1. "The Macintosh computer display was located in the campus free speech area; many who watched the product demonstrations seemed interested in computers." What slanter is being used here?
downplayer
proof surrogate
hyperbole
euphemism
no slanter
2. "If the university president is so dedicated to improving education, why are students worse off now than when she took office?" What slanter is being used here?
downplayer
euphemism
loaded question
hyperbole
no slanter
3. "David Letterman is the funniest man in America (as opinion polls show)." What is the phrase in parentheses?
innuendo
proof surrogate
dysphemism
hyperbole
none of the above
4. Saddam Hussein called his hostages "guests." What slanter did he use?
innuendo
downplayer
weaseler
euphemism
There is no slanter being used.
5. "Several recent studies show that Tylenol is really more effective against headache pain than Motrin." What slanter is being used here?
hyperbole
weaseler
proof surrogate
dysphemism
none of the above
6. "A lawsuit is a machine which you go into as a pig and come out as a sausage" (adapted from Ambrose Bierce). What slanter is being used here?
weaseler
persuasive comparison
downplayer
euphemism
proof surrogate
7. An ad that brings out pleasurable feelings in us as we watch it on television is thus giving us a good reason to buy that particular product or service.
True
False
8. A fallacy is any bad argument in which the reasons advanced for a claim fail to warrant its acceptance.
True
False
9. Appeals to pity are always irrelevant.
True
False
10. Several types of pseudoreasoning are used as smokescreens to draw the listener or reader away from the point at issue.
True
False
11. Mr. Barnett, I'm here to discuss my grade, but before I do I'd like to compliment you on your choice of suspenders. I think they really give you a distinguished look! Gosh, I'm so proud just to be in your class!" What kind of pseudoreasoning is being used here?
apple polishing
appeal to pity
peer pressure
two wrongs make a right
12. "The Soviets have no reason to criticize the United States for producing the kind of pollution that leads to acid rain because it was the Soviets, you remember, who polluted the world with radiation in the Chernobyl nuclear disaster." What kind of pseudoreasoning is being used here?
appeal to pity
two wrongs make a right
peer pressure vappeal to belief
appeal to spite
13. Considerations about a person's credibility are irrelevant to the question of whether that person's premises establish his or her conclusion.
True
False
14. Personal attack is an instance of ad hominem "reasoning."
True
False
15. "If you experiment frequently with certain highly addictive drugs, the first thing you know you'll be seriously dependent on them." This is an example of slippery slope pseudoreasoning.
True
False
16. "Of course Coach Pigslop would come out in favor of more money for athletics! Since he's the coach, he stands to benefit from bigger budgets!" What kind of pseudoreasoning does this passage use?
false dilemma
straw man
begging the question
circumstantial ad hominem
17. "When compared to paramedics, firefighters have a much faster response time to emergencies. The reasons for this are that firefighters have much more extensive in-the-field experience and are generally located within urban areas. In addition, paramedics have a much slower response time to emergencies." What kind of pseudoreasoning is being used here?
straw man
begging the question
genetic fallacy
slippery slope
18. Chen visits the doctor at the campus health center and is told that he is seriously overweight and must go one a diet. But Chen rejects this advice on the grounds that the doctor is also overweight and is not doing anything about it. If Chen is indulging in pseudoreasoning, what kind?
straw man
genetic fallacy
begging the question
pseudorefutation
no pseudoreasoning