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PHI 210 WEBTEXT

1.    Imagine that you go into your home and see muddy footprints on the floor from shoes you know are not your own. Give examples of two plausible explanations and two unlikely explanations for the footprints. (6.1)
2.    According to the “Answering the Three Questions” video, in what way was the “miasmas” (bad smells) explanation inconsistent? (6.2)
3.    How was Dr. Snow able to test his proposed explanation?
4.    Explain how Dr. Snow was able to demonstrate that he wasn’t confusing correlation with causation.
5.    Good explanations are often simple, yet they can explain a lot. Explain how the story of Dr. Snow’s “ghost map” drawing demonstrates this.
6.    Steven Johnson argues that the story of the cholera epidemic and Dr. Snow’s map is “fundamentally optimistic.” Explain whether or not you agree and why.
7.    A friend claims that eating chocolate can strengthen your bone marrow. You’re skeptical of the credibility of that statement, so you read two scientific studies. The first, funded by a large chocolate manufacturing company, confirms this assertion, while the second, funded by the American Society for Nutrition, reaches the opposite conclusion. Should you be more inclined to trust one of these reports over the other? Explain your answer.
8.    In the Full Moon video, one of the nurses says, “I’m a nurse, and I know this for a fact.” Explain how this comment could be used to illustrate the fallacy of unqualified authority. (6.4)
9.    Point 5 in the Baloney Detection Kit asks whether anyone has tried to disprove this claim. What does the Full Moon video suggest regarding this point? (6.4)
10.    Point 6 in the Baloney Detection Kit asks where the preponderance of evidence seems to point. While the Full Moon video depicts conflicting claims, it suggests that most of the evidence supports which side? (6.4)
11.    In the flashback to the 1984 news report, the newscaster references a study conducted by a Florida researcher that demonstrated that more murders were committed during a full moon; Shermer then reveals that the study proved to be flawed. Using one of the elements of good vs. bad science detailed above, offer a theory as to what might have gone wrong in this scientific study. (6.4)
12.    Imagine that you run across a statistic online claiming that men are 25 percent more likely to ski on dangerous slopes than women. Give examples of at least two pieces of information you would want to know about this statistic before you would accept it as fact. (6.5)
13.    Now that you’ve read the writer’s evaluation of the claim that “the mean pre-tax lifetime value of a law degree [is] approximately $1,000,000,” explain whether or not you think that statistic qualifies as “deceptive” and why.
14.    Imagine that you’re considering going back to school for an MBA and trying to evaluate whether the investment of time and money will be worth it. You read on this website that, according to the 2012 Alumni Perspectives Survey of the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC), “the median annual salary for MBA degree-holders was $95,000 with additional compensation (bonuses, etc.) of $18,123 annually.” Provide at least two questions you would want to ask about this statistic before accepting it as fact.
15.    Explain how Anwar redefined his problem during the first phase of the problem-solving process. (7.1)
16.    Pick one of the strategies from the “Einstein’s Secrets” article and explain how Olivia might apply it to this dilemma. (7.1)
17.    Suppose your original problem statement for this dilemma was “How can we make sure doctors don’t screw up and accidentally kill people?” Apply the strategy “Make It Engaging” and suggest a revised problem statement. (7.2)
18.    What assumptions about the surgery profession was Gawande able to expose and challenge after getting perspectives from other fields? (7.2)
19.    How did Gawande apply a version of the first strategy, “Rephrase the Problem,” when his checklist met resistance from other doctors and surgeons? (7.2)
20.    Return to the dilemma from 7.1 about Olivia, who is deciding between two jobs. What are the possible solutions to this problem? Besides picking one job or the other, list at least two solutions that Olivia might pursue. (7.3)
21.    Give an example of a key constraint that might impact Olivia’s decision-making process if it were removed. (7.3)
22.    If you were tasked with generating solutions to this problem, what ideas would you have? List two options. (7.4)
23.    What strategy did the HMO use to develop solutions?
24.    Give an example of a boundary that you think the HMO had to consider when generating solutions.
25.    Return to the dilemma from 7.1 about Olivia, who is deciding between two jobs. List three factors that Olivia might consider when evaluating her options. (7.5)
26.    If you were Olivia, how would you solve this problem? Explain your reasoning.
27.    When Dr. Rosen was gathering information to solve his problem, what seemingly unrelated detail did local doctors provide? (7.6)
28.    What advantage did the solution of building incubators out of car parts have over traditional incubators?
29.    List at least one challenge that comes with implementing the solution of building incubators out of car parts.
30.    Explain how the following sentence could be read in two different ways: Da’Shawn gave her dog food. (8.1)
31.    Natalia claims, “Our society would be better off if we reformed education, improved the health care system, eliminated government waste, and stopped giving handouts to people who don’t deserve it.” Provide at least two examples of vague words or phrases in Natalia’s sentence that would need clarifying before you could truly understand and evaluate her argument. (8.1)
32.    How might someone who doesn’t speak English respond to this video differently from someone who is fluent in English? (8.2)
33.    Using one of the words depicted in the video, come up with a phrase that has an ambiguous meaning.
34.    Give an example of a behavior that is acceptable in one relationship type but not in another.
35.    As mentioned above, many contemporary debates stem from a disagreement over how a word should be defined. Give an example of an issue where the divisiveness is in part rooted in controversy over the definition of a particular word. (8.3)
36.    At one point, Hassan states that his problem is with “groups that use systematic deception and mind control to undermine people’s ability to think for themselves.” Explain how O’Reilly’s counterpoint can be understood as an argument about definitions. (8.4)
37.    O’Reilly brings up Tom Cruise’s testimony that the Scientologists “helped him out” as evidence that Scientology has done some good things, and he implies that Tom Cruise is credible because “he doesn’t look like a lunatic.” Do you think this is valid reasoning or an example of the fallacy of unqualified authority? Explain your answer.
38.    In your opinion, how should “faith-based groups” be defined regarding the issue of government funding?
39.    Explain how weasel words function to water down the meaning of the claims in the following advertisement:
40.    Try Hannah’s Homeopathic Headache remedy! Made with the possibly beneficial essences of red onion and stinging nettle, Hannah’s cure may result in noticeable improvement in up to 50 percent of the people who use this remedy! (8.5)
41.    Most contemporary controversial issues are frequently discussed in loaded language. Give an example of how two sides of one issue might describe the same thing differently using either emotive language, euphemisms, or dysphemisms.
42.    Westen explains how the word “liberal” started out as a positive word but evolved over time to be more negative. Give an example of another word or phrase that used to have positive or neutral connotations but now has negative ones. (8.6)
43.    Explain how the language that Westen analyzes in the Reagan ad functions as innuendo.
44.    Explain how the word “imagine” is such an effective tool for persuasion.
45.    Describe an example of a moral dilemma that you have encountered in your own life. (9.1)
46.    Using the information in these two articles, explain how an institution’s decision whether or not to adopt policies against hiring smokers is a moral dilemma. (9.2)
47.    In “Conflicts,” click the link to view the figure titled “Proposed Ladder of Interventions to Reduce Tobacco Use.” In your opinion, what is the highest ladder rung where the practice described is still ethical? Explain.
48.    According to “Ethics,” health care organizations posed the argument that “their employees must serve as role models for patients and that only nonsmokers can do so." Explain whether you agree or disagree with that statement, and why.
49.    Why is it often beneficial to articulate the assumed moral statement in a moral argument, such as in the example above? (9.3)
50.    The author of “A Simple Argument” thinks more people will argue with the second statement. Why do you think this is (or is not) the case? (9.4)
51.    What is the central argument of “Give Thanks for Meat”?
52.    List two explicit premises that you find the most compelling in “Give Thanks for Meat.”
53.    Give an example of a moral dilemma in which a moral theory based on utilitarianism would suggest one course of action, while a moral theory based on religious absolutism would suggest a different one. (9.5)
54.    What makes stealth marketing different from traditional marketing? (9.6)
55.    Why might some people think that stealth marketing is unethical?