Most people believe that yawning

Answer choices

1. A

   Wrong Flaw21% picked this

   It attempts to support its conclusion solely by restating that conclusion

   This refers to the famous Circular Reasoning flaw, in which the conclusion restates the evidence. The conclusion is certainly very similarly stated, but there is a big difference between saying "Most people believe X is true" and saying "X is true". Also, the author has a second premise: "not only do they believe it nowadays, they've believed it throughout history". A circular argument basically means there were no premises. If you can isolate at least one supporting idea that is distinct from the conclusion, then it's probably not circular.

   21%
2. B

   Not Accurate20% picked this

   It cites the evidence of historians of popular culture in direct support of a claim that lies outside

   Does the argument cite the evidence of historians of popular culture? Yes. Is that in direct support of a claim that lies outside their expertise? No, not really. It's adding heft to the idea that most people (currently) believe that seeing someone else yawn is the most powerful trigger of yawning. What people believe in this timeframe or that one, in this area or that one, seems like it would be within the expertise of historians of popular culture. A widely held belief of a given society seems like exactly the sort of thing that historians of popular culture would be studying. Another famous flaw is Inappropriate Appeal (to emotion / to opinion / to a purported expert). This answer is describing that third version. But when that third version is the problem, it would be something weirder like "Do nitrogen and helium form covalent bonds? We asked historians of popular culture".

   20%
3. C

   Wrong Flaw2% picked this

   It makes a sweeping generalization about yawning based on evidence drawn from a limited number

   This describes the famous Sampling flaw, but the argument doesn't go from "because it was true in these cases, it must be generally true". The author is saying "because most people now and in years past believe that X is true, X is true."

   2%
4. D

   Correct45% picked this

   It supports its conclusion by appealing solely to opinion in a matter that

   Why this is right

   Does the author support her conclusion solely by appealing to opinion? Yes. She references the belief (i.e. opinion) of most people nowadays as well as that of people from disparate societies in years past. Is the matter being discussed largely factual? Yeah, it should be. Since yawning is a biological behavior, it's most powerful trigger would be something we would assess by understanding the physiology of how yawning works and what in the body causes it.

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

   45%
5. E

   Contradicted12% picked this

   It takes for granted that yawns have no cause other than the

   It never presumes that "seeing someone else yawn" is the only cause of yawning; it's saying that it's the most irresistible cause, implying that there are other causes of yawning that are just less powerful.

   12%