Deck 4: Credibility

Question 1

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"Enough is enough! A national survey finds a majority of American adults do not support more restrictive or tougher anti-smoking measures."
-The Tobacco Institute

Answer 1

Further documentation is needed here.Once upon a time this was probably true,but things have changed since the clear connection between smoking and serious lung disease has been established.We've noticed a large increase in anti-smoking sentiment in some parts of the country;we expect that will continue.

Question 2

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"Mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade's two little girls always tried to keep her from singing in church because,they said,every time she did,everyone would turn around and stare at her."
-Joseph McLellan,in the Washington Post

Answer 2

Probably true.

Question 3

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
Remark heard in a coffee shop:"There is a disproportionate percentage of left-handed people in politics."

Answer 3

Requires further documentation.This claim would take much more authority before we'd believe it.Much of this sort of casual conversation is based on anecdotal evidence.The claim is also vague: What does the speaker mean by "politics"?

Question 4

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"Warning:St.John [in the Virgin Islands] is very much a 'cash only' island.Most restaurants and car rental agencies accept cash or travelers checks only."
-Janet Fullwood,travel writer for the Dallas Times Herald

Question 5

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
Reported after a debate between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama,who were running for the Democratic nomination for the presidency in 2008:"James Carville,a Clinton advisor and supporter,declared his candidate the 'winner' in the debate,saying she'd made her case more strongly."

Question 6

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"Smoking more than triples the likelihood of premature facial wrinkling."
-Dr.Donald Kadunce,lead author of a group of University of Utah scientists,reporting in Annals of Internal Medicine

Question 7

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
Comment from an acquaintance:"I saw Bigfoot with my own eyes! It was huge!"

Question 8

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"In the early 1800s,bears were a nuisance to settlers in upstate New York."
-Smithsonian

Question 9

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
Letter to the editor:"Your editorial page of October 15 contained a cartoon that was highly offensive...."
-Midfield Sentinel

Question 10

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"General Motors is on a journey to the future.With the help of its thousands of scientists,designers,and engineers,GM is embarking on an odyssey into the unknown.Roads paved with scientific and technological wonders that might seem like science fictions.But at GM,they're reality...."
-From a General Motors magazine advertisement

Question 11

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
According to Funk & Wagnalls Hammond World Atlas,the three longest rivers in the world are the Nile,the Amazon,and the Yangtze.

Question 12

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"In the near future look for floods in Britain which will culminate in the flooding of Parliament."
-A prediction made by Maitreya Swami,"The World Teacher," in the News Release of the Tara Center,N.Hollywood,Calif.

Question 13

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
NO CHOLESTEROL!
-Label on Crisco Corn Oil

Question 14

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"With due regard to the recent experience by certain individuals in the Russian city of Voronezh,the Space Brothers who landed and exited from their craft were on a peace mission....What was thought to be and reported mistakenly as a knife held in the hand of one of the Space Brothers was a thought,only in the mind of the reporter....What was being held was a communication device....This device was translating the thoughts of the Space voyager into the language that could be understood in that particular part of the world."
-Press release,Unarius Academy of Science

Question 15

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"By age 30,roughly a quarter of men and women have discernibly graying hair.Even so,only 28 percent of us ever become completely white haired."
-Lowell Ponte,Reader's Digest

Question 16

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
University student to professor:"I'm sorry I missed the test on Thursday,Dr.Aarsack.My grandmother unexpectedly died,and I had to go home."

Question 17

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
Q:Did Marilyn Monroe keep a diary about her relationships with John and Robert Kennedy?
A:No.
-Walter Scott's Personality Parade,Parade

Question 18

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"Every day 5,000 Americans try cocaine for the first time-a total of 22 million so far-according to estimates by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.About five million people are believed to be using the drug at least once a month,and they are administering it to themselves in increasingly destructive ways."
-James Lieber,in the Atlantic

Question 19

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"A few years ago AT&T did two surveys showing that technically trained persons did not achieve as many top managerial jobs in the company as liberal arts graduates did."
-New York Times

Question 20

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
You've taken your car in to the local branch of a nationwide chain of brake and muffler shops for an advertised "free brake inspection." After the inspection,the service manager tells you:"I'm afraid your linings are almost completely gone and the drums need turning.You need a complete brake overhaul."

Question 21

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
From a letter to the editor by a person we've never heard of:"Eighty-five percent of the jail population smokes."

Question 22

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"[Atmospheric nuclear] tests do not seriously endanger either present or future generations."
-Edward Teller,physicist,one of the "fathers" of the atomic bomb,1958

Question 23

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"The yearly cancer rate for men in Glasgow,Scotland,is 130 cases per 100,000."
-"Atlas of Cancer in Scotland," World Health Organization (an agency of the United Nations)

Question 24

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"NASA [the National Aeronautics and Space Administration] says private investors,not taxpayers,will fund its newest manned space vehicle.If you believe that,you probably think little green men inhabit Mars."
-Forbes

Question 25

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"[Bybon,a Greek of the sixth century b.c.] threw a 315-pound block of red sandstone over his head.The feat was reported after archeologists found a description of Bybon's act inscribed on the rock itself."
-The Book of Lists

Question 26

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"The past year was a turbulent one.It was a year that began with record profits and sales.It was also a year in which we reported the first quarterly loss in Apple's history.We had to take swift action.We did.And it's working."
-Apple Computer,Inc. ,1985 Annual Report

Question 27

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"[G]ram for gram,trans fat [found in hydrogenated oil] is nearly as bad for your blood-cholesterol levels as saturated fat is....Brandeis University scientists...concluded that trans fats may be worse than saturated fats...."
-Consumer Reports On Health

Question 28

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"The West German Cabinet has conditionally agreed to let private companies enroll in the research [on the Strategic Defense Initiative]."
-From an editorial in the Los Angeles Times

Question 29

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
Huddie Ledbetter ("Leadbelly")was not only a writer and performer of songs but also an unusually powerful man.Alan Lomax,the historian of American folk music,wrote that "in the Texas Penitentiary he was the number one man in the number one gang on the number one farm in the state-the man who could carry the lead row in the field for 12 or 14 hours a day under the broiling July and August sun." He could pick a bale of cotton in a day-that's 500 pounds!
-Adapted from liner notes to the record Leadbelly (Everest recording FS-202)

Question 30

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"The American word 'yup' means 'sex' in Russia."
-Comedian Yakov Smirnoff (who was born and lived in Russia for sixteen years before emigrating to America in 1977).Smirnoff uses the claim in question as a basis for "yuppie" jokes.

Question 31

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"Apple's history is more like a soap opera than a corporate biography."
-Macworld magazine,March 1997

Question 32

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"The great preponderance of lottery players are from the lowest third of the population in terms of income levels.It is mainly the poor who are being exploited by state lotteries."
-A sociology professor at a state university in the Midwest,in a radio interview

Question 33

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
Barack Obama is a citizen of both the United States and the Republic of Kenya.
-an online article run in August,2008,by the Rocky Mountain News

Question 34

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"My cat has fewer brains than a hubcap!"
-Spoken by one of the authors of the text after his cat had spent three days on his housetop

Question 35

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
According to a Baron Gottfried von Swieten,King Frederick of Prussia claimed that he had once given a chromatic theme to Johann Sebastian Bach,who had immediately made of it a fugue in four parts,then in five parts,and finally in eight parts.
-From H.T.David and A.Mendel,The Bach Reader,reported in Gödel,Escher,Bach,by Douglas R.Hofstadter
Probably false.One needs to know something of music to realize how incredible this remark is.To improvise a six-part fugue is nearly beyond imagination (Hofstadter likens it to playing sixty games of chess simultaneously while blindfolded and winning them all).Even Bach,whose genius strains credibility on many counts,is unlikely to have been able to improvise an eight-part fugue.Presumably either King Frederick or the good Baron was doing some exaggerating.

Question 36

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"Do you feel insecure? Or are you confident about your position in life? According to Dr.Ian Cameron,how and where you stand in an elevator will reveal the answers to these questions."
-Reported in the National Examiner.Dr.Cameron is described in the article as "a noted scientist and researcher."

Question 37

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"Contrary to popular belief,'The Star-Spangled Banner' has been the nation's official song only since 1931."
-James Kilpatrick,syndicated columnist

Question 38

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"In the history books,the personal-computer slump of 1985 will be a footnote compared to the Japanese assault on the American semiconductor industry."
-Newsweek

Question 39

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"Lottery director Mark Michalko said Thursday that allegations that Californians are squandering money they once used for food to buy lottery tickets 'are just not correct.'...California Grocers Association president Don Beaver raised the issue earlier in the week,saying five supermarket chains had complained that grocery sales dropped about 5 percent after lottery tickets went on sale October 3."
-Sacramento Bee

Question 40

Assess the following as probably true,as probably false,as requiring further documentation before judgment,or as a claim that cannot properly be evaluated.Consider both the nature of the claim and the source.
"Of all species,only pigs and humans like liquor."
-Charles Halsted,Professor of Internal Medicine,University of California,Davis

Question 41

Giving at least one reason for your choice,discuss whose opinion on the foreign policy of the current administration is more credible.
a.a Ph.D.in political science whose specialty is U.S.foreign policy
b.the chairman of the U.S.Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Question 42

In a brief essay,discuss how to handle a conflict between the opinions of experts who do not agree.

Question 43

What percentage of American high school students have smoked marijuana? Giving at least one reason for your choice,discuss whose opinion is the more credible.
a.USA Today
b.Americans for Legalized Marijuana (ALM)

Question 44

Giving at least one reason for your choice,discuss whose opinion on the condition of the tires on your car is more credible.
a.a salesperson at Goodyear
b.a mechanic at a garage certified by the American Automobile Association

Question 45

In a brief essay,discuss the conditions under which it is reasonable to regard an eyewitness account as credible.

Question 46

Is the pitcher tiring? Giving at least one reason for your choice,discuss whose opinion is the more credible.
a.a minor league pitching coach
b.Reggie Jackson

Question 47

In a brief essay,explain what factors help establish someone as an expert.

Question 48

Can you get a manzanita tree to grow in Pennsylvania? Giving at least one reason for your choice,discuss whose opinion is the more credible.
a.a Pennsylvania (where manzanita doesn't grow naturally)nursery worker
b.a California (where manzanita does grow naturally)nursery worker

Question 49

In a brief essay,discuss the news media as a source of information about current events.

Question 50

In a brief essay,make up an issue and a list of sources and give your own ranking of the credibility of the sources you listed.

Question 51

How many homicides involve the use of a stolen firearm? Giving at least one reason for your choice,discuss whose opinion is the more credible.
a.a Democratic U.S.senator
b.a Republican U.S.senator

Question 52

Giving at least one reason for your choice,discuss whose opinion on the foreign policy of the current administration is more credible.
a.a former U.S.president of the same political party as the current president
b.a former U.S.president not of the same political party as the current president

Question 53

In a brief essay,explain why you suppose sensationalism (as found in supermarket tabloids,for example)has such a wide audience despite its frequent conflicts with our background information.

Question 54

In a brief essay,provide several topics on which you may not trust yourself to give a totally unbiased judgment,and explain.

Question 55

Issue:A proposal for legislation regarding automobile insurance rates is on the ballot.Giving at least one reason for your choice,discuss whose opinion on the benefits for consumers is more credible.
a.a spokesperson for the insurance industry
b.Ralph Nader

Question 56

Did life evolve,or was it created? Giving at least one reason for your choice,discuss whose opinion is the more credible.
a.a biologist
b.a minister

Question 57

In a brief essay,discuss three ways a person can increase his or her background knowledge.

Question 58

Are there conditions in which your own observations may not be totally reliable? Explain in a brief essay.

Question 59

If the claims of an expert turn out to be in error,were you unreasonable in having accepted them in the first place? Why,or why not? Explain your response in a brief essay.

Question 60

Giving at least one reason for your choice,which of two current movies would you be more apt to like?
a.one recommended by a movie critic whose opinions you enjoy listening to
b.one recommended by a friend

Question 61

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:Does violence on television contribute to violent behavior on the part of young viewers?
a.the president of the National Association of Broadcasters
b.the president of an organization called "Parents Against TV Violence"
c.a university sociologist
d.regular panel members of a program such as "The McLaughlin Group"

Question 62

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:Were there unjustifiable cost overruns in the construction of ships made for the U.S.Navy by Lytton Industries?
a.the chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee
b.the accounting director for Lytton
c.the Navy Chief of Staff
d.the OMB (Office of Management and Budget)
e.an article in The Progressive (a left-of-center political journal)

Question 63

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:Whether the verdict in the O.J.Simpson civil trial proves that Simpson was actually guilty of the crime of which he was acquitted in the criminal trial.
a.a professor of criminal law
b.Greta Van Susteren (lawyer and commentator on the Simpson trials for CNN and now a host on Fox)
c.Oprah Winfrey
d.Geraldo Rivera

Question 64

Giving at least one reason for your choice,discuss whose would be the best weight-lifting regimen to follow.
a.Arnold Schwarzenegger
b.Paris Hilton

Question 65

Keeping in mind the sources cited,discuss the credibility of the claim(s)made in the following passage:
"Based on a survey of more than 100,000 people,Toshitaka Nomi and Alexander Besher have drawn up some startling conclusions about blood type and personality.If you are type O,you are probably aggressive and realistic.Type A? You are naturally industrious,detail-oriented,and peace-loving.Type Bs are creative and individualistic.ABs tend to be rational,but moody.YOU ARE YOUR BLOOD TYPE presents detailed analysis of the different blood types and explores the compatibility between the different types."
-From a news release from Pocket Books about the first Western account "of the Japanese pop-phenomenon of blood-type analysis"

Question 66

Keeping in mind the sources cited,discuss the credibility of the claim(s)made in the following passage:
"The UFOnauts are usually clothed in shiny,tight fitting,one piece suits,and in most reports seem able to breathe our air without difficulty.Telepathy seems involved in most contacts....If you are tired of the same old pseudoexplanations,official debunkings,and lame duck logic from quacks suffering megalomania,then you are invited to join the concerted efforts of the UFO Contact Center...."
-From a pamphlet,undated,issued in the 1980s by Aileen E.Edwards,director of UFO Contact Center International in Seattle,Washington
The "center" is a clearinghouse for those who have had contact with extraterrestrials to share their fears and insights without condemnation.Edwards herself has had such an experience,says the pamphlet,and now is reaching out to help people with similar stories.The language has a typical "us vs.them" flavor,with those who would offer a more coherent explanation labeled as "quacks";the assumption is that those who have certain experiences are best able to determine "what really happened." We admit to being quacks: We think Ms.Edwards may be a bit delusional.

Question 67

Based only on the information given in this biography,discuss the credibility and authority of the person described on each of the topics in the list that follows:
Robert Kuttner is the economics correspondent of The New Republic,a columnist for Business Week and the Boston Globe,and a contributor to the Atlantic.After graduating from Oberlin College in 1965,he studied at the London School of Economics and took a master's degree in political science at the University of California,Berkeley.In addition to his writing,Kuttner served in Washington from 1975 to 1978 as the chief investigator for the Senate Banking Committee.In 1979 he was a fellow at Harvard's John F.Kennedy School of Government.He subsequently edited the journal Working Papers.Kuttner is the author of Revolt of the Haves (1980)and,most recently,The Economic Illusion (1984),which was nominated for a National Book Critics Circle Award.
a.the effects of inflation on the stock market
b.the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC),which insures deposits at banks and savings and loan institutions
c.restaurants in London
d.politics and upper-income groups in America
e.poverty among Native Americans
We would expect substantial expertise from Mr.Kuttner on topics (b)and (d)-the latter because of his 1980 book-and more than lay knowledge about (a).We'd sooner trust him than someone who hasn't lived there on (c),and we would expect no more expertise about (e)than we'd expect from other well-informed non-specialists.

Question 68

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:What levels of mercury and other metals in fish are high enough to make consumption of them hazardous to humans?
a.an article in a journal called Diet and Health,published for vegetarians
b.a commercial fisherman
c.a family medical doctor
d.a spokeswoman for the National Institutes of Health
e.a toxicologist who works for the Los Angeles coroner's office

Question 69

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:How do the economic policies of the Venezuelan government affect the standard of living of most Venezuelans?
a.the editor of a daily newspaper in a small town
b.a friend who just returned from a trip to Venezuela "to see what was going on"
c.a professor of Latin American studies at Ohio State University
d.a Republican state senator in Arizona
e.a politically radical councilwoman for a middle-sized New York city

Question 70

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:Do mountain bicycles cause ecological damage when ridden on hiking trails?
a.an environmental scientist at the Harvard School of Public Health
b.the chair of the Sierra Club task force for determining club policy on the wilderness use of mountain bicycles
c.a spokesperson for a bicycle manufacturer
d.a park ranger from a state park where mountain bicycles have been permitted on hiking trails
e.a representative of the Washington Mountain Bike Riders' Association

Question 71

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:Whether Viking explorers actually landed in the New World before Columbus.
a.a historian
b.the publisher of a Norwegian-language newspaper in Willmar,Minnesota
c.a Norwegian archeologist
d.an Italian archeologist
e.an archeologist of French ancestry who grew up in Texas

Question 72

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:Are schools of business turning out too many ill-prepared M.B.A.graduates?
a.the dean of the school of business at the University of Chicago
b.the president of the Hewlett-Packard Corporation
c.an editorial in the Wall Street Journal
d.a recent graduate with an M.B.A.

Question 73

Based only on the information given in this biography,discuss the credibility and authority of the person described on each of the topics in the list that follows:
David A.Kilbourne taught himself to program in three different computer languages by the time he was sixteen.At seventeen,he was a member of a loose-knit southern California group of computer "hackers" that specialized in tapping the databases of large corporations,including the telephone company and several banks.In 1994,Kilbourne was charged with using his home computer and a telephone communications device to manipulate data in the Pacific Bell Telephone database to avoid telephone bills for his household and those of several friends for almost two years.It was also discovered that he had savings accounts at two Bank of America branches,with balances totaling over seventy thousand dollars,despite never having made a deposit or even "officially" opening the accounts.Kilbourne was found guilty on several counts of defrauding the two companies and was put on three years' probation.During his probation,Bank of America hired him as a consultant to assess the security of its computer files,a job at which he worked for nearly a year.He now works for a legitimate software house in the Silicon Valley.(Asked which side of the law he preferred working on,Kilbourne replied,"Everything considered,being an outlaw was more fun.")
a.the morality of software piracy
b.corporate data banks
c.telecommunications
d.purchasing a computer for a small business
e.electronic games
f.computer programming
We'd listen to Kilbourne with attention on topics (b), (c),and (f),and we'd give his opinions more weight than our own on (d)and (e).We think we could get better authority on (a).

Question 74

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:Whether a recently completed nuclear power plant is safe.
a.the power company that owns the plant
b.the contractor in charge of the plant's construction
c.a spokesman for the Nuclear Regulatory Agency
d.the president of the Sierra Club
e.a contractor hired by a nearby city who has seen the blueprints of the plant but has not made an on-site inspection
f.the author of a statistical study on safety,malfunctions,and accidents at power plants of the same type

Question 75

Based only on the information given in this biography,discuss the credibility and authority of the person described on each of the topics in the list that follows:
Mike O'Neill is a scientist at the U.S.Department of Agriculture Forest Service's Northeastern Forest Experimental Station in Durham,New Hampshire.He graduated from Humboldt State University in California with a degree in biology (1988)and earned a Ph.D.in plant pathology from the University of West Virginia (1995).After serving for seven years as a consultant to the Pennsylvania state park system,he was employed by the U.S.Forest Service as a specialist in tree diseases.His major area of research has been in the resistance mechanisms of trees to injury and infection.
a.the effects of improper pruning techniques on fruit trees
b.the kind of fertilizer to use on ornamental shrubs
c.resistance mechanisms of mammals to disease and infection
d.the characteristics of various types of softwoods relative to their use in the building industry
e.how to transplant a small tree
f.use rates of campground facilities in Pennsylvania state parks
g.methods of controlling garden pests

Question 76

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:Should lawyers allow their clients to lie?
a.the U.S.Supreme Court
b.a law school professor
c.a political science professor
d.the American Bar Association
e.a practicing defense attorney

Question 77

Based only on the information given in this biography,discuss the credibility and authority of the person described on each of the topics in the list that follows:
James A.Van Allen received a Ph.D.in physics from the University of Iowa in 1939.During World War II,he was a gunnery officer with the Pacific Fleet.After the war,he returned to the University of Iowa,where he became professor of physics and chairman of the Department of Physics and Astronomy.In 1958,during the mission of Explorer 1,the first successful U.S.Earth satellite,he discovered the radiation belts surrounding the Earth,that are named for him.He was the principal investigator for the space probe of Jupiter's radiation belts and one of the discoverers of the radiation belts of Saturn.He was chairman of the group that developed the Voyager and Galileo space missions and is currently principal investigator for the Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 11 projects.
a.the number of women employed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
b.the uses of satellites for national security purposes
c.the biological effects of ultraviolet radiation
d.the structure of comet tails
e.recent geological activity along faults in southern California
f.the impact of a manned space station on science and technology
We assume Van Allen's opinions on (f)would be very informed.He would also have great credibility on (d)and only slightly less on (c).His remarks on (b)would carry more weight than those of a layperson,but we would need further information about him before regarding him as an authority on (a)or (e).

Question 78

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:In the O.J.Simpson murder case,did the judge rule correctly in admitting evidence that was obtained at Simpson's house before a search warrant was issued?
a.a well-known defense attorney who heads the American Trial Lawyers Association
b.the former district attorney for Los Angeles County
c.a retired judge on the U.S.Court of Appeals

Question 79

Keeping in mind the sources cited,discuss the credibility of the claim(s)made in the following passage:
"'You hear in the folklore about miracles happening,but I have never seen one thing yet that could be called an actual medical cure,' says Douglas Sharon,a University of California,Los Angeles,anthropologist who has studied curandrismo [Peruvian folk medicine] on the north coast of Peru for 18 years."
-From a National Geographic Magazine news feature

Question 80

For the following issue,discuss which source you'd trust more,and give at least one reason why.You may want to add to or otherwise modify our list of sources.And do keep in mind that we are glad our livelihoods do not depend on a general consensus on our rankings.
Issue:Whether it's possible for a person to have an "out of body" experience.
a.a psychic
b.a physicist
c.a person who claims to have had such an experience
d.a physician
e.a philosopher
f.a magician
g.a psychologist