The following appeared as part of an article in a magazine devoted to regional life:
"Corporations should look to the city of Helios when seeking new business opportunities or a new location. Even in
the recent recession, Helios's unemployment rate was lower than the regional average. It is the industrial center of
the region, and historically it has provided more than its share of the region's manufacturing jobs. In addition, Helios
is attempting to expand its economic base by attracting companies that focus on research and development of
innovative technologies."
Discuss how well reasoned you find this argument. In your discussion be sure to analyze the line of reasoning and
the use of evidence in the argument.
My writing:
A writer from a magazine devoted to regional life recommended, "corporations should look to the city of Helios when seeking new business opportunities or a new location" to demonstrate how accommodating the city of Helios is in supporting business growth. The argument is flawed for two key reasons. The author points out the low unemployment rate in the city of Helios, however he does not provide any supporting evidence related to the size of the population in the city. Finally, the author contradicts himself in the last line of the premise.
Firstly, what scale is the author using to determine how well the city of Helios is performing in terms of unemployment rate? Is he using a sample of similar regional cities? Identifying relevant criteria is critical in such an evaluation. Therefore, without statistics of the population size, there is no way to estimate whether the city is truly performing better than its latter counterparts.
Secondly, the author overlooks reasons as to why corporations should consider the city of Helios. As mentioned in the premise, the city of Helios' vision is to attract companies that focus on research and development of innovative technologies. Not all businesses are focused in this field so this contradicts the author's recommendation.
To conclude, this is a weak argument. To strengthen it, the author should include relevant statistics of the population to determine how well the city is performing. Without compelling evidence to support his premise, the argument's recommendations are not worthy of consideration.
"Corporations should look to the city of Helios when seeking new business opportunities or a new location. Even in
the recent recession, Helios's unemployment rate was lower than the regional average. It is the industrial center of
the region, and historically it has provided more than its share of the region's manufacturing jobs. In addition, Helios
is attempting to expand its economic base by attracting companies that focus on research and development of
innovative technologies."
Discuss how well reasoned you find this argument. In your discussion be sure to analyze the line of reasoning and
the use of evidence in the argument.
My writing:
A writer from a magazine devoted to regional life recommended, "corporations should look to the city of Helios when seeking new business opportunities or a new location" to demonstrate how accommodating the city of Helios is in supporting business growth. The argument is flawed for two key reasons. The author points out the low unemployment rate in the city of Helios, however he does not provide any supporting evidence related to the size of the population in the city. Finally, the author contradicts himself in the last line of the premise.
Firstly, what scale is the author using to determine how well the city of Helios is performing in terms of unemployment rate? Is he using a sample of similar regional cities? Identifying relevant criteria is critical in such an evaluation. Therefore, without statistics of the population size, there is no way to estimate whether the city is truly performing better than its latter counterparts.
Secondly, the author overlooks reasons as to why corporations should consider the city of Helios. As mentioned in the premise, the city of Helios' vision is to attract companies that focus on research and development of innovative technologies. Not all businesses are focused in this field so this contradicts the author's recommendation.
To conclude, this is a weak argument. To strengthen it, the author should include relevant statistics of the population to determine how well the city is performing. Without compelling evidence to support his premise, the argument's recommendations are not worthy of consideration.
