Self-study
Journalist: Contrary to popular opinion, Conclusion it is more dangerous for an individual to drive during the day than during the night. █ ██████ █████ █████ ████ ██ ████ ██ ███ ████ ███ ██████ ███ ██████ ██ ███████ █████████ ████ ████████ ██ █████ ███ ███████ ██████ ███ ███ ████ ██████ ███ ██████
Summarize Argument: Phenomenon-Hypothesis
The journalist hypothesizes that driving during the day is more dangerous than driving at night. She supports this by citing a study showing that the number of fatal traffic accidents was higher during the day than at night in each of the last ten years.
Notable Assumptions
The journalist assumes that the number of fatal accidents is the best indicator of driving danger and directly translates to it being more dangerous to drive during the day. She doesn’t consider other factors like traffic volume, non-fatal accidents, or other potential risks.
10.
Each of the following, if █████ █████ ██ ██████████ ███ ████████ ███████
a
Only during the ███ ███ █████ ████ ██████ ████ ████ ████████ ██ ███ █████
This strengthens the hypothesis by providing an additional reason why daytime driving is more dangerous and nighttime driving is safer. If there are only more unsafe vehicles during the day, then there are more safe drivers than unsafe drivers at night.
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.
b
There is decreased ███ ███████████ ████████ ██████ ███ ████
This strengthens the hypothesis by providing an additional reason why daytime driving is more dangerous. Decreased law enforcement during the day may increase the likelihood of reckless drivers, speeding, and other risk factors.
Causal mechanism
Causal mechanism
Answers that strengthen by shedding light on the "how?" of the cause and effect relationship. For example, high altitude training causes better aerobic performance. How? The causal mechanism could be that the thin air at high altitudes cause physiological changes that support better oxygenation.
c
Persons drive more ██████████ ██████ ███ █████ ████ ██████ ███ ████
This strengthens the hypothesis by providing an additional reason why daytime driving is more dangerous and nighttime driving is safer. Because people drive more cautiously during the night than during the day, daytime driving is more dangerous.
Causal mechanism
Causal mechanism
Answers that strengthen by shedding light on the "how?" of the cause and effect relationship. For example, high altitude training causes better aerobic performance. How? The causal mechanism could be that the thin air at high altitudes cause physiological changes that support better oxygenation.
d
The number of █████████ ███ ███████ ███ █████████ ████ ███ ████ ███ ██████
Irrelevant— we don’t know whether this applies to vehicles traveling in the day, at night, or both. We also don’t know whether having more travelers per vehicle makes driving more or less dangerous. So, (D) doesn’t strengthen the argument.
e
Persons drive faster ██████ ███ ███ ████ ██████ ███ ██████
This strengthens the hypothesis by providing an additional reason why daytime driving is more dangerous and nighttime driving is safer— because people drive faster during the day than at night.
Causal mechanism
Causal mechanism
Answers that strengthen by shedding light on the "how?" of the cause and effect relationship. For example, high altitude training causes better aerobic performance. How? The causal mechanism could be that the thin air at high altitudes cause physiological changes that support better oxygenation.