Chapter 17 partner practice

Directions Identify the type of reasoning used in the following examples. Write the type of reasoning on the slide. Notice any weaknesses in the reasoning

1. According to a study by the American Medical Association, men with bald spots have three times the risk of heart attack as men with a full head of hear. Strange as it may seem, it looks as if baldness is a cause of heart attack.

2. We can see from its work all around the world that Women for Women International is a worthy charitable organization. It has helped women in Rwanda operate sewing machines and make clothing. It has given women in Kosovo the skills to operate businesses in their communities. It has shown women in the Democratic Republic of Congo how to create and market ceramics.

3. The United States Constitution guarantees all citizens the right to bear arms. Gun control legislation infringes on the right of citizens to bear arms. Therefore, gun control legislation is contrary to the Constitution.

4. Almost every industrialized nation in the world except the United States has a national curriculum and national tests to help ensure that schools throughout the country are meeting high standards of education. If such a system can work elsewhere, it can work in the United States.

Additional Fallacy – Appeal to Misplaced Authority Use of testimony or an expert in a given field to endorse an idea or product for which the expert does not have the appropriate credentials or expertise. Bill Gates supports adding a fifth year to high school, so it must be a good idea. After all, he’s one of the richest men in America.

Fallacies Read each fallacy in logic and write its name on the slide.

One There are too few instances to support your conclusion Example – You can’t speak French; I can’t speak French; Pete can’t speak French; therefore, no one at this school can speak French.

Two Attacks the person rather than the issue. Example - I can’t support Representative Frey’s proposal for campaign finance reform. After all, he was kicked out of law school for cheating on an exam.

Three A false assumption that because it’s popular it’s a good idea. Example – Choosing not to wear your bicycle helmet when you ride by thinking, “It’s okay not to wear my helmet. No one wears one these days.”

Four This happens when a speaker introduces an irrelevant issue to divert attention from the subject under discussion. Example – Argument for making grad school requirements stricter: "I think there is great merit in making the requirements stricter for the graduate students. I recommend that you support it, too. After all, we are in a budget crisis and we do not want our salaries affected."

Five A fallacy that forces listeners to choose between two alternatives when more that two exist Example – Either we build a new high school or children in this community will never get into college.

Six A faulty cause and effect connection between two things or event There can be no doubt that the Great Depression was caused by Herbert Hoover. He became President in March 1929, and the stock market crashed just seven months later.

Seven Assumes that taking a first step will lead to other negative steps that cannot be avoided. Example - If we approve a construction permit for this home, the next thing you know, people will want to build in our valley. Then they will pave new roads and put in gas stations and other businesses. Before you know it, all of our beautiful land will be turned into a parking lot for a giant shopping mall.

Eight - This occurs when you try to compare two things that are not similar. Doctors look at X-Rays and CAT scans during operations, builders look at blueprints, lawyers refer to their notes in a trial, why shouldn’t students be allowed to use their notes during an exam?

Nine A fallacy which assumes that something old is automatically better than something new. There is no need to change our company’s manufacturing process. Our assembly line has worked for the past 80 years, and it will work just fine for the next 80 years.

Ten A fallacy which assumes that something new is automatically better than something old Of course we should use the latest innovations in testing for high-school students. If the testing methods are new, they will definitely be better than older methods.

Eleven Use of testimony or an expert in a given field to endorse an idea or product for which the expert does not have the appropriate credentials or expertise. Tina Fey had this to say about the United Nation’s position on Iraq . . .