Testprep数学精解

THE LOGICAL STRUCTURE OF THE ARGUMENT ABOVE IS MOST SIMILAR TO WHICH ONE OF

THE FOLLOWING?

(A) TO INSURE THAT THE REMAINING WETLANDS SURVIVE, THEY MUST BE PROTECTED BY

THE GOVERNMENT. THIS PARTICULAR WETLAND IS BEING NEGLECTED. THEREFORE, IT W

ILL SOON PERISH.

(B) THERE WERE NUTS IN THAT PIE I JUST ATE. THERE HAD TO BE, BECAUSE WHEN I

EAT NUTS I BREAK OUT IN HIVES, AND I JUST NOTICED A BLEMISH ON MY HAND.

(C) THE PRESIDENT WILL BE REELECTED UNLESS A THIRD CANDIDATE ENTERS THE RACE

.. A THIRD CANDIDATE HAS ENTERED THE RACE, SO THE PRESIDENT WILL NOT BE REELE

CTED.

(D) EVERY TIME MELINDA HAS SUBMITTED HER BOOK FOR PUBLICATION IT HAS BEEN RE

JECTED. SO SHE SHOULD NOT BOTHER WITH ANOTHER REWRITE.

(E) WHEN THE GOVERNMENT LOSES THE POWER TO TAX ONE AREA OF THE ECONOMY, IT J

UST TAXES ANOTHER. THE SUPREME COURT JUST OVERTURNED THE SALES TAX, SO WE CA

N EXPECT AN INCREASE IN THE INCOME TAX.

TO SYMBOLIZE THIS ARGUMENT, LET THE CLAUSE "HE IS INNOCENT" BE DENOTED BY I,

AND LET THE CLAUSE "WHEN WE HOLD HIM UNDER WATER FOR SIXTY SECONDS HE WILL

NOT DROWN" BE DENOTED BY ~D. THEN THE ARGUMENT CAN BE SYMBOLIZED AS

I-->~D

~D

THEREFORE, I

NOTICE THAT THIS ARGUMENT IS FALLACIOUS: THE CONCLUSION "HE IS INNOCENT" IS

ALSO A PREMISE OF THE ARGUMENT. HENCE THE ARGUMENT IS CIRCULAR--IT PROVES WH

AT WAS ALREADY ASSUMED. THE ARGUMENT AFFIRMS THE CONCLUSION THEN INVALIDLY U

SES IT TO DEDUCE THE PREMISE. THE ANSWER WILL LIKEWISE BE FALLACIOUS.

WE START WITH ANSWER-CHOICE (A). THE SENTENCE

"TO INSURE THAT THE REMAINING WETLANDS SURVIVE, THEY MUST BE PROTECTED BY TH

E GOVERNMENT"

CONTAINS AN EMBEDDED IF-THEN STATEMENT:

"IF THE REMAINING WETLANDS ARE TO SURVIVE, THEN THEY MUST BE PROTECTED BY TH

E GOVERNMENT."

THIS CAN BE SYMBOLIZED AS S-->P. NEXT, THE SENTENCE "THIS PARTICULAR WETLAND

IS BEING NEGLECTED" CAN BE SYMBOLIZED AS ~P. FINALLY, THE SENTENCE "IT WILL

SOON PERISH" CAN BE SYMBOLIZED AS ~S. USING THESE SYMBOLS TO TRANSLATE THE

ARGUMENT GIVES THE FOLLOWING DIAGRAM:

S-->P

~P

THEREFORE, ~S

THE DIAGRAM CLEARLY SHOWS THAT THIS ARGUMENT DOES NOT HAVE THE SAME STRUCTUR

E AS THE GIVEN ARGUMENT. IN FACT, IT IS A VALID ARGUMENT BY CONTRAPOSITION.

TURNING TO (B), WE REWORD THE STATEMENT "WHEN I EAT NUTS, I BREAK OUT IN HIV

ES" AS

"IF I EAT NUTS, THEN I BREAK OUT IN HIVES." THIS IN TURN CAN BE SYMBOLIZED A

S N-->H.

NEXT, WE INTERPRET THE CLAUSE "THERE IS A BLEMISH ON MY HAND" TO MEAN "HIVES

," WHICH WE SYMBOLIZE AS H. SUBSTITUTING THESE SYMBOLSSINTOSTHE ARGUMENT YIE

LDS THE FOLLOWING DIAGRAM:

N-->H

H

THEREFORE, N

THE DIAGRAM CLEARLY SHOWS THAT THIS ARGUMENT HAS THE SAME STRUCTURE AS THE G

IVEN ARGUMENT. THE ANSWER, THEREFORE, IS (B).

DENYING THE PREMISE FALLACY

A-->B

~A

THEREFORE, ~B

THE FALLACY OF DENYING THE PREMISE OCCURS WHEN AN IF-THEN STATEMENT IS PRESE

NTED, ITS PREMISE DENIED, AND THEN ITS CONCLUSION WRONGLY NEGATED.

EXAMPLE: (DENYING THE PREMISE FALLACY)

THE SENATOR WILL BE REELECTED ONLY IF HE OPPOSES THE NEW TAX BILL. BUT HE WA

S DEFEATED. SO HE MUST HAVE SUPPORTED THE NEW TAX BILL.

THE SENTENCE "THE SENATOR WILL BE REELECTED ONLY IF HE OPPOSES THE NEW TAX B

ILL" CONTAINS AN EMBEDDED IF-THEN STATEMENT: "IF THE SENATOR IS REELECTED, T

HEN HE OPPOSES THE NEW TAX BILL." (REMEMBER: "A ONLY IF B" IS EQUIVALENT TO

"IF A, THEN B.") THIS IN TURN CAN BE SYMBOLIZED AS R-->~T. THE SENTENCE "BUT

THE SENATOR WAS DEFEATED" CAN BE REWORDED AS "HE WAS NOT REELECTED," WHICH

IN TURN CAN BE SYMBOLIZED AS ~R. FINALLY, THE SENTENCE "HE MUST HAVE SUPPORT

ED THE NEW TAX BILL" CAN BE SYMBOLIZED AS T. USING THESE SYMBOLS THE ARGUMEN

T CAN BE DIAGRAMMED AS FOLLOWS:

R-->~T

~R

THEREFORE, T

[NOTE: TWO NEGATIVES MAKE A POSITIVE, SO THE CONCLUSION ~(~T) WAS REDUCED TO

T.] THIS DIAGRAM CLEARLY SHOWS THAT THE ARGUMENT IS COMMITTING THE FALLACY

OF DENYING THE PREMISE. AN IF-THEN STATEMENT IS MADE; ITS PREMISE IS NEGATED

; THEN ITS CONCLUSION IS NEGATED.

TRANSITIVE PROPERTY

A-->B

B-->C

THEREFORE, A-->C

THESE ARGUMENTS ARE RARELY DIFFICULT, PROVIDED YOU STEP BACK AND TAKE A BIR

D’S-EYE VIEW. IT MAY BE HELPFUL TO VIEW THIS STRUCTURE AS AN INEQUALITY IN M

ATHEMATICS. FOR EXAMPLE, 5 > 4 AND 4 > 3, SO 5 > 3.

NOTICE THAT THE CONCLUSION IN THE TRANSITIVE PROPERTY IS ALSO AN IF-THEN STA

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