335 comments

  • 2 days ago

    I think the weakest arguments are the theory ones and the more factual ones are the strongest but you cannot argue against them.

    1
  • 4 days ago

    Weakest is the trash argument, because what if he has eaten something that did not involve toppling the trash over? What if that is how he normally eats? The strongest is the walt argument because it rules out what he didnt need to do to get a genie pass, and the other thing that is required to get a genie pass is ruled in

    2
  • Thursday, Feb 26

    Weakest: Trash argument because it is a "hypothesis", an observation rather than proof.

    Strongest: Disney, cause it is fact that Walt didn't access the pass through the premise, so the conclusion proves he had to get it another way.

    2
  • The Disney argument provides two options and we are made aware one of them is no longer possible. We are also told that the only conclusion possible by these two arguments has been accomplished, meaning that it could have only been achieved using the argument that has not been touched yet. With the Tiger we are given a reason for why the argument is agued correct, but what makes this a weaker argument is that it is something that can be unlikely. Finally, for the detective we aren't given information that allows us to eliminate any other variables, instead we are simply given some amount of context on why it is believed our arguement is correct. A guess.

    2
  • Tuesday, Feb 24

    the disney one eliminates the alternatives, tiger leaves the option for an unlikely but possible alternative and the detective is a guess

    1
  • Monday, Feb 23

    The strongest argument notes possible alternative conclusions, but still weeds them out.

    1
  • Monday, Feb 23

    The strongest arguments do nor provide room for any other conclusion to be true, as is in the Disney argument.

    The Tiger argument has premises that are essentially always true, but COULD rarely not the case in certain extenuating circumstances. For instance if someone WANTED their pet to cause injuries to some people, then the conclusion is no longer supported.

    The Detective argument is the weakest because while the premises are suggestive and consistent with the conclusion, there is still a strong possibility the cat could be innocent.

    2
  • Sunday, Feb 22

    Disney must be the strongest because it identifies all parties who use the app: those who go the mickey route, and "ALL other members" who go the Goofy route. Tiger is weaker because of the word "can".

    1
  • Friday, Feb 20

    I think because 2 is a if not then answer, 1 is required the assumption that tigers are mammals and then the third is more of a inference

    0
  • Friday, Feb 13

    I think this might relate to entailment. If a specific conclusion MUST be true, i.e., it is entailed by the premises, then that is the strongest kind of argument. We could have predicted the conclusion of the Disney argument just from the premises alone.

    Other conclusions aren’t necessarily entailed by their premises, but the premises provide support that the conclusion COULD be true. Mr. Fat Cat COULD have knocked over the trash can, but maybe Mrs. Skinny Dog knocked it over and Mr. Fat Cat just picked up some of the spilled salmon. The conclusion is supported, but it’s not the only possible conclusion to draw.

    The tiger example feels like it’s in between. It makes a less strong claim in the conclusion (“not all” mammals is very broad), but the support is sufficient to entail the conclusion. As long as we can name ONE mammal that’s not fit to keep as a pet, we have a sound argument. We might not have been able to predict the exact conclusion just given the premise alone, but given both the premise and conclusion the flow of support is clear.

    5
  • Tuesday, Feb 10

    Some arguments can be stronger than others when the premises compound to justify each other, revealing a world that makes the conclusion unarguably true

    1
  • Tuesday, Feb 10

    The Disney arguement is the stronges because it addresses all of the possibilities of the Genie+ pass before concluding Walt's connection with the pass. There seems to be only two ways to get the pass: offer ten goats' worth of proriation to Michey Mouse or selt-postration at Goofy's altar in the Magical Kingdom. The conclusion proves that Walt did not partake in the second option because he did not postrate himself at Goofy's altar.

    The tiger argument is mediocre due to the fact that its premise uses a tiger to conclude a statement about all mammals.

    The trash bin argument is a weak argument because the premise does not prove the conclusion to be true.

    1
  • Tuesday, Feb 10

    To me, the trash bin, seemed like you could poke holes in the premises, which made the argument weak in comparison to the other two stimuli, the premise were stronger in supporting conclusion in that world.

    1
  • Monday, Feb 09

    I believe the Disney Argument is the strongest due to the irrefutable support it offers. Meaning, anytime I would consider, hm but what about this flaw? It would refute it with more support. Until finally offering the conclusion.

    Once I decided the “strongest,” I considered Trash Bin Vs. Tiger Argument. This is where I determined the Trash Bin argument felt very “persuasive” and “believe me because I’m a detective,” which an earlier lesson told us a persuasive argument does not equal a strong argument whereas I felt the Tiger argument was stronger though shorter.

    Thats my hypothesis.

    1
  • Thursday, Feb 05

    I would argue that the Disney vacation club is the strongest because its premises account for 'all' eventualities. To get the pass you must have done either a or b. Additionally, it is extremely detailed in conveying its logical steps. I would argue that the tiger argument is supported, but there are grounds for 'yeah but' that are not quite covered by the writer. For instance, we must make the assumption that aggression is tied to insuitability. We must tie that to be a pet, the animal cannot kill people. The argument also leaves ground for someone saying, well, what if the tiger is tame, what is other animals that are well-known pets like dogs or cat cause injuries to people? It is easier to dismantle the argument. The trash bin argument does a decent job of qualifying the claim ('my hypothesis is') but it falls into the same 'yeah but' problem as the tiger one. What is there was a strong breeze in the kitchen for some reason? What if someone broke in? What if the dog knocked down the trashcan? As the argument does not account for these questions, it is severely weakened.

    1
  • Wednesday, Feb 04

    My hypothesis of why the tiger argument is stronger than the cat one is because the tiger does fulfill the mammal requirement, so almost like its chains correctly.

    3
  • Wednesday, Feb 04

    The Disney argument is the strongest because it leads you directly to the conclusion and how we got there because it only gives you one other option and it’s very direct than detailed.

    The tiger example is thesecond strongest because it does give a good example but it’s broad as well as it doesn’t really define the word suitable and some people might actually be able to have a tiger and not something else. It just is too broad and I feel like if they were to make this example more detailed, it would be better.

    The trashbin example is last because although it does give an example of how the cat usually does that after he eats, we’re just assuming that he knocked the bin over the bin could’ve been top because of something else. It could’ve been too heavy, or someone else may have hit it. For example, the cat could’ve literally just eaten its food somewhere else and then gotten on the counter and started licking his paw while the bin was already topped over. We can’t base the conclusion of it being his fault with a hypothesis when there is no evidence if there were to have been cat scratches or paw prints on the outside of the trashcan that’s different if the cat was licking salmon from dinner off of his paws and you saw that it was orange that would be different, but all we’re doing is assuming which is why that’s the weakest example

    2
  • Edited Friday, Jan 30

    Tigers: Presumes that a small group (tigers) is representative of the population (animals).

    Trash Bin: It's hard to put a exact reason for me, but I'd say there is an assumption that just because he is licking his paw as if eaten, means he must've eaten, and thereby spilling trash.

    Inference vs misrepresentation led me to think tigers is weakest of the three.

    3
  • Thursday, Jan 29

    The reason why Tigers argument is flawed:

    1. the "suitability" is not clearly defined in the conclusion. It can very well be subjective i.e. what is suitable to me might not be suitable to you. "Suitable" here is a vague term, pointing to nothing definite.

    2. "Aggressive and can cause serious injuries to people" is just a fact and does not support suitability and unsuitability in the conclusion. For instance, I might have a cage at home or I can bring a timid breed of tigers that only eats things that I give.

    3. What can make the argument fool proof would be the necessary assumption that ties these to missing links: "Aggressive and can cause serious injuries to people" is not suitable. Then the argument will be fool proof.

    1
  • Tuesday, Jan 27

    The first argument is the strongest due to the way the facts help conclude how Walt has the Genie pass via process of elimination. There's only two possibilities as to how Walt obtained it.

    The second argument provides the conclusion and an example to support the conclusion, instead of listing mammals that do work as pets.

    The third doesn't provide evidence that the cat actually pushed the trash bin, rather it just provided assumptions. It tries to use the cats past actions to support the argument.

    5
  • Tuesday, Jan 27

    The first argument is the strongest because the relationship between the conclusion and the premises are multifaceted. It provides a wealth of evidence to increase the likelihood that Walt offered the ten goats.

    The second argument is strong because it provides a coherent basis to increase the likelihood that not every mammal is safe to keep as a pet. By drawing on the natural instincts of these animals, the prompt establishes support for its claim.

    The third argument is not the strongest because it hinges on circumstantial evidence. In the given scenario, there may exist a correlation between the scene and the cat, but it does not necessarily mean that the cat was the cause. Therefore, by concluding that the cat was the reason without ironclad proof, this argument is undoubtedly the weakest.

    1
  • Edited Friday, Jan 23

    The Disney argument is the strongest because it is the most organized, covers all angles, and leaves no room for speculation. It provides two possibilities, and then clearly states option A is not true, so option B would have to be true.

    The tiger argument is the second strongest. While on the surface it is a valid premise and conclusion, it is phrased more broadly. You can argue about the definition of "suitable". If you live in a mega mansion and the aggressive animal is kept in a cage, then technically an aggressive tiger could be suitable for you. I would say that is the main flaw. You could argue about how not all tigers are aggressive, but even then the fact that some are would support the conclusion of not all mammals being suitable pets. I think the flaw lies in the broadness of the conclusion and the ability to pick it apart where the premise doesn't support it. The Disney argument is more uniformly true and specific.

    Then the final argument is clearly the least strong because the evidence is massively speculative and just overall weak.

    4
  • Edited Tuesday, Jan 20

    The Disney argument works well because it outlines a framework for the argument that the other two do not have. There are clear facts and a process at work. If one thing is true the other is not. Therefore if one set of circumstances is met it is because the other is not.

    The tiger argument is weaker because it is basing the argument on one species of animal and providing two supporting premises that one can find flaws with. Not all tigers behave the same way and not all tigers are inherently aggressive. For example tigers in zoos do not all maul their handlers on sight and just because a tiger can cause serious injuries doesn't mean it will. The same argument could be made for a human being. One could make the argument that the institution that keeps the tigers has in a way made them pets for educational purposes.

    The trash bin argument is the weakest because the evidence is circumstantial. Because there is nobody else to point a finger at, the cat is accused of the behavior, but the cat could have come in after the trash bin was knocked over. Or the cat could have eaten something else ignoring the trash altogether.

    4
  • Monday, Jan 19

    The Disney argument is the most clear and leads you to the conclusion without doubt (two possibilities in the premise, if its not one then it is the other). Then the tiger one still stong but not as much because it states tigers are aggressive and "can" cause serious injuries to people (does not say they always do). Maybe they could be suitable pets if people are very cautious. The trash bin example is pretty weak as it states the cat must have knocked the bin over to eat when the premise shows no support of intentionallt dropping the bin. Maybe the cat is responsible for eating the fish but did not drop the bin himself. This argument is clearly the weakest one as it goes off an assumption more than what the premise presents.

    1
  • Monday, Jan 19

    Assumption. I have to assume less in the Disney, followed by tiger, and then cat.

    2

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