Philosophy 105, Quiz #3 answers

Philosophy 105, Quiz #3

 

Required reading: Textbook, Chapter 2; also (in Additional Material folder): “Facile Assumptions.” And: Textbook, Chapter 3; also (in Additional Material folder): “Deduction vs. Induction” (both documents) and “Validity.”

 

EXAM: For each of these arguments, provide (a) one basic assumption of the argument that is interesting, important, or significant (not “facile”). Also (b) state the question that the argument is addressing. Also, (c) indicate whether the argument is deductive or inductive. Finally, (d) type out the exact conclusion of the argument (do not use the brackets technique). The ten passages/arguments are worth 2 points each, total 20 points.

 

 

1. When Velasquez pitches, the Phillies usually win. This trend is especially obvious when the Phillies play at home, although they are in Cincinnati tonight. Velasquez is probably going to pitch tonight. I’m willing to bet that the Phils will win tonight.

 

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2. Let’s assume that not all philosophers have beards. We know that Rudolf Walrus is a philosopher, and that he is a traitor to our country. So, it follows that no traitors to our country have beards.

 

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3. Juan got a high score on the LSAT. That’s why I believe that he must have gone to a good college and (in addition) paid for quality tutoring.

 

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4. Juan ended up going to a good college. He probably got a high score on the ACT and had a high GPA at his high school.

 

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5. Smoking cigarettes is shtupid. Why? Smoking cigarettes produces bad breath. Doing anything that produces bad breath is shtupid. It also burns your schnoz, and that’s shtupid.

 

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6. In 1984, there were only 44,250 automobile fatalities. But that number is still too high. The reduction in 1984 was due primarily to increased federal requirements for motor vehicle safety. So, even stricter federal safety controls should be enacted.

 

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7. Galileo’s hypothesis about heliocentrism should be praised. He had the gutz to theorize against the Biblical account in Ecclesiastes, which states that the sun rises and sets and hastens to the place where it will rise again. Galileo also had the chutzpah to ignore God’s other words in the Bible that point to geocentrism. (I wonder why God didn’t strike him down with a bolt of lightning.)

 

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8. I think it is safe to assume that anything that indicates an increased risk of heart attack should be taken very seriously by anyone over forty. So high levels of low-density lipids in the bloodstream ought to be taken seriously by such people, because these lipids definitely are indicators of increased risk.

 

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9. The country Slovenia must be a former part of pickle-making Communist Yugoslavia. This is because Slovenia is a Balkan country that makes plenty of pickles and is now politically independent. Further, all the former parts of Yugoslavia have by now become independent Balkan countries.

 

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10. A survey was recently taken in which a large number of names were randomly selected from the white-pages telephone book of Philadelphia. Whoever answered the phone was asked (unless an infant) whether they preferred Trump, Clinton, or John Fry in the presidential race. Over half the respondents (excluding the infants) picked Fry. But many voters do not have listed telephone numbers and thus had no chance of being selected. The result of the survey was, therefore, unreliable, since it ignored the views of Philadelphia infants.

 

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11. [Two points extra-credit.] I should totally call Joanne to ask her to take good notes in Marketing tomorrow. This bug I caught is wearing me out; I can’t even hold a pencil. I’m also dizzy from the fever caused by the infection. Why? I’m still pure! I hope Joanne didn’t come down with something.

 

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