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madhur_ahuja
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ESSAY QUESTION:
The following appeared in The Homebuilder magazine, a local publication with a focus on construction and sale of real-estate properties:
“According to the most recent survey of our readers, nearly 70% of the respondents indicated that they are planning to build or purchase a new home over the next 2 years. These results indicate that the growth in the construction industry is likely to accelerate in the near future. Therefore, this industry continues to offer lucrative opportunities for investment.”
Discuss how well reasoned you find this argument. Point out flaws in the argument's logic and analyze the argument's underlying assumptions. In addition, evaluate how supporting evidence is used and what evidence might counter the argument's conclusion. You may also discuss what additional evidence could be used to strengthen the argument or what changes would make the argument more logically sound.
YOUR RESPONSE:
The argument put forth by the author of article in Homebuilder magazine looks convincing at the first look, but when analyzed in sufficient detail, it is found to be riddled with flaws.
Firstly, there is no information in the argument regarding the size of the reader base of the magazine. The number of readers of the survey might be too small to give the overall indication of construction industry.
Even if the number of reader of the magazine constitute a significant number, the number of respondents might be actually very less. The argument puts forth only the percentage (70%) as the claim to support his argument, but actual number which corresponds to this percentage can be much less than what is required to make a justifiable conclusion. To support the argument, the author should have put forth the actual figures of the respondents and number of readers of the magazine to support his argument rather than just giving the percentages.
Also, Only on the basis of the fact that respondents are planning to build or purchase a new home, it cannot be concluded that they will actually buy one. Many other factors come into play before making such an investment, such as cost, location of house. The author is assuming that respondents know of the current price situation. What if respondents were unaware of the current prices of houses and assumed to be much lower than current prices ? In that case, actual number of respondents buying the homes would be much lesser.
Finally, growth in the construction industry depends also on factors such as availability of land and other construction related resources. The author of the article should have tried to explore these factors and presented in his argument to make it more convincing.
Hence, it is clear that argument makes claims without solid evidences and therefore its conclusion cannot be properly relied upon unless additional evidence is provided.
The following appeared in The Homebuilder magazine, a local publication with a focus on construction and sale of real-estate properties:
“According to the most recent survey of our readers, nearly 70% of the respondents indicated that they are planning to build or purchase a new home over the next 2 years. These results indicate that the growth in the construction industry is likely to accelerate in the near future. Therefore, this industry continues to offer lucrative opportunities for investment.”
Discuss how well reasoned you find this argument. Point out flaws in the argument's logic and analyze the argument's underlying assumptions. In addition, evaluate how supporting evidence is used and what evidence might counter the argument's conclusion. You may also discuss what additional evidence could be used to strengthen the argument or what changes would make the argument more logically sound.
YOUR RESPONSE:
The argument put forth by the author of article in Homebuilder magazine looks convincing at the first look, but when analyzed in sufficient detail, it is found to be riddled with flaws.
Firstly, there is no information in the argument regarding the size of the reader base of the magazine. The number of readers of the survey might be too small to give the overall indication of construction industry.
Even if the number of reader of the magazine constitute a significant number, the number of respondents might be actually very less. The argument puts forth only the percentage (70%) as the claim to support his argument, but actual number which corresponds to this percentage can be much less than what is required to make a justifiable conclusion. To support the argument, the author should have put forth the actual figures of the respondents and number of readers of the magazine to support his argument rather than just giving the percentages.
Also, Only on the basis of the fact that respondents are planning to build or purchase a new home, it cannot be concluded that they will actually buy one. Many other factors come into play before making such an investment, such as cost, location of house. The author is assuming that respondents know of the current price situation. What if respondents were unaware of the current prices of houses and assumed to be much lower than current prices ? In that case, actual number of respondents buying the homes would be much lesser.
Finally, growth in the construction industry depends also on factors such as availability of land and other construction related resources. The author of the article should have tried to explore these factors and presented in his argument to make it more convincing.
Hence, it is clear that argument makes claims without solid evidences and therefore its conclusion cannot be properly relied upon unless additional evidence is provided.
