Question 1

Movie star Marci Downs says in magazine ads that the new Porsche XKG is the sexiest car on the road. But you shouldn't take what she says too seriously because she's paid thousands of dollars to make these ads.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Movie star Marci Downs says in magazine...

Question 2

Nobody has ever seen Mr. Albie walk without crutches. We conclude that Mr. Albie needs crutches to walk.

Accepted Answer

The conclusion that Mr. Albie needs crutches to walk is based on the consistent observation that he is never seen walking without them. This is a reasonable inference rather than a fallacy.

Question 3

Mark is a rotten salesman. But every salesman is a person. Therefore, Mark is a rotten person.

Accepted Answer

The fallacy here is equivocation, as the term "rotten" is used ambiguously to describe both Mark's skills as a salesman and his character as a person.

Question 4

This brick made of 24 caret gold has been sliced into 50 pieces. Therefore, each of the pieces must be 24 caret gold.

Accepted Answer

The answer of This brick made of 24 caret gold...

Question 5

It's dangerous to use a hair dryer while taking a bath. But a rechargeable shaver is an electrical device no less than a hair dryer. Therefore, it's dangerous to use a rechargeable shaver while taking a bath.

Accepted Answer

This is a case of weak analogy as there is a disanalogy between a hair dryer and a rechargeable shaver. A hair dryer is connected to an electrical outlet while a rechargeable shaver is not. Therefore the dangers associated with using a hair dryer in the bath are not the same as using a rechargeable shaver.

Question 6

The idea that fast food is unhealthy is a lot of hooey. Why, 90% of America eats fast food.

Accepted Answer

The argument commits the fallacy of appeal to the people by suggesting that because a large percentage of the population engages in an activity, it must not be unhealthy. This fallacy leverages the popularity of an action to justify its value or correctness, sidestepping logical reasoning about health implications.

Question 7

The Second Amendment to the Constitution guarantees everyone the right to bear arms. Therefore it should be legal for those undercover Al Qaeda members to buy a carload of shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles.

Accepted Answer

This is an example of an accident fallacy, also known as a sweeping generalization. The speaker is using the Second Amendment to justify the sale of extremely dangerous weapons to known terrorists, which is a dangerous and illogical argument.

Question 8

Katie has been squabbling with her fiancé about the details of their wedding. Thus, it would be a good idea for her to hire somebody to beat him up.

Accepted Answer

The argument misses the point because the solution (hiring someone to beat him up) does not logically address the problem of squabbling over wedding details.

Question 9

All political operatives are disingenuous characters and all clever manipulators are disingenuous characters. Thus, all political operatives are clever manipulators.

Accepted Answer

This argument contains a formal fallacy (affirmative conclusion from a negative premise) because it assumes that all political operatives and clever manipulators are disingenuous without providing evidence for this premise. Even if we accept the premise, the conclusion does not logically follow since there could be some disingenuous political operatives who are not clever manipulators.

Question 10

Nancy, I saw you in Smiley's Bar last night. Level with me. Are you still getting drunk on a regular basis?

Accepted Answer

The statement is a complex question because it is asking two separate things: if Nancy was at Smiley's Bar and if she still gets drunk on a regular basis. It assumes that Nancy was there and that she has a drinking problem without any other evidence.

Question 11

It's absolutely clear that the U.S. should get out of the U.N. National autonomy should never be turned over to foreign nations.

Accepted Answer

The statement is using circular reasoning, assuming the conclusion needing proof as part of the premise. The argument assumes that the U.S. should not be in the U.N. without giving any valid reasons for the same.

Question 12

Floyd Conway has given us his reasons for unrestricted logging in our national forests. But it's obvious why he says these things. Floyd is a lumberjack, and he just wants to ensure that he'll have a job in the years ahead.

Accepted Answer

The statement is an example of an argument against the person, circumstantial, because it dismisses Floyd Conway's arguments by pointing to his personal circumstances (being a lumberjack) rather than addressing the merits of his arguments.

Question 13

We know for certain that no armadillos are aardvarks. It is therefore equally certain that no aardvarks are armadillos.

Accepted Answer

This statement is simply a logical deduction, based on the fact that the two animals are different species with distinct characteristics. There is no fallacy involved in this statement.

Question 14

Libertarians are insensitive to the plight of the poor. We know this is so because they want to abolish the minimum wage. And we know they want to do this because they want to eliminate all restrictions on hiring the poor. And of course this is true because Libertarians are insensitive to the plight of the poor.

Accepted Answer

This is an example of begging the question, as the argument assumes without evidence that Libertarians are insensitive to the plight of the poor simply because they want to abolish the minimum wage and eliminate restrictions on hiring them. It also assumes that these policies would actually harm the poor without providing any evidence for this claim.

Question 15

Valerie Norton's new novel is a real thriller. Therefore, every single chapter must be thrilling.

Accepted Answer

This is an example of the division fallacy, which occurs when one assumes that all parts of a whole must have the same characteristics as the whole itself. In this case, the assumption is that every chapter in a novel, because the novel as a whole is a thriller, must also be thrilling.

Question 16

During the five years that Clarence has worn a Rolex watch, three of his married friends have gotten a divorce. Thus, to prevent any more divorces, it is essential that he stop wearing that watch.

Accepted Answer

The fact that Clarence wears a Rolex watch has no logical or causal connection to his friends getting divorces. This is a classic example of the false cause fallacy where a correlation is assumed to be causation without proper evidence.

Question 17

In a random sample of 300 current year Honda Civic Hybrids, 100 had a defect in the fuel injection system. Therefore, probably about a third of that entire production run has a defect in the fuel injection system.

Accepted Answer

The answer of In a random sample of 300 current...

Question 18

Ed Jackson argues that the war in Iraq was a tragic mistake. But look who's talking! Before his recent discharge, Jackson was participating in the very war he now condemns. Obviously his arguments can't be trusted.

Accepted Answer

This is a tu quoque fallacy, as the argument is that because Jackson participated in the war, he cannot criticize it now. However, the validity of his argument should be evaluated on its own merit, regardless of his past involvement in the war.

Question 19

Nobody has ever proved that capitalist economics corrupts people's values, as Karl Marx claimed. Therefore, we must conclude that capitalism does not corrupt people's values.

Accepted Answer

The statement is using appeal to ignorance fallacy by assuming that the absence of evidence is evidence of absence. Just because it hasn't been proven that capitalist economics corrupts people's values, doesn't mean it doesn't.

Question 20

Tom is a bit of a dunce when it comes to mathematics, and he hasn't studied a bit for the next test. Therefore, he probably won't do very well on that test.

Accepted Answer

The statement logically concludes that Tom, not being good at mathematics and not having studied, is likely to perform poorly on the test. There's no fallacy in reasoning that lack of preparation and skill could lead to poor performance.

Quiz 3: Informal Fallacies