Blog 15

Tonight’s reading was about what counts as evidence. I thought that it was very informative and will help me write my final argument essay. I did not realize what could and could not be used as evidence before I read this chapter.
One point that I found helpful was that, “evidence should match the time and place in which you make your argument.” If the information you use as evidence is outdated and no longer relevant, your argument is really null and void. If any link in your argument is too old or has been updated, your argument falls apart and can fail to persuade. Therefore it is important to check that the evidence and information used is up to date and relevant to your topic.
The section on observation and interviews were interesting also. It said that in both cases it is important to look at the entire situation and not take anything for granted. They used LAX as an example of this saying how grand and luxurious it looks from the outside or in movies. However the inside is actually unimpressive and does not offer many amenities. The same goes for interviews. It is important to make sure that the person is not using bias or giving incorrect information. An interview with a Republican senator from Georgia about healthcare reform is going to differ from an interview with a Republican Senator from New York. Furthermore, these interviews will be much different than a Democratic senator from California. But interviews are a good way to add perspective to an argument.
I have always been taught to be wary of surveys and questionnaires. A lot of the time they have double barreled or loaded questions that make them very inaccurate. If you are conducting a survey it is really important that it is random people and that the questions are straight forward and easy to answer.