Cynthia: Corporations amply fund research

Answer choices

1. A

   Half Scope11% picked this

   The government should help fund pure theoretical research because such research might have unforeseen practical applications in fields

   Luis would say NO, but we don’t know what Cynthia would say. We know that Luis would disagree, because he only wants to fund research that’s expected to have practical benefits (not might have benefits). But, we can’t say that Cynthia would agree with this, because Cynthia wanted to fund theoretical research in order to broaden our knowledge of the universe, not because it might lead to practical applications.

   11%
2. B

   Nobody Agrees12% picked this

   A proposed study of the effects of chemical fertilizers on crops, for the purpose of developing more-resistant and higher-yielding breeds,

   We wouldn't be able to derive this claim from either paragraph. This sounds like the sort of research Luis would be okay with funding (since it's potentially going to yield practical applications in agriculture). And Cynthia is advocating that the govt kick in some money to fund theoretical stuff. That doesn’t let us infer that she thinks the govt should not fund any practical stuff.

   12%
3. C

   Out of Scope17% picked this

   Although some research projects in theoretical science yield practical benefits, most do not, and so no research projects in theoretical science should

   We don’t know what either person would say about this. Neither person’s comments would allow us to infer what they believe about most theoretical projects. It also contains such a strong sweeping “NO theoretical projects” should be funded, that Luis might still say NO, since there could be a project in theoretical science that is still expected to yield practical applications, for which he would allow govt funding.

   17%
4. D

   Out of Scope5% picked this

   Research for the sole purpose of developing new technologies ought to be financed

   We wouldn’t be able to infer that either person would sign off on a claim this extreme. The idea that only corporations can finance a certain type of research is overly limiting. Even if you ignore the contentious issue of govt. funding, neither person weighed in on other types of financing, such as private donors or crowdsourced fundraising.

   5%
5. E

   Correct56% picked this

   Knowledge gained through basic scientific research need not be expected to lead to new and useful technologies in order for the

   Why this is right

   Cynthia would say YES, Luis would say NO. Cynthia thinks there are cases (theoretical research) when research is not expected to lead to practical discoveries but the govt should still fund it. Luis says that the govt should fund only when it is expected to lead to practical applications.

   Skill tested: Agree/Disagree · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

   56%