1. Where are my keys? They’re either in the car or on the table in the kitchen. They aren’t in the kitchen, so I’d better check the car.
A. Statistical argument. The sample: my keys. The N: the number of keys. The relevant properties: being in the car. The target: being in the kitchen. The percentage: 100.
B. Statistical argument. The sample: my keys. The N: the number of keys. The relevant properties: being in the car. The target: all the keys. The percentage: 100.
C. Statistical argument. The sample: my keys. The N: the number of keys. The relevant properties: being in the car. The target: being in the kitchen. The percentage: the number of keys.
D. Argument, but not a statistical argument.
E. No argument in this passage.
2. I talked to five dentists. Three of them said that they prefer sugarless gum for their patients who chew gum. Three-fifths of all dentists prefer sugarless gum for their patients who chew gum.
A. Statistical argument. The sample: the dentists the person talked to. The N: 5. The relevant properties: preferring surgarless gum for people who chew gum. The target: all dentists. The percentage: 60.
B. Statistical argument. The sample: the dentists the person talked to. The N: not stated in this passage. The relevant properties: preferring surgarless gum for people who chew gum. The target: all dentists. The percentage: 60.
C. Statistical argument. The sample: all dentists. The N: 5. The relevant properties: preferring surgarless gum for people who chew gum. The target: the 5 dentists surveyed. The percentage: 60.
D. Argument, but not a statistical argument.
E. No argument in this passage.
3. On August 1, 1981, Reagan signed the Economic Recovery Tax Act, which cut personal income taxes by 25 percent, lowered the maximum rate from 70 to 50 percent for 1982, cut the capital gains tax by one third, and offered a broad array of other tax concessions (Bakeman 2007, 1007).
A. Statistical argument. The sample: personal income taxes. The N: not stated in this passage. The relevant properties: being cut. The target: all taxes. The percentage: 25.
B. Statistical argument. The sample: the maximum tax rate. The N: not stated in this passage. The relevant properties: being cut. The target: all taxes. The percentage: 50.
C. Statistical argument. The sample: the capital gains tax. The N: not stated in this passage. The relevant properties: being cut. The target: all taxes. The percentage: 33.3.
D. Argument, but not a statistical argument.
E. No argument in this passage.