l OM oARc PSD|35 97 4 76 9
THE INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY (IU) Course: CRITICAL THINKING INDEX 2
F INAL E XAMINATION CRITICAL THINKING Duration: 120 minutes Teaching team Lectures: Student ID: Date: Jan. 15, 2012 Assoc Prof. Ho Thanh Assoc Prof. Nguyen Dinh Name: Phong INSTRUCTIONS:
1. This is an open book examination. Answer multiple choice questions in exam question paper, answer
writing in answer sheets provided.
2. Use of calculator is allowed; discussion and material transfer are strictly prohibited. Total pages: 6 (including this page)
I. Multiple Choice (50 points)
1. Every time there strong earthquake, all the dogs in my town disappear a. Hasty generalization b. Slippery slope c. Questionable cause
2. Studying too much for a test can often be confusing, for the reason that when you study too much
most of the important points no longer are clear. a. No Fallacy b. Equivocation c. Straw Man d. Begging the Question
3. Hitler was a man who spoke German, wore a goofy moustache, and had an irrational hatred of
Jews. Einstein spoke German and had a goofy moustache, it follows that he had an irrational hatred of Jews
a. Inappropriate appeal to authority b. Weak analogy c. Slippery slope 1 l OM oARc PSD|35 97 4 76 9
THE INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY (IU) Course: CRITICAL THINKING
4. Theodore H. Teabody, the well-known historian, says that Copi's book is the best logic book in the
world. I believe him since the word of such a great man shouldn't be disputed. a. Slippery Slope
b. Inappropriate Appeal to Authority c. Inconsistency d. No Fallacy
5. Whenever I wear green socks my logic grade goes up. That is why I save my green socks to wear only on the days of the test. a. False Alternatives b. Questionable Cause c. Hasty Generalization d. No Fallacy
6. If you let the students go on a field trip to the next town, next thing you know they will be asking
to go to the big city. Once they experience shopping and mailing in the city, it is just a matter of
time before they ask to go to Singapore and Malaysia a. Loaded question b. Slippery slope c. No fallacy
7. None of the thousands of Syrians I interviewed had a strong claim to be recognized with a refugee
status. So, most Syrians could not apply to the UN as refugees. Evaluate this inductive generalization a. The sample is large enough
b. The sample is not large enough
8. I can’t believe that your mother told you to quit University when she herself has a Ph. D. degree.
What logical fallacy is committed? a. Look who’s talking b. Two wrongs make a right c. Straw man
9. Senator Jones says that we should not fund the attack submarine program. I disagree entirely. I
can't understand why he wants to leave us defenseless like that. a. Straw man b. Red herring c. Begging the question d. Two wrongs make a right
10. I always feel better after having a big slice of chocolate cake, so I think that anyone who is
depressed just needs to eat more chocolate cake. CRITICAL THINKING INDEX 2 2Assoc Prof. Nguyen Dinh l OM oARc PSD|35 97 4 76 9
THE INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY (IU) Course: CRITICAL THINKING a. Hasty generalization b. Inconsistency c. Questionable cause d. No fallacy
11. John asked his friend: "Have you stopped beating your wife ?". What logical fallacy did John commit? a. Hasty generalization b. Loaded question c. Questionable cause d. No fallacy
12. Bill borrows Jane's expensive pen, and later finds he hasn't returned it. He tells himself that it is
okay to keep it, since she would have taken his. a. Two wrongs make a right b. Attacking the motive c. Straw man d. Bandwagon argument
13. If the Supreme Court allows abortion, next think you know they'll allow euthanasia and it won't be
long before society disposes of all those persons whom it deems unwanted or undesirable. a. Questionable cause b. Slippery slope c. Inconsistency d. Appeal to ignorance
14. By fully employment economists mean an unemployment rate of 5 percent or lower. This is: a. a stipulative definition b. a persuasive definition c. a precising definition d. an ostensive definition
15. “When I use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less” (Lewis
Carroll). This is just to shows:
a. the importance of using words
b. the importance of precise definitions
c. the importance of critical thinking
d. the importance of language.
16. Sixty percent of students at International University (IU) like to study critical thinking. An is IU
student. Therefore, An likes to study critical thinking. This argument is: a. Weak b. Strong and reliable 3 l OM oARc PSD|35 97 4 76 9
THE INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY (IU) Course: CRITICAL THINKING c. Strong but unreliable
17. Journalist: “public opinions considered that the new proposal for extra fees (on motors, cars) that
your ministry proposed is too high in comparison with the present situation of the economics,
higher than in other countries and is an “overload” to Vietnamese. What is the reason for the new “proposal”, Sir?”
Officer: “Any comparison is not available (suitable). One can not base on the undeveloped and
poor/hard economics to lower the requirement of the quality of the transportation”.
Any fallacy committed in the argument of the officer? a.
Appeals to questionable or faulty authority b. Red herring argument c. Two wrongs make a right d. Begging the question e. no fallacy
18. “Life is divided up into the horrible and the miserable. The horrible would be like terminal cases,
blind people, cripples – I don’t know how they get through life. It’s amazing to me. And the
miserable is everyone else. So when you go through life, you should be thankful that you’re
miserable”. (Alvy Singer, in Annie Hall)
Any fallacy committed in the argument: a.
Appeals to questionable or faulty authority b. Red herring argument c. False alternatives d. Begging the question e. no fallacy
19. “How can you take one away from 9 to get 10”?
Answer: In Roman numerals, 9 is written “IX”. So, if you take “I” (one) away, you end up with ”X”, the Roman numeral for 10. This is a.
a high level of critical thinking b.
critical thinking and creative thinking mixed all together c. creative thinking d. none of the above
20. Studying too much for a test can often be confusing, for the reason that when you study too much
most of the important points no longer are clear. a. No Fallacy b. Equivocation c. Straw Man d. Begging the Question
21. Theodore H. Teabody, the well-known historian, says that Copi's book is the best logic book in the
world. I believe him since the word of such a great man shouldn't be disputed. CRITICAL THINKING INDEX 2 4Assoc Prof. Nguyen Dinh l OM oARc PSD|35 97 4 76 9
THE INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY (IU) Course: CRITICAL THINKING a. Slippery Slope
b. Inappropriate Appeal to Authority c. Inconsistency d. No Fallacy
22. A judge of the Vietnam Idol commented that contestant A’s lacks “fire” and her style is not that of
a professional singer. I simply think he’s wrong. Contestant A got the most SMS votes last week. a. Appeal to Force b. Red Herring c. Bandwagon Argument
d. Ad hominem (Personal attack)
23. John argued that the internet has developed to give many benefits to learn. He is a bad
student. Thus, we should not believe in what he said. What is this logical fallacy? a. Personal Attack b. Look who’s talking c. Attacking the motive d. Two wrongs make a right
24. When the Government accepts longer holidays, employers can benefit as well. If people have more
time off work, they will think about taking a vacation or going shopping. Travel agencies,
shopping centers, supermarkets, etc, will have to work hard and thus economic growth will be enhanced. a. Begging the Question b. Bandwagon Argument c. Red Herring d. Straw Man
25. I'm all for equal rights for women. I just think a woman's place is in the home. Did the arguer commit a fallacy? What is it? a. Hasty Generalization b. Loaded Question c. Inconsistency II. Writing (50 points)
1. Diagram the following arguments (10 points for each item) a.
(1) Something is a square only if it is a rectangle. (2) But this isn’t a rectangle. Look, (3) it has
only three sides. Moreover, (4) some of the sides aren’t even straight. So, (5) this can’t be a square. (1)+ (2) (3) (4) ------------- | / 5 l OM oARc PSD|35 97 4 76 9
THE INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY (IU) Course: CRITICAL THINKING \ | / \ V v v (5) b.
(1) All university students should study critical thinking. After all, (2) critical thinking is
necessary for surviving in the new economy as (3) we need to adapt to rapid changes, and make critical
use of information in making decisions. Also, (4) critical thinking can help us reflect on our values and
purposes in life. Finally, (5) critical thinking helps us improve our study skills. (3) (2) (4) (5) (1)
c. (1) Only three people could have stolen the CD: Danny, Stacy, or Patrick. But (2) Stacy couldn’t
have stolen the CD because (3) she was out riding her bike. (4) Patrick couldn’t either because (5) she
was at a friend’s house. Therefore, (6) Danny must have stolen the CD. (3) (5) | | v v (2) + ( 4 ) + (1) | v ( 6 )
2. (10 points) Paraphrase the following passage:
“With reference to yesterday’s electronic-mail communication from you, I would urge you to take
into consideration that at this point in time there are no parking facilities within close proximity to the
convention center, due to the fact that the Jefferson Street Parking Garage is currently closed for repairs” CRITICAL THINKING INDEX 2 6Assoc Prof. Nguyen Dinh l OM oARc PSD|35 97 4 76 9
THE INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY (IU) Course: CRITICAL THINKING
[marks up to the student’s answer]
3. (10 points) How do you apply critical thinking in your learning (at class, at home, group learning,
…) and in personal development? 7
Document Outline

• d. Begging the Question
• b. Inappropriate Appeal to Authority
• b. Questionable Cause
• b. Loaded question
• d. Begging the Question (1)
• b. Inappropriate Appeal to Authority (1)
• c. Inconsistency
• (1)
• [marks up to the student’s answer]