A recently issued twenty-year study on headaches suffered by the residents of Mentia investigated the possible therapeutic effect of consuming salicylates. Salicylates are members of the same chemical family as aspirin, a medicine used to treat headaches. Although many foods are naturally rich in salicylates, food-processing companies also add salicylates to foods as preservatives. The twenty-year study found a correlation between the rise in the commercial use of salicylates and a steady decline in the average number of headaches reported by study participants. At the time when the study concluded, food-processing companies had just discovered that salicylates can also be used as flavor additives for foods, and, as a result, many companies plan to do so. Based on these study results, some health experts predict that residents of Mentia will suffer even fewer headaches in the future.
Write a response in which you discuss what questions would need to be answered in order to decide whether the prediction and the argument on which it is based are reasonable. Be sure to explain how the answers to these questions would help to evaluate the prediction.
The author predicts that resisdents of Mential will have fewer headaches. To support his claim, the author points to the correlation between the rise in the commercial use of salicylates and a steady decline in the average number of headaches reported by study participants. However, there are several assumptions on which the argument rests weakly. A thorough analysis is required to find out if there any cause effect relationship between consumption of salicylates and reduction in occurance of headaches.
A major assumption in the argument has to do with fact that the study on headaches is representative of the situation of average residents of Mentia. The argument fails to offer any data regarding the participants. How many residents of Mentia participated in the study? If very few residents participated then the results of this study can't convince us that the results are applicable to all the residents. Also, the time period of the study is twenty years; Are we to assume that the same participants continued reporting and they didn't opt out? It very unlikely that a person will continue to report his headaches problem for 20 years. He might have shifted to some differnt city or country? He might be died, Who knows? The point is, if the participants didn't come back to report their headaches even though they still might be suffering from headaches, then the number of reported headaches will obvisouly diminish. In that case, the argument would not be nonsensical.
Not just the validity results of the study are under suspect, the argument has not taken in to account other possible factors which might contribute to decline in average number of headaches reported by study participants. Maybe the participants started living healthy lifestyle or they might have joined some yoga program which helps reducing occurrence of headaches. We don't know. The question that need to be answered is, Did the participants joined any health club or anything which might aid in good health. These alternatives have to be ruled out before we attempt to justify the argument that Salicylates is helping in decline in occurrence of headaches.
Finally, the author predicts that the residents of Mentia will suffer even fewer headaches in the future. The reasoning behind this argument is fallacious. The efficacious effects of a medicine are applicable only when the medicine is consumed in certain quantity. Too much or too less won't be effective. Assuming that the companies do start using Salicylates as flavor additivies for food, we have to know whether the increase in intake of Salicylates will actually be beneficial. We need information regarding the optimal level of Salicylates. Another assumption made here is that people will continue buying food which has flavor additives. Maybe adding such flavor is detrimental to the taste of the food, as a result, the residents might avoid it.
There are several assumptions which if don't hold true renders the argument invalid. Further, the reasoning used in the argument is fallacious.
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Comments
Essay evaluation report
Sentence: The author predicts that resisdents of Mential will have fewer headaches.
Error: resisdents Suggestion: residents
Sentence: A thorough analysis is required to find out if there any cause effect relationship between consumption of salicylates and reduction in occurance of headaches.
Error: occurance Suggestion: No alternate word
Sentence: He might have shifted to some differnt city or country?
Error: differnt Suggestion: different
Sentence: The point is, if the participants didn't come back to report their headaches even though they still might be suffering from headaches, then the number of reported headaches will obvisouly diminish.
Error: obvisouly Suggestion: obviously
Sentence: Assuming that the companies do start using Salicylates as flavor additivies for food, we have to know whether the increase in intake of Salicylates will actually be beneficial.
Error: additivies Suggestion: additives
----------------
argument 1 -- not OK. argument 2 is enough.
argument 2 -- OK
argument 3 -- OK
----------------
Attribute Value Ideal
Final score: 3.5 out of 6
Category: Satisfactory Excellent
No. of Grammatical Errors: 0 2
No. of Spelling Errors: 5 2
No. of Sentences: 29 15
No. of Words: 499 350
No. of Characters: 2508 1500
No. of Different Words: 236 200
Fourth Root of Number of Words: 4.726 4.7
Average Word Length: 5.026 4.6
Word Length SD: 2.808 2.4
No. of Words greater than 5 chars: 183 100
No. of Words greater than 6 chars: 145 80
No. of Words greater than 7 chars: 108 40
No. of Words greater than 8 chars: 72 20
Use of Passive Voice (%): 0 0
Avg. Sentence Length: 17.207 21.0
Sentence Length SD: 8.735 7.5
Use of Discourse Markers (%): 0.379 0.12
Sentence-Text Coherence: 0.27 0.35
Sentence-Para Coherence: 0.438 0.50
Sentence-Sentence Coherence: 0.115 0.07
Number of Paragraphs: 5 5
Grammar and spelling errors:
Line 1, column 150, Rule ID: WHITESPACE_RULE
Message: Possible typo: you repeated a whitespace
Suggestion:
...ints to the correlation between the rise in the commercial use of salicylates and...
^^
Line 2, column 271, Rule ID: SENTENCE_FRAGMENT[1]
Message: “If” 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.
...ts of Mentia participated in the study? If very few residents participated then th...
^^
Line 2, column 337, Rule ID: CANT[1]
Message: Did you mean 'can't' or 'cannot'?
Suggestion: can't; cannot
...icipated then the results of this study cant convince us that the results are applic...
^^^^
Line 2, column 533, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: didn't
...rticipants continued reporting and they didnt opt out? It very unlikely that a person...
^^^^^
Line 2, column 758, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: didn't
...nows? The point is, if the participants didnt come back to report their headaches eve...
^^^^^
Line 3, column 335, Rule ID: ADVISE_VBG[5]
Message: The verb 'help' is used with infinitive: 'to reduce' or 'reduce'.
Suggestion: to reduce; reduce
...ve joined some yoga program which helps reducing occurrence of headaches. We dont know. ...
^^^^^^^^
Line 3, column 372, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: don't
...ps reducing occurrence of headaches. We dont know. The question that need to be answ...
^^^^
Line 3, column 446, Rule ID: DID_PAST[1]
Message: Did you mean 'join'?
Suggestion: join
...to be answered is, Did the participants joined any health club or anything which migh...
^^^^^^
Line 6, column 37, Rule ID: IF_IS[2]
Message: Did you mean 'is'?
Suggestion: is
.... There are several assumptions which if dont hold true renders the argument inv...
^^
Line 6, column 40, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: don't
... There are several assumptions which if dont hold true renders the argument invalid....
^^^^
Transition Words or Phrases used:
actually, also, but, finally, however, if, may, regarding, so, still, then, as to, as a result
Attributes: Values AverageValues Percentages(Values/AverageValues)% => Comments
Performance on Part of Speech:
To be verbs : 24.0 19.6327345309 122% => OK
Auxiliary verbs: 16.0 12.9520958084 124% => OK
Conjunction : 7.0 11.1786427146 63% => OK
Relative clauses : 19.0 13.6137724551 140% => OK
Pronoun: 30.0 28.8173652695 104% => OK
Preposition: 69.0 55.5748502994 124% => OK
Nominalization: 20.0 16.3942115768 122% => OK
Performance on vocabulary words:
No of characters: 2559.0 2260.96107784 113% => OK
No of words: 494.0 441.139720559 112% => OK
Chars per words: 5.18016194332 5.12650576532 101% => OK
Fourth root words length: 4.71445763274 4.56307096286 103% => OK
Word Length SD: 2.86787242717 2.78398813304 103% => OK
Unique words: 238.0 204.123752495 117% => OK
Unique words percentage: 0.481781376518 0.468620217663 103% => OK
syllable_count: 815.4 705.55239521 116% => OK
avg_syllables_per_word: 1.7 1.59920159681 106% => OK
A sentence (or a clause, phrase) starts by:
Pronoun: 7.0 4.96107784431 141% => OK
Article: 15.0 8.76447105788 171% => OK
Subordination: 3.0 2.70958083832 111% => OK
Conjunction: 0.0 1.67365269461 0% => OK
Preposition: 2.0 4.22255489022 47% => More preposition wanted as sentence beginning.
Performance on sentences:
How many sentences: 29.0 19.7664670659 147% => OK
Sentence length: 17.0 22.8473053892 74% => The Avg. Sentence Length is relatively short.
Sentence length SD: 54.219815079 57.8364921388 94% => OK
Chars per sentence: 88.2413793103 119.503703932 74% => OK
Words per sentence: 17.0344827586 23.324526521 73% => OK
Discourse Markers: 3.24137931034 5.70786347227 57% => More transition words/phrases wanted.
Paragraphs: 6.0 5.15768463074 116% => OK
Language errors: 10.0 5.25449101796 190% => OK
Sentences with positive sentiment : 6.0 8.20758483034 73% => OK
Sentences with negative sentiment : 16.0 6.88822355289 232% => Less negative sentences wanted.
Sentences with neutral sentiment: 7.0 4.67664670659 150% => OK
What are sentences with positive/Negative/neutral sentiment?
Coherence and Cohesion:
Essay topic to essay body coherence: 0.188193848823 0.218282227539 86% => OK
Sentence topic coherence: 0.0475856343396 0.0743258471296 64% => OK
Sentence topic coherence SD: 0.0486342825052 0.0701772020484 69% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence: 0.0904307034252 0.128457276422 70% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence SD: 0.0460719869876 0.0628817314937 73% => OK
Essay readability:
automated_readability_index: 11.5 14.3799401198 80% => Automated_readability_index is low.
flesch_reading_ease: 45.76 48.3550499002 95% => OK
smog_index: 8.8 7.1628742515 123% => OK
flesch_kincaid_grade: 11.1 12.197005988 91% => OK
coleman_liau_index: 12.47 12.5979740519 99% => OK
dale_chall_readability_score: 7.9 8.32208582834 95% => OK
difficult_words: 107.0 98.500998004 109% => OK
linsear_write_formula: 11.5 12.3882235529 93% => OK
gunning_fog: 8.8 11.1389221557 79% => OK
text_standard: 12.0 11.9071856287 101% => 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.