In the following excerpt, a writer tries to persuade his supervisor to respond to a government request for proposals (RFP) to build an unmanned surveillance plane for the military. Which aspect of the paragraph undercuts the effectiveness of the passage? I think we are making a serious mistake by not responding. If we don't respond to this proposal, we will lose our competitive edge. At a conference last month, for example, I spoke to a couple of people who said the market for unmanned surveillance aircraft will grow exponentially during the next 10 years. Can we talk about this more at next week's planning meeting?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The passage draws conclusions about the potential growth of the market for unmanned surveillance aircraft based on a small sample of only a couple of people. This is an inadequate sample size and does not necessarily represent the entire market. Additionally, the passage poses only two alternatives - either responding to the proposal or losing competitive edge - when there may be other options available.

In the Following Excerpt, a Writer Tries to Persuade His