Week 16 Question 3

3). Pick one concept from throughout the semester that you feel can use further discussion.


I feel that some parts of Chapter 9 (Concealed claims) could be further discussed only in the sense of examples. Extra examples of downplayer, up-player, hyperbole, weaselers, and shift the burden of proof, would have been a lot more helpful for me at least, only because the book did not do a good job in my opinion giving examples or explaining exactly what each term was. Also for me Chapter 7 (Counter-Arguments) could have been a little more explained outside of the book, because for me the book just did not do justice on giving good examples throughout this chapter. Also I found that Chapter 8 (General Claims) had too many things within the chapter to explain individually, so it was a bit hard to understand exactly what contradicted with what and so on. I just wished sometimes while reading all of the chapters, that the book gave a couple really simple examples of each term or idea and then gave a couple complex examples of each term or idea because when there was only complex examples it was a little hard to follow with such a huge explanation as to why or what was being explained.

Week 16 Question 2

2). What was your favorite thing about the class?  What was your least favorite thing about the class?  How can this class be improved?  Again, be specific.

I would have to say that my favorite thing about this class was being able to be flexible with when to do the assignments and the understanding of the online instructions. When I signed up for this class I had never taken an online class before and I had never done any blog type web posts before either and lucky enough for me, this class was really easy to understand. I also liked that this class did not exactly get in the way with my other classes and I could do what was needed for me to do, when it was the right time for me. In addition, I also really liked the accessibility of the professor and quick responses that the professor gave.  What I was not too fond of with this class was the weekly due dates for this class, it was a bit confusing and hard to remember that this classes deadline for everything was Saturday and not Sunday. The week seemed to go by faster and I felt that sometimes time ran out too fast with the deadline for everything being Saturday. I think the only thing that I might improve about this class would be to maybe not have as many group assignments, but rather individual assignments, only because it is so hard to coordinate in person meetings for some of us.

Week 16 Question 1

1). What have you learned in this class over the course of the semester?  Be specific.

This semester I learned a lot. However most importantly, I learned about claims (and all the types of claims: compound, descriptive, prescriptive, subjective, objective) and how to make a valid and/or strong argument from a claim. I learned how to repair claims, make weak/false claims into strong/valid claims and I learned how to make implausible claims into plausible claims. I was also learned how to make sure arguments, claims, analogies, comparisons, etc. were trustworthy or not through many sources. I also learned all of the appeal to emotion points of view. I am now able to see in a lot of papers that I write or that are written by others, which appeal to emotion perspective they are writing in. I also learned all of the fallacies (slippery slope, false dilemma, strawman, begging the question), which helped me a lot. Although I am still a little confused with some of what we learned through the semester, such as counter arguments, concealed claims, and general claims, I learned a lot that I am taking away with me as we end the semester.

Week 12 Question 3

3). Pick one concept or idea from the assigned reading, that we have not already discussed, that you found useful or interesting, and discuss it

I thought that the outline of how to evaluate an analogy was really helpful. There are several steps to evaluating an analogy. Some include questioning of the analogy is an argument, and if the analogy is an argument then what is the conclusion. Another step to evaluating an analogy is to figure out what the comparison is within the analogy. Another step includes figuring out what the premises of the analogy on one or both sides of the comparison are. This then leads to questioning what the similarities in the analogy are, and if there are similarities determining a premise that makes up a general principle that covers both sides of the comparison. The next step would be to really deciding if the general principle can be used to cover both sides of the comparison and if the differences matter. The next and final step to evaluating an analogy is to determine if the argument is strong, valid, or good.

Week 12 Question 2

2). Sometimes when something is difficult to understand, it becomes a bit clearer when we try to explain it to someone else.  Which type of reasoning was most difficult to understand?  Please do some additional internet research on that specific type of reasoning and discuss what you learned.

I think the reasoning by criteria was the hardest because although there were examples of what to do for an example of my own of the reasoning by criteria there was no specific clarification on which type of example would be best for this reasoning. I think the sign reasoning was the most helpful and the easiest one to understand. I also really liked the website that was used for explaining the sign reasoning, because it also really helped me on understanding the other types of reasoning and lead me to make better examples of each type of reasoning. The other websites that were mentioned were not as straight forward and although there were not that great of examples from the website for the sign reasoning, the very simple examples that were mentioned allowed me to be able to come up with more complex examples on my own.  I also kind of had a little trouble on the reasoning by analogy, but once I referred back to the actual book, I was able to understand the definition and how to make an example much more clearly.

Week 12 Question 1

1). Read through the different types of reasoning posted to the instructors blog.  Give an example of each type of reasoning outlined on the instructors blog.  The example should be something the folks in class can relate to, so try to use real world examples.

1). Reasoning by Analogy
Example: Doing drugs because it is "cool" is like committing a murder because your "role model" told you to.
2). Sign Reasoning
Example: Where there is girls, there is drama.
3). Casual Reasoning
Example: Drunk driving causes injury or death.
4). Reasoning by Criteria
Example: Either when I walk outside my home it will be hot or cold. If it is cold outside when I walk out, it is not going to be hot.
5). Reasoning by Example
Example: You should go to the Jessica's party and make friends. My best friend went to one of her parties and she ended up making over a dozen friends.
6). Inductive
Example: I drive to school every Monday and Wednesday morning at 7:00 am. Tomorrow is Wednesday so I will drive to school at 7:00 am. 
7). Deductive
Example: All green vegetables are healthy. Broccoli is a green vegetable. Broccoli is healthy.

Week 11 Question 3

3). Pick one concept from the assigned reading this week, not already discussed, that you found useful or interesting and discuss it.

I think that in the first question I pretty much covered everything that helped me in this chapter and I feel like this chapter was by far the most interesting to me, because now, especially while viewing advertisements on the television and on the internet, I will be able to use and connect these appeals to emotions with the advertisements.  Granted not all of them will be good arguments, but this chapter really helped me I think now and will continue to help me in the future.

Week 11 Question 2

2). Pertaining to page 195, complete objective 1, 2, 3, 6 OR 7.

http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1408&bih=613&tbm=isch&tbnid=2n3AbfOv-0YT-M:&imgrefurl=http://jjseno.blogspot.com/2011/10/emotionalizing-business-part-2emotions.html&docid=XZYvirqEAXnI4M&imgurl=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbx_FONN5kLgZlCMSjOrqBR6CdkVPZBr6h8DQ71SAM2sVHgSEkYxsbd5xLs29h1mI6bwgkcrgwnzqWBEIL6FRb-0P-Uy-yJ6487_uUB0I6tPrIWDlz4AFuIfz6mdQLvxydhoANeLi4cCY/s1600/Fear%252Bad%252Ba%252Breal%252Bone.jpg&w=500&h=375&ei=SSy2TozZE8OTiQLes-g7&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=403&vpy=140&dur=297&hovh=194&hovw=259&tx=150&ty=106&sig=104908340232940388573&page=1&tbnh=134&tbnw=179&start=0&ndsp=21&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:0

This advertisement demonstrates appeal to fear because its insinuating that most people fear what their cholesterol levels are. Most people our age (18-25) would think that a final exam (what the advertisers are comparing cholesterol to) would be much scarier than a cholesterol blood check, but what the advertisement is trying to get across is that cholesterol tests are scary for some people, especially those who do not care about their body and do not eat well. I am sure if this advertisement had something to sell, it would be selling cholesterol pills or a diet or a weight management program or something, but from this point of view, its just trying to invoke fear into people about their cholesterol, to make people worry about it, therefore take care of themselves and their bodies. I think this advertisement is a very good argument, because it has good evidence and premises.

Week 11 Question 1

Discuss the idea of Appeal to Emotion. There are different aspects of Appeal to Emotion, which type of Appeal to Emotion strikes you, and why?

An appeal to emotion is stating a premise within an argument based on how one feels or thinks due to his or her own emotions.
There are a lot of different aspects of appeals to emotion. One that is appeal to pity, which is stating a premise within an argument based on feeling bad or sorry for someone or something, for example a lost puppy or a kidnapped baby.
Another aspect of an appeal to emotion is an appeal to spite, which is stating a premise within an argument based on hoping for revenge. An appeal to spite, expressed the idea that two wrongs make a right, for example since Courtney did not clean the bathroom, then I am not going to do it (if she's not going to do it then why should I? Or if she's not going to do it then neither am I).
Another aspect of an appeal to emotion is calls in your debts appeal, which is basically the opposite of an appeal to spite, therefore one should do something or have faith in something or someone because a person owes someone something. For example, well Charlie helped me study for my exam, so I should buy him some lunch. 

Week 9 Question 3

3). Pick one concept from the assigned reading this week, not already discussed, that you found useful or interesting and discuss it.

There are many ways of checking claims and arguments for validity. One way is by using a diagram. While reading the book and having the author explain how the diagram is used was a little bit confusing, but using them personally, it really does help. The point of using the diagram to find out if an argument or claim is valid is to have each part of the claim be able to fit within another part of the claim.
An example of a valid argument would be : All trees have leaves. An oak is a tree. So an oak tree has leaves.
An example of a weak argument would be: All trees have leaves. An oak has leaves. So an oak is a tree.

The difference between these two examples is simple, the order. The slightest difference in order can determine if an argument is valid or weak. Therefore it is very easy for certain claims to be seen as valid, but are really weak and visa versa.

Week 9 Question 2

2). Discuss the usefulness of the first or second major course assignment. Use specific examples.

I think that both of the class assignments have been really helpful, I just think that I got different things from both of them. The first assignment, since I do not like politics or the news, was a stretch for me and in the end it helped me a lot. It also allowed me use the book in order to find what we needed to find for the specific parts to the assignment. When my group met I really understood what was going on and we all had a easy time figuring out the premises, and the main claim, and the descriptions, and the evidence. Without the book it would have been a lot harder. The second assignment I learned a lot because the assignment and the subject of the assignment interested me a lot more. The second assignment for me based on the part of looking in the book and referring to the book made things a little more challenging than the last assignment because the concepts were not as easy for me to understand. Like having to decide if the references were acceptable or needed to be rejected or suspending judgement. Also having to find and look for specific fallacies was a little harder, because in the book the examples are so much easier than in real life.

Week 9 Question 1

1). Discuss one concept in Chapter 8 that you found useful. Please explain the concept and give a personal example or personal story.

I think I found the first section of Chapter 8 the most useful, General Claims and Their Contradictories. I like how the book gave a good explanation about what "all" means and what "some" means and showed how using those words does not always work.     
All means "every single one, no exceptions." All  sometimes also means, depending on the argument, "every single one, and there is at least one." 
Some means "at least one." Some sometimes also means, depending on the argument, "at least one, but not all."

An example of using "all" would be: All of my friends are living the college experience.
This example I just used would be following the definition of "every single one, and there is at least one" because all of my friends living the college experience is about 10 people.  The contradictory of this example would be some of my friends are not living the college experience.

An example of using "some" would be: Some dogs are violent.
This example I used would be following the definition of "at least one, but not all" because I know a lot of dogs that are violent, but my dogs are not violent at all. The contradictory of this example would be No dogs are violent.

Week 7 Question 3

3). Pick one concept from either text, not already discussed, that you found useful or interesting and discuss it. Use either Chapter 6 or Chapter 7.

Necessary and sufficient conditions is saying two claims are equivalent if each is true exactly when the other is.
For example: If people drink at a party and get caught, they are going to get in trouble.
People will not get in trouble if they drink at a party and do not get caught.

This is called a Contrapositive, if A, then B is. If not B, Then not A. These are therefore equivalent.
Conditionals are needed to understand what is meant by necessary and sufficient conditions.
Necessary Condition: A is necessary for B means if not A, then not B is true. For example, it is necessary to feed pets or they will die. Therefore: if a person does not feed his or her pets, he or she will not have a pet anymore because it will die.
Sufficient Condition: A is sufficient for B means if A, then B is true. For example, it is sufficient to feed pets in order for them to live. Therefore, if a person feeds his or her pet, his or her pet will live.

Week 7 Question 2

2). Please discuss, in detail, what you learned from reading Chapter 7.  Discuss at least 2 things you learned.

Raising objectives is a typical way to show that an argument is not a good one. This is done by calling into question one of the argument's premises, or showing that an unstated premise is dubious, or illustrating why an argument is weak. Everyday people reason through arguments, counterarguments, and counter-counterarguments. Thinking of the objectives one might have towards a claim, can strengthen and validate a claim even more, but one has to be willing to see the other side of the claim as well as their own. 

There are three ways to refute an argument directly. One way is to show that at least one of the premises is dubious.  Another way is by showing that an argument is not valid or strong. The other way is by showing that the conclusion is false. There are also ways to refute an argument indirectly. With refuting indirectly there might not be exact ways to refute the argument, but there are negatives and objectives that can be pointed out in an argument that will be considered refuting the argument. One way that a person can refute an argument indirectly is by reducing to the absurd. This means to show that at least one of the claims within an argument is false, dubious, or unacceptable, but drawing a false conclusion from them. If the conclusion is false that means that some part of the argument is false as well. One may not be able to show or pinpoint the issue, but knowing that the conclusion is false leads to the argument being weak.

Week 7 Question 1

1).Please discuss, in detail, what you learned from reading Chapter 6.  Discuss at least 2 things you learned.

A compound claim is a claim that is made up of multiple claims, but must be viewed as only one single claim. This is done by words linking claims together, making it the claim a bunch of multiple claims put together, but is only read like it is one claim. The key word to look for in compound claims is "or". "Or" links two claims together, but allows the reader to read the claim as one.
For example: You should do homework or go to bed.
The alternatives (which are the individual parts of a compound claim) would be you should do your homework. You should go to bed.


 A conditional claim is one that can be read with the words "if" and "then" (in other words it is a claim where one thing will lead to another, If A then B)
Within these conditional claims, The A part of the claim is the antecedent, and the B part of the claim is the consequent.
For example: If I get to sleep in then I will not be a grouch.
The antecedent of the claim is I get to sleep in. The consequent of the claim is I will not be a grouch.

Week 6 Question 3

3). Pick one concept from the assigned reading this week, not already discussed, that you found useful or interesting and discuss it.

The Guide to Repairing Arguments is a helpful list that helps students, teachers, and everyone to turn a problematic argument into a better argument by adding a premise or conclusion that makes the argument better or stronger, is plausible or could be seem as plausible to the other person involved in the argument, and the premise is more plausible than the conclusion. This guide also allows for strong and valid arguments to have premises taken out, if the deletion of the premise does not affect the strength or validity of the argument.

The first step to repairing arguments is by making the argument strong or valid, to show the other person in the argument what needs to be assumed. By doing so, one must make sure that the premises do not lead to the conclusion being false. If a premise is found where it leads to the conclusion being false, there must be a plausible premise added to the argument so it becomes valid or strong. Eliminating ways for the premises to be true and the  conclusion to be false perfects the arguments and makes it better.

Another way to repair arguments is by adding indicator words. There are certain words to indicate conclusions and certain words to indicate premises. Indicator words are flags put on claims, to highlight what part of the claim is what, but they do not act as part of the claim. Some examples of conclusion indicator words are: so, therefore, hence, thus, etc. Some examples of premise indicator words are: since, because, given that, in as much as, etc.

Week 6 Question 2

2). Concerning Section C in Chapter 5, Advertising on the Internet. Please find a piece of advertising on the internet, provide a link on your blog, a screenshot, or include the advertisement in your post so the class can see what you are discussing. You should then relate the piece of advertising back to the concepts in Sections A & B in chapter 5 and discuss.

http://dm.trysensa.com/dms2437/?gclid=CLyBjraXxqsCFRRSgwod5jkK5A

This link is for Sensa Weight Loss System, I chose a weight loss advertisement because I feel like those advertisements are the ones that pop up the most on the television and on the internet. Eat weight loss program advertisement is essentially the same yet they claim to be very different from each other. This weight loss system advertisement claims that a person can lose weight by not going to the gym and not, not changing your diet, and not mapping out food intake. This advertisement says that it is clinically proven with 100% customer satisfaction, yet I find that very hard to believe. Referring back to my personal experience, I find it entirely impossible to lose weight without doing anything. Although I have not tried this product, my personal experience tells me not to believe this advertisement. Although I do not know these people who are advertising this product, I find it entirely hard to believe them. Look at Kirstie Ally, she was on what Jenny Craig or something and apparently lost 100 pounds or something like that and while on the commercials, was showing up on tabloids looking 100 bigger than before. All of these weight loss programs and their advertisements always always ALWAYS says in the smallest font possible that results are not typical (http://www.frankwbaker.com/dietad3.jpg), which therefore means that there is definite reason not to believe this particular advertisement. Now hey some people may be able to use this product and actually see results, but not everyone and definitely not the kind of results like the people who have the "success stories." Most of this is due to my lack of knowledge of who writes these advertisements and who is makes these claims, but based on my personal experience (which is the most reliable source of information) I do not believe this advertisement.

Week 6 Question 1

1). In our last discussion week we talked about Violating the Principle of Rational Discussion (page 202) and Content Fallacies (page 201). This week I would like you to discuss the idea of repairing arguments. For this question, please come up with an argument that needs to be repaired. Look over the examples on pages 63-67. Come up with your own example and 'discuss' it as they do in the text. To accomplish this, you should understand the Principle of Rational Discussion and the concept of Repairing Arguments.

 Original Argument:
Any who drinks alcohol all day every day is an alcoholic, therefore Mandy is an alcoholic.

This argument is very weak because it is missing a premise, fortunately this argument can be repaired to the point of making the argument stronger or valid. The premise that is missing is  "Mandy drinks alcohol all day every day." Without this premise present the conclusion could turn out false due to the weakness of the argument to begin with.

The stronger argument would then turn into:
Any who drinks alcohol all day every day is an alcoholic. Mandy drinks alcohol all day every day, therefore she is an alcoholic.

Another example of repairing an argument is: Sean is wearing green and yellow, which means he must be a Oakland A's fan.

This argument is definitely weak because there are multiple teams out there whose team colors are green and yellow for instance the Green Bay Packers.

The repaired argument should be something like:
Sean is wearing green and yellow to the Giants vs A's game, therefore he must be an Oakland A's fan.

Week 4 Question 3

I have always heard about fallacies throughout literature, but never really knew exactly what they were or what problems they cause, but now reading Chapter 11 in Epstein I understand more.
A fallacy is a a bad argument of one of the types that have been agreed to be typically unrepairable. Or in other words a fallacy is something in literature that breaks the rules that must be followed throughout literature, that cannot usually be fixed. There are three categories of fallacies, which are structural fallacies (bad arguments due to their form), content fallacies (bad arguments due to their need for repairing of false dubious premises), and the Principle of Rational Discussion ( bad arguments due to irrational discussion or misleading discussion).
Within each category contains multiple, specific fallacies. Some structural fallacies include: arguing backwards with no, affirming the consequent, denying the antecedent, etc. Some content fallacies include: drawing the line, false dilemma, slippery slope, mistaking the person for the argument, etc. Some fallacies that violate the Principle of Rational Discussion include: begging the question,  strawman, relevance, etc.

Week 4 Question 2

2). Violating the Principle of Rational Discussion (page 202) and Content Fallacies (page 201). Pick one, explain the fallacy in your own words, then give a real world example that you have heard in the past. (You may need to do additional 'research' for the fallacy that you have chosen if the concept is not clear from the text. You can 'google' the particular fallacy you have chosen for an additional explanation).

A content fallacy called the slippery slope fallacy is the mistaken thought that if A happens then B and C must come next, or follow.  Although this fallacy does not always play its part in some situations like with pregnancy for example (if you keep the baby of course or do not have a miscarriage) getting pregnant leads to gaining weight, which leads to having a big belly, which leads to giving birth, which then of course leads to having a baby and ends with being a mom.
However, this fallacy is used a lot in many situations as well. For example (and this is just something I am coming up with on the spot that I am sure is truth to someone), if someone eats a lot of healthy food, that person therefore think he or she is going to lose weight, which will then turn bring up his or her confidence, which will then allow them to get a boyfriend or girlfriend.
However, this slippery slope falls into the fallacy section because this person is not considering the outside parts to it. Just because someone is going to start eating a lot of healthy foods does not mean he or she is going to start losing weight; they also need to take into consideration going to the gym, working out, gaining muscle opposed to fat, cutting out fast food munchie runs, not eating at chain restaurants, etc. This fallacy is not always the easiest to see, because in situations like the one above, people just think well if I eat healthy I am going to lose a bunch of weight and the outside factors are overlooked.

Week 4 Question 1

Concerning 221 - 225 Complex Arguments for Analysis: Page 225 contains Exercises on the Structure of Arguments. Please choose one of the 5 exercises and complete the exercise in one post to your blog. After you have completed the exercise, discuss whether or not this exercise was useful.

I chose Exercise 3: Las Vegas  has too many people. There's not enough water in the desert to support more than a million people. And the infrastructure of the city can't handle more than a million: The streets are overcrowded, and traffic is always congested; the schools are overcrowded, and new ones can't be built fast enough. We should stop migration to the city by tough zoning laws in the city and county.

This argument is definitely a claim because anyone could see this statement as true or false.
(1) Las Vegas has too many people
(2) There's not enough water in the desert to support more than a million people
(3) The infrastructure of the city can't handle more than a million
(4) The streets are overcrowded and traffic is always congested
(5) The schools are overcrowded and new ones can't be built fast enough

Conclusion: We should stop migration to the city by tough zoning laws in the city and county.

Addition Premises?: I do not really think this argument needs any more premises because there is enough evidence and support with all of these premises to make the conclusion true and make the claim strong.

Subargument?: There's not enough water in the desert to support more than a million people, therefore the infrastructure of the city can't handle more than a million.

Good Argument?: This argument, I believe is a good argument, it has all parts of a good argument, and I think that this argument is even a strong one, because there is possibility that the premises could be true and conclusion false.

I do not know if this exercise was helpful because I do not know if I did it right. If I did do it right then it was a little helpful, but more so confusing as to what to do exactly. If I did it wrong then this exercise was just plain confusing.

Week 3 Question 2

2). Discuss Strong versus Valid Arguments in detail. Give an example of each from everyday life.

An argument is only valid when there is absolutely no way that the evidence of that argument could be true, while the conclusion of the argument could be false.

Valid Argument Example: Vegetables make people healthy because they contain a lot of vitamins and nutrients. Josh eats a lot of vegetables, therefore he is healthy.
Research has been done to prove that eating vegetables makes people healthier, which is why parents force kids to eat their vegetables. Since Josh eats vegetables, he has to be healthy because vegetables make people healthy.

A strong argument is when the evidence of the argument is true, but there a possibility however big or small that the conclusion of the argument could be false.

Strong Argument Example: In the United States of America, the legal age for drinking is 21, therefore no one under 21 drinks.
This is only a strong argument opposed to a valid argument because there are definitely people under the age of 21 who drink. The evidence of the argument is very true, but the conclusion at least from my observation is false.

Week 3 Question 1

1). Concerning part "C" in chapter 3 of the Epstein text, The Tests for an Argument to Be Good - there are three tests an argument must pass in order for the argument to be good. There are many examples in the book on pages 42-45. Please come up with an argument just like the examples, and discuss it using the three tests on Page 42. Keep in mind that your test should be different from the examples in the book and that you should discuss the three criteria in detail. This post may be quite a bit more than 150 words. In addition, it is imperative that you understand the concepts contained within the 3 tests for an argument (page 42).

Argument: Good video games are addictive, and Dead Space is a good video game, therefore Dead Space is addictive. 

In order for this argument to be a good argument it must pass the three tests: that the premises of the argument are true (meaning the parts that relate to the conclusion of the argument making it strong or valid are correct) , the premises are more plausible than the conclusion (meaning that the premises alone can stand true by themselves and do not have to lead to the conclusion for them to be true) , and the argument is valid or strong (meaning the stated argument is either able to validate truth or it is just a confident statement, that could be proven true).
Test One: The premises of the argument, which are that video games are addictive is true because it has been proven by researchers. Also, only the good video games are addictive because no one plays the bad video games therefore they cannot be good. Since Dead Space is an actual video game, this statement is proven to be true as well. However, due to ratings from players and reviewers of the game, Dead Space being a good video game is also true.
Test Two: The premises of the argument are much more plausible than the conclusion because there are actual facts and information to prove that the premises are plausible, more than that Dead Space is addictive, only because there is not any outward research that states that Dead Space the video is actually addictive, although it is a good argument because the premises are so plausible.
Test Three: The argument is valid or strong because it passes the other two tests. In this case the argument is strong because there is no valid data that proves that Dead Space is addictive, but it could definitely be proven.

Week 2 Question 3

3). Pick one concept from the reading (either Epstein or the Small Group Comm book) and discuss it in detail.

Descriptive claims that tell the truth (facts). Prescriptive claims tell what should be.
I feel that this is a common mistake that people make all the time. People always hear others saying what should be or what people should do and just because one believes something does not make that person right or his or her belief true.

Descriptive claim:
Smoking and drinking are unhealthy habits. This is true because there have been actual studies and there is research that demonstrates that smoking and drinking lead to unhealthy results (death, car accidents, cancer, abuse, etc.)

Prescriptive claim:
Drinking and smoking should be illegal to all people under the age of 25. This is a prescriptive claim because it is what someone thinks should be. This is not truth and this is not a fact, it is the thought and belief of a person who thinks that drinking and smoking should not be legal until all persons are the age of 25.

I think that this is an important subject to learn about because people usually tend to feel what they think/believe is right/true and that everyone should follow what they think, instead of the truth.

Week 2 Question 2

2). Use an example from everyday life: Describe a vague sentence or ambiguous sentence you have heard recently. Where did you hear this sentence? An advertisement? Was it a conversation with a friend? What qualified the sentence as vague or ambiguous?

A vague or ambiguous sentence is one that can be interpreted in more ways than one and is lacking detail, unless the sentence is made more clear. 
Vague Sentence: The other night my boyfriend and his friend were playing video games and I was in the other room. While I was laying in bed I heard my boyfriend say "you can tap it, and you stomp like crazy". Once I heard this vague sentence I came out to the living room and asked what he was talking about. My boyfriend was talking about a button on the video game controller his friend could press to make the character in the video game stomp his foot on the ground to kill a zombie. This sentence was a vague one because if I had not gotten any clarification on what my boyfriend was talking about, I would not have known that he was talking to his friend about a button for video game purposes. The sentence also qualified as being vague because there were not specific details about where or what his friend should tap to make an action happen. If no clarification was provided I could have thought that my boyfriend was referring to drugs in the sense of how drugs are used (not saying that he uses drugs) or something else completely off topic to video games. Therefore the sentence not only lacked clarification, but also details.

Week 2 Question 1

1). Use an example from outside of the classroom. Discuss Subjective and Objective Claims. Give an example of a Subjective Claim you have heard or used recently AND give an example of an Objective Claim you have heard or used recently. Describe the situation. Describe the claims IN DETAIL.


When starting to read about subjective and objective claims, it kind of had me a little confused, but I think I now have it figured out. A subjective claim is basically just a claim that is a personal opinionated statement, where one person may think something is true, another person may think it is not.
Subjective Claim: The other day I was walking on campus and I noticed that a girl was wearing a very low cut shirt. I pointed this out to my friend who thought that the shirt was too low cut as well. We both discussed that it was not appropriate for the girl to be wearing such a revealing piece of clothing, especially at school. To us the girl's shirt was too provocative, where the girl could have thought that the shirt was just cute and stylish. However, just because my friend and I thought that the shirt was too low does not make it a true statement. The shirt was just too low in our personal opinions, which is why this is a subjective claim.


An objective claim is basically the opposite of a subjective claim. An objective claim is a claim in which there is impersonal truth to the statement. The claim is not based on personal opinion, but rather a standardized fact.

Objective Claim: The other night my sister was "cooking" pizza for dinner. The directions on the box said to leave the pizza in for about 15 minutes. My sister, liking the crispier crust, set the timer for 20 minutes. I told her at the 15 minute mark that she needed to take the pizza out right away otherwise it would burn. She did not believe me. Sure enough however, 5 minutes later at the 20 minute mark she opened the oven and the pizza was burnt. Me saying "take the pizza out right away otherwise it will burn" was the objective claim here. It was not my opinion that was saying take the pizza out now, it was the fact that if my sister did not take the pizza out right away, it would burn. It was not my personal thought that if the pizza was taken out at the 20 minute mark that the pizza would be burnt, it was the fact of science that made the statement objective.

Hello :)

Hi Professor Perez and class,
My name is Chelsea Ercolini and I am a second year.  I am from San Jose and am really looking forward to this class. :)