The following appeared in the summary of a study on headaches suffered by the residents of Mentia.
"Salicylates are members of the same chemical family as aspirin, a medicine used to treat headaches. Although many foods are naturally rich in salicylates, for the past several decades, food-processing companies have also been adding salicylates to foods as preservatives. This rise in the commercial use of salicylates has been found to correlate with a steady decline in the average number of headaches reported by participants in our twenty-year study. Recently, food-processing companies have found that salicylates can also be used as flavor additives for foods. With this new use for salicylates, we can expect a continued steady decline in the number of headaches suffered by the average citizen of Mentia."
Write a response in which you examine the stated and/or unstated assumptions of the argument. Be sure to explain how the argument depends on these assumptions and what the implications are for the argument if the assumptions prove unwarranted.
The argument states that residents of Mentia experience lower number of headaches cases due to presence of Salicylates in food as well as their use in food processing and flavor additives. Salicylates being the same chemical member as that of an aspirin, a medicine used to treat headaches; the argument states that this use of salicylates result in a continued decline in the number of headaches case in Mentia. However, it should far too hasty to accept this prediction as fact. As this argument lacks a lot of evidences to support its position. The author jumps into the hasty conclusion without explaining its unwarranted assumptions. A lot of evidences are needed to be evaluated either this argument holds water or not.
At the beginning, the author states that salicylates being the member of the same chemical family as that of aspirin helps to reduce headaches. It is fallacious to assume that being included in the same family as similar chemical properties as that of the aspirin. It is similar like being born in Messi families results in the best football player as that of Messi. However, if it is true salicylates has similar chemical structure as that of aspirin, it is unhealthier to assume that little quantity of salicylates has similar effect to reduce the headaches as that of aspirin. Quantity of the medicine either in mg or gram matters to be effective remedies. Thus, the argument is based on unstated assumptions.
Secondly, it is assumed that salicylates are responsible to reduce headaches but it might be the case that people might not be interested to register the case of headache, being non-fatal disease. It might be the case that people has changed their routine of behaviors like eating habits, sleeping habit and prefer yoga as well as exercises to get rid of headaches and more become focused towards their health condition. The argument fails to provide any relevant data regarding the number of people who has suffered from headache in the several decades and presence of salicylates in their foods help them to get rid of headaches. In this sense, the argument lacks pertinent information regarding the treatment of headache with the presence of salicylates in their food.
Thirdly, the author states that salicylates present naturally in many foods and for many decades’ food processing companies are adding salicylates as preservatives. However, the argument fails to provide any germane information regarding the presence of salicylates naturally or artificially in the large varieties of food items. The argument fails to describe the amount of salicylates present in food varieties. It also fails to mention the amount needed to treat headaches. Either it is present in large amount needed to treat headaches or its presence is so minor to treat headaches. It is also possible that presence of salicylates in larger amount can change its property to solve headaches problem. All this information’s are needed to predict the role of salicylates in solving headache or not. The author also states that salicylates can be added as flavor additives on food recently. Similarly, the same question arises as explained above the quantity of salicylates needed to treat headaches is present on foods favor for flavor additives of salicylates. So, it is fallacious to assume the treatment of headaches by salicylates without observing all these questions.
In conclusion, the argument as it stands now hold no water as it contains a lot of fallacies in the form of unwarranted assumptions. These unwarranted assumptions are supported with evidences in the form of systematic search in order to believe the role of salicylates in solving the problem of headaches in Mentia’s people.
Comments
e-rater score report
Attribute Value Ideal
Final score: 3.5 out of 6
Category: Satisfactory Excellent
No. of Grammatical Errors: 5 2
No. of Spelling Errors: 6 2
No. of Sentences: 28 15
No. of Words: 607 350
No. of Characters: 3062 1500
No. of Different Words: 224 200
Fourth Root of Number of Words: 4.964 4.7
Average Word Length: 5.044 4.6
Word Length SD: 2.835 2.4
No. of Words greater than 5 chars: 243 100
No. of Words greater than 6 chars: 183 80
No. of Words greater than 7 chars: 141 40
No. of Words greater than 8 chars: 94 20
Use of Passive Voice (%): 0 0
Avg. Sentence Length: 21.679 21.0
Sentence Length SD: 8.619 7.5
Use of Discourse Markers (%): 0.607 0.12
Sentence-Text Coherence: 0.326 0.35
Sentence-Para Coherence: 0.362 0.50
Sentence-Sentence Coherence: 0.157 0.07
Number of Paragraphs: 2 5
Grammar and spelling errors:
Line 1, column 482, Rule ID: SENTENCE_FRAGMENT[1]
Message: “As” at the beginning of a sentence requires a 2nd clause. Maybe a comma, question or exclamation mark is missing, or the sentence is incomplete and should be joined with the following sentence.
...asty to accept this prediction as fact. As this argument lacks a lot of evidences ...
^^
Transition Words or Phrases used:
also, but, however, if, regarding, second, secondly, similarly, so, third, thirdly, thus, well, in conclusion, as well as, it is true
Attributes: Values AverageValues Percentages(Values/AverageValues)% => Comments
Performance on Part of Speech:
To be verbs : 27.0 19.6327345309 138% => OK
Auxiliary verbs: 6.0 12.9520958084 46% => OK
Conjunction : 11.0 11.1786427146 98% => OK
Relative clauses : 18.0 13.6137724551 132% => OK
Pronoun: 49.0 28.8173652695 170% => Less pronouns wanted
Preposition: 105.0 55.5748502994 189% => OK
Nominalization: 26.0 16.3942115768 159% => OK
Performance on vocabulary words:
No of characters: 3125.0 2260.96107784 138% => OK
No of words: 607.0 441.139720559 138% => Less content wanted.
Chars per words: 5.14827018122 5.12650576532 100% => OK
Fourth root words length: 4.96360453597 4.56307096286 109% => OK
Word Length SD: 2.92857785677 2.78398813304 105% => OK
Unique words: 231.0 204.123752495 113% => OK
Unique words percentage: 0.380560131796 0.468620217663 81% => More unique words wanted or less content wanted.
syllable_count: 1019.7 705.55239521 145% => OK
avg_syllables_per_word: 1.7 1.59920159681 106% => OK
A sentence (or a clause, phrase) starts by:
Pronoun: 10.0 4.96107784431 202% => Less pronouns wanted as sentence beginning.
Article: 15.0 8.76447105788 171% => OK
Subordination: 2.0 2.70958083832 74% => OK
Conjunction: 0.0 1.67365269461 0% => OK
Preposition: 3.0 4.22255489022 71% => OK
Performance on sentences:
How many sentences: 28.0 19.7664670659 142% => OK
Sentence length: 21.0 22.8473053892 92% => OK
Sentence length SD: 52.7850860198 57.8364921388 91% => OK
Chars per sentence: 111.607142857 119.503703932 93% => OK
Words per sentence: 21.6785714286 23.324526521 93% => OK
Discourse Markers: 4.75 5.70786347227 83% => OK
Paragraphs: 5.0 5.15768463074 97% => OK
Language errors: 1.0 5.25449101796 19% => OK
Sentences with positive sentiment : 12.0 8.20758483034 146% => OK
Sentences with negative sentiment : 11.0 6.88822355289 160% => OK
Sentences with neutral sentiment: 5.0 4.67664670659 107% => OK
What are sentences with positive/Negative/neutral sentiment?
Coherence and Cohesion:
Essay topic to essay body coherence: 0.376673410896 0.218282227539 173% => OK
Sentence topic coherence: 0.109096697579 0.0743258471296 147% => OK
Sentence topic coherence SD: 0.0928732659988 0.0701772020484 132% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence: 0.202080361168 0.128457276422 157% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence SD: 0.0751064158417 0.0628817314937 119% => OK
Essay readability:
automated_readability_index: 13.7 14.3799401198 95% => OK
flesch_reading_ease: 41.7 48.3550499002 86% => OK
smog_index: 8.8 7.1628742515 123% => OK
flesch_kincaid_grade: 12.7 12.197005988 104% => OK
coleman_liau_index: 12.59 12.5979740519 100% => OK
dale_chall_readability_score: 7.85 8.32208582834 94% => OK
difficult_words: 122.0 98.500998004 124% => OK
linsear_write_formula: 11.0 12.3882235529 89% => OK
gunning_fog: 10.4 11.1389221557 93% => OK
text_standard: 13.0 11.9071856287 109% => OK
What are above readability scores?
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Write the essay in 30 minutes.
Rates: 66.67 out of 100
Scores by essay e-grader: 4.0 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.