaps hospitals use Cold-Away primarily for this effect rather than as a cold medication.One more problem with this argument is the side effect of Coldex. If Coldex is the cause of high blood pressure then, obviously no doctor will recommend it. However, people who do not suffer with the problem of high blood pressure can still use it. Thus, Coldex's side effect is irrelevant in choosing between the two products. Moreover, if a person without high blood pressure wishes to avoid drowsiness during the treatment of cold, Coldex would seem to be the preferable medication than Cold-Away.The author has not offered convincing evidence to support his views. He should have strengthened his argument by providing the evidence that the doctors and hospitals use Cold-Away because of its effectiveness in treating cold. A data of clinical research or a reliable data of general survey would have supported the argument in a better way. It should not be based on assumptions. In the present form, it just looks like an advertisement tactic to increase the sale of one product. It is just trying to persuade people to buy Cold-Away.

6) A folk remedy for insomnia, the scent in lavender flowers, has now been proved effective. In a recent study, 30 volunteers with chronic insomnia slept each night for three weeks on lavender-scented pillows in a controlled room where their sleep was monitored. During the first week, volunteers continued to take their usual sleeping medication. They slept soundly but wakened feeling tired. During the second week, the volunteers discontinued their medication. As a result, they slept less soundly than the previous week and felt even more tired. During the third week, the volunteers slept longer and more soundly than in the previous two weeks. This shows that over a short period of time lavender cures insomnia.

Solution: Everybody wants to have sound sleep, whether it is an over-worked person or a person affected from a disease called chronic insomnia.This argument is about the cure for the same sleeping disorder called chronic insomnia. The persons suffering from this disease find difficulty in sleeping. The basis of this argument is a study of 30 volunteers who were suffering from chronic insomnia. The results of this study show that insomnia can be cured over a period by using lavender. However, the author has not offered enough evidence to support this conclusion. He has not even considered many possibilities.

In the beginning, the author has mentioned that the usual medication of 30 volunteers allows them to sleep soundly but they feel tired when they get up. However, the author has not considered many other insomniacs who are taking medications and not feeling tired on waking up. Therefore, there is also an option of these volunteers going to their doctor and telling him about their problem of feeling tired. Their problem might be corrected by a change in their medicines.The author has also mentioned about discontinuing the medication of the volunteers. According to him, even in the absence of any medicine, patients have responded to lavender therapy. However, he has not taken the factor of controlled room environment into consideration. The controlled room environment and the normal environment of the volunteers might yield different results when their medication is discontinued.Moreover, this study is done in a controlled room. This factor cannot be ignored. The author has not checked the results of using lavender scent in their normal sleeping place. You cannot ignore the role of controlled environment in the sound sleep of the volunteers. The author has ignored the effect of peace provided by the controlled room along with the lavender scent. There is also possibility of there being a highway or a railway line close to the residences of the volunteers, which might be a big factor in their problem of chronic insomnia. Hence, the same study should have been done in their normal circumstances. It would have provided stronger evidence regarding the study of lavender curing insomnia.One more thing that goes against this argument is that now a days medical science has developed largely. If, according to this study, lavender was so successful in curing insomnia, then doctors would have used lavender in their treatment of insomniac patients. However, until now, no doctor has used it in his or her medication nor does any medicine related to insomnia contain lavender.The most important factor is that this study is done only on a small group that contains only 30 persons while there are millions of people who are suffering from the same problem. It is not feasible to think that the same results will work for all the patients suffering from chronic fatigue. Hence, the study should have been based on a larger group.Hence, we can say that although the author's argument might be true, he should have collected more evidence in his favor. A study of just 30 volunteers cannot be considered enough proof for use of lavender as a medicine.

7) Typically, as people age, their bone mass decreases, making them more vulnerable to bone fractures. A recent study concludes that the most effective way to reduce the risk of fractures in later life is to take twice the recommended dose of vitamin D and calcium daily. The three-year study followed a group of French women in their eighties who were nursing home residents. The women were given daily supplements of twice the recommended dose of vitamin D and calcium. In addition, the women participated in a light weightlifting program. After three years, these women showed a much lower rate of hip fractures than is average for their age.

Solution: The basis of this argument is the fact that people lose their bone mass as they age and therefore, they are more prone to fractures. According to the conclusion of this argument, old people should take twice the recommended dose of vitamin D and calcium. However, there are many loopholes in this study. The evidence used by the author is very vague.First of all, this study is only on a group of French women. This cannot be true for the people from all other continents or even countries. People from different places have different food

habits and different life styles. Every place has different climate and geological conditions. People from plain areas and people from hilly areas cannot be placed in the same group. Similarly, persons with active lifestyles cannot be merged with the not so active people. Even, males and females should be studied separately as they are very different from each other in terms of their physique and hormones. Their level of absorbing vitamin and calcium is different. There is also a possibility that the French people have something in their diet that prevents or reduces fractures. Moreover, the author has not mentioned the number of women in the group. If the group is too small, then it does not even represent all the French women. The author has assumed so many things and generalized the data, which cannot be possible.Secondly, this study is done on nursing home residents, which in itself questions the study. There might be a possibility that these women had led an active life in their career and taken various precautions related to their health, hence they are less susceptible to fractures. It is highly possible that the other women, who are not the residents of a nursing home will suffer the same number of fractures in spite of taking the recommended vitamin D and calcium.The third point is that this study is done only on the women who are in their eighties. Hence, the results of this study do not hold true for all age groups. Moreover, the author has also mentioned in his study that these women also participated in some lightweight exercises. The author has not taken care of this aspect while concluding the argument. It is highly possible that these lightweight exercises had actually strengthened the muscles of these women. The author has not mentioned or explained the relation between vitamin D and calcium and the strength of bones. He should have explained in details the relation between the fractures and the intake of vitamin D and calcium.The lowest point of this argument is that according to the author, the women have shown a lower rate of hip fractures. He has not even mentioned the effect of increased dose of vitamin on the other types of fractures. Hence, the results cannot be true for other types of fractures. The author should have also considered other fractures. Hence, it can be concluded that this study is incomplete and deprived of enough evidence. Hence, this conclusion is not very convincing.

8) Some studies conducted by Bronston College, which is also located in a small town, reveal that both male and female professors are happier living in small towns when their spouses are also employed in the same geographic area. Therefore, in the interest of attracting the most gifted teachers and researchers to our faculty and improving the morale of our entire staff, we at Pierce University should offer employment to the spouse of each new faculty member we hire. Although we cannot expect all offers to be accepted or to be viewed as an ideal job offer, the money invested in this effort will clearly be well spent because, if their spouses have a chance of employment, new professors will be more likely to accept our offers.

Solution: This argument contains a suggestion given by the chairperson of a department to the president of the Pierce University that is based on a study conducted by Bronston College that is located in a small town like Pierce University. This study concludes that if the university is interested in attracting gifted teachers and researches, then the university should give job offers to the spouse of each new talented teacher. This study concludes that the teachers will be happier staying in small towns if their spouses will be in the same geographical area. However, this argument seems a little doubtful as it is not supported by evidence and the author has not taken care of all the situations.

First of all the study is done by Bronston College and not by the university itself. The Pierce University and the Bronston College have only one thing in common that both of them are situated in small towns. The author has not talked about the environments of the two places, number of students, and the reputation of the two institutions. A teacher will also consider all these things while accepting a job offer. Hence, whether the study done by Bronston College will work for the Pierce University or not, has to be taken care of.The second reason that the author has mentioned is that the teachers are happier staying in small towns when their spouses are in the same geographical area. Here again, the author is just assuming the case of teachers in the small town. The same may be true for the teachers in the cities. This possibility can also be true. There is also the possibility of teachers being happier because of the good and peaceful environment of the small town where the Bronston College lies in. The author has overlooked all these factors, hence, the argument cannot be concluded on the basis of these statements.Another factor is that the chairperson has mentioned is that the University should take this measure to attract the most gifted teachers. However, that is also not guaranteed as if a person is more talented than most of the times that person is ambitious. In this case, they would be more interested in getting jobs in a better university like Harvard or MIT. They would also give preference to the conditions of the laboratory and the salary given by the University. All these factors make the chairperson's recommendations less valuable.Even if it will attract the most gifted teachers and researchers and improve the morale of their entire staff, the chairperson has not provided any evidence that the results of the new policy will be profitable. Hence, even though the recommendations of the chairperson are true, they are not well supported. The chairperson should have provided evidence to ensure that the Bronston College's study is well appropriate for Pierce University. There should have been strong reasons for the most gifted teachers and researchers preferring Pierce University and not the other universities or colleges. There should also be a study for the cost effectiveness of this recommendation.

9) For the past five years, consumers in California have been willing to pay twice as much for oysters from the northeastern Atlantic Coast as for Gulf Coast oysters. This trend began shortly after harmful bacteria were found in a few raw Gulf Coast oysters. However, scientists have now devised a process for killing the bacteria. Once consumers are made aware of the increased safety of Gulf Coast oysters, they are likely to be willing to pay as much for Gulf Coast as for northeastern Atlantic Coast oysters, and greater profits for Gulf Coast oyster producers will follow.

Solution: The argument is based on a trend, which is running for the last five years that the consumers in California are ready to pay more for oysters from the northeastern Atlantic Coast than for Gulf Coast oysters. According to the author, this started when some harmful bacteria were found in a few raw Gulf Coast oysters. However, as per this argument, now the scientists have invented a new method to kill these harmful bacterial, hence, the value of Gulf Coast oysters will increase again.However, this argument is not very acceptable, as many important points have been ignored. First, the author has not mentioned the quantity of Gulf Coast oysters in which the harmful bacteria were found. The whole lot of Gulf Coast oysters cannot be rejected just because of a few affected oysters. The author has not tried to explain this aspect. Moreover, there does not seem to

be any relation between the price of oysters from the northeastern Atlantic Coast being twice high as Gulf Coast ones and harmful bacteria found in a few raw Gulf Coast oysters. It might be that the Gulf Coast oysters are more easily available than the northeastern Atlantic Coast oysters. There might be some other factors that can affect the prices of the two types of oysters. These factors cannot be ruled out without any research. Hence, the author should have studied the data carefully and logically to explain the link between the two things.Secondly, the author has mentioned about a process devised by scientists to kill the bacteria, but he has not tried to explain the procedure. In fact, the author has not mentioned about the success ratio of this method. The author has talked about the increased safety of Gulf Coast oysters but he is not very sure. There are chances that this procedure can only inhibit the growth of the harmful bacteria or can kill a small portion of the bacteria. Hence, this argument can be concluded based on this statement. It is still not very convincing that if consumers were made aware of the increased safety of Gulf Coast oysters, they would be ready to pay the increased amount for Gulf Coast ones. It might be possible that they will be worried about the success rate of this new procedure or some side effect of this method.There is one more low point of this argument. These changes took place in the market five years ago. The consumers might or might not be that fond of oysters. Five years is a long period, hence this is just a speculation that the price of Gulf Coast oysters will increase and the market will make profit from them. Even if this assumption comes true and the price of Gulf Coast oysters increases, the author has not offered any data that will help us to compare the two prices. The author has also not mentioned other factors that will affect the profitability of the producers of Gulf Coast oysters. Hence, it cannot be said with surety that the producers will gain profits with the increased prices. In the end, we can say that this argument needs a detailed study of many other factors.

10) The following appeared in a memo from the marketing director of Bargain Brand Cereals.

"One year ago we introduced our first product, 'Bargain Brand' breakfast cereal. Our very low prices quickly drew many customers away from the top-selling cereal companies. Although the companies producing the top brands have since tried to compete with us by lowering their prices, and although several plan to introduce their own budget brands, not once have we needed to raise our prices to continue making a profit. Given our success selling cereal, Bargain Brand should now expand its business and begin marketing other low-priced food products as quickly as possible."Solution: The above argument is given by the marketing head of the company. He has tried to prove his good marketing skills and he is trying to increase the company's market by introducing new products. As per him, the first product of the company 'Bargain Brand' breakfast cereal has established its market and it was a hit with the customers. Even this cereal has drawn customers from the top-selling cereal companies because of its low price and good quality. Hence, right now the company should take advantage of its goodwill among its customers and introduce new products in the market.I completely agree with this argument placed by the author as when the customers are happy with the service provided by one company, and then they definitely want to go for the other services provided by the same company. According to a famous saying, "First impression is the last impression." Hence, this is the right time for the company to introduce the new product. However, the company has to take extra care to prove that it is the best. The quality of the new

product should not be compromised. The company should make sure about the quality and the prices offered by the company being the best in the market. The new product should equalize itself with the old products. Even if the company makes a little less profit in the beginning, the quality should be the best.According to the author, this is the right time as the company is already established in the market and giving competition to the top-brand companies. The customers trust the company and its products completely. Hence, if the company launches new and different products at this time, it will give the company a good name. The company can use the success of its first product to expand its business. The advertisement of the new product can be based on the existing product. The profits of the business depend on the good quality and the good advertisement. If a company takes advantage of its success at the right time, it grows very quickly. According to the marketing head, people have started to know the company and if the second product launched will be good enough then it can give the company's business a boost.However, the company should not take everything for granted. The company should consider all other factors, which can affect the promotion of the new product. The company should collect all the data related to the market and should research for the demand of the product before launching the new product. There is a possibility of tough competition from the other companies that are already selling the same product at much cheaper rates. Hence, there will be tough competition. Therefore, the company should be careful in selecting the new product for launch. The quality, taste, and price of the product have to be better than the other products in the market.Hence, the suggestion made by the marketing head is correct and the company should think about launching a new product, but it should do it after a careful study of the market.

11) "The Mozart School of Music should obviously be the first choice of any music student aware of its reputation. First of all, the Mozart School stresses intensive practice and training, so that students typically begin their training at a very young age. Second, the school has ample facilities and up-to-date professional equipment, and its faculty includes some of the most distinguished music teachers in the world. Finally, many Mozart graduates have gone on to be the best known and most highly paid musicians in the nation."Solution: The argument presented above is based on clearly mentioned reasons. It says that the Mozart School of Music has all the qualities of a good school of music because of which music students should choose it over other schools. It lays importance on training since timely and good training leads to good learning. The school not only boasts of having all the latest equipment and numerous facilities for students, it also has the best teachers that you can have. According to the argument, students graduating from this school turn out to be successful by being popular as well as highly paid musicians of the nation. However, the argument cannot be called completely true since there are many situations where it can lose its stand.First of all, the argument does not consider the presence of other reputed music schools. It can be called a one-sided argument since no reference is made of any comparison with the features of other music schools. It is possible that apart from the Mozart School of Music there are other schools with additional features that are also popular amongst students. In that case, the Mozart School of Music is not the obvious first choice since it will have to face the competition of other reputed music schools.The argument says that this school stresses on the importance of training and practice, which are very important to begin at a young age. However, it does not mention about the quality of practice and training being imparted. Although there are many distinguished music teachers, it

cannot be said that the music education being imparted is of the utmost quality. This is because there is a lot that depends upon the attitude of the faculty as well as students. It is possible that not much is being done in the name of training. If the teachers are not serious about teaching the students, it reflects in the quality of learning and training.Having ample facilities and latest professional equipment is surely important for any music school to be reputed but it is not the sole factor that can attract students. Equipment can be gotten with funds, but they need to be made the best use of in order to be useful for students. Some colleges are concerned about maintaining the equipment to such an extent that they do not allow the use of expensive and latest equipment by students to avoid damaging them. This type of equipment is of no use and it will not help in making students learn.The argument says that many students graduating from the Mozart School of Music have turned out to be noted and highly paid musicians. However, this fact could be a mere co-incidence. It is likely that these students could have reached the high in their life by purely their own efforts. In such a case, the school could have taken the opportunity to take the credit of it in order to attract more students.It can thus be seen that nearly all the statements presented in the argument can have a different side to them. Considering the other possibilities, which are equally possible, it can be said that the Mozart School of Music may not be the first choice of students. Hence, the argument loses its meaning.The following is a memorandum issued by the publisher of a newsmagazine, Newsbeat, in the country of Dinn.12) "Our poorest-selling magazine issues over the past three years were those that featured international news stories on their front covers. Over the same period, competing news-magazines have significantly decreased the number of cover stories that they devote to international news. Moreover, the cost of maintaining our foreign bureaus to report on international news is increasing. Therefore, we should decrease our emphasis on international news and refrain from displaying such stories on our magazine covers."

Solution: The memorandum issued by the publisher of Newsbeat suggests reducing emphasis on the publishing of international news in order increase its sale. This suggestion is based on the observation that the magazine featuring international news on its cover page has seen poor sales in the past three years. On the other hand, other competitive magazines have decreased reporting of international news on the cover page at the same period of time. Taking a clue from them, the publisher suggests cutting down on their international news. Moreover, it has become expensive to maintain foreign bureaus for reporting international news and it is best to decrease the importance given to international news and cut the extra cost.This is, however, not a wisely thought over suggestion. First of all, the publisher has not thought logically over the reason behind the decrease in sale of the magazine in the last three years. In the argument it is said that the issues that feature international news on the front page have seen poorest-sales. However, no mention is made of the type of news that was published. The sale of a magazine depends upon the weight a piece of news carries. If there has not been any international activity worth the attention of the readers, it is foolish to put it on the cover page. This magazine will obviously see poor sales. On the other hand, if the international news is so

big that it overshadows all other news stories, it needs to be on the covers. The memorandum, however, does not mention the nature of the news stories published in the magazines.There is another way of looking at the reduced sale of these issues of the magazine. If there has been a national event that has gathered a lot of attention, the readers will like to read more about that event. In such a case, if a magazine ignores the event and focuses on an international story, it will surely not be sold. The observation made in the argument does not consider this aspect and thus the reason behind the reduced sale of international news cannot be confirmed.The argument also mentions that over the same period of time other competitive magazines have decreased the number of international stories in their issues. Whether this is because they have also experienced a decrease in their sales or for some other reason is not mentioned in the argument. It is likely that other magazines are not able to bear the cost of supporting an international bureau or they have changed their strategy to focus on a particular class of readers. This decision cannot be equated to the decrease in sale of issues of Newsbeat. It is also not known if this change has benefited these magazines in terms of increase in sales or not. Moreover, what has proved good for one magazine may not prove good for another. If other magazines have gained from reducing their international news it may not be the same for Newsbeat as well.Lastly, the memorandum says that there is an increase in the cost of maintaining foreign bureaus and it would be best to reduce the emphasis given to international news. This can be a way of reducing the cost of publishing the magazine, but it is not a solution of the decrease in sales. Instead of reducing the cost of production, it is better to focus on the quality of news reports being published by the magazine. After the above discussion, the memorandum presented by the publisher seems lacking in logical reasoning and surely does not present a sure shot solution of the problem.

GRE Analytical Writing Argument Essay Topic - 13

The following recommendation was made by the president and administrative staff of Grove College, a private institution, to the college's governing committee."We recommend that Grove College preserve its century-old tradition of all-female education rather than admit men into its programs. It is true that a majority of faculty members voted in favor of coeducation, arguing that it would encourage more students to apply to Grove. But eighty percent of the students responding to a survey conducted by the student government wanted the school to remain all female, and over half of the alumni who answered a separate survey also opposed coeducation. Keeping the college all-female, therefore, will improve morale among students and convince alumni to keep supporting the college financially."

GRE AWA Analytical Writing Argument Essay Sample Solution - 13

The recommendation made by the president and administrative staff of Grove College to the governing committee presents a view to keep the tradition of all-female education. It says that the committee should ignore the view held by majority of faculty members of admitting men into the college and should favor the students who oppose it. It is in the interest of the college to remain all-female because it will improve the morale amongst students. Moreover, this decision will keep the alumni happy and secure the funds coming from the alumni.

The recommendation however is made in a narrow perspective. The recommendation gives importance to the survey where eighty present of students are in favor of all-female education and ignores the view held by the members of the faculty. It should, however, be noted that students remain in the college for shorter periods of time and it is the faculty members who stay longer in the college. They are more interested in the betterment of the college than the students. The faculty members have more understanding of the college and their suggestions are more practical. It is in the interest of the college as a whole to admit males in its programs. On the other hand, the students view the interest of the college for as long as they are in it. It is not practical to rely on the suggestion of students since it is short-termed and one-sided. It favors only the students and not the college.The students' favoring all-female education can be because of many reasons. It is likely that they would not like to have any change in it for the fear of their adjustment in the college. The problems of students can be known only when the matter is talked and they are able to convey their feelings. A survey will not reflect the inside feelings of students. Instead of following their suggestion blindly, it is better to look into the matter and resolve the problems they would have with co-education. By removing the fear of students, the administration committee would make a wise decision and follow the middle path. However, the recommendation does not give any such logical suggestions.The argument also mentions that more than half of the alumni opposed coeducation. Going by what the alumni wants is not completely wise since they have attended the college in completely different times and it cannot be compared to the present. Views held in the past cannot be implemented to the needs of the present. Moreover, the college should work upon improving the quality of education and keep the alumni convinced of its work to keep supporting it. Quality work by college would generate funds even if they have to take a decision against the alumni.Lastly, it is not wise to depend upon surveys to make such decisions. Surveys are conducted on a section of the total number of candidates. They may not take into consideration the whole strength of the college, the faculty members or the alumni. In that case, the results of surveys can be extremely misleading. It is possible that the result of the survey is contrary to the actual view held at large that favors coeducation. It would, therefore, be incorrect to form important decisions based on such surveys. In the light of the above discussion, the recommendation does not present a logical and thoughtful statement and the committee should consider other options as well.


The following appeared in a letter to the school board in the town of Centerville."All students should be required to take the driver's education course at Centerville High School. In the past two years several accidents in and around Centerville have involved teenage drivers. Since a number of parents in Centerville have complained that they are too busy to teach their teenagers to drive, some other instruction is necessary to ensure that these teenagers are safe drivers. Although there are two driving schools in Centerville, parents on a tight budget cannot afford to pay for driving instruction. Therefore an effective and mandatory program sponsored by the high school is the only solution to this serious problem."


The letter to the school board in the town of Centerville expresses a grave concern about teenage drivers. Looking at the record of accidents in the past two years where teenage drivers have been involved, it says that there should be a compulsory driver's education in the school. It further says that parents are too busy to take up this responsibility and this increases the need of the school to instruct the teenagers. Moreover, parents cannot afford to send their wards to driving schools and the only solution to the problem is to have compulsory and effective driver's education in school. The argument presented in the letter sounds logical but, at a closer look, it has certain loopholes.The letter does mention that most of the accidents involve teenage drivers but whether these teenage divers have been given driver's education or not is not mentioned. This means that there are equal chances of their being trained in driving as that of their not being trained. Since the argument does not mention anything about the status of driver's training of the teenagers involved in the accident, it can be said that the argument is blaming all teenagers without investigating into the matter. In such a case, there is no need of compulsory driver's education since it has already been imparted.In case of accidents, you cannot pinpoint the fault of any one person. It would be incorrect to blame the teenagers completely for the accidents. Since there are more than one person involved, the accident could have occurred because of either of the two. It is likely that the teenager involved is not to blame for the accident in most of the cases. The fact that most of the accidents involved teenagers could be just a coincidence. The argument in the letter simply puts two and two together to blame the teenagers in general for the accidents, which can be called unfair.Driver's education being a compulsory program in schools is a good idea but it is not completely feasible. If parents find it expensive, it is so for the school authorities as well. Teaching one or two teenagers is one thing and teaching the whole school is another. It involves a lot of money to introduce such a program where the fees for the instructors will have to be paid by the school besides arranging for the instruction to be carried out. The school will in turn levy the money from the students by increasing their monthly fees. This will again burden the parents who cannot afford to send their children to driving schools. In both the cases, it is the parents who will have to bear the charges of instructing their kids. Therefore, the suggestion made in the letter is not a solution of the problem because it does not look into the problems that will be created by the school's running such a program.Lastly, there is no guarantee of how successful such a program will be. If it will help in making teenagers more careful drivers and prevent accidents is something that one needs to wait and watch. Teenagers are aggressive and hyperactive by nature. It is possible that even after imparting such an education, they commit blunders in a rush and it leads to accidents. Hence, what is said in the letter can be negated completely and it calls for an alternate and better solution.


The following is a memorandum from the sales director to the president of the Healthy-and-Good food company."A recent study indicates that Venadial, a new margarine currently produced only in the country of Alta, actually reduces cholesterol levels. Derived from the resin of pine trees, Venadial works by activating a metabolic response that is not yet well understood. However, cholesterol levels fell ten to fifteen percent among participants in the study who consumed Venadial daily, and the

risk of heart attack by one-third. In addition, the new margarine is so popular that stores in Alta are unable to keep it on their shelves. Therefore, if our company obtains the exclusive right to sell Venadial internationally, our profits are sure to increase substantially within a very short time."


The memorandum from the sales director suggests that the Healthy-and-Good food company should obtain exclusive rights to sell the new margarine called Venadial in the international market because it has been found that it reduces cholesterol level and also reduces the risk of heart attack. The health benefits of Venadial have made it extremely popular in Alta where it is produced and thus it will help in increasing the profits of the company. The director, however, is not able to present a convincing argument in his memorandum.First of all, the sales director himself mentions in the memorandum that the new margarine activates a metabolic response which is not yet well-understood. Hence, the effects that it can have on the health of a person are also not completely known. It is possible that in a longer period of time it proves to be ineffective or even harmful to health. Since the study was made in a limited period of time, we are not sure of its long term effects. Moreover, with the passage of time, new studies are conducted and new facts come to light. It is possible that a study in the present contradicts the results of a study in the past. Therefore, how long the results of this study will remain valid cannot be confirmed.According to the memorandum, the participants who consumed Venadial daily exhibited better health since ten to fifteen percent showed reduced cholesterol level as well as lesser risk of heart attack. However, a decreased cholesterol level and heart attack risk depends on various other factors as well which have no mention in the memorandum. The cholesterol level of a person depends highly on the lifestyle he lives. It depends upon the overall diet of a person and not on the intake of one particular substance alone. Moreover, there is a great role played by exercise in reducing cholesterol as well as heart attack risks. It is likely that the participants had started exercising on a regular basis which has helped in reducing cholesterol and subsequently reducing heart attack risk. However, the memorandum does not acknowledge the role played by exercising and the lifestyle pattern of the participants.It can further be argued that given that Venadial is extremely popular in the country of Alta where it is produced, there is no surety of the fact that it will be equally popular internationally. On the contrary, it can prove to be the opposite since the international market is completely different from that of Alta. Moreover, this product will not only have to face international competition but it would require a great amount of publicity to let the world know about its health benefits. This is again an affair that involves a lot of initial investment. Hence, it cannot be said that it will prove profitable to obtain exclusive rights of the margarine because the break-even will be reached after a certain period of time. The company will then take longer than expected to gain profits from the sale of Venadial. If the president of Health-and-Good Food Company has to agree to the suggestion of the sales director, he must keep in mind the above discussion, which makes the memorandum of the sales director less convincing.


The following is a letter that recently appeared in the Oak City Gazette, a local newspaper.

"Membership in Oak City's Civic Club - a club whose primary objective is to discuss local issues - should continue to be restricted to people who live in Oak City. People who work in Oak City but who live elsewhere cannot truly understand the business and politics of the city. It is important to restrict membership to city residents because only residents pay city taxes and therefore only residents understand how the money could best be used to improve the city. At any rate, restricting membership in this way is unlikely to disappoint many of the nonresidents employed in Oak City, since neighboring Elm City's Civic Club has always had an open membership policy, and only twenty-five nonresidents have joined Elm City's Club in the last ten years."


The letter that appeared in Oak City Gazette presents a view about the members constituting the Oak City's Civic Club. It says only city residents should be allowed membership in the club because they understand the local problems and issues better than nonresidents who work in the Oak City. It is only the residents who pay the taxes and they should be the ones to decide where to spend the money. The letter also mentions that it will not affect the nonresidents to a great extent since another neighboring Elm City's Civic Club which has an open membership has negligible number of nonresidents joining it. The letter, however, seems to be written without giving a proper thought to the issue. It may sound wise enough to restrict membership of nonresidents, but, instead of giving a one-sided view it should present a broader perspective by looking at all the concerned matters.First of all, the letter presents a step-motherly treatment to the people who work in Oak City and live elsewhere. People working in Oak City are directly affected by any policies and changes made in the city. They are equally involved in the business and politics of the city as the residents of the city. There are many nonresidents who spend major time of the day in the Oak city than at their hometown. Therefore, they are bound to the policies and laws of the city. If they have to follow these policies just like the local residents, they should also have a say in the discussion of local problems and issues. It is likely that some policies that are suitable to residents may not be suitable to nonresidents and makes it difficult for them to work. For example, policies related to number of working hours, leisure time allotted to workers, sale and purchase and other business related issues have equally to do with those working in the city and living away from it as to those who live in the city. This aspect should be taken into consideration before restricting the membership to the residents of the city.It is true that city residents are paying taxes, but these taxes are used for the betterment of the whole city. It does not isolate one city from another but welcomes new talent, ideas, investments and business expertise from other places as well. If such restrictions are allowed in the City Club, it will not attract many people to the city which may prove a hindrance in the way of its development. Moreover, it should not be forgotten that the nonresidents are paying their due of taxes in their respective cities. Hence, the City Club should develop a better attitude towards them.Further, it can be said that although Elm City's Civic Club has not got many nonresident members despite its open membership policy, it may not be the same with Oak City Civic Club. There could be many reasons for a low count of nonresident members in Elm City Club, like lack of facilities, high membership prices etc. It is also possible that there are very few nonresidents working in the Elm City to join the club. Therefore, there could be different conditions in both

the cities which cannot be compared. Hence, it would be a mistake to take a clue from the experience of Elm city of low count of nonresidents and restrict their membership.The argument given above weakens the basis of the suggestion given in the letter. Nonresidents may not be living in the city, but they are a part of the city dynamics. Moreover, with their membership it will only benefit the city club with more money coming in from them. Therefore, instead of acting upon the suggestions blindly, a considerable thought must be given to other related aspects as well.


The following appeared in the annual report from the president of the National Brush Company."In order to save money, we at the National Brush Company have decided to pay our employees for each brush they produce instead of for the time they spend producing brushes. We believe that this policy will lead to the production of more and better brushes, will allow us to reduce our staff size, and will enable the company factories to operate for fewer hours - resulting in savings on electricity and security costs. These changes will ensure that the best workers keep their jobs and that the company will earn a profit in the coming year."


In the given argument, the president of the National Brush Company in the annual report suggests measures to save money on the production of brushes which will help in earning profits in the coming year. According to the report, for this the workers should be paid for the amount of work done and not for the time they work for. Hence, they will be paid according to the number of brushes they produce. This will help in more production as well as better brushes. The company will also be able to reduce the number of workers by giving work to only those who add to the production. Moreover, since the factory will work for lesser number of hours, it will save electricity and security costs. However, in their efforts of saving money, the company heads are not taking into consideration the various related problems as well as impracticality of this change.If the workers are paid for each brush they produce and not for the time they spend on producing them, every worker will try to produce as many brushes as possible. Hence, the quality of brushes will be compromised. This move may result in producing more brushes, but it will definitely not help in producing better brushes. If the quality of work will go down, it will surely have an effect on its sales and the company may not earn as many profits as it expects.The president of the company has also not looked into the aspect of sharing and dividing work amongst employees. If they are paid according to the number of brushes they produce, they will have to produce brushes independently. This may be against the way they worked before where one brush could be produced by a joint effort of the workers. Moreover, the policy of reducing their staff size will create a fear amongst the workers of the possibilities of losing their jobs. It will spoil the relations shared by the workers. Instead, they will be engaged in a competition amongst themselves where everyone will want to produce more brushes and save their job.While taking the decision for the next year's policy, the president has also ignored the possibility of strike by workers. Since the policy clearly hints at reducing the staff size, a number of employees will get affected. Along with the fear of losing their job, there will be a feeling of agitation that will grow amongst the workers. If pushed further, the workers might join hands

and this agitation can take the shape of a strike which can get difficult to handle. Hence, the company will be surrounded with problems and the dream of saving money and earning profits will be shattered.It is a good idea to save electricity and security costs, but this should not be achieved by burdening the employees to work more in lesser time. In order to reduce production costs and gain profits, the company should think of ways of improving work efficiency. Things like work evasion and wasteful expenditure should be checked which will prove to be beneficial in the long run. In order to save money, the company must think of other alternatives of reducing the cost of production. Profits can also be earned by changing the sales strategy like offering free gifts or seasonal discounts. Moreover, the company should pay more attention on improving its products and making them attractive for the buyers. Hence, the idea suggested in the argument is weak and impractical, and can be altered with better options to give better results.


The following is a memorandum written by the director of personnel to the president of the Cedar Corporation."It would be a mistake to rehire the Good-Taste Company to supply the food in our employee cafeteria next year. It is the second most expensive caterer in the city. In addition, its prices have risen in each of the last three years, and it refuses to provide meals for people on special diets. Just last month three employees complained to me that they no longer eat in the cafeteria because they find the experience 'unbearable.' Our company should instead hire Discount Foods. Discount is a family-owned local company and it offers a varied menu of fish and poultry. I recently tasted a sample lunch at one of the many companies that Discount serves and it was delicious - an indication that hiring Discount will lead to improved employee satisfaction."


The memorandum written by the director to the president of Cedar Corporation suggests changing the company, which supplies food to their employee cafeteria in the coming year. It lists the difficulties faced by the employees from the food supplied by the Good-Taste Company to support its reasoning. The memorandum also suggests an alternative of hiring Discount Foods which serves good food and will improve employee satisfaction. However, the reasons behind this change need to be thought over again in order to reach to a good and logical decision.The first reason mentioned in the memorandum is about the Good-Food Company being the second most expensive caterer in the city. Going by this we can assume that this company is amongst the best caterers in the city. It is only if a company provides quality products that it can be one of the most expensive in the city. One does not mind paying a higher price for good quality food, instead of going for cheaper and unhealthy food. The memorandum says that the prices of this company have risen each year for the last three years. However, there is no record that tells us that the other companies have not increased their respective prices. If the prices of other caterers have also increased then it would not make a difference if they change the caterers.Further, the rise in prices can be because of many reasons which have been ignored in the memorandum. The rise in prices could have been because of the increasing inflation due to which they are bound to increase their prices. Hence, the Cedar Corporation should reconsider the suggestion given by the director before making any decision.

This company does not provide meals for people on special diets. Considering that there are very few people on special diets, the demand for such food may not be much because of which the company cannot provide such meals. The memorandum, however, does not say anything about the Discount Foods providing any such meals because of which this change must be made. Although Discount Foods have a variety of fish and poultry foods, there can be other special demands of employees, like vegetarian food, or food with lesser salt and fries etc. which may not be fulfilled by this company. The director also says that there have been complaints from at least three employees about the cafeteria and their experience has been 'unbearable.' However, in which way has their experience been 'unbearable' has been left to one's imagination. It is likely that the experience of these three employees has nothing to do with the food provided by the Good-Food company and they have been engaged in a brawl or argument with the staff of the cafeteria. Hence, it cannot be taken as a logical and strong reason to change the caterers.Although Discount Foods offers a wide variety of fish and poultry food which is also delicious, this cannot lead to the conclusion that it will improve employee satisfaction. While caterers must provide good food to keep their customers happy, a lot depends upon the type of services extended by them as well. It is likely that the local food company is not able to provide food timely. It is also possible that they are not able to deal with the increase in demand and compromise on the quality instead.By considering the discussion given above it can be seen that the reasons mentioned in the memorandum by the director are not enough to support his suggestions. The argument in the memorandum loses weight because it has no explanation for the discussion given above. Therefore, before making the change of caterers, the president of Cedar Corporation should give a logical thought over all the aspects related to it.


The following is a recommendation from the personnel director to the president of Acme Publishing Company."Many other companies have recently stated that having their employees take the Easy Read Speed-Reading Course has greatly improved productivity. One graduate of the course was able to read a five-hundred-page report in only two hours; another graduate rose from an assistant manager to vice president of the company in under a year. Obviously, the faster you can read, the more information you can absorb in a single workday. Moreover, Easy Read costs only $500 per employee - a small price to pay when you consider the benefits to Acme. Included in this fee is a three-week seminar in Spruce City and a lifelong subscription to the Easy Read newsletter. Clearly, Acme would benefit greatly by requiring all of our employees to take the Easy Read course."


The argument given above by the personnel director to the president of Acme Publishing Company favors Easy Read Speed-Reading Course. According to the personnel director, many companies have benefited from their employees taking this course and have shown an increase in productivity. There have been reports of graduates improving the reading speed and also getting

promoted to higher ranks, and it is credited to the course since you can grasp more if you read faster. The course costs $500 per employee, including a three-week long seminar and a lifelong subscription of the Easy Read newsletter. This price, according to the personnel director, is not much compared to how beneficial the course proves to be. However, the assumption on which this argument is based is questionable due to which it seems to be lacking in logic.The very fact that there is no first-hand experience of the course by the director and he relies on the result of other publishing companies to support his argument makes it week. It says that many other companies have stated that the course has proved to increase their productivity. What has proved beneficial for other companies may not prove the same to Acme because everywhere there are different working conditions. Moreover, there are other factors also that could have increased the productivity of the employees. It is possible that there has been a change in the composition of employees and the company has removed some of the employees who are old, inactive and unproductive. Such employees could have been replaced by young employees full of energy, which is bound to increase their productivity.Increase in productivity is also a matter of the environment provided by the company. If the employees are given a healthy environment with enough time to rest, breaks between shifts and other incentives, there will be increased willingness amongst the employees to work. This can also increase productivity. Ignoring these issues and giving the credit of improved productivity only to the course can be foolish and a blind decision.How much the employees benefit from the Easy Read Speed-Reading course depends from one employee to another. The argument mentions about one graduate who could read a five- hundred-page report in only two hours and another who rose from the position of an assistant manager to the vice-president of the company. However, these could be personal achievements and these employees could have been geniuses. It is possible that some employees have not been able to make use of the course as well as others because of their low aptitude. Moreover, it would be wrong to say that the faster a person reads the more he absorbs. Fast reading of the material does not ensure that the matter is being understood, it is likely that a person is reading the given material without paying attention to it and concentrating on reading it faster. This way there will be no use of reading and hence no improvement in the productivity.Further, the director says that the fee of the course, which is $500, is not much compared to how beneficial it will prove for the company. He suggests that all the employees should be given this training, but in the excitement of the results he ignores many possibilities which might just prove the opposite. What if the employees take the course and leave the company later to join another company? In that case, after spending on the training of the employees, the company will not be benefited from it. Moreover, spending $500 on one employee may not sound too much, but when you take the total figure of expenditure, this could be a huge sum for which a decision should be taken only after a giving it a careful thought.It can, therefore, be said that the argument is not logical and is based purely on shallow assumptions. While it is likely that the productivity increases after the course, it is also possible that it proves to be a disastrous decision.From a letter to the editor of a city newspaper."One recent research study has indicated that many adolescents need more sleep than they are getting, and another study has shown that many high school students in our city are actually dissatisfied with their own academic performance. As a way of combating these problems, the high schools in our city should begin classes at 8:30 A.M. instead of 7:30 A.M., and end the school day an hour later. This arrangement will give students an extra hour of sleep in the

morning, thereby making them more alert and more productive. Consequently, the students will perform better on tests and other assignments, and their academic skills will improve significantly."


The letter to the editor suggests that the high schools of the city must start operating an hour later than usual and consequently close one hour later in order to allow students to sleep an hour more in the morning and be more productive. This suggestion comes after taking a clue from the recent study which shows that adolescents need more sleep than they are getting. Moreover, students are dissatisfied by their own performance. With more sleep and sufficient rest they are bound to perform better. Hence, the change in the opening time will solve the problem and help in improving the academic skills amongst students. However, the letter to the editor is based on weakly linked assumptions. It does not identify the real problem and hence does not offer a logical suggestion.Firstly, it would be incorrect to relate the lack of sleep amongst adolescents with their academic performance. While it is true that lack of rest reflects on the performance of a student, it cannot be confirmed if the students who have expressed dissatisfaction with their performance are not getting enough sleep. There could be other reasons that have led to a slacked academic performance of these students. It is possible that they are not being guided in the correct direction by their teachers. It is also possible that instead of devoting time to studies they have been engaged in other activities like sports, inter-school competitions etc. It is then obvious that the reason behind their slacked academic performance is other than just lack of sleep.It can further be argued that if the students need more time to sleep, delaying the opening time of schools is not the solution. It needs to be seen why adolescence are not getting enough sleep. It cannot be related to only early opening hours of the schools. It is likely that adolescents are sleeping late because of other engagements. They could be attending gatherings, parties or late night clubs. They could also be watching late night movies and television, or working on the computer. In order to be fresh and active in the morning they must practice sleeping early the night before. A good night's sleep can be completed by sleeping early and hence getting up early. The schools need not change their time due to some late sleepers, but the students should change their routine and adjust to sleeping early.The letter to the editor can be criticized on grounds that it does not encourage healthy and good habits of getting up early. A person who begins his day early remains active and alert all day. Instead of suggesting to inculcate good habits the letter promotes getting up late in the morning. Things learnt in adolescence go a long way and are indicative of the habits you will follow all your life. Hence, students at this age should be encouraged to get up early in order to develop such a habit for the rest of their lives. Moreover, delaying the school hours by one hour is not going to make much of a difference since it will just shift the existing routine. That means adolescents might sleep even more late if the school closes an hour later than usual and thus giving them no extra time to rest.It can be seen that the letter does not take into consideration any of the above mentioned points of discussion. It simply gives a baseless solution of a problem without finding its causes. It can therefore be said that the argument presented in the letter is insufficient and incapable of convincing that the schools the city must change their time of operation.


Butter has now been replaced by margarine in Happy Pancake House restaurants throughout the southwestern United States. Only about 2 percent of customers have complained, indicating that 98 people out of 100 are happy with the change. Furthermore, many servers have reported that a number of customers who still ask for butter do not complain when they are given margarine instead. Clearly, either these customers cannot distinguish margarine from butter, or they use the term 'butter' to refer to either butter or margarine. Thus, to avoid the expense of purchasing butter, the Happy Pancake House should extend this cost-saving change to its restaurants in the southeast and northeast as well.


The given argument draws the conclusion that the Happy Pancake House should replace butter by margarine in its restaurants in the southeast and northeast as this change has been successful in its restaurants in the southwestern part of the United States. The arguer presents some facts as evidence in proof of the claim that replacing butter by margarine has been successful throughout the southwestern United States. However, a careful scrutiny of the facts that have been presented shows that the said facts weaken the given argument instead of strengthening it. Each of the facts has been discussed in the succeeding paragraphs.Firstly, the assumption that 98 percent of the consumers must be happy with the change is baseless because not complaining is not an indication that they are happy. They may not have complained due to varied reasons. They may not have been able to distinguish between the taste of butter and margarine. Even if they were able to distinguish the change, they probably did not complain as they thought that butter was perhaps not available. Additionally, one cannot ignore the fact that most people would avoid complaining for a trivial thing such as being served margarine instead of butter. However, there is a chance that if they are continuously served margarine instead of butter, they may stop coming to the restaurant altogether. This is because people who are used to having butter may not be open to the idea of having margarine in its place.Secondly, the argument does not clearly state that the consumers are told that they have been served margarine instead of butter in spite of their asking for butter. They may not be complaining, but there is a chance that they would not like to come back to the restaurant again. If this change is being made without informing the customers and waiting to see their reaction, then there is a chance that this may adversely affect the image of the restaurant as the consumers may lodge a complaint that they were duped into eating something other than what they had ordered for. Therefore, assuming that people use the term 'butter' to refer to either butter or margarine can have serious repercussions if this assumption turns out to be false.Lastly, nowhere in the argument, has the arguer explicitly discussed the prices of butter and margarine. Therefore, assuming that serving margarine will be cost-effective is far-fetched. Moreover, it is not necessary that what seems to be successful in one part of the country would be successful in the other part as well. This is because of the difference in the demographic make-up of different parts of the same country.The argument could have been better substantiated had there been enough evidence that clearly supported the claim that consumers treat butter and margarine at par as far as their taste and quality is concerned. Also, there should have been more evidence in support of the claim that the

consumers in the southeast and northeast parts of the country will react in a similar manner as the consumers in the southwestern United States. Therefore, the argument sounds unconvincing due to lack of sufficient evidence in support of the claim made.


Many employees of major United States corporations are fearful that they will lose their jobs in the near future, but this fear is largely unfounded. According to a recent study, a majority of companies expected to make new hires in the coming year, while fewer companies expected to lay off employees. In addition, although it is very disturbing to be laid off, the proliferation of programs and of workshops designed to improve job-finding skills has made being laid off far less painful than it once was.


The arguer claims that the apprehensions of many employees of major United States corporations that they may lose their current jobs in the near future are baseless. This statement is supported by evidence in the form of the results of a recent study that brings out that a majority of companies will be hiring new employees in the coming year. Additionally, the number of companies that may be discontinuing the services of their employees is very less. The argument further states that a large number of programs and workshops designed to improve job-finding skills have come up and this has eased the pain of losing one's job to a large extent. However, the reasons provided by the arguer are insufficient to support the claim being made.A major lacuna in the given argument is that the recent study brings out the employment related statistics for the coming year, whereas the fear of losing jobs is with respect to the near future. The term 'near future' has not been defined anywhere in the given argument. It has not be been specifically mentioned that 'near future' includes the coming year as well. Additionally, the results of the recent study are related only to the employment statistics for the coming year. Therefore, utilizing the results of the study to state the fears of the employees as baseless is by and large unconvincing as these two facts cannot be related to each other.Moreover, the argument makes no mention of the specific fields in which there may not be a requirement of employees in the near future. It is quite possible that with the advent of technology, most corporations are procuring hi-tech machinery and therefore, their current employees are fearful of losing their jobs as they are not technically qualified to handle the new equipment. The corporations may have additional openings for technically qualified personnel who can handle the new machines. Therefore, the results of the survey that indicate a requirement of hiring employees do not suggest that the present employees need not fear losing their jobs.The statement that "the proliferation of programs and of workshops designed to improve job-finding skills has made being laid off far less painful than it once was", does nothing to alleviate the fears of the employees that they may lose their jobs in the near future. Just because there are numerous programs available for improving job-finding skills does not assure that it will be easy to get a new job. Additionally, this does not mean that one need not fear losing one's job. This is because getting employed is largely dependent on your qualifications and expertise and not on your job-finding skills. Therefore, this statement is flawed and it does not serve the purpose of strong evidence in support of the claim that the fears of the employees are baseless.

The argument would have sounded convincing if it had included more evidence to support its claim that the employees are unnecessarily fearing that they will lose their jobs. In view of the above, it is evident that the given argument is largely flawed in its present form due to lack of sufficient evidence in its support.


In the Bayhead Public Library, books that are rarely borrowed continue to take up shelf space year after year, while people who want to read a recent novel frequently find that the library's only copy is checked out. Clearly, the library's plan to replace books that are borrowed no more than once a year with sufficient copies of more recent books will solve this problem. The protest we have heard since this plan was made public has come from a small, and thus unrepresentative, group of some thirty people and so should therefore be ignored.


The given argument states that a sufficient number of recent novels are not available in the Bayhead Public Library, whereas the number of books that are rarely borrowed is quite high and they take up a lot of shelf space. The arguer draws the conclusion that replacing books that are borrowed rarely in the Bayhead Public Library with sufficient copies of more recent books is a solution to the problem that recent novels are unavailable for the readers. The first reading of the given argument sounds quite convincing, but a subsequent careful reading leads to the identification of several flaws that make the argument sound unconvincing. These flaws have been discussed in the succeeding paragraphs.The argument fails to draw a relation between the two different problems being faced by the Bayhead Public Library. The first problem is that there is insufficient shelf space in the library and the second problem is that there are a less number of recent novels and so sometimes readers find that the only copy of a recent novel has been issued out. The argument fails to convince the reader that both these problems can have a common solution. Buying additional copies of recent novels may be a good solution to the second problem, but replacing the books that are rarely borrowed cannot be termed as a suitable solution to the problem of insufficient shelf space. The reason for this is that a library should house a large variety of books. A library cannot cater only to a small section of society who read popular novels. It has to keep in mind the requirements of the entire society as a whole.The very fact that a section comprising of 30 people have protested to the proposed solution proves the fact that the books are indeed in demand and it would be a grave mistake to remove them from the library. Also, there is likelihood that there may be more people who are not open to the solution that has been proposed but they are not vocal in their protests. Therefore, it is quite likely that these 30 people may succeed in initiating a mass protest once the proposal is actually implemented leading to a loss of reputation for the Bayhead Public Library. Therefore, one cannot afford to ignore the protests being made by these 30 people.Moreover, the arguer has not considered other options for increasing shelf space like buying new shelves or constructing an additional room or shelf in the library premises. In the absence of a discussion on the feasibility of implementing such a construction, the given solution fails to sound convincing. Additionally, the arguer could have explored other options like replacing books that have not been borrowed for the last decade or more instead of the proposed one year.

There could also have been a mention of removing additional copies of books that are not borrowed frequently and leave some copies of the same for people who may need them at some time or the other. This would have also laid the protests made the 30 people to rest. In the absence of such strong evidence the claim made by the argument is very weak and hence the argument fails to convince a reader.


The following appeared in a letter from the owner of the Sunnyside Towers apartment building to its manager."One month ago, all the showerheads on the first five floors of Sunnyside Towers were modified to restrict the water flow to approximately 1/3 of its original force. Although actual readings of water usage before and after the adjustment are not yet available, the change will obviously result in a considerable savings for Sunnyside Corporation, since the corporation must pay for water each month. Except for a few complaints about low water pressure, no problems with showers have been reported since the adjustment. Clearly, restricting water flow throughout all the 20 floors of Sunnyside Towers will increase our profits further."


The given argument concludes that restricting the water flow throughout the 20 floors of Sunnyside Towers will increase the profits for the owner of Sunnyside Towers. The owner draws this conclusion by presenting evidence in support of his claim. He brings out that despite restricting the flow of water to approximately 1/3 of its original force in the first 5 floors of Sunnyside Towers, there have been no major complaints about low water pressure and the functioning of the shower heads. A careful analysis of the given evidence reveals loopholes that weaken the argument to a great extent.A major loophole in the argument is the fact that the actual readings of water usage before and after the adjustment are not yet available. Therefore, it cannot be assumed that the water usage is less. It is quite probable that the residents are using the same amount of water. After the change, the water pressure has become low but the residents must be using the same amount of water as they did before the change by using water for a longer period of time. Therefore, it would be wrong to assume that the corporation would pay less for water usage until the readings before and after the change are available.Another obvious flaw in the given argument is that there is no mention of the section of residents who have complained. Moreover, there is no clear indication of the method that was utilized for gathering this information. It could be the result of random complaints or it may have been the result of a survey. If it was a survey, then it is possible that the opinion of all the residents of the first 5 floors have not been taken into account because there is no mention of the exact number of people who have complained. Therefore, one cannot draw a concrete conclusion as statistics related to the exact percentage of residents from the first 5 floors who have complained is not available.Additionally, the residents may not have complained, but it is likely that they are not happy with the restriction imposed on the water flow. They may complain about the shortcomings of this restriction in the near future. They could even force the corporation to revert to the earlier fittings. This would result in incurring heavy expenses instead of savings. Moreover, it is not

necessary that the residents in the remaining 15 floors of Sunnyside Towers will react in a similar manner. Therefore, the assumption that the residents of the remaining 15 floors will not oppose the restriction on water flow is largely flawed.The given argument fails to convince the reader that restricting the flow of water will indeed result in less water usage thereby saving the amount of money that is paid by the corporation for the usage of water. The argument could have been substantiated by evidence that proved that the water usage has actually reduced after imposing the restriction on water flow. Moreover, lack of sufficient evidence to prove that the residents of the remaining 15 floors will not object to the adjustment of water flow makes the argument sound extremely unconvincing.


The following is a recommendation from the director of personnel to the president of Professional Printing Company."In a recent telephone survey of automobile factory workers, older employees were less likely to report that having a supervisor present increases their productivity. Among workers aged 18 to 29, 27 percent said that they are more productive in the presence of their immediate supervisor, compared to 12 percent for those aged 30 or over, and only 8 percent for those aged 50 or over. Clearly, if our printing company hires mainly older employees, we will increase productivity and save money because of the reduced need for supervisors. "


In the given argument, the director of personnel of Professional Printing Company claims that hiring older employees will increase their productivity and save money as they will need a lesser number of supervisors. He supports this claim with the help of evidence in the form of statistics revealed as a result of a telephone survey carried out in an automobile factory. The facts presented sound quite convincing when read for the first time, but a closer examination brings out several logical flaws that weaken the given argument.Firstly, it is not necessary that the results of a telephone survey carried out for the workers of an automobile factory will hold true for the workers of a printing company as well. As both the companies are different, there are bound to be differences in the mode of functioning, the type of equipment used and the expertise required to handle the machinery. It is quite likely that the equipment being used by the automobile factory is largely automated, thereby reducing the need of supervisors for older people who have had enough experience in working with the same machinery for years. There is no concrete evidence provided by the arguer that proves that the conditions in the printing company and the automobile company are the same.Secondly, older workers may not be requiring supervision because of their experience in handling the machinery for numerous years in the past. Hiring older people afresh has an entirely different connotation. These older people who have recently been hired may not be having the requisite experience in handling the machinery specifically used in the printing company and therefore, they may actually need extensive training and supervision. Additionally, because of their age they may need more time in grasping the finer details for the functioning of the equipment as compared to their younger counterparts. Therefore, assuming that hiring older people will do away with the need for appointing supervisors for them is largely far-fetched and baseless. Additionally, even if the older employees are well qualified and they don't need

supervisors, one cannot establish that this will lead to savings for the company. This is because it is likely that well qualified and experienced workers will ask for a higher salary.Lastly, the arguer does not explicitly state the section of workers included in the telephone survey that was carried out in the automobile factory. In the absence of such details one cannot conclude that the inference drawn is a reflection of the opinion of all the workers of the factory. Therefore, as the conclusion drawn from the survey is questionable, applying the same to the workers of Professional Printing Company weakens the argument further.The given argument could have been strengthened if the arguer had included strong evidence to prove that the working conditions in the automobile factory and the printing company are comparable. Moreover, the argument could have sounded convincing if the arguer had brought out the results of a survey carried out on the workers of Professional Printing Company. In view of the above, it can easily be seen that the given argument is by and large unconvincing due to lack of sufficient evidence in support of its claim.


The following appeared as part of an article in a health magazine."A new discovery warrants a drastic change in the diets of people living in the United States. Two scientists have recently suggested that omega-3 fatty acids (found in some fish and fish oils) play a key role in mental health. Our ancestors, who ate less saturated fat and more polyunsaturated fat, including omega-3 fatty acids, were much less likely to suffer from depression than we are today. Moreover, modern societies - such as those in Japan and Taiwan - that consume large quantities of fish report depression rates lower than that in the United States. Given this link between omega-3 fatty acids and depression, it is important for all people in the United States to increase their consumption of fish in order to prevent depression."


The given argument draws the conclusion that the residents of the United States should increase their consumption of fish to avoid depression. This assertion has been supported by stating that omega-3 fatty acids are related to depression. The arguer presents some facts to reinforce this statement. The first fact is the suggestion given by 2 scientists that omega-3 fatty acids play a key role in mental health. These acids are found in some fish and fish oils. The second fact is that our ancestors who had a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids were less likely to suffer from depression as compared to the present generation. The third fact is that the depression rates among fish-consuming people like those living in Japan and Taiwan is quite low. According to the arguer, these 3 facts prove beyond doubt that omega-3 fatty acids and depression are related. Therefore, increasing the intake of omega-3 fatty acids is bound to prevent depression. However, there are numerous loopholes in the argument that fail to convince the reader that omega-3 acids and depression are related.The first loophole in the argument is that just because omega-3 fatty acids play a key role in mental health does not mean that they are related to depression and that they are necessary for good mental health. They may be related to some form of mental health other than depression. Additionally, this suggestion has been made by just two scientists and utilizing this suggestion as

a base for drawing the conclusion that a higher intake of omega-3 fatty acids is necessary to fight depression does not sound well-reasoned at all.The second fact does nothing to support the given conclusion as it is a well-known fact that the lifestyle of our ancestors was much different from that of the present generation. There may have been a variety of other reasons that were responsible for low rates of depression among them. The present generation leads a fast paced life which is the root cause for a number of mental stress related disorders like depression. Therefore, it is quite likely that the intake of fish had nothing to do with the likelihood of our ancestors being depressed.The third fact is the weakest link in the given argument. One cannot draw parallels between the residents of the United States and those of Japan and Taiwan. Depression rates may differ among the citizens of different countries due to varied reasons like different lifestyles, working conditions and climatic conditions. Nowhere in the argument has the arguer referred to the type of fish that these fish-consuming people are including in their diet. It has been mentioned in the argument that omega-3 fatty acids are present in some fish and fish-oils. It is not necessary that all types of fish will be rich in omega-3 fatty acids.The argument could have been well reasoned if the arguer had provided more evidence that proved beyond doubt that omega-3 fatty acids are related to depression and that the types of fish that are being consumed by the people of Japan and Taiwan are the ones that contain omega-3 fatty acids. Therefore, lack of strong evidence has rendered the given argument weak and made the conclusion sound unconvincing.


A new report suggests that men and women experience pain very differently from one another, and that doctors should consider these differences when prescribing pain medications. When researchers administered the same dosage of kappa opioids - a painkiller - to 28 men and 20 women who were having their wisdom teeth extracted, the women reported feeling much less pain than the men, and the easing of pain lasted considerably longer in women. This research suggests that kappa opioids should be prescribed for women whenever pain medication is required, whereas men should be given other kinds of pain medication. In addition, researchers should reevaluate the effects of all medications on men versus women.


The given argument is based on a report that has suggested that there is a difference in the degree of pain experienced by men and women and therefore, these differences should be considered while administering pain killers. The said report included a study of the reaction of men and women to the painkiller, kappa opioids. The report has presented the statistics that out of 28 men and 20 women who were having their wisdom teeth extracted the women reported that they felt less pain as compared to the men when they were administered kappa opioids prior to the extraction. Based on the inference derived from this report, the arguer has concluded that kappa opioids should be prescribed for women whenever the need for administering a pain killer is required; whereas men should be given other kinds of pain reducing medication. Despite the suggestions made by the report, the conclusion drawn by the arguer is unconvincing as the argument is not well-reasoned due to the presence of various logical fallacies.

The main logical flaw in the argument is that both the conduct and the conclusion of the research are questionable. The report states that 48 people were studied for their reaction to the drug kappa opioids. 48 people are too less to represent the entire humanity. Relating the reaction of 20 women to what all the women in the world would report in a similar condition is entirely unreliable. The reaction of these 20 women to the drug kappa opioids cannot be termed as a yardstick for how the women of the entire world would react. Women across the world live in different climatic conditions and follow different lifestyles. There is no mention of whether these 20 women consisted of women from across the world or whether they were confined to a single country. In either case, their reaction to a drug administered before tooth extraction does not determine how they would react to the same drug when it is administered for other purposes like some major surgery.Another lacuna in the statistics of the research work is that the researchers have ignored other possibilities that may have been responsible for a lesser degree of pain for the women. Age is an important factor that determines the way in which you react to certain drugs. Moreover, your capacity to bear pain is more when you are young. There is no mention of the ages of the men and women who were a part of this study. It is possible that a majority of the women were younger than the men who were a part of the study. Their age would have played an important role in reacting to the pain killer and the easing of the pain. Even if the men and women were from the same age group, it is possible that a higher percentage of these 20 women had higher pain endurance as compared to the 28 men. Moreover, there is a strong possibility that the extraction process for the women was not that painful because their wisdom teeth may not have been impacted to an extent so as to cause great pain.Lastly, the conclusion that men should be administered another pain killer altogether is highly unconvincing. The argument does not discuss the effectiveness of kappa opioids as compared to other pain killers. Therefore, the assumption that there are other pain killers which would be better for men is grossly unreliable. Therefore, the effectiveness of kappa opioids for men and women cannot be compared due to lack of strong evidence that could have proved that there were no other reasons due to which the women could have experienced lesser pain than the men who participated in the study.


The following is a recommendation from the dean at Foley College, a small liberal arts college, to the president of the college."Since college-bound students are increasingly concerned about job prospects after graduation, Foley College should attempt to increase enrollment by promising to find its students jobs after they graduate. Many administrators feel that this strategy is a way for Foley to compete against larger and more prestigious schools and to encourage students to begin preparing for careers as soon as they enter college. Furthermore, a student who must choose a career path within his or her first year of college and who is guaranteed a job after graduation is more likely to successfully complete the coursework that will prepare him or her for the future."


The dean at Foley College asserts that the college should make promises of job placements in order to increase the number of students who want to enroll for the programs offered by the

college. The dean supports his assertion by stating the opinion of administrators who feel that this is a way for competing against larger and more reputed colleges. Additionally, this would also encourage students to start preparing for their careers as soon as they join college. The dean concludes the argument by stating that students who are assured of a job after graduation are likely to pay more attention to their studies and successfully complete the coursework. The facts that have been presented by the dean do not succeed in convincing the reader that the argument is well-reasoned. A careful scrutiny of the given facts will reveal numerous fallacies that make the given argument sound unconvincing.Firstly, Foley College is a small college that conducts courses in liberal arts. It is possible that students may be joining it because of their interest in leaning Arts as a hobby and they may not be motivated to look for jobs related to Arts. They may be keen to pursue other jobs that are more lucrative and well-paying as compared to a career in liberal arts. Therefore, offering job placements would do little to attract more students to the college.The assumption of some of the administrators that this strategy will help them to compete against reputed colleges that are much larger than Foley College is baseless. A prestigious college earns its reputation after years of being established and a small college cannot compete against it just by increasing its intake of students and offering them job placements. In order to be at par with a prestigious college, it is necessary that Foley College improves its standard of teaching and ensures that its students are well trained to pursue a career in Arts. Therefore, this assumption made by some of the administrators fails to support the claim made by the dean.Finally, a major loophole in the given argument is that a promised job on completion of graduate studies does not ensure that the students will successfully complete their coursework. On the contrary, it is likely that the students will ignore their studies. Rather than paying attention to their studies, they will ignore their coursework because they know that they will be able to get a job even if they barely manage to scrape through their tests. This, on the other hand, may bring down the reputation of the college as there could be a large number of students who have not got good grades. Additionally, this will also mean an increase in the workload for the college as they will now have to find suitable jobs for their students who have not done well in the course and who are not skilled enough for any kind of job.Therefore, after considering all the aspects of the argument that have been discussed above, one comes to the conclusion that the given argument cannot be deemed as reasonable under any circumstances. Hence, the claim of the dean that promises of job placements on completion of graduation would lead to an increase in enrollments stands on evidence that is doubtful and therefore, the given argument fails to convince the reader.


The following is a letter to the editor of the Glenville Gazette, a local newspaper."Over the past few years, the number of people who have purchased advance tickets for the Glenville Summer Concert series has declined, indicating lack of community support. Although the weather has been unpredictable in the past few years, this cannot be the reason for the decline in advance ticket purchases, because many people attended the concerts even in bad weather. Clearly, then, the reason for the decline is the choice of music, so the organizers of the concert should feature more modern music in the future and should be sure to include music composed by Richerts, whose recordings Glenville residents purchase more often than any other

contemporary recordings. This strategy will undoubtedly increase advance ticket purchases and will increase attendance at the concerts."


The given argument is based on the fact that the purchase of advance tickets for the Glenville Summer Concert series has declined. The arguer attributes this decline to the choice of music for the concert. The arguer rules out inclement weather of the past few years as the reason for the decline in the purchase of advance tickets as people have been attending the concert in bad weather also. The arguer concludes that the organizers of the concert should now include music composed by Richerts as his recordings have been purchased by the residents of Glenville more than those of any other composer. Despite the facts presented by the arguer, the argument contains a number of logical fallacies that succeed in making the argument sound unconvincing.The arguer mentions that the weather has been unpredictable in the past. It is quite likely that this weather is responsible for making the residents of Glenville stay indoors. They may have been attending the concerts in bad weather earlier but it is possible that their past experiences have influenced their decision of attending concerts in unpredictable weather. As the weather is now unpredictable, they probably do not book the advance tickets as one does not know what the weather will be like on the day of the concert. The argument could have been substantiated with evidence that compared the number of people who have been attending the concerts in bad weather with the attendance at the concerts on good weather days. These statistics would have helped to analyze the effect of the weather on the purchase of the advance tickets. It is likely that the attendance on bad weather days was very less as compared to that on the good weather days and this would then tilt the scales in favor of unpredictable weather being the main cause for the decline in the sale of advance tickets.The arguer does not consider any other reason that may have been instrumental in keeping people away from the Summer Concert series. It is likely that people are not aware of the procedure for booking advance tickets. Additionally, there is a chance that there might be some other important event going on in the town at the same time. It is likely that the other event is attracting the people leading to a decline in the purchase of advance tickets for the concerts.Even if it is true that the low attendance at the Glenville Summer Concert series is due to a bad choice of music, it is not necessary that the music composed by Richerts would be successful in drawing large crowds to the concert. There is no mention of the type of music that is currently being played at the concert. Moreover, there is no solid evidence that proves that the residents of Glenville are interested in listening to modern music composed by Richerts alone. It is likely that modern music is appreciated by a small section of people from Glenville and Richerts' compositions are favored by this small section. Furthermore, it is quite likely that this section of people may like to listen to Richerts' compositions at home and they would not be interested in listening to it being played at a concert.Therefore, due to lack of solid evidence in the form of detailed research and concrete facts, the argument fails to convince the reader that the choice of music is the main reason for the decline in the purchase of advance tickets and that playing the music composed by Richerts will solve the problem of low attendance at the Glenville Summer Concert series.


The following is a letter from a professor at Xanadu College to the college's president."The development of an extensive computer-based long-distance learning program will enhance the reputation of Xanadu College. This program would allow more students to enroll in our courses, thereby increasing our income from student tuition. Traditional courses could easily be adapted for distance learners, as was shown by the adaptation of two traditional courses for our distance learning trial project last year. Also, by using computer programs and taped lectures, faculty will have fewer classroom obligations and more time to engage in extensive research, thereby enhancing the reputation of Xanadu."


The given argument reflects an assertion made by a professor at Xanadu College to the president of the college. The professor states that the reputation of the college can be enhanced by initiating a computer-based long-distance learning program. He supports this claim by stating that this would lead to an increase in the college's income because of the large number of students who would enroll for the program. The professor adds that traditional courses can be successfully adapted for distance learning and he cites the example of two such courses that were conducted in the previous year. The professor also mentions that the utilization of taped lectures will leave the professors of the college with time for carrying out extensive research and that this would enhance the reputation of Xanadu College. Although, the argument seems logical and reasonable when it is read for the first time, a careful analysis of the facts presented renders the argument unconvincing due to lack of evidence that is logically sound.The fact that this statement has been made by a single professor of the college is a major loophole in the given argument. It is quite possible that while voicing his opinion, the professor has not included the other departments of the college and all his assumptions may not hold true for the departments other than his own.Initiating a distance learning program does not ensure an increase in the college's income. There are a number of students who are not comfortable studying through distance learning programs. They feel that real-time student-teacher interaction cannot be substituted by distance learning. Additionally, as far as the future job prospects are concerned, a degree earned by distance learning does not carry much significance. Moreover, as the distance learning program being suggested is computer-based, this would further apply a restriction on the number of students who would like to apply for it as it is not necessary that all students can handle computers comfortably. Therefore, it is quite likely that there may not be a substantial increase in the number of students who would like to enroll for distance learning from Xanadu College, especially if there are colleges offering the same programs through regular classes in their neighborhood.The evidence provided in the form of the two traditional courses that were adapted for distance learning last year is a weak link in the argument. This is because of two reasons. Firstly, two courses cannot determine how the remaining courses of the college will fare if they are adapted for distance learning programs. Secondly, one year is too less a time to term the distance learning program as successful. It is likely that the students would have enrolled for the program due to

the novelty of the idea. It is possible that there may be a lesser number of students enrolling for distance learning programs as time passes and the initial excitement and curiosity dies down.Lastly, the assumption that the free time available with the professors will be utilized by them for research work is highly unconvincing. It is likely that the free time available with the professors will be utilized by them for other tasks related to the functioning of the college or the conduct of the distance learning program. The professors would be spending some time in taping the lectures as well. Therefore, assuming that the reputation of Xanadu College will be enhanced due to the extensive research work being carried out by its professors seems far-fetched.In view of the above, one can see that the given argument lacks evidence that is logically sound. The argument could have been strengthened if the assertion made was the result of an extensive research carried out by a group of professors from different departments of the college. Therefore, the given argument cannot be termed as well-reasoned as the conclusion made by the professor does not rely on solid evidence in its support.


The following is a letter to the editor of the Roseville Gazette."Despite opposition from some residents of West Roseville, the arguments in favor of merging the townships of Roseville and West Roseville are overwhelming. First, residents in both townships are confused about which authority to contact when they need a service; for example, the police department in Roseville receives many calls from residents of West Roseville. This sort of confusion would be eliminated with the merger. Second, the savings in administrative costs would be enormous, since services would no longer be duplicated: we would have only one fire chief, one tax department, one mayor, and so on. And no jobs in city government would be lost - employees could simply be reassigned. Most importantly, the merger will undoubtedly attract business investments as it did when the townships of Hamden and North Hamden merged ten years ago."


The given argument brings out that the merger of the townships of Roseville and West Roseville is highly recommended. The arguer supports this recommendation by highlighting three main assumptions in favor of the proposed merger. The first assumption is that the confusion amongst the residents of the two townships regarding whom to contact for a required service would be eliminated. The second assumption in support of the recommendation is that certain key appointments and services would not be duplicated thereby saving administrative costs. The arguer also states that there would be no loss of jobs as the employees could be reassigned. The last assumption is that the proposed merger would attract business investments as was the case when the townships of Hamden and North Hamden were merged ten years ago. The argument fails to sound persuasive enough due to various loopholes in the assumptions provided by the arguer.Firstly, the assumption that the confusion regarding which authority to contact will be eliminated after the proposed merger seems far-fetched. The arguer does not address other options like educating the residents of both the townships about the contact details of the relevant services. This awareness drive would be a far better method for the elimination of this confusion rather

than merging the two townships. If the residents are not clear about the related information, this confusion will carry on after the merger as well.Secondly, the arguer fails to convince the reader that there will be savings in administrative costs after the merger. There is an ambiguity in the statements that the duplication of jobs will be done away with by having only one mayor, one tax department etc. and the statement that there will be no loss of jobs. What will happen to the employees of the tax department of one of the townships after the merger when there will be only one functional tax department? The arguer fails to address the issue that the employees who have lost their jobs will have to be given subsequent employment by creating new jobs. If the total number of employed people and jobs remain the same, then how are the savings in administrative costs justified?Lastly, the assumption that there will be an increase in business investments as was in the case of the merger of Hamden and North Hamden is totally baseless. A major flaw in this assumption is that the merger of Hamden was carried out 10 years ago. The financial scenario that existed 10 years ago cannot be compared to that which exists in the present. Moreover, Hamden may have had certain resources that attracted business investments. It is likely that Hamden was an upcoming industrial area or it was experiencing a boom in real-estate prices. Therefore, the merger of Hamden saw an increase in business investments. It is not necessary that the merger of Roseville and West Roseville will experience a similar rise in business investments as the arguer has not drawn any similarities between the townships of Roseville and Hamden from a business investor's perspective.In view of the above, it can be concluded that the given argument fails to sound convincing due to the presence of evidence that is not logically sound. The argument could have been substantiated by providing additional evidence that could have further strengthened all the three given assumptions in support of the recommendation.


The Department of Education in the state of Attra recommends that high school students be assigned homework every day. Yet a recent statewide survey of high school math and science teachers calls the usefulness of daily homework into question. In the district of Sanlee, 86 percent of the teachers reported assigning homework three to five times a week, whereas in the district of Marlee, less than 25 percent of the teachers reported assigning homework three to five times a week. Yet the students in Marlee earn better grades overall and are less likely to be required to repeat a year of school than are the students in Sanlee. Therefore, all teachers in our high schools should assign homework no more than twice a week, if at all.


The given argument brings out that the Department of Education in the state of Attra has recommended that high school students should be assigned homework every day. The arguer then proceeds to contradict this recommendation by comparing the statistics arrived at by carrying out a statewide survey of high school math and science teachers. 86 percent of the teachers in the district of Sanlee admitted to assigning homework three to five times in a week; whereas less than 25 percent of teachers in the district of Marlee admitted to assigning homework three to five times in a week. Despite the lesser amount of homework, the students in Marlee score better grades than the students in Sanlee. Using these facts, the arguer contends that

the high school teachers in the state of Attra should not assign homework to the students more than two times a week. A careful examination of the given evidence highlights that the argument is largely unsubstantiated and is rendered weak due to the presence of unconvincing evidence in its support.The backbone of the argument is the fact that the students in Marlee are earning better grades than the students in Sanlee. This better performance can be attributed to various factors. It might turn out that the homework assignments actually play an important role in helping the students to get good grades. The arguer has not provided any additional evidence that proves that homework is actually of no use when it comes to scoring high in the exams.It is quite likely that the teaching standards in the high schools of Marlee are far better than those of Sanlee. Therefore, the students of Marlee are better prepared for their exams than their counterparts in Sanlee. Moreover, there is no mention of the grading system that is effective in the high schools of Sanlee and Marlee. If the grading system is common throughout the entire state, then the grades of the students studying in the two districts can be compared or else one cannot compare the grades awarded by different high schools. It is likely that the marking scheme in Sanlee is tougher than that in Marlee and therefore, the students in Marlee get higher grades as compared to the students in Sanlee. Moreover, the subjects in which the students in Marlee are doing well have not been mentioned. It is quite likely that the high grades are in subjects other than math and science and the students are being given homework assignments regularly in those subjects. Hence, the performance of the students in Marlee cannot be compared to that of the students in Sanlee and therefore, relating the homework assigned to these students to their performance in exams is not justified.The statistics of the survey are questionable in their usage as valid evidence in support of the claim made. This is because the arguer does not mention the cross-section of teachers who were a part of the survey. There is no indication whether the teachers who formed a part of the survey were equally distributed among all the high schools of Attra or whether they were from selected districts. If the survey did not contain a representation from the entire state, then the results of the survey cannot be used to change the homework related policies for all the high schools in the entire state. Moreover, the arguer clearly states that the survey was carried out among math and science teachers. Therefore, the statistics of the survey cannot be applied for assigning homework in all subjects taught in high school as it may be necessary to give homework assignments daily in some of the subjects.Therefore, it can be concluded that the given argument fails to establish a relation between assigning homework and the performance of students in their exams. Therefore, the claim that homework should not be assigned to the students in Attra, more than two times a week, could not be justified due to lack of adequate evidence in its support.


A recent study suggests that people who are left-handed are more likely to succeed in business than are right-handed people. Researchers studied photographs of 1,000 prominent business executives and found that 21 percent of these executives wrote with their left hand. So the percentage of prominent business executives who are left-handed (21 percent) is almost twice the percentage of people in the general population who are left-handed (11 percent). Thus, people who are left-handed would be well advised to pursue a career in business, whereas people who

are right-handed would be well advised to imitate the business practices exhibited by left-handers.


The given argument is based on the findings of a study that have led to the recommendation that left-handed people should ideally pursue a career in business and right-handed people should imitate the business practices that are used by the left-handed businessmen. The evidence that is used by the arguer to reinforce his recommendation is the study of the photographs of 1,000 prominent business executives, 21 percent of which show the businessmen writing with their left hands. The arguer brings out that the percentage of prominent business executives who are left-handed is almost twice the percentage of left-handed people in the general population. Despite the evidence provided, a closer scrutiny of the given argument highlights various lacunae that render the argument flawed and unconvincing.The findings and the conclusion of the study are the weakest link in the given argument. Simply seeing the photographs of businessmen writing with their left-hands does not necessarily mean that they are left-handed. The may have been marking something with their left hand when the photographs were taken. Even if you are right-handed, you may pick up a pen with your left hand to mark something on paper. Additionally, there are some people who are ambidextrous, that is, they are comfortable working with both hands. Therefore, the photographs of people writing with their left hands do not confirm that they are left-handed.The argument makes no mention of the cross-section of businessmen who were a part of the study. There is no indication of the fact that the entire fraternity of businessmen has been represented by these 1,000 prominent business executives. Therefore, 21 percent of these businessmen cannot reflect how the other left-handed businessmen will fare in their careers. These 1,000 prominent business executives may have succeeded in their jobs by sheer hard work and determination as success in life depends a lot on your talents and capabilities. Being left-handed or right-handed has little to do with your success in business related jobs. The photographs do not prove that the success of these business executives is entirely due to their being left-handed.The assumption that all left-handed people should pursue business related careers is baseless as the argument has failed to establish a concrete link between success in a business related career and being left-handed. Moreover, it is not necessary that all left-handed people will have similar liking and aptitude for business related careers. Additionally, the presumption that right-handed people should imitate the left-handed people to succeed in business is far-fetched and unreasonable. This is because the right-handed businessmen may have their own way of functioning and there is no apparent reason for them to imitate the left-handed businessmen. The argument clearly reflects that the remaining 79 percent of the prominent business executives are right-handed as per the evidence provided in the form of photographs. Therefore, there should be no reason for this majority of business executives to imitate the left-handed executives who amount to only 21 percent of the successful business executives.Therefore, the conclusion of the argument is flawed due to the absence of concrete evidence in its support. The argument could have been substantiated if the arguer had provided evidence that could prove the link between being left-handed and the competence to succeed in business. In view of the above not only is the given argument logically unsound, but it also fails to convince the reader that it is well-reasoned.


The following is a letter from an editor at Liber Publishing Company to the company's president."In recent years, Liber has unfortunately moved away from its original mission: to publish the works of regional small-town authors instead of those of big-city authors. Just last year, 90 percent of the novels we published were written by authors who maintain a residence in a big city. Although this change must have been intended to increase profits, it has obviously backfired, because Liber is now in serious financial trouble. The only way to address this problem is to return to our original mission. If we return to publishing only the works of regional small-town authors, our financial troubles will soon be resolved."


An editor at Liber Publishing Company argues that the only reason for the decline in profits for the company is its deviation from its original mission which was to publish the works of small-town authors. The arguer supports his claim by presenting the fact that 90 percent of the novels that were published by the company in the previous year have been written by authors who have residences in big cities. He draws the conclusion that the company will be able to haul itself out of its financial troubles if it reverts to publishing works of regional small-town authors. The arguer fails to make the argument sound convincing due the absence of strong and convincing evidence in its support.The contention that the company is facing serious financial trouble because it has strayed from its original mission is totally unconvincing. It is likely that the publishing company is facing heavy losses due to a variety of other reasons as well. The arguer does not discuss any other such reasons. For instance, internal problems in the company, the market conditions and the quality of the works being published will play an important role in determining the profits of the company. As there is no mention of such factors, placing the entire blame on the novels written by authors residing in the city sounds unreasonable. Additionally, the arguer does not discuss other means to improve the profits of the company. The company may experience a hike in its sales figures if the publications of Liber receive enough publicity. Hence, a well-planned publicity campaign or a change in the overall look and content of the publications may be effective in increasing the profits of the company. This aspect had been completely left untouched by the arguer and this makes the argument sound weak and extremely unreasonable.It is unlikely that the authors of the novels published by the company will have a major influence on the company's profits as the arguer had not mentioned the other works being published by Liber Publishing Company. The company may be dealing with publications other than novels and it is likely that these other publications have affected the sales of the company's publications. The argument makes no mention of the status of the other publications of the company. Moreover, the arguer has made no mention of the percentage of Liber's publications that are novels. It is quite likely that a very small fraction of Liber's publications are novels and therefore, the sales of these novels will have little or no effect on the overall profits of the company.The arguer mentions that 90 percent of the novels have been written by authors who have residences in the city. It is quite likely that these authors are small-town authors and they have invested money by buying houses in the city and they are continuing to stay in small towns only. Additionally, it is also likely that these authors may have migrated from small towns into cities

recently. Therefore, the company has not deviated from its original mission as in both these cases the authors can still be classified as small-town authors.Therefore, the recommendation that reverting to the original mission will increase the company's profitability does not seem justified as there are numerous other ways in which the company's profits can be boosted. At the same time, there are varied other reasons due to which the company may be experiencing a financial crisis. Hence, in the absence of adequate evidence, the given argument fails to convince the reader that the claim made is rightly justified.


Sadly, widespread negative images of businesspeople have been created in large part by television. Consider the fact that, although they make up a mere 10 percent of the characters in dramatic roles on television, businesspeople are responsible for about one-fifth of all the crime on television shows. In fact, in a recent survey of television producers, only 35 percent of the television roles for businesspeople were viewed as positive ones.


The given argument draws the conclusion that television is responsible in a major way for creating negative images of businesspeople. The arguer supports his claim by citing two facts. The first fact is that 10 percent of the characters in dramatic roles in television are businesspeople and this small percentage of businesspeople is responsible for about one-fifth of all crimes committed on television shows. The second fact cited by the arguer in support of his claim are the findings of a recent survey of television producers which have brought out that out of all the television roles for businesspeople, only 35 percent were positive roles. Although, the given argument sounds convincing when it is read for the first time, a careful study of the facts presented exposes various logical fallacies that render the argument weak and unreasonable.The argument rests on the assumption that the negative characters that are businesspeople in television shows have created negative images of businesspeople in real life. This assumption fails to sound convincing enough as there is no indication of the negative images that are associated with businesspeople in reality. The assumption could have been supported with a survey of the population who feel that businesspeople actually have negative traits. In the absence of such evidence, the claim that negative images of businesspeople have been created seems far-fetched and unconvincing.Moreover, the facts presented by the arguer do little to support the claim made in the argument. Firstly, there is no description of the crimes that have been committed by the businesspeople in television shows. It is likely that the events labeled as crimes may be related to the world of business in which it is not rare to go to any extent to enhance the profits accrued from businesses. Therefore, these crimes may not succeed in associating negative images with the personalities of businesspeople in reality as the public normally expects businesspeople to have this kind of an attitude. If the argument had explicitly described the types of crimes committed by the characters of businesspeople in television shows, then the claim made by the arguer could have been substantiated to an extent.Even if the television shows are actually creating negative images of businesspeople, one cannot ignore the fact that the argument takes into account only the dramatic television shows. There must be other shows on television like those related to business news and success stories of

businesspeople. It is likely that such shows may be contradicting whatever negative images are being created by the dramatic television shows and the overall effect may be a positive image for the businesspeople.The second fact presented by the arguer refers to a survey conducted on television producers. The statistics of such a survey have little relevance in context of the overall image of businesspeople in the eyes of the general public. The regular viewers of these television shows are common people and only their opinions will matter where the images of businesspeople are concerned. It is quite likely that the reasons mentioned above have succeeded in creating a higher percentage of television roles for businesspeople which are viewed as positive ones by the general population. Therefore, in view of the above, it can be concluded that the given argument is flawed in a number of respects due to the presence of various logical fallacies. Hence, the argument fails to convince the reader that negative images of businesspeople have been created because of the negative characters in television shows that are businesspeople.


The following appeared as part of a recommendation made by a faculty member to the president of a large university."Never once in our 150-year history as a university have we clarified our objectives. How, then, can we hope to adapt as an institution to the new challenges facing higher education. As a first step in this evolutionary process, therefore, we should send out questionnaires asking faculty members why they teach, asking students what they want from this university, and asking former students what they gained from their own education here. When the replies come in, we can tabulate them and formulate an official statement of our educational mission. This will surely result in improved programs at our university."


A faculty member makes the recommendation, to the president of a university, that the official statement of their educational mission can be tabulated by sending out questionnaires to the faculty members, present students and former students of the university. The arguer asserts that this plan of action will result in improving the programs at the university. The reason for carrying out this procedure for outlining the university's educational mission has been cited by the arguer as the fact that the university's objectives have never been clarified in the 150-year long history of the university. A careful study of the recommendation along with the accompanying evidence shows that the evidence is weak and it fails to support the recommendation made by the faculty member.Firstly, the argument starts at a highly unconvincing note. How can a university that is 150 years old have objectives that have not been clarified even once in its history? The fact that this argument has been put forth by a single faculty member makes the claim further dubious. It is likely that the faculty member has not carried out an in-depth research into the history of the university. This statement would have sounded convincing if it had been the result of a study carried out by more than one faculty member. The objectives of the university would have been clearly defined when the university was established. However, it is likely that with the passage of time the objectives had to be clarified time and again in order to keep in step with the changing times. Additionally, the argument classifies the university as a large university. Therefore, it is

highly unlikely that the objectives have never been clarified even once in the 150-year old history of the university.Even if we consider the opening statement made by the arguer to be true and the objectives have never been clarified in the last 150 year', the procedure outlined by the argument for arriving at the university's educational mission is highly questionable. How can a questionnaire be termed as a reliable source of gathering information for working out the official statement of the educational mission of a large university? It is quite likely that the faculty members and the students filling out the questionnaires take them lightly and they just fill in whatever comes to their mind without spending time to ponder over the questions asked.Faculty members may not be able to give a reasonable or correct answer to the question about why they teach. Similarly, a student who has just joined the university may not be in a position to clearly outline what he expects from the university. Students who have already passed out from the university will probably be busy in their jobs and they will not have the time to contemplate on the answer to the question as to what they have gained from their education in the university. The argument does not specify the method that will be used by the authorities to separate the seriously answered questionnaires from the ones which have been left half-answered or which have been filled up carelessly. In view of the above, it is obvious that this method for gathering information for outlining the educational mission for a large university is totally unsound and full of logical flaws.The given argument could have sounded convincing and well-reasoned if it had been put forth after a study done by a team of researchers. Additionally, the arguer could have explored other avenues like holding discussions with students and faculty members to work out the educational mission of the university. This would have strengthened the argument further. In the absence of crucial evidence, the given argument fails to validate the claim made therein.


There is a general idea that a translation always fails to preserve some of the qualities that distinguish the original work - i.e., that 'something always gets lost in translation.' Writers, critics, and the general reading public unthinkingly accept this clich. But this belief is unwarranted: translators are sometimes distinguished authors themselves, and some authors may even translate their own works. As the translator pointed out in the preface to an English version of Dante's works, the violin and the piano make different sounds, but they can play what is recognizably the same piece of music.


The given argument contradicts the common belief that translation fails to preserve the quality of the original work. This contradiction is supported by two facts. The first one is that translators are sometimes authors themselves and they may translate their own works, thus managing to preserve the qualities of the original works. The second fact presented by the arguer is the preface to an English version of Dante's works where it is mentioned that although the violin and the piano make different sounds, they can play the same piece of music. The contention made by the arguer is unconvincing despite the facts presented in its support. This is because the facts presented by the arguer fail to convince the reader that the conclusion drawn by the argument is justified.

Although, it is true that some translators are authors themselves, this does not hold true for the entire fraternity of translators and therefore, this fact fails to substantiate the claim that there will be no loss of quality when original work is converted to its translated version. There are times when works of well-known authors have to be translated into several languages. It is not necessary that all authors will be equally proficient in a variety of foreign languages. There are bound to be some versions of the work which have been converted into some foreign language with the assistance of a translator. In today's world, there are numerous people who are purely translators and there are companies that exclusively carry out translations of the works of small authors as well as well-known authors.It is not necessary that there will be no loss of quality even if the translator and the author of the original work are the same. This is essentially because translation involves rewriting the original work in a different language. No two languages are the same as far as the expression of feelings and description of events are concerned. Each language describes the environment around us in a specific manner and another language may not be able to express the same environment up to exactly the same level. This is because the adjectives used in a particular language to describe something may not carry exactly the same connotation or the same level when expressed in another language. Therefore, there is bound to be some loss of quality when the original work is translated into another language either by the author himself or by a translator.Language and music are not comparable in the context of the given argument. Therefore, the second fact cited by the arguer does nothing to substantiate the claim made in the argument. Different instruments like the violin and piano make different sounds but both the instruments can be used to produce similar pieces of music. Music can easily be composed in such a way that different instruments play the same piece of music in such a way that they sound similar to the listener. However, the same cannot be said about a language which is an entirely different form of art. The expression of a feeling has to be exactly the same in its translated form which is very difficult in view of the reasons mentioned in the preceding paragraph. Moreover, one cannot refute the fact that the music will definitely sound different due to the difference in the sounds produced by different instruments.In view of the above, it is evident that the argument is not well-reasoned due the presence of inadequate evidence which eventually fails to substantiate the argument. Therefore, the belief that there is a loss in the quality of the original work whenever a translation is carried out is rightly justified.


There is a general idea that waiters and waitresses are more likely to receive larger gratuities from large groups of people. A recent research study suggests this is not true. The researchers examined the relationship between the size of tips in restaurants and the number of meals charged on the bill. They found that, while most tips were around 15 percent, the minimum percentage considered appropriate, people dining alone tipped consistently more (19 percent) and those dining in groups of four or more tipped considerably less (13 percent) than this 15 percent standard. These results strongly suggest that people dining in a group are less likely to feel personally responsible for leaving an adequate or generous tip.


The given argument rests on the suggestion made by a recent study that it is not necessary that waiters and waitresses receive larger tips from large groups of people. The evidence provided by the argument is in the form of the findings of the study that include statistics related to the size of the tips and the number of meals charged on bills. The study suggests that people who dined alone generally tipped about 19 percent which is more than the percentage considered as an appropriate tip; whereas people dining in groups of four or more tipped around 13 percent which is less than 15 percent, the appropriate percentage for a tip. The study concludes that people who are dining in a group are less likely to leave a generous tip as compared to those who are dining alone. Although, the argument sounds well-reasoned when read for the first time, a subsequent reading brings to light various flaws in the evidence provided by the study thereby rendering the argument logically flawed.Firstly, the argument rests on the findings of a study the conduct of which is questionable. There is no indication of either the cross-section of the people or the types of restaurants that were included in this study. This is a very essential part of any kind of study. As the argument gives no information regarding the people and the restaurants that were a part of this study, the statistics arrived at by the study are highly dubious. The category of people who were a part of the study will greatly influence the statistics of the study.It is quite likely that the individuals who paid higher tips belonged to the affluent class and hence, they were able to give generous tips. Additionally, it is likely that the people who were a part of the study for the payment of tips in groups belonged to the student fraternity as they are the ones who are likely to go out and dine in groups and therefore, they gave lesser tips due to their financial constraints. Moreover, it is likely that the people that were dining in groups were large families from that section of society who cannot afford to give generous tips. The argument makes no mention of the types of restaurants that were included in the study. There are certain high-rated hotels like 5 star hotels where it is obligatory to give a generous tip whenever you dine there. On the other hand, there are certain small-town restaurants where it is not a common custom to give large tips.Moreover, the argument fails to address the issue related to the occasion on which people were dining in groups. If the occasion was a party being thrown by someone, it is ultimately an individual who is footing the bill and paying the tip. Therefore, the small tip is being given by an individual and it is not the individuals in the group who are feeling less responsible for leaving a generous tip. On the contrary, it is likely that when the occasion is a happy one like a birthday or a wedding anniversary, the waiters and waitresses are more likely to get a generous tip when the people are dining in a group.The argument could have been substantiated if the study had used the same cross-section of people. For instance, if the study consisted of the statistics related to the tips when the same set of people dined alone and when they dined in a group in the same restaurants. Therefore, the absence of information related to the occasion when people were dining in groups and also the types of people and restaurants that were a part of the study makes the argument weak and unconvincing.


Statistics collected from dentists indicate that three times more men than women faint while visiting the dentist. This evidence suggests that men are more likely to be distressed about having dental work done than women are. Thus, dentists who advertise to attract patients should target

the male consumer and emphasize both the effectiveness of their anesthetic techniques and the sensitivity of their staff to nervous or suffering patients.


The given argument suggests that men are more distressed as compared to women when they have an appointment with the dentist. The argument is based on the evidence, collected from dentists, which indicates that three times more men than women faint while visiting the dentist. The arguer uses the above-mentioned assumption and evidence to draw the conclusion that dentists should now focus on attracting male patients by highlighting their effective anesthetic techniques and bringing out the qualities of their staff that are adept in handling nervous patients. The argument is plagued by logical flaws that fail to convince the reader that the conclusion is justified.The backbone of the given argument is the statistics that have been collected from dentists. However, the statistics are found to be inadequate to prove the conclusion that has been drawn. Firstly, there is no mention of the number of dentists who were a part of the survey. The arguer does not confirm that they represent the entire dentist fraternity in such a way that the statistics collected from them can be utilized to make such a sweeping statement related to the dental profession as the conclusion made by this argument.The argument relies on the assumption that men faint while visiting the dentist as they are distressed about the pending dental work. The arguer does not mention the other reasons that may have led to a higher number of men fainting as compared to women. It is likely that the men who were a part of the statistics were older as compared to the women and therefore, their age played a major part in their falling unconscious while visiting the dentist. Additionally, it is likely that the number of men, visiting the dentists who had provided the statistics, were more than the number of women. In such a case, the statistics would be lopsided and the assumption based on the statistics would be entirely false.There is no indication in the argument that proves that a higher number of men are fainting as compared to the women because they are not aware of the benefits of anesthesia or because they do not know that the dentists' staff is sensitive to the needs of nervous patients. Therefore, in the absence of evidence that proves such a relationship, the conclusion that advertising these aspects will help in attracting men to dental clinics is highly unconvincing. Moreover, the argument does not explicitly prove that such an advertisement will attract only men and not women. Additionally, there is no indication of how effective advertisements have been in attracting patients in the past. In view of the above factors, it cannot be assumed that the proposed advertisements will succeed in having the intended effect.The argument could have been substantiated if the arguer had presented sufficient evidence to prove that none of the other reasons is applicable and therefore, the men are actually fainting due the distress related to dental work. In such a case, the conclusion of the argument would have been justified as the advertisement would have alleviated the fear of visiting the dentist and would have led to a lesser number of men fainting before visiting the dentist. Moreover, the argument could have been strengthened further by providing accurate details of the statistics being referred to in the argument. In the absence of such evidence, the argument sounds highly unconvincing and logically unstable.


The citizens of Forsythe have adopted healthier lifestyles. Their responses to a recent survey show that in their eating habits they conform more closely to government nutritional recommendations than they did ten years ago. Furthermore, there has been a fourfold increase in sales of food products containing kiran, a substance that a scientific study has shown reduces cholesterol. This trend is also evident in reduced sales of sulia, a food that few of the healthiest citizens regularly eat.


The given argument contends that the citizens of Forsythe have now switched to a healthy lifestyle. The arguer utilizes three facts to substantiate this claim. The first fact is that the responses of the citizens to a recent survey show that their eating habits now conform to the government nutritional recommendations more than they did ten years ago. The second fact is that there has been an exponential increase in the sales of food products that contain a cholesterol reducing substance known as kiran. The last fact is that there has been a reduction the sales of sulia which is a food product that is not eaten regularly by healthy people. Despite the evidence presented by the arguer, the argument is not persuasive enough in order to convince the reader that the citizens of Forsythe have indeed switched to a healthy lifestyle.A major lacuna in the given argument is the absence of details regarding the survey which has provided the first fact in support of the claim made by the arguer. As the method of conduct of the survey is questionable, the conclusion arrived at by studying the statistics of the survey cannot be deemed as reliable. There is no mention of the people who were a part of the survey. It is likely that the survey took into account a disproportionate number of young people who are probably more health conscious than the older generation and hence, the difference in eating habits as compared to the ones that existed ten years ago is seen. In such a case, the statistics cannot hold true for all the citizens of Forsythe and hence the conclusion of the argument is baseless. The argument could have been strengthened if the arguer had included details of the cross-section of people who were a part of the survey in such a way that their responses could have reflected the lifestyle of all the citizens of Forsythe.The second and third facts presented by the arguer do little to substantiate the claim made in the argument. This is because the arguer fails to establish a concrete link between leading healthier lifestyles and the increasing sales of products containing kiran or the declining sales of sulia. It is likely that the citizens of Forsythe are buying food products that contain kiran in very small amounts which does little to help them lead healthy lifestyles. Additionally, it is possible that the food product experiencing a boom in sales is actually junk food and it contains kiran in traces. Hence, these food products are actually having an adverse effect on the health of the citizens of Forsythe. There is no mention of the nutritional content of sulia. It is likely that sulia has high nutritional value, but the healthy citizens do not like to have it because of its taste or other reasons. Even if sulia is an unhealthy food, it is likely that its sales are declining due to other reasons like low production of the food product. It is not necessary that the citizens have willingly stopped buying sulia as a result of their adoption of healthy lifestyles. Therefore, the argument fails to establish a link between the sales of these food products and the healthy lifestyles of the citizens of Forsythe.In the absence of evidence that proves beyond doubt that the survey was conducted amongst people who represented the entire population of Forsyth, the assumption that the eating habits of people conform more closely to government nutritional recommendations than they did ten years

ago cannot be termed as reliable. Moreover, there is no concrete evidence in support of the fact that sulia is an unhealthy food and it is for this reason that it is being avoided by healthy people. In view of the above, the given argument is highly unconvincing in its present form.


Humans arrived in the Kaliko Islands about 7,000 years ago, and within 3,000 years most of the large mammal species that had lived in the forests of the Kaliko Islands had become extinct. Yet humans cannot have been a factor in the species' extinctions, because there is no evidence that the humans had any significant contact with the mammals. Further, archaeologists have discovered numerous sites where the bones of fish had been discarded, but they found no such areas containing the bones of large mammals, so the humans cannot have hunted the mammals. Therefore, some climate change or other environmental factor must have caused the species' extinctions.


In this argument, the author concludes that humans were not a factor in the extinction of large mammal species found in the Kaliko islands 7,000 years ago. The author has tried to justify his statements by pointing out that there is no evidence that the humans had any significant contact with the mammals. According to him, while archeologists have found bones of discarded fish in the islands, they have not found any discarded mammal bones there. However, the author has not considered the possibility that humans might have exported the parts of mammals especially bones during that period. The author has completely overlooked this possibility. Without considering this explanation, he has jumped to the conclusion that humans were not a factor in their extinction from the islands. There is also a possibility that the humans hunted the large mammals for food, and disposed the bones as well so that none was left behind as evidence. There are many cultures that destroy the bones and all other parts of mammals. Hence, this could be a reason that there was simply nothing left of the mammals to be found by the archaeologists. Hence, this point taken by the author is not valid.This argument depends upon the author's assumption that without significant contact with these mammal species, humans could not have been a factor in their extinction. It might be that the humans had not done anything significant to these animals, but intruded their territory and natural habitat. As a result, these animals might have left their living areas. There is also a possibility of the humans destroying the food sources of the mammal species knowingly or unknowingly. Perhaps the humans consumed the plants and animals on which these species relied for their existence. These days many species are facing extinction due not to the animals being killed by humans, but by the elimination of their food sources and habitats. The humans are encroaching upon their living spaces to accommodate their increasing population. The author has failed to address these possibilities. Hence, it critically weakens the argument.Lastly, the author has assumed that the bones of fish that archeologists have found discarded on the island were discarded by human beings, and not by some other large animal. However, the speaker has provided no evidence to support this assumption. The same thing applies to the mammals also. Hence, this evidence lends little credibility to the author's theory about the extinction of large species of mammals.

The evidence given by the author in his support is very unconvincing. To strengthen his argument, the speaker should have ruled out the possibility that humans exported the bones of these other species or that some other animal has not eaten these species. The author must have collected information about the food habits of the humans and these mammal species during that time. That would have helped to evaluate the actual reason for the extinction of these species. Without the right information, this argument is pure speculation and cannot be justified.


At the small, nonprofit hospital in the town of Saluda, the average length of a patient's stay is two days; at the large, for-profit hospital in the nearby city of Megaville, the average patient stay is six days. Also, the cure rate among patients in the Saluda hospital is about twice that of the Megaville hospital. The Saluda hospital has more employees per patient than the hospital in Megaville, and there are few complaints about service at the local hospital. Such data indicate that treatment in smaller, nonprofit hospitals is more economical and of better quality than treatment in larger, for-profit hospitals.


In this argument, the author has compared two hospitals and concluded that treatment in smaller and nonprofit hospitals is more economical and of better quality than treatment in larger, for-profit hospitals. However, the author has failed to provide strong evidence in favor of his statement. This argument has many flaws hence it seems very unconvincing.Firstly, the author has talked about the shorter stay of patients in the small, nonprofit hospital than in the larger hospital. However, he has not mentioned the number of patients and the type of illness for which they were admitted in the two hospitals. The author has not taken the aspect into consideration that every illness takes its own course to be treated. Moreover, a shorter stay does not mean that the patient is fully cured. Hence, comparison of Saluda and Megaville hospitals on this basis is not convincing.Secondly, the author has mentioned that the cure rate among patients in the Saluda hospital is twice that in Megaville hospital. Here again, the type of disease plays an important role. Usually, small hospitals do not have many specialist departments and so the patients suffering from minor ailments are admitted there. Therefore, their stay might be for a smaller period. Patients can take admission in smaller hospitals due to some emergency, and when the emergency is taken care of, they can go to bigger hospitals for treatment. The patients suffering from serious disease usually go to bigger hospitals where the specialists are available for almost all the diseases and hence they are sure of good treatment. Hence, they stay at the bigger hospitals for longer periods.Thirdly, according to the author, the number of employees per patient is more at the Saluda hospital as compared to the Megaville hospital. However, as we do not know about the number of patients at both the hospitals we cannot compare them at this point. It might be that the Saluda hospital has less number of patients, hence more number of employees per patient are available. One more point that the author has mentioned is that there are few complaints at the smaller hospitals. The author has not thought that the reason behind this could be that their stay at the hospital was for a short duration of two days and they suffered from minor illness. Since the treatment is also low cost in a non-profit hospital, patients do not complain much.

The author has concluded this argument just on the basis of two hospitals. This data is not sufficient to judge all the hospitals. There should have been more evidence to conclude that smaller hospitals are economical than the bigger hospitals.Finally, the author has stated that the quality of treatment at the smaller hospitals is better that that of larger hospitals. This statement cannot be justified until we know the type of diseases treated at the two hospitals. The data provided is too less.In conclusion, the argument provided by the author is very weak. He should have the cases of some more hospitals, the number of patients treated there, the illness of patients, the cost of their treatment etc. It would have strengthened the argument.


With continuing publicity about the need for healthful diets, and with new research about the harmful effects of eating too much sugar, nationwide demand for sugar will no doubt decline. Therefore, farmers in our state should use the land on which they currently grow sugar cane to grow peanuts, a food that is rich in protein and low in sugar. Farmers in the neighboring country of Palin greatly increased their production of peanuts last year, and their total revenues from that crop were quite high.


In this argument, the author has claimed that the nationwide demand for sugar will decline due to publicity of health diets and the new research about the harmful effects of sugar. The writer then concludes that farmers in his state should grow peanuts rather than sugar cane. However, this argument is placed on false assumptions and hence, do not convince the readers.Firstly, need and publicity for a healthy diet or research about the ill effects of sugar do not prove that people of the author's country eat too much sugar or they do not eat a healthy diet already. There is a possibility that the existing sugar intake of the population is not a problem, therefore there does not need to be a reduction in the amount of sugar eaten. Therefore, with no need to reduce the amount of sugar eaten, demand is unlikely to decline. The author has not produced any support for his conclusion that the demand for sugar is going to decline. There is no direct cause and effect relationship between the demand and the publicity about the need for a healthful diet and / or new research about the harmful effects of eating too much sugar. It weakens the author's argument.Secondly, the author has recommended that farmers in his state should use the land on which they currently grow sugar cane to grow peanuts. However, he has not considered that sugar and peanut are very different crops and might need different types of soil and environmental conditions. He should have demonstrated his statement with evidence that the farmers can actually make this transition. Moreover, it is also not clear that even if consumers will decrease their sugar consumption, they will increase peanut consumption. This is also a wrong assumption as peanuts and sugar are no way substitutes for each other. Even assuming that this state's population is concerned about a healthful diet or the harmful effects of eating too much sugar, there is no evidence presented for the growing of peanuts instead of sugar.In the end, the author has mentioned that farmers in the neighboring country of Palin greatly increased their production of peanuts last year, and their total revenues from that crop were quite high. Again, the author has assumed many things on his own. He has not compared the soil

conditions and climatic factors of the two countries. Moreover, the demand of peanut might be more in Palin. The author has not provided any data that would compare the two countries' people, their food habits, their climate, soil etc. Anyways, what happened in a country cannot be applied in a neighboring country without any research. Hence, the author cannot justifiably rely on the profitability of Palin's peanut farms to conclude that peanut farms in the author's country would be just as profitable.Hence, the author's argument is unconvincing. The author should have strengthened his argument with more data and facts. He should have demonstrated that the demand for peanuts and the revenue from peanut production in this country are likely to match the current demand for sugar and farm revenue from sugar production, respectively. In addition, he should have analyzed the consumer tastes, soil, and climatic conditions in his country.


The following appeared in a recommendation from the president of Amburg's Chamber of Commerce.Last October the city of Belleville installed high intensity lighting in its central business district, and vandalism there declined almost immediately. The city of Amburg has recently begun police patrols on bicycles in its business district but the rate of vandalism there remains constant. Since high intensity lighting is apparently the most effective way to combat crime, we should install such lighting throughout Amburg. By reducing crime in this way, we can revitalize the declining neighborhoods in our city.


The president of Amburg's Chamber of Commerce has recommended installing high intensity lighting in its central business district. He has supported his argument by pointing out that when Belleville took similar action vandalism declined there almost immediately. As per the president, Amburg has recently begun police patrols in its business districts but the situation has not improved. However, the argument is not well supported and flawed.First of all, the author has falsely assumed that the situation in Belleville has improved after installation of high intensity lighting. The author has failed to support his assumption that there was not any other measure adopted by the city of Belleville to stop vandalism. There is a possibility that around the same time the city added police units or more after-school youth programs. It might be possible that initially there was a decline in the vandalism but after sometime vandals have grown accustomed to the lighting and are no longer deterred by it. Without ruling out all other feasible options, it is wrong to conclude the argument. Even if, we assume that installing high intensity lighting worked in Belleville, it cannot be said with surety that the same course of action will work in Amburg also.Secondly, according to the president Amburg's bicycle patrol has been ineffective in deterring vandalism. It is a hastily taken assumption. There might be some other factors like a demographic shift or worsening economic conditions that have served to increase vandalism, while the bicycle patrol has offset that increase. Hence, the president should have insisted on finding the other conditions affecting the incidence of vandalism to support his recommendation.Finally, the president has falsely assumed that high-intensity lighting and bicycle patrolling are Amburg's only possible means of reducing crime. In all likelihood, there are a myriad of other

choices such as social programs and juvenile legal-system reforms. Moreover, vandalism is not the only crime in Amburg. The president should have given evidence to prove that high-intensity lighting would deter other types of crime to strengthen his statement.Further as per the president, reducing crime would result in a revitalization of city neighborhoods is unwarranted. There is no evidence that the decline of Amburg's city neighborhoods is attributed to the crime rate in Amburg's central business district and not to some other factors. It might be that decline in neighborhood is due to availability of cheaper and more attractive housing in suburbs of the city. This is also not clear from the statement that whether the neighborhoods in decline are located within the central business district or not. The president has not considered all these factors before concluding this debate. He should have explored other means to decrease just not vandalism but other crimes as well in Amburg.Hence, it can be said that the recommendations of the president are not well supported. He should have supported his argument by showing that the decline in vandalism in Belleville was a lasting one and it was attributed to the high intensity lighting. The president must also show that lighting would be more effective than any other means at Amburg's disposal to reduce overall crime rates in Amburg.


The following appeared in a letter to the editor of the Parkville Daily Newspaper."Throughout the country last year, as more and more children below the age of nine participated in youth-league softball and soccer, over 80,000 of these young players suffered injuries. When interviewed for a recent study, youth-league softball players in several major cities also reported psychological pressure from coaches and parents to win games. Furthermore, education experts say that long practice sessions for these sports take away time that could be used for academic activities. Since the disadvantages apparently outweigh any advantages, we in Parkville should discontinue organized athletic competition for children under nine."


In this argument, the author has discussed the problem of children under 9 years playing softball and soccer. According to the author, the people of Parkville should not organize athletic competition for children under nine. As per the author, throughout the country, there were over 80,000 of these players, who participated in youth-league softball and soccer last year and they suffered serious injuries. The author's argument looks justified in the first look. However, if we look at the data offered by him to support his argument, it does not seem convincing. A careful study and discussion can reveal that the letter is groundless and has several flaws.Firstly, the author has given a number of 80000 children being injured. However, this is incomplete information as nowhere has the author mentioned the number of children who actually played the game. The absolute data provided by the author does not reflect the real seriousness of young players who suffered injuries. If the author wants us to assess the actual situation of young players who suffered injuries, then he should have dished out the ratio of young players injured, not the mere number of young players.The second evidence produced by the writer is based on a study done in some major cities where these young softball players are facing pressure from their coaches and parents. There is a possibility that these big cities' people are comparatively aggressive in competition, and

therefore, they push their children more as compared to the parents from a small city. Hence, their kids are more likely to suffer from mental pressure. Moreover, the result acquired only through studying several major cities cannot represent all cities. Without accurate information, it is unjustified to propose to drop out athletic competitions in Parkville.Another support sought by the author for his argument is that education experts say that long practice sessions for these sports take away time that could be used for academic activities. Here again the author has not provided any logical evidence. Such sports provide the children some break from their studies that helps them to have more progress in academic courses. Moreover, athletic activities help in the growth of children and hence, can enhance one person's physical condition. Therefore, the author's recommendation of giving up all the athletic competition is obviously groundless.In conclusion, the letter's recommendation and its evidence are unconvincing. The author has taken the help of an unconvincing study, which cannot be representative of all the cities of the country. To strengthen the letter, the author should have provided some solid information as the ratio of the young players who were injured in Parkville to prove that athletic competition has more disadvantages than advantages.


It is known that in recent years, industrial pollution has caused the Earth's ozone layer to thin, allowing an increase in the amount of ultraviolet radiation that reaches the Earth's surface. At the same time, scientists have discovered, the population of a species of salamander that lays its eggs in mountain lakes has declined. Since ultraviolet radiation is known to be damaging to delicate tissues and since salamander eggs have no protective shells, it must be the case that the increase in ultraviolet radiation has damaged many salamander eggs and prevented them from hatching. This process will no doubt cause population declines in other species, just as it has in the salamander species.


In this argument, the author has mentioned that due to the increased industrial pollution, the Earth's ozone layer has decreased and hence, more ultraviolet rays reach the Earth's surface. The author further says that according to the discovery of scientists, the population of a species of Salamander, which stays in mountain lakes, has decreased. The author cites that the reason for decreased population of Salamander is ultraviolet rays, as these rays prevent the eggs of salamander from hatching. Hence, the same ultraviolet radiations will affect the population of other species also. There is no doubt that pollution is a problem and a cause for global warming. It has disturbed the habitats of many species and is a threat to the animal and plant kingdom. However, there are some logical flaws in the author's argument. The reasons given by the author are not convincing.First of all, the author has completely assumed that the cause of depletion of ozone layer is industry. This point itself is not correct. There are many other factors like increase in vehicular pollution, water pollution, air pollution etc. that cause pollution and are responsible for the decline in ozone layer of the Earth. Anyways, industries are normally built in the areas where there are no inhabitants. Hence, to assume that the cause of pollution is only industries is not correct.

Moreover, the author has not provided any evidence, which will prove the relation between the decline in the salamander population and the ultraviolet rays. The argument is completely based on the assumption that whatever damages happened were because of the thinning of the ozone layer, which is not worth consideration. The author has not considered studying the effect of ultraviolet radiations on salamander eggs. Hence, this reason of the author is not worth consideration.Another reason, which the author has cited, is that salamander eggs have no protective shells and it must be the reason why the increase in ultraviolet radiation has damaged many salamander eggs. However, the author has ignored the fact that since the eggs are not protected by a shell, there is a possibility that some other species in the mountain lake has damaged the eggs. The author has not provided any data about the exact decline in the population of salamander.Moreover, salamander is found in mountain lakes. It is also possible that their population is decreasing in mountain lakes but in other locations, the salamander population is increasing. The author should have considered all these factors before concluding the argument.Although the author's point that decline in the ozone layer is not good for the Earth's atmosphere, is correct, we cannot take the author's statement as it is that ultraviolet rays do not allow salamander eggs to hatch and hence, are responsible for the decline in salamander population. The author has not provided any evidence in his support. There is no data provided to set a relation between the study done by scientists and ultraviolet radiation. The author should have ruled out other possibilities like water pollution or some other species in mountain lakes damaging the eggs to strengthen his argument.


The following appeared in a memorandum from the planning department of an electric power company."Several recent surveys indicate that homeowners are increasingly eager to conserve energy and manufacturers are now marketing many home appliances, such as refrigerators and air conditioners, that are almost twice as energy-efficient as those sold a decade ago. Also, new technologies for better home insulation and passive solar heating are readily available to reduce the energy needed for home heating. Therefore, we anticipate that the total demand for electricity in our area will not increase, and may decline slightly. Since our three electric generating plants in operation for the past 20 years have always met our needs, construction of new generating plants should not be necessary."


The author has concluded this argument by saying that there is no need for an additional electric power plant in the area because the total electricity demand in the area is not likely to increase in the future. He has supported his conclusion by citing the availability of new energy-efficient home appliances and systems for homes, and the eagerness of area homeowners to conserve energy. However, the argument loosely relies on several doubtful assumptions, and is therefore unconvincing.Firstly, the author has talked about homeowners who are increasingly eager to conserve energy and manufacturers who are now marketing many home appliances, such as refrigerators and air conditioners that are energy efficient. However, he has very conveniently ignored industries and

offices. The author has not considered that business and commercial electricity usage is much more than what is used in homes. There is a possibility that businesses in the area will increase their use of electricity in the future and that total electricity consumption will actually increase despite declining residential demand of electric power.The author's statement also ignores the possibility of increase in population in that area. Hence, an increase in population would result in an increase in electricity usage even if homeowners use appliances that are more electricity efficient. Without taking into account all these possibilities, the author cannot conclude the argument by saying that the total demand for electricity will not increase in the future and therefore, there is no need to construct a new generating plant.The next point that the author raises is that homeowners are eager to conserve energy. Even then, it is entirely possible that the residents will not be able to afford these new systems and appliances. The author is totally dependent on the assumption that the area residents will actually purchase and install the energy-saving appliances and systems the author is talking about.Moreover, the author has not mentioned whether new technologies for better home insulation and passive solar heating will be effective for only newly constructed homes or these technologies will also work in the existing homes.Finally, the author is assuming that no new electric power plants are needed because the three existing plants, which are 20 years old, have always been adequate for the area's electricity needs. Again, the author has not considered that the 20 year old power plants themselves are using old technologies and hence, might be less energy efficient. While the new plants with new technologies and energy saving machines will be much more efficient. Anyways, machines in the old plants have to be replaced after some time.Hence, all these points are against the author's assertion. He has not supported his argument with strong evidence. The author must have supported his statement by showing that the area residents can afford the new energy-efficient appliances and systems and the electricity demand of the businesses in that area will also not increase in the near future. He should have explored whether the new energy-efficient technologies are available for businesses as well, and whether area businesses also plan to use them. The author should have studied about the expected changes in the area's population, and about the condition and energy-efficiency of the three existing electric power plants.


The following recommendation was made by the Human Resources Manager to the board of directors of the Fancy Toy Company."In the last three quarters of this year, under the leadership of our president, Pat Salvo, our profits have fallen considerably. Thus, we should ask for her resignation in return for a generous severance package. In Pat's place, we should appoint Rosa Winnings. Rosa is currently president of Starlight Jewelry, a company whose profits have increased dramatically over the past several years. Although we will have to pay Rosa twice the salary that Pat has been receiving, it will be well worth it because we can soon expect our profits to increase considerably."


This argument is based on the recommendation made by the Human Resources Manager to the board of directors of the Fancy Toy Company. In this argument, the HR manager at Fancy Toy

Company recommends replacing the company's current president, Pat Salvo, with Rosa Winnings, who is currently president of Starlight Jewelry. However, this argument is based on faulty reasoning and is unconvincing. There is a complete lack of evidence to support its conclusion.In the first place, the Human Resources Manager assumes that the falling profits of the Fancy Toy Company are the fault of the current president but gives no reason for such an assumption. Without providing any evidence, he is asking the president to take the responsibility for the falling profits and hence, resign. There are a number of other factors, which could be the cause for falling profits that might be completely out of the president's control. For example, changes in the currency's exchange rate, or a bad economic situation either in the home market or in an important market abroad, or a natural disaster that caused extraordinary expenses for the company. There are chances that the cost of the raw materials or labor has increased on which the president has no authority. The author has not mentioned anywhere that the falling profits are due to some specific actions or wrong decisions of the current president. Without providing any proof that the falling profits were actually caused by the actions or inactions of the current president, there is no point of asking her to resign.Secondly, the author has recommended appointing Rosa Winnings as the president of the company. Rosa is currently president of Starlight Jewelry. Again, the author has assumed that Rosa is responsible for the profitability of the company. The manager has not provided any evidence to confirm this assumption. There might be many other factors like low prices of metal, low labor cost or increase in demand for jewelry, which are actually responsible for the company's increasing profits. There is no data provided which will prove that the company has actually benefited in the work period of Rosa.Moreover, it is not mentioned anywhere whether Rosa Winnings has any idea of running a toy company. Jewelry business is entirely different from the toy business. Both the businesses have different target customers. Hence, she might not be successful in toy business.In this argument, the author has also talked about giving double salary to Rosa Winnings than the existing president's salary. There is also a recommendation of giving a generous severance package to Pat Salvo. This will be an additional burden on the company's declining income. The author has not considered that any increase in profits of the company would have to be big enough to overcome a huge increase in the budget.The argument is totally based on speculations. The author has ignored many important facts and not presented any evidence to show that the current president is in any way responsible for the toy company's declining profits. Neither has he supported his idea that the current president of Starlight Jewelry is qualified enough to lead the toy company. Hence, his conclusion cannot be accepted.


The following is a letter to the editor of a news magazine."Clearly, the successful use of robots on missions to explore outer space in the past 20 years demonstrates that robots could be increasingly used to perform factory work more effectively, efficiently, and profitably than human factory workers. The use of robots in factories would offer several advantages. First, robots never get sick, so absenteeism would be reduced. Second, robots do not make mistakes, so factories would increase their output. Finally, the use of robots would

also improve the morale of factory workers, since factory work can be so boring that many workers would be glad to shift to more interesting kinds of tasks."


In this argument, the author has concluded that using robots for factory work would improve factory efficiency. The author has concluded the editorial by citing the fact that robots have been used effectively in many space missions in the last 20 years. In addition, the author claims that the use of robots in factories would reduce absenteeism because robots never get sick, improve output because robots do not make errors, and improve factory-worker morale because these workers can shift to less boring jobs. However, the author's argument is unconvincing in several critical respects.This argument depends on the hasty assumption that the kind of work that robots perform in space is similar to the work done in factories. Actually, there is a huge difference between the two environments. It is not necessary that robots would be as effective in factory jobs as they are in space missions. The danger in outer space exploration is much more than the danger involved in factory work. Hence, it is much more feasible to use robots rather than humans for such dangerous work. The effectiveness of robots in space missions might be due to the weightless environment of space or may be the average space-mission robot performs less work than a typical factory robot would be required to perform. Therefore, it is wrong on the author's part to compare the two types of work and assume that robots will be effective in factory work also.The next argument, which the author cites, is that robots do not fall sick but he has not considered the fact that robots get damaged, wear out, or break down. In that case, it is very difficult to repair or replace a robot. A robot may actually not be absent from the workplace, but it still may not be able to fulfill its assigned duties. Moreover, if a human being falls sick, it is easy to ask another person to work in his place but it is difficult to replace a damaged robot. The author's claim that the use of robots would increase factory output because robots do not make errors is also questionable. The author has forgotten that the robots are programmed by their human masters. Moreover, robots can do only the work for which they are programmed, while their human counterparts are flexible in many respects. The author has not offered any evidence to prove that output of factories would increase if they replace their factory workers with robots.Finally, the writer said that the morale of factory workers would improve if robots were used in factories as they can change their jobs to more interesting jobs. However, the author has not provided assurance that if factory workers were reassigned to other types of jobs their morale would improve. On the contrary, the working environment will be more tense as there will be less interpersonal interaction. It might hurt the morale and sentiments of workers. In addition, those who are left will be in a constant state of anxiety as they will be unsure of their jobs.In his support, the author should have provided evidence that robots can perform same type of work as factory workers do. He should have studied all kinds of possibilities in details, for robots to be used in factories.


The following appeared in a memorandum to faculty from the academic vice president of Waymarsh University.

"So that we can better accomplish Waymarsh University's academic goals, we should adopt the job-opportunity (job-op) program offered at Plateau Technical College and strongly encourage all students at Waymarsh to participate in it. The success of the job-op program at Plateau is evident: Over the past two years, more than 75% of the freshmen at Plateau have enrolled in the optional job-op program. Moreover, at Plateau, the grades of job-op students are consistently higher than those of other students, 90% of the job-op students receive job offers within a month after their graduation, and most former job-op students report much success in their careers."


In this memorandum, the academic vice-president of Waymarsh University recommends that in order to achieve its academic goals Waymarsh should adopt the same "job-op" program currently offered at Plateau Technical College. To support this recommendation, the writer points out a high enrollment rate in the program at Plateau, high academic grades among Plateau students enrolled in the program compared to other Plateau students, and a high success rate among new Plateau graduates in finding jobs. However, the vice president's argument has several critical flaws as well as a false analogy.First of all, it is wrong on the author's part to compare Waymarsh University and Plateau. It is natural for Plateau to pay much attention to the job-future of its students, as Plateau is a technical college. However, the situation of Waymarsh University is distinct from the former. The author has not informed us about the academic goals of Waymarsh. There is a high possibility that these goals have nothing to do with enrollment in job opportunity programs. It might be that Plateau's goals are likely to depend on its job-placement rate, while Waymarsh's primary goal is to prepare its students for graduate-level study. Hence, without studying about Waymarsh's goals and ruling out other possible means of attaining them, the vice-president cannot conclude that Waymarsh should adopt the job-op program. He has to evaluate the situation more closely for justifying his statement.The second point that the author raises is that of the success of the job-op program at Plateau. As per the vice-president, more than 75% of the students at Plateau have enrolled in the optional job-op program in the past two years. Again, the author has assumed that the students at Waymarsh will also enroll in the job-op program as they did in Plateau. He has not provided any evidence in support of this assumption. It might be that Plateau students were far more concerned about obtaining employment immediately after graduation and Waymarsh students are not. The success of the program at Plateau has simply nothing to do with the accomplishment of Waymarsh University's academic goals.On the contrary, the program might actually deter the accomplishment of such goals of the university by distracting students from their studies by allowing them to work while going to university.The vice president also cites the success of the Plateau job-op program by stating that the grades of the job-op students are consistently higher than those of the other students. In addition, the fact that 90% of the job-op students at Plateau received job offers within one month of graduation is cited in support of the argument. However, there is a possibility that only the brighter, more competitive Plateau students enroll in the job-op program in the first place. The author has not ruled out this possibility. Moreover, job offers are not equivalent to getting jobs. The author has not given any data about the types of jobs the students were offered. The author has also failed to rule out other factors that might be contributing to their success, such as

individual struggle, good chance and other aspects that may have nothing to do with the program.The author has not offered convincing evidence to support his recommendation. If he wants to justify his statement, the author should make sure that such job-opportunity program will be really successful and Waymarsh University does need it to accomplish its academic goals. The vice-president must also prove that this job-op program is equally successful in placing university graduates as it is in placing technical-school graduates.

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