Questions and Answers

1. People should ride bicycles more, because air pollution is really a problem in the city.
A. An Argument.
B. Not An Argument.

2. Survival is the most important and most highly respected human value.
A. An Argument.
B. Not An Argument.

3. Our awareness of environmental problems is increasing. Already we have reduced the

emission of chemicals that destroy the ozone and have banned many pesticides.
A. An Argument.
B. Not An Argument.

4. My opponent argues that acid rain is destroying the environment, but that is an inaccurate,
incomplete, and irrelevant argument.
A. An Argument.
B. Not An Argument.

5. Species loss is at a crisis level. Harvard Biologist Edward Wilson estimates that nearly 140
species are lost every day.
A. An Argument
B. Not an Argument

6. The most important action for any of us to take is to protect the environment. Please, take
whatever action you can.
A. An Argument.
B. Not an Argument.

7. Since all pollution laws have economic consequences, we need to look at this law’s effect
on the economy.
A. An Argument.
B. Not An Argument.
8. When a species loses its natural habitat, it is nearly impossible to prevent it from going
extinct. There are only a few thousand Giant Panda, for instance, now that their habitat is
taken over by development.
A. An Argument.
B. Not An Argument.

9. How can we wait, even a single day, to take action to protect the environment?
A. An Argument.
B. Not An Argument.

10. The move to a more ecological society will require big changes. The industrial revolution
brought with it changes in government, family, and the economy. In the same way, the move
to an ecological society will likewise require a fundamental change in our way of living.
A. An Argument.
B. Not An Argument.

11. The affirmative argues that global warming will destroy the world, but they don’t prove
that because they present no evidence that global warming is happening in the first place.
A. An Argument.
B. Not An Argument.

12. The affirmative says that carbon dioxide is harmful to the environment. That is false.
A. An Argument.
B. Not An Argument.

13. In logic, the term “argument” always implies some kind of emotional confrontation.
A. True
B. False

14. The same argument can be written in more than one way, using different words, different
sentences and different sentence organization.
A. True
B. False
15. In ordinary language we often rely on implicit background assumptions when both
presenting and interpreting arguments.
A. True
B. False

16. "An argument is a set of claims, or statements."Is this enough to count as a proper
definition of an argument?
A. Yes, it's enough.
B. No, it's not enough.

17. Is the following argument is written in "standard form"?"Peanut butter is healthier for you
than ordinary butter. It's got peanuts, for one thing, and peanuts have protein and nutrients
that ordinary butter doesn't."
A. Yes, it's written in standard form.
B. No, it's not written in standard form.

18. "Whales are mammals, so of course they breathe air."This argument relies on an implicit
(unstated) premise in order to infer the conclusion. Choose the best candidate for this implicit
premise.
A. Whales are mammals.
B. Mammals are whales.
C. Whales breathe air.
D. Mammals breathe air.

19. An argument can be invalid but still qualify as a good argument.

A. True
B. False

20. An argument can have weak logic but still qualify as a good argument.
A. True
B. False
21. Validity comes in degrees — you can have arguments that are “very valid”, “moderately
valid”, etc.
A. True
B. False

22. The threshold between “weak” and “strong” arguments isn’t fixed or specified by logic.
It’s a conventional choice that we make.
A. True
B. False

23. If an argument form is valid, like the one below … 1. All A are B 2. x is an A Therefore,
x is a B … then all arguments that share this form are also valid.
A. True
B. False

24. 1. Almost all movies filmed in the past decade are in black and white. 2. The Hunger
Games movie was filmed in the past decade. Therefore, The Hunger Games is a black and
white movie.
A. Strong Argument
B. Weak Argument

25. 1. Almost all movies filmed in the past decade are in black and white. 2. The Hunger
Games movie is a black and white movie. Therefore, The Hunger Games was filmed in the
past decade.
A. Strong Argument
B. Weak Argument

26. 1. If I study hard then I’ll pass the final exam. 2. I passed the final exam. Therefore, I
studied hard.
A. Valid Argument
B. Strong Argument
C. Weak Argument
27. 1. Very few people are taller than 7 feet. 2. James is a person. Therefore, James is not
taller than 7 feet.
A. Valid Argument
B. Strong Argument
C. Weak Argument

28. “90% of the people surveyed at my local church support capital punishment. This gives
us reason to believe that most Americans support capital punishment.”
A. Valid Argument
B. Strong Argument
C. Weak Argument

29. Which is the conclusion in the following argument: Death penalty should be illegal.
Murder is always wrong
A. Death penalty should be illegal.
B. Murder is always wrong.

30. Which is the premise in the following argument?All cats are mammals, therefore,
some cats are mammals.
A. All cats are mammals
B. Therefore, some cats are mammals

31. Which is the conclusion in the following argument? You shouldn´t have bougt that car.
It's too expensive.
A. You shouldn´t have bought that car
B. It´s too expensive

32. Which is the conclusion in the following argument? I was lucky to find one! They are
rare items.
A. I was lucky to find one
B. They are rare items

33. The common notion of an argument is

A. A disagreement
B. A set of claims
C. None of the above

34. A logical argument is

A. A disagreement grounded in claims
B. An agreement supported by logical reasons
C. A set of claims offered as reasons to accept another claim

35. For an argument to be true, it needs to offer reasons.

A. True
B. False

36. Arguments always have explicit premises

A. True
B. False

37. Premises are reasons to believe the conclusion

A. True
B. False

38. Which of the following is NOT an argument?

A. If all dogs are mammals, then all dogs are reptiles. All dogs are mammals, therefore, all
dogs are reptiles.
B. A mammal is any of a class of warm-blooded higher vertebrates that nourish their young
with milk secreted by mammary glands, have the skin usually more or less covered with hair.
C. All mammals are blue. Dogs are mammals, therefore, dogs are blue.

39. For too long, school cafeterias, in an effort to provide food they thought would be
appetizing to young people, mimicked fast-food restaurants, serving items such as burgers
and fries, pizza, hot dogs, and fried chicken. School districts nationwide are now addressing
this trend by incorporating some simple and inexpensive options that will make cafeteria
lunches healthier while still appealing to students. This paragraph best supports the statement
that
A. School cafeterias have always emphasized nutritional guidelines over any other
considerations.
B. Young people would rather eat in a school cafeteria than a local fast-food restaurant.
C. School lunch menus are becoming healthier due to major new initiatives on the part of
school districts.
D. It is possible to make school lunches both healthier and appealing without spending a great
deal of money and undertaking a radical transformation.

40. By the time they reach adulthood, most people can perform many different activities
involving motor skills. Motor skills involve such diverse tasks as riding a bicycle, threading a
needle, and cooking a dinner. What all these activities have in common is their dependence
on precision and timing of muscular movement. This paragraph best supports the statement
that
A. Most adults have not refined their motor skills
B. All adults know how to ride a bicycle
C. Refined motor skills are specifically limited to adults
D. Threading a needle is a precise motor skill.

41. Close-up images of Mars by the Mariner 9 probe indicated networks of valleys that
looked like the stream beds on Earth. These images also implied that Mars once had an
atmosphere that was thick enough to trap the sun’s heat. If this were true, something
happened to Mars billions of years ago that stripped away the planet’s atmosphere. This
paragraph best supports the statement that
A. Mars now has little or no atmosphere.
B. Mars once had a thicker atmosphere than Earth does
C. The Mariner 9 probe took the first pictures of Mars
D. Mars is closer to the sun than Earth is

42. Forest fires feed on decades-long accumulations of debris and leap from the tops of young
trees into the branches of mature trees. Fires that jump from treetop to treetop can be
devastating. In old-growth forests, however, the shade of mature trees keeps thickets of small
trees from sprouting, and the lower branches of mature trees are too high to catch the flames.
This paragraph best supports the statement that
A. Forest fire damage is reduced in old-growth forests.
B. Small trees should be cut down to prevent forest fires
C. Mature trees should be thinned out to prevent forest fires
D. Old-growth forests have a larger accumulation of forest debris

43. Originating in the 1920s, the Pyramid scheme is one of the oldest con games going.
Honest people are often pulled in, thinking the scheme is a legitimate investment enterprise.
The first customer to “fall for” the Pyramid scheme will actually make big money and will
therefore persuade friends and relatives to join also. The chain then continues with the con
artist who originated the scheme pocketing, rather than investing, the money. Finally, the
pyramid collapses, but by that time, the scam artist will usually have moved out of town,
leaving no forwarding address. This paragraph best supports the statement that
A. It is fairly easy to spot a Pyramid scheme in the making
B. The first customer of a Pyramid scheme is the most gullible.
C. The people who set up Pyramid schemes are able to fool honest people
D. The Pyramid scheme got its name from its structure

44. Most Reality TV centers on two common motivators: fame and money. The shows
transform waitresses, hairdressers, investment bankers, counselors, and teachers, to name a
few, from obscure figures to household names. A lucky few successfully parlay their fifteen
minutes of fame into celebrity. The luckiest stars of Reality TV also reap huge financial
rewards for acts including eating large insects, marrying someone they barely know, and
revealing their innermost thoughts to millions of people. This paragraph best supports the
statement that
A. The stars of Reality TV are interested in being rich and famous.
B. Reality TV is the best thing that has happened to network television in a long time.
C. For Reality TV stars, fame will last only as long as their particular television show.
D. Traditional dramas and sitcoms are being replaced by Reality TV programming at an
alarming rate.

45. The image of a knitter as an older woman sitting in a comfortable, old-fashioned living
room with a basket of yarn at her feet and a bun in her hair is one of the past. As knitting
continues to become more popular and increasingly trendy, it is much more difficult to
describe the average knitter. Knitters today might be 18, 28, 40, or 65. They might live in a
big urban center and take classes in a knitting shop that doubles as a cafe or they may gather
in suburban coffee shops to support one another in knitting and other aspects of life. They
could be college roommates knitting in their dorm room or two senior citizens knitting in a
church hall. Even men are getting in the act. It would be incredibly difficult to come up with
an accurate profile of a contemporary knitter to replace that image of the old woman with the
basket of yarn! This paragraph best supports the statement that
A. People are returning to knitting in an attempt to reconnect with simpler times.
B. Knitting is now more of a group activity, as opposed to an individual hobby.
C. Creating an accurate profile of a particular type of person depends on the people in this
group having traits and characteristics in common.
D. Young people are turning to knitting in record numbers.

46. If you're a fitness walker, there is no need for a commute to a health club. Your
neighborhood can be your health club. You don't need a lot of fancy equipment to get a good
workout either. All you need is a well-designed pair of athletic shoes.This paragraph best
supports the statement that
A. Fitness walking is a better form of exercise than weight lifting.
B. A membership in a health club is a poor investment.
C. Walking outdoors provides a better workout than walking indoors.
D. Fitness walking is a convenient and valuable form of exercise.

47. In the past, consumers would rarely walk into an ice cream store and order low-fat ice
cream. But that isn't the case today. An increasing health consciousness combined with a
much bigger selection of tasty low-fat foods in all categories has made low-fat ice cream a
very profitable item for ice cream store owners.This paragraph best supports the statement
that
A. Low-fat ice cream produces more revenue than other low-fat foods.
B. Ice cream store owners would be better off carrying only low-fat ice cream.
C. Ice cream store owners no longer think that low-fat ice cream is an unpopular item.
D. Low-fat ice cream is more popular than other kinds of ice cream.

48. Today's high school students spend too much time thinking about trivial and distracting
matters such as fashion. Additionally, they often dress inappropriately on school grounds.
Rather than spending time writing another detailed dress policy, we should make school
uniforms mandatory. If students were required to wear uniforms, it would increase a sense of
community and harmony in our schools and it would instill a sense of discipline in our
students. Another positive effect would be that teachers and administrators would no longer
have to act as clothing police, freeing them up to focus on more important issues.This
paragraph best supports the statement that
A. Inappropriate clothing leads to failing grades.
B. Students who wear school uniforms get into better colleges.
C. Students are not interested in being part of a community
D. School uniforms should be compulsory for high school students.

49. The criminal justice system needs to change. The system could be more just if it allowed
victims the opportunity to confront the person who has harmed them. Also, mediation
between victims and their offenders would give the offenders a chance to apologize for the
harm they have done.This paragraph best supports the statement that victims of a crime
should
A. Learn to forgive their offenders.
B. Have the right to confront their offenders.
C. Learn the art of mediation.
D. Insist that their offenders be punished.

50. It is well known that the world urgently needs adequate distribution of food, so that
everyone gets enough. Adequate distribution of medicine is just as urgent. Medical expertise
and medical supplies need to be redistributed throughout the world so that people in emerging
nations will have proper medical care.This paragraph best supports the statement that
A. The majority of the people in the world have never been seen by a doctor.
B. Food production in emerging nations has slowed during the past several years.
C. The medical-supply industry should step up production of its products.
D. Many people who live in emerging nations are not receiving proper medical care