Usefulness of the Second Assignment

It was definitely easier communicating for this assignment since my group worked well together. This did improve my ability to work in a team environment, which is helpful for my engineering major. I hope to continue to build on that. It's encouraging to know that I don't necessarily have to take an engineering related class to improve my skills related to my major.

Personally, I was not aware of what exactly ASPCA was until this assignment. After doing some research, it was clear on how much they've done and how much they mean to animals in need. What surprised me was the claims and fallacies that were incorporated into the organization's website. For example, I knew that the pictures of sad and neglected animals were displayed to make people feel sad, but I wasn't aware of was that it related to the Epstein's text. Now, I'm aware of the claims listed in the text and how to find them in places other than books.

General Claims and Diagrams

General claims are claims that argue something about all or part of a collection in a general way. These claims may or may not be true depending on the wording. Epstein describes the usage of "all", "some", "no", and "only". An example of a valid general claim is "All drivers must get their license to drive a car. Jeff has his license. So Jeff can drive a car." When using "all" in an argument, one must consider that it means "every single one, no exceptions" or sometimes "every single one, and at least one." Some means "at least one". It can also mean "at least one, but not all." In both cases, the meaning depends on the argument. "No" can mean "no any single one" or "not even one."

Diagrams are a helpful way of understanding these kinds of arguments These types of diagrams are similar to a Venn Diagram. However, like the claims, diagrams can be valid or invalid. Ways to check for validity include: a collection is represented by an enclosed area, and if one area is entirely within another, then everything in one group is also in the other. Additionally, if two areas do not overlap each other, then the two areas have nothing in common with each other.

Raising Objections and Refuting Arguments

Raising objections is basically trying to show that an argument is bad and why it is bad. While raising objections, another argument is made that counters the bad argument either by questioning the premise or premises or disproving the conclusion. We all experience this kind of arguing and counter-arguing everyday, whether we notice it or not. Recently, my girlfriend and I had debated where we were going to have lunch. She suggested pizza, but I countered by saying we had pizza last week and suggested a burger place. She counter-argued by saying we also had burgers last week. We did that back and forth until we finally decided to just eat at home. We each pointed out what was wrong with the other person's argument.

Refuting an argument is basically a method of counter-arguing. One can refute an argument either directly or indirectly. By disproving an argument directly, a person must either show that a premise is dubious, show that the argument is weak, or show that the conclusion is false. On the other hand, indirectly refuting an argument involves explaining how a false or unwanted conclusion is a result of the premises stated.

Compound Claims and Conditional Claims

Compound claims are single claims made up of multiple claims. A compound claim, regardless of how many claims it consists of, is viewed as a single claim. For instance, consider a child breaking a lamp by playing ball in the house. Both of his parents are angry at him, but are undecided on who would punish him. So, either the father will punish him, or the mother will. As you can see, regardless of which premise happens (punishment from father or punishment from mother), the child will be punished for his behavior.

As stated by Epstein, "a claim is conditional if it can be rewritten as an 'if...then..." claim that must have the same truth value. In other words, something will only happen if a previous action occurs before. For example, Lisa will only go on a date with Jim if he pays for everything. This is considered conditional because if Jim were not to pay for everything, then Lisa would not go on a date with him.

Online Advertising

I'm sure all of us have seen the freecreditreport.com commercials at some point. You know, the ones with the catchy songs about accessing your credit score. Well I personally tried to sign up for it the other day thinking that I would be able to check all three of my credit scores for no cost to me. What I did not know was that it was a free trial and that I would be charged $15 every month for access to my credit report. Unfortunately, I did not find that out until 2 months after I initially signed up for the trial. When I did try to cancel my subscription over the phone, two of the customer service people hung up on me. Eventually I did get it canceled, but I'm $30 poorer now because I did not read the fine print. This taught me to never accept any of these "free" ads without reading the fine print.