GEN 499 Critical Thinking Quiz / GEN499 Critical Thinking Quiz Ashford University. 1. Question : Catherine goes to her local movie theater only to see romantic comedies. Since Catherine did not go to the movies yesterday
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GEN 499 Critical Thinking Quiz / GEN499 Critical Thinking Quiz Ashford University. 1. Question : Catherine goes to her local movie theater only to see romantic comedies. Since Catherine did not go to the movies yesterday, there is not a romantic comedy playing at her local theater. The reasoning above is flawed because the evidence: does not suggest that Catherine goes to see every romantic comedy that plays at her local movie theater. implies that Catherine is uninterested in most types of movies. does not indicate whether Catherine watches only romantic comedies at home. suggests that Catherine’s local movie theater hardly ever shows romantic comedies. Question 2. Question : A recent study of 100 employees from six departments of a major corporation found 65% to be sleep deprived. The researchers concluded that the majority of corporate employees are sleep deprived. The researcher’s conclusion is suspect because it: assumes that corporate employees are more sleep deprived than other people. is based on evidence that is statistically impossible. fails to describe the effects the sleep deprivation has. relies on a sample that is too small to represent the entire corporate workforce. Question 3. Question : Since Jessica’s participation in local politics increased significantly after she joined her school’s political science club, it is clear that her involvement in that club led her to take an interest in politics. The argument above is flawed because: it doesn’t say which political issues Jessica is interested in. it states that the only purpose of the political science club is to spark an interest in politics. it misuses the word “significantly.” it’s possible that an interest in politics caused Jessica to join the political science club. Question 4. Question : All sages provide both wisdom and inspiration. Since Dasha’s speech contained wisdom and greatly inspired her audience, Dasha is a sage. Which one of the following points out the flaw in the argument above? Just because Dasha is a sage doesn’t mean that she is always wise and inspirational. Just because Dasha’s speech provided wisdom and inspiration doesn’t mean that it provided more wisdom than inspiration. Just because Dasha satisfied two requirements of being a sage doesn’t necessarily mean that she satisfies all the requirements of being a sage. Just because Dasha provided wisdom and inspiration in a speech doesn’t mean that all sages use speeches to provide wisdom and inspiration. Question 5. Question : <21{1[2(24)24]}> The average height of members of the high school basketball team is six feet, three inches. Jerry is on the high school basketball team, so Jerry must be taller than six feet. The argument above is flawed because it confuses Jerry with other members of the team the members of one team with the members of another team people who are six feet three inches tall for people who are exactly six feet tall an average for the individuals that make up that average. Question 6. Question : Mrs. Orlof teaches two history classes, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Yesterday she gave the same test to both classes. Anyone who failed the test must take a retest. Since a greater percentage of students who took the morning test failed the test than students who took the afternoon test, more of Orlof’s morning history students than afternoon history students will have to take the retest. The conclusion above is not necessarily valid because: more students in the morning class may have passed the test than failed the test. some students may have been absent from both classes. some of the students who passed the afternoon test may have received information about the test from morning students. more students may have taken the test in the afternoon than in the morning. Question 7. Question : Some politicians claim to support the environment in speeches they make around the country. However, to get to those speeches they ride in gas guzzling, pollution creating private planes. They therefore clearly don’t believe a word of what they say and are actually making the environmental problem worse. Which one of the following, if true, would best weaken the argument above? Some of the politicians try to hide the fact that they travel by private plane to their speeches around the country. Most people who hear the politicians’ speeches on the environment are unconvinced by their arguments. A majority of voters surveyed agree that politicians sometimes make society’s problems worse. Improvements to the environment brought about through the politicians’ public support of environmental regulations more than offset the damage done to the environment by the politicians’ private planes. Question 8. Question : The untimely death of Professor Hathaway halted his groundbreaking research into the uses of solar power. It therefore appears that Hathaway’s research will not result in practical applications. Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument? Professor Hathaway’s research can be used by other scientists to create useful applications. Not all professors at Professor Hathaway’s university knew that he was conducting research into the uses of solar power. Officials at Professor Hathaway’s university have refused requests to make Professor Hathaway’s research public. Researchers at other universities are conducting research into the potential applications of solar power. Question 9. Question : Career counselor: It is best for artists to build a practical and safe career that will guarantee them a secure income, and then pursue their art in their spare time. That way, they will be motivated to work hard at their day jobs to support their art making, and both their career and their art will thrive. Which one of the following, if true, would most weaken the argument? Some forms of art making are expensive and require a good deal of money to pursue. Many people who aren’t artists prefer to pursue practical and safe careers. Having the time and money to make art doesn’t guarantee an artist commercial success. Splitting time between two pursuits in life often causes both to suffer. Question 10. Question : Surveys show that people who use calorie information to decide which foods to eat consume on average 100 calories less than they would if they didn’t check calorie information before eating. Strangely though, people who use calorie information in this way weigh more on average than people who don’t check calorie information before eating. Which one of the following, if true, best explains the surprising statistic stated above? There are fewer people who check calorie information before eating than people who don’t check calorie information before eating. People who usually check calorie information before eating consume more calories if they stop checking. Some people who check calorie information before eating don’t consume any fewer calories than they would if they didn’t check. People with a weight problem are most likely to check calorie information before eating. Question 11. Question : Last season at City Opera House, far more people attended opera X than opera Y. However, opera Y generated far greater net profits for City Opera House than did opera X. Each of the following could directly explain the result indicated above EXCEPT: a difference in the ticket prices of operas X and Y. a difference in the operating expenses of operas X and Y. a difference in the subject matters of operas X and Y. a difference in the merchandise sales associated with operas X and Y. Question 12. Question : <11{4[2(06)50]}> Choose the pair of words/phrases among the choices that exhibits the same logical relationship as the words/phrases in the following pair. gavel : judge baton : conductor symphony : composer stop sign : driver ruler : math Question 13. Question : Choose the pair of words/phrases among the choices that exhibits the same logical relationship as the words/phrases in the following pair. conductor : orchestra skater : rink teacher : principal producer : movie director : cast Question 14. Question : Choose the pair of words/phrases among the choices that exhibits the same logical relationship as the words/phrases in the following pair. building : blueprint ship : sea cake : recipe bridge : island guitar : song Question 15. Question : Arthur: The solutions to most mystery novels I read are not believable. However, my enjoyment of a mystery novel depends only on its suspenseful mood and colorful characters. Norton: Roughly 80% of the mystery novels I read have believable solutions, which is good since I do not enjoy mystery novels that don’t have believable solutions. The speakers above: agree that most mystery novels do not have believable solutions. agree that a suspenseful mood and colorful characters add to the enjoyment of a mystery novel. disagree on whether a believable solution is required for the enjoyment of a mystery novel. disagree on whether an author’s enjoyment in creating a mystery novel influences whether that novel will have a believable solution. Question 16. Question : Barney: Last winter, I slipped on the outside stairs of PineTree Café and broke my leg. My fall was caused by ice on the stairs that the restaurant failed to remove. Since the restaurant clearly did not provide a safe atmosphere for its customers, I am justified in taking it to court. Lydia: Unwarranted lawsuits are sweeping the country—lawsuits that have no legal merit and are brought simply to make lawyers and their clients rich. If this trend continues, soon our legal system will be swamped to the point where it won’t be able to administer justice to people who truly deserve it. You therefore should drop your case against PineTree Café. The speakers above appear to disagree on which one of the following points? Barney is likely to win his case against Pinetree Café. Barney’s lawsuit against Pinetree Café is unwarranted. Many unwarranted lawsuits are sweeping the country. The legal system will soon be unable to administer justice to people who deserve it. Question 17. Question : The higher the price of an antique, the greater people’s expectation that the object is rare. That, in turn, makes the antique appear more valuable. If the statements above are correct, then offering an antique for sale at a bargain price: will likely increase people’s expectations that the antique is valuable. will guarantee that the antique will not sell at a profit. should be encouraged because it increases the likelihood that antique will be sold. should be discouraged because it lessens a quality that makes that antique desirable. Question 18. Question : <11{6[2(03)67]}> Only circus animals with a clean bill of health will perform in today’s exhibition. A monkey, a poodle, and a horse will perform in today’s exhibition. No circus animals with a clean bill of health were prescribed medications this week. If the statements above are true, which one of the following must also be true on the basis of them? The monkey, poodle, and horse are the only animals performing in today’s circus exhibition. No circus animals were prescribed medications this week. No more than two circus animals have a clean bill of health. Neither the monkey nor the horse performing in today’s circus exhibition were prescribed medications this week. Question 19. Question : Some drugs combat obesity or alcohol addiction by turning off pleasure centers in the brain. However, if the dosage is too high, there’s a risk that people taking them will be plunged into depression. The statements above, if true, support which one of the following assertions? It is useless to try to treat obesity or alcohol addiction through drugs. All drugs, if taken at too high a dosage, pose the risk that the people taking them will be plunged into depression. The benefits of a medication may be at least somewhat offset by its side effects. Drugs that affect pleasure centers in the brain are often taken at dosages considered to be too high. Question 20. Question : <11{7[2(03)79]}> Looking to increase the profits of his lemonade stand, Johann doubled the price of a cup of lemonade from 25 cents to 50 cents. This clearly shows Johann’s lack of business sense, for now he’ll almost certainly sell fewer cups at the new price and therefore make less money than before. The argument above assumes that: Johann is looking to double the profits of his lemonade stand. the price increase will likely put Johann out of business. profits from the price increase will not offset the money lost when fewer cups are sold. even if Johann sells more cups at the new price than he did at the old price, he’ll still lose money on the lemonade stand. Question 21. Question : <21{7[1(04)80]}> A company can either invest in employee training seminars or update its computer network. Since updating the computer network would result in more measurable benefits, the company would be best off updating its computer network. The argument above assumes that: investing in employee training seminars would yield negative results for the company. the more measurable a benefit, the greater value that benefit has to a company. the employee training seminars would focus on teaching employees to use the updated computer network. the benefit of the company investing in employee training seminars cannot be measured at all. Question 22. Question : <11{7[1(01)77]}> Detective: The robbery at the mall was carried out by a mall employee acting alone roughly one hour after the mall closed last Saturday night. The only employees present at the mall at the time of the robbery were security guards Evans and Clark. Since the mall’s surveillance system was disabled by the thief just before the robbery, the thief must be Evans. The argument above would be valid if: Clark is incapable of disabling the mall’s surveillance system. both Evans and Clark are capable of disabling the mall’s surveillance system. Evans and Clark are the mall’s only security guards. the mall’s surveillance system is usually used 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Question 23. Question : <21{8[1(07)95]}> Political science professor: Many people insist that the Internet is revolutionizing the political process. They argue that Internet debates and online political polls and chat rooms give people greater access to political information. And they’re right that online political chatter increases daily. But offering or reading anonymous online opinions does not by itself make for active political participation. In the past one would attend a rally, protest, or town meeting to engage in real politics. Today, people sit passively in front of computer screens under the illusion that they are connecting with their fellow citizens. Which one of the following best expresses the main idea of the professor’s argument? Internet debates and online political polls and chat rooms give people greater access to political information. Political organizations of the past bear no resemblance to the political organizations of today. While the Internet has made more political content available, meaningful political involvement has decreased. The Internet has revolutionized the political process because it has allowed many more political viewpoints to be expressed. Question 24. Question : <11{8[1(10)98]}> Sometimes people get caught in a “downward spiral,” a case in which something leads to a result which in turn leads to more of the original thing, bringing on more of the result. As the process continues, the result continually gets worse and worse. An example is when people turn to binge eating when depressed, which causes them to put on weight and feel unhealthy, which then makes them more depressed, leading to more overeating, and so on. The author is mainly concerned with: convincing people not to overeat. explaining the process of the “downward spiral.” showing how overeating can lead to depression. showing how some processes lead to surprising results. Question 25. Question : <11{8[1(04)92]}> The very large increase in allergies over the last thirty years is due to the great success of immunizations administered over this time period. Since immunizations have nearly eliminated life-threatening diseases such as polio, the human immune system increasingly targets other environmental substances in order to keep working properly. Allergy symptoms such as runny nose and itchy eyes result when the immune system attacks pollen that is breathed in from the air. Which one of the following best expresses the main point of the passage above? Immunizations often have surprising side effects. Immunizations have been very successful in eliminating life-threatening diseases. Viruses that once caused polio now cause allergies. The use of immunizations has led to an increase in allergies.
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