The following appeared as a letter to the editor from a Central Plaza store owner.
"Over the past two years, the number of shoppers in Central Plaza has been steadily decreasing while the popularity of skateboarding has increased dramatically. Many Central Plaza store owners believe that the decrease in their business is due to the number of skateboard users in the plaza. There has also been a dramatic increase in the amount of litter and vandalism throughout the plaza. Thus, we recommend that the city prohibit skateboarding in Central Plaza. If skateboarding is prohibited here, we predict that business in Central Plaza will return to its previously high levels."
Write a response in which you discuss what questions would need to be answered in order to decide whether the recommendation is likely to have the predicted result. Be sure to explain how the answers to these questions would help to evaluate the recommendation.
The argument derives itself from the fact that - over two years, number of skateboarders has waxed and number of shoppers has waned in Central Plaza. Entirety of the argument lies in assuming causal relationship between numbers of skateboarders increasing and number of shoppers decreasing. In addition to that, the argument also extends this assumption to suggest that rise in vandalism and litter throughout the plaza is because of the skateboarders. At the end, suggesting that skateboarders shall be banned from Central Plaza, so the numbers of shoppers would go back to previous level.
For this recommendation to succeed, the underlying assumptions shall be true. Did increase in numbers of skateboarders lead to decrease in number of shoppers? Are there other factors which elaborate upon decrease in number of shoppers over two years? Would situation return to as it was two years ago?
To answer first and second questions, we need to understand whether decrease in numbers of shoppers is linked with increase in number of skateboarders. Decrease can be explained by loss of interest amongst shoppers in shops at Central Plaza. There can be another shopping district which shoppers might prefer. Hence, it shall be accounted for. If a section of shoppers from two years ago, belonged to particular neighborhood and a favorable shopping district was constructed near their neighborhood, it can explain the decrease. In addition to that, the decrease can also be attributed to presence of bad neighborhood in the surroundings of Central Plaza. Furthermore, the cost of goods in popular area like Central Plaza might be high as compared to other areas. If availability of cheaper goods elsewhere had become possible, it can explain the decrease too. In these scenarios, the skateboarders are not responsible for the decrease in shoppers. Hence, implementing the recommendation might not give us desired results.
To answer the third question, we need to understand how the situation has changed from what it was two years ago. Shift in trend can explain shift in shopping habits of shoppers. Perhaps, the products offered by shops at Central Plaza were popular two years ago as against to now. This would explain the decrease.
Consider above possibilities, we need to find more information by asking these question. If rise in numbers of skateboarders isn't the reason behind fall in numbers of shoppers, implementing the recommendation would not produce the desired outcome.
Comments
Essay evaluation report
argument 1 -- OK
argument 2 --not OK. need to argue:
There has also been a dramatic increase in the amount of litter and vandalism throughout the plaza.
argument 3 -- not OK. need to argue:
Thus, we recommend that the city prohibit skateboarding in Central Plaza. If skateboarding is prohibited here, we predict that business in Central Plaza will return to its previously high levels.
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Attribute Value Ideal
Final score: 2.0 out of 6
Category: Poor Excellent
No. of Grammatical Errors: 0 2
No. of Spelling Errors: 0 2
No. of Sentences: 24 15
No. of Words: 396 350
No. of Characters: 2039 1500
No. of Different Words: 182 200
Fourth Root of Number of Words: 4.461 4.7
Average Word Length: 5.149 4.6
Word Length SD: 2.982 2.4
No. of Words greater than 5 chars: 150 100
No. of Words greater than 6 chars: 129 80
No. of Words greater than 7 chars: 90 40
No. of Words greater than 8 chars: 45 20
Use of Passive Voice (%): 0 0
Avg. Sentence Length: 16.5 21.0
Sentence Length SD: 6.436 7.5
Use of Discourse Markers (%): 0.458 0.12
Sentence-Text Coherence: 0.325 0.35
Sentence-Para Coherence: 0.5 0.50
Sentence-Sentence Coherence: 0.117 0.07
Number of Paragraphs: 5 5
Grammar and spelling errors:
Line 9, column 126, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: isn't
...on. If rise in numbers of skateboarders isnt the reason behind fall in numbers of sh...
^^^^
Transition Words or Phrases used:
also, but, first, furthermore, hence, if, second, so, third, in addition
Attributes: Values AverageValues Percentages(Values/AverageValues)% => Comments
Performance on Part of Speech:
To be verbs : 15.0 19.6327345309 76% => OK
Auxiliary verbs: 19.0 12.9520958084 147% => OK
Conjunction : 5.0 11.1786427146 45% => More conjunction wanted.
Relative clauses : 7.0 13.6137724551 51% => More relative clauses wanted.
Pronoun: 21.0 28.8173652695 73% => OK
Preposition: 75.0 55.5748502994 135% => OK
Nominalization: 16.0 16.3942115768 98% => OK
Performance on vocabulary words:
No of characters: 2100.0 2260.96107784 93% => OK
No of words: 395.0 441.139720559 90% => More content wanted.
Chars per words: 5.3164556962 5.12650576532 104% => OK
Fourth root words length: 4.45809453852 4.56307096286 98% => OK
Word Length SD: 3.04914596121 2.78398813304 110% => OK
Unique words: 186.0 204.123752495 91% => More unique words wanted.
Unique words percentage: 0.470886075949 0.468620217663 100% => OK
syllable_count: 624.6 705.55239521 89% => OK
avg_syllables_per_word: 1.6 1.59920159681 100% => OK
A sentence (or a clause, phrase) starts by:
Pronoun: 7.0 4.96107784431 141% => OK
Article: 7.0 8.76447105788 80% => OK
Subordination: 3.0 2.70958083832 111% => OK
Conjunction: 0.0 1.67365269461 0% => OK
Preposition: 6.0 4.22255489022 142% => OK
Performance on sentences:
How many sentences: 24.0 19.7664670659 121% => OK
Sentence length: 16.0 22.8473053892 70% => The Avg. Sentence Length is relatively short.
Sentence length SD: 40.3487401703 57.8364921388 70% => OK
Chars per sentence: 87.5 119.503703932 73% => OK
Words per sentence: 16.4583333333 23.324526521 71% => OK
Discourse Markers: 3.0 5.70786347227 53% => More transition words/phrases wanted.
Paragraphs: 5.0 5.15768463074 97% => OK
Language errors: 1.0 5.25449101796 19% => OK
Sentences with positive sentiment : 8.0 8.20758483034 97% => OK
Sentences with negative sentiment : 8.0 6.88822355289 116% => OK
Sentences with neutral sentiment: 8.0 4.67664670659 171% => OK
What are sentences with positive/Negative/neutral sentiment?
Coherence and Cohesion:
Essay topic to essay body coherence: 0.308270687947 0.218282227539 141% => OK
Sentence topic coherence: 0.0927382945946 0.0743258471296 125% => OK
Sentence topic coherence SD: 0.0900635866732 0.0701772020484 128% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence: 0.171855753135 0.128457276422 134% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence SD: 0.0873650165451 0.0628817314937 139% => OK
Essay readability:
automated_readability_index: 11.9 14.3799401198 83% => Automated_readability_index is low.
flesch_reading_ease: 55.24 48.3550499002 114% => OK
smog_index: 3.1 7.1628742515 43% => Smog_index is low.
flesch_kincaid_grade: 9.5 12.197005988 78% => OK
coleman_liau_index: 13.28 12.5979740519 105% => OK
dale_chall_readability_score: 8.07 8.32208582834 97% => OK
difficult_words: 91.0 98.500998004 92% => OK
linsear_write_formula: 11.5 12.3882235529 93% => OK
gunning_fog: 8.4 11.1389221557 75% => OK
text_standard: 12.0 11.9071856287 101% => OK
What are above readability scores?
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Rates: 58.33 out of 100
Scores by essay e-grader: 3.5 Out of 6
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Note: the e-grader does NOT examine the meaning of words and ideas. VIP users will receive further evaluations by advanced module of e-grader and human graders.