Self-study
Support A store was vandalized repeatedly over a six-month period. ████ ██████████ ███ ███████ ████ █ ███████ ███ █████ █████ █████████ ██████ █████ ████ ██████ ████████ ██████ ███ █████████ ██ ██████████ ██████████████ ███ ████ █████ ██ ██████ ███ █████████ ██ ██████████ █████ ██████ ██████ ███ █████ █████ ████████ ██ ███ ████ ██████ ████ █████ ███ ████ ██ █████████ ██ █████████ █████ █████ ████████ █████████████ ███ ██████ █████████ ████ ██████ ████████ ███ ████ █████████ ██████ ███ █████████ ██ ███ ██████
Summarize Argument: Phenomenon-Hypothesis
The friend hypothesized that bright lighting had been installed around the perimeter of the store. This is based on the fact that the store owner had mentioned to the friend that bright lighting has been known to reduce the rate of vandalism, and three months after that conversation, the rate of vandalism at the store owner’s store had dropped to zero.
Notable Assumptions
The friend assumes that there’s no other explanation for why the rate of vandalism dropped besides the installation of bright lighting around the perimeter. The friend also assumed that it was possible for the store owner to install bright lighting around the perimeter.
5.
Each of the following, if █████ █████ ████ ████ ████████ ███ ████████ ██████████ ███████
a
There had been ██ ████████ ██ ██████ ██████████ ██ ███ █████
This provides an alternate explanation for the drop in vandalism.
Alternate explanation
Alternate explanation
Weaken: Introduce or support an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
Strengthen: Helps to eliminate an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
b
Bright lights must ██ █████████ ███████ ████ █ ████████ ████████ ███ ████████████ ██ ███ ███████ ███████ █████ ██ █████ ████ ███████
Since the report of a drop in vandalism occurred only three months after the initial conversation, (B) provides a reason to think the store owner wouldn’t have been able to install bright lighting yet.
Plausibility
Plausibility
Presenting evidence that corroborates (in Strengthen) or conflicts (in Weaken) with the author's hypothesized explanation or the predictions that follow from that explanation.
c
The store owner ████████ ████ ███ ███ ██████ ████████ ██ ███ █████████ ████ ███████████ █ █████████ ██ ██████████ ████████ ██████ ███ █████ ████ ███ ████
This provides evidence that could support the theory that bright lights had been installed. Stores near those lights also experienced a drop in vandalism, but stores that were not near those lights did not experience a drop.
Directionally wrong
Directionally wrong
Answers that, if they have any effect, do the opposite of what we want (weaken when we're trying to strengthen, or strengthen when we're trying to weaken).
d
The store's budget ███ ███ █████ ███ ███ ████████████ ██ ██████ ██████ ██████ ███ ██████████
This provides a reason to think the store owner would not have been able to install bright lights around the perimeter.
Plausibility
Plausibility
Presenting evidence that corroborates (in Strengthen) or conflicts (in Weaken) with the author's hypothesized explanation or the predictions that follow from that explanation.
e
The store owner ███████ ██ █ ████████ ██ ███████ ███ █████ ████ ████████
This provides an alternate explanation for the drop in vandalism.
Alternate explanation
Alternate explanation
Weaken: Introduce or support an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
Strengthen: Helps to eliminate an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.