a) Decide whether the following is best judged either a plausible argument or a mistake in reasoning. Avoiding exaggeration and being willing to entertain alternatives are usually good habits to cultivate.
1. Experiments are designed to answer factual questions, not ethical questions. Italian scientists have successfully grown an embryo from a chimpanzee’s egg and human sperm. So, while this experiment answers a factual question, it also raises ethical questions such as: whether such an experiment should be conducted or not.
A) Slippery Slope Falacy (implausible consequence)
B) Genuine Dillemma
C) False Dillemma (ignore alternatives)
D) Slippery Slope (plausible)
2. Experiments are designed to answer factual questions, not ethical questions. Italian scientists have successfully grown an embryo from a chimpanzee’s egg and human sperm. So, this experiment answers a factual question, and does not raise any ethical questions.
A) Slippery Slope Falacy (implausible consequence)
B) Genuine Dillemma
C) False Dillemma (ignore alternatives)
D) Slippery Slope (plausible)
b) Match the following common mistakes in reasoning to the name of the fallacy:
3. Alcoholism is either a disease or it is not. If it's a disease, alcoholics cannot be blamed for their actions. If it is just a matter of will power, they can be blamed. Alcoholism does have a physiological cause. Only people with this physiological defect are susceptible to becoming alcoholics. Of course, if a person knows they have the medical condition, they can get medical help to get sober, and then stay away from alcohol. So, even if alcoholism is a disease it is not clear whether an individual can control his or her behavior or not.
A) Reasonable Compromise
B) Begs the Question
C) Golden Mean Fallacy
D) False Dilemma
E) Genuine Dilemma
4. Does our government maintain sufficient safeguards against a nuclear disaster? Obviously our government does care about the safety of nuclear power plants. Otherwise our government would not permit nuclear power plants to operate; and our government would not permit these plants to operate if they were not safe.
A) Reasonable Compromise
B) Begs the Question
C) Golden Mean Fallacy
D) False Dilemma
E) Genuine Dilemma
5. Patriots, who love their country, never criticize their country during time of war. Abraham Lincoln, while he was a senator, argued that the United States was wrong to attack Mexico; and decorated US war heroes from World War II opposed US involvement in Vietnam. In each case, these people are not patriots, because no patriot would question his own country's acts during war.
A) Reasonable Compromise
B) Begs the Question
C) Golden Mean Fallacy
D) False Dilemma
E) Genuine Dilemma
c) Decide whether the following is best judged either a plausible argument or a mistake in reasoning.
Avoiding exaggeration and being willing to entertain alternatives are usually good habits to cultivate.
8. Experiments are designed to answer factual questions, not ethical questions. Italian scientists have successfully grown an embryo from a chimpanzee’s egg and human sperm. So, while this experiment answers a factual question, it also raises ethical questions such as: whether such an experiment should be conducted or not.
a. Slippery Slope Fallacy (implausible consequence)
b. Genuine dilemma
c. False dilemma (ignores alternatives)
d. Slippery Slope (plausible)
9. Assisted suicide should not be an option for people who suffer from painful, incurable, illnesses. If assisted suicide were legalized, then judicial interpretation would keep expanding the definition of who it is permissible to kill. This has happened in the past in other countries. So, without additional safeguards it is possible that medically assisted suicide over time might become a legal means for children to dispose of their parents, and for spouses to gain sole access to jointly held funds.
a. Slippery Slope Fallacy (implausible consequence)
b. Genuine dilemma
c. False dilemma (ignores alternatives)
d. Slippery Slope (plausible)
10. Experiments are designed to answer factual questions, not ethical questions. Italian scientists have successfully grown an embryo from a chimpanzee’s egg and human sperm. So, this experiment answers a factual question, and does not raise any ethical questions.
a. Slippery Slope Fallacy (implausible consequence)
b. Genuine dilemma
c. False dilemma (ignores alternatives)
d. Slippery Slope (plausible)
11. Experiments are designed to answer factual questions, not ethical questions. Italian scientists have successfully grown an embryo from a chimpanzee’s egg and human sperm. So, while this experiment answers a factual question, it also raises ethical questions such as: whether such an experiment should be conducted or not.
a. Slippery Slope Fallacy (implausible consequence)
b. Genuine dilemma
c. False dilemma (ignores alternatives)
d. Slippery Slope (plausible)