"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
The author fails to account for numerous inconsistencies which may be interpreted from the argument like firstly, same chemical family compounds can imply that there are certain similarities between Salicylates and aspirin, but the author fails to provide detailed reasoning such as chemical composition or detailed study. Instead, secondly, the author further premises the "same chemical family" reason to justify the decline in headache in study and presenting facts such as many foods are naturally rich in salicylates - This further makes his/her position more refutable. Thirdly, the author leaves room for doubt by introducing a fact which although allows increased usage of salicylates but fails to state the reason for the decline in headaches.
If two compounds belong to a same chemical family, it doesn't imply that they would have all the same properties. Surely, we can agree on the fact that it is good for health because many foods are rich naturally rich in salicylates and the author maybe correct in assuming that indeed salicylates and aspririn are similar in their curative properties, But the author fails to provide any information to support that fact. Hence , the fact mentioned by author weakens his/her position rather than supporting it.
Further , the author uses a 20-year study which correlates the salicylates usage with a steady decline in average number of headaches reported . But the fact that the study is 20 years old doesn't justify that salicylates are the only factor. Further author is talking about reporting headaches , a steady decline can even imply that some new drug more efficient than aspirin or salicylates is responsible for the decline.
Assuming that the premise about the salicylates is true, the author stills fails to provide the evidence for "the more the salicylates in the food the better it would be at curing headaches". Maybe the excess of salicylates would damage the body even if it cures headaches. There is no concrete evidence to suggest otherwise.
Since, the argument lacks on multiple accounts, the conclusion lacks validity. Therefore, argument is spurious.
Comments
e-rater score report
Attribute Value Ideal
Final score: 3.0 out of 6
Category: Satisfactory Excellent
No. of Grammatical Errors: 7 2
No. of Spelling Errors: 4 2
No. of Sentences: 14 15
No. of Words: 341 350
No. of Characters: 1745 1500
No. of Different Words: 167 200
Fourth Root of Number of Words: 4.297 4.7
Average Word Length: 5.117 4.6
Word Length SD: 2.658 2.4
No. of Words greater than 5 chars: 132 100
No. of Words greater than 6 chars: 101 80
No. of Words greater than 7 chars: 69 40
No. of Words greater than 8 chars: 41 20
Use of Passive Voice (%): 0 0
Avg. Sentence Length: 24.357 21.0
Sentence Length SD: 13.942 7.5
Use of Discourse Markers (%): 0.714 0.12
Sentence-Text Coherence: 0.362 0.35
Sentence-Para Coherence: 0.632 0.50
Sentence-Sentence Coherence: 0.131 0.07
Number of Paragraphs: 5 5
Grammar and spelling errors:
Line 3, column 449, Rule ID: WHITESPACE_RULE
Message: Possible typo: you repeated a whitespace
Suggestion:
...eason to justify the decline in headache in study and presenting facts such as ma...
^^
Line 5, column 55, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: doesn't
...ds belong to a same chemical family, it doesnt imply that they would have all the same...
^^^^^^
Line 5, column 427, Rule ID: COMMA_PARENTHESIS_WHITESPACE
Message: Put a space after the comma, but not before the comma
Suggestion: ,
... information to support that fact. Hence , the fact mentioned by author weakens hi...
^^
Line 7, column 8, Rule ID: COMMA_PARENTHESIS_WHITESPACE
Message: Put a space after the comma, but not before the comma
Suggestion: ,
...n rather than supporting it. Further , the author uses a 20-year study which c...
^^
Line 7, column 64, Rule ID: POSSESIVE_APOSTROPHE[1]
Message: Possible typo: apostrophe is missing. Did you mean 'salicylates'' or 'salicylate's'?
Suggestion: salicylates'; salicylate's
...es a 20-year study which correlates the salicylates usage with a steady decline in average ...
^^^^^^^^^^^
Line 7, column 143, Rule ID: COMMA_PARENTHESIS_WHITESPACE
Message: Don't put a space before the full stop
Suggestion: .
... in average number of headaches reported . But the fact that the study is 20 years...
^^
Line 7, column 190, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: doesn't
...the fact that the study is 20 years old doesnt justify that salicylates are the only f...
^^^^^^
Line 7, column 243, Rule ID: SENT_START_CONJUNCTIVE_LINKING_ADVERB_COMMA[1]
Message: Did you forget a comma after a conjunctive/linking adverb?
Suggestion: Further,
...y that salicylates are the only factor. Further author is talking about reporting head...
^^^^^^^
Line 7, column 260, Rule ID: WHITESPACE_RULE
Message: Possible typo: you repeated a whitespace
Suggestion:
...s are the only factor. Further author is talking about reporting headaches , a st...
^^
Line 7, column 295, Rule ID: COMMA_PARENTHESIS_WHITESPACE
Message: Put a space after the comma, but not before the comma
Suggestion: ,
...or is talking about reporting headaches , a steady decline can even imply that so...
^^
Line 7, column 391, Rule ID: WHITESPACE_RULE
Message: Possible typo: you repeated a whitespace
Suggestion:
...re efficient than aspirin or salicylates is responsible for the decline. Assum...
^^
Line 11, column 113, Rule ID: WHITESPACE_RULE
Message: Possible typo: you repeated a whitespace
Suggestion:
...idity. Therefore, argument is spurious.
^^^^^^^^^^^
Transition Words or Phrases used:
but, first, firstly, hence, if, may, second, secondly, so, still, therefore, third, thirdly, such as, talking about, all the same
Attributes: Values AverageValues Percentages(Values/AverageValues)% => Comments
Performance on Part of Speech:
To be verbs : 14.0 19.6327345309 71% => OK
Auxiliary verbs: 7.0 12.9520958084 54% => OK
Conjunction : 10.0 11.1786427146 89% => OK
Relative clauses : 12.0 13.6137724551 88% => OK
Pronoun: 22.0 28.8173652695 76% => OK
Preposition: 32.0 55.5748502994 58% => More preposition wanted.
Nominalization: 9.0 16.3942115768 55% => More nominalizations (nouns with a suffix like: tion ment ence ance) wanted.
Performance on vocabulary words:
No of characters: 1823.0 2260.96107784 81% => OK
No of words: 337.0 441.139720559 76% => More content wanted.
Chars per words: 5.40949554896 5.12650576532 106% => OK
Fourth root words length: 4.28457229495 4.56307096286 94% => OK
Word Length SD: 2.83296517201 2.78398813304 102% => OK
Unique words: 172.0 204.123752495 84% => More unique words wanted.
Unique words percentage: 0.510385756677 0.468620217663 109% => OK
syllable_count: 582.3 705.55239521 83% => OK
avg_syllables_per_word: 1.7 1.59920159681 106% => OK
A sentence (or a clause, phrase) starts by:
Pronoun: 2.0 4.96107784431 40% => OK
Article: 10.0 8.76447105788 114% => OK
Subordination: 1.0 2.70958083832 37% => OK
Conjunction: 3.0 1.67365269461 179% => OK
Preposition: 0.0 4.22255489022 0% => More preposition wanted as sentence beginning.
Performance on sentences:
How many sentences: 14.0 19.7664670659 71% => Need more sentences. Double check the format of sentences, make sure there is a space between two sentences, or have enough periods. And also check the lengths of sentences, maybe they are too long.
Sentence length: 24.0 22.8473053892 105% => OK
Sentence length SD: 89.8716772256 57.8364921388 155% => OK
Chars per sentence: 130.214285714 119.503703932 109% => OK
Words per sentence: 24.0714285714 23.324526521 103% => OK
Discourse Markers: 9.21428571429 5.70786347227 161% => OK
Paragraphs: 5.0 5.15768463074 97% => OK
Language errors: 12.0 5.25449101796 228% => Less language errors wanted.
Sentences with positive sentiment : 6.0 8.20758483034 73% => OK
Sentences with negative sentiment : 6.0 6.88822355289 87% => OK
Sentences with neutral sentiment: 2.0 4.67664670659 43% => OK
What are sentences with positive/Negative/neutral sentiment?
Coherence and Cohesion:
Essay topic to essay body coherence: 0.289358156489 0.218282227539 133% => OK
Sentence topic coherence: 0.0948006290976 0.0743258471296 128% => OK
Sentence topic coherence SD: 0.0730447746259 0.0701772020484 104% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence: 0.152223931454 0.128457276422 119% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence SD: 0.0806229487299 0.0628817314937 128% => OK
Essay readability:
automated_readability_index: 16.1 14.3799401198 112% => OK
flesch_reading_ease: 38.66 48.3550499002 80% => OK
smog_index: 8.8 7.1628742515 123% => OK
flesch_kincaid_grade: 13.8 12.197005988 113% => OK
coleman_liau_index: 14.39 12.5979740519 114% => OK
dale_chall_readability_score: 8.67 8.32208582834 104% => OK
difficult_words: 82.0 98.500998004 83% => More difficult words wanted.
linsear_write_formula: 20.0 12.3882235529 161% => OK
gunning_fog: 11.6 11.1389221557 104% => OK
text_standard: 9.0 11.9071856287 76% => OK
What are above readability scores?
---------------------
Rates: 50.0 out of 100
Scores by essay e-grader: 3.0 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.