Deck 4: Clarify Ideas and Concepts

Question 1

In colleges and universities there are many different disciplinary language communities. When a professor from one discipline uses the same technical term as a professor from another discipline, it can be confusing to undergraduates who may not realize that the same word may mean different things in those two different academic language communities. This is why making a correct interpretation of what each professor means requires that the students learn ________.
(a) how their words are used by the members of their language communities
(b) how to file complaints with the dean that the faculty members are being unfair
(c) how to ask the professors to stop using technical terminology
(d) how to avoid taking courses except in one discipline at a time

Answer 1

A

Question 2

George argued that the film Jurassic World did not deserve to be nominated for any science fiction awards because it was not "authentic sci-fi." George's argument depends on stipulating that the boundary of the concept "science fiction" does not include or apply to that film. To do this George uses which of the following devices?
(a) the dictionary definition of science fiction
(b) a reference to the meaning of science fiction as specified by the awards committee
(c) a donkey cart word
(d) the force of his personality
(e) a gullible and uncritical listener

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Simpson wanted to have a face-to-face conversation with the professor about the problems he was having in class. But instead he ended up texting "this is a hard course" to the professor. Because of the shift to written communication, Simpson can expect which of the following?
(a) greater clarity with regard to his purpose
(b) greater precision with regard to context
(c) more opportunities to use body language
(d) more opportunities for misunderstanding

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Professor Wilson tells his students that only the most important concepts from the chapter will be on the next test. Student A and student B have different ideas about just which concepts are the most important. This is an example of ________.
(a) motivation
(b) negotiation
(c) vagueness
(d) contextualization
(e) ambiguity

Question 5

Suppose you are talking to a friend and you make a gesture that the friend does not understand. So the friend asks you what you are intending to communicate by that. In this kind of a situation your friend is ________.
(a) using an interpretive question to try to learn your purpose
(b) using an analytical question to try to learn how to make the same gesture
(c) using an inference question to see what you are implying
(d) using an evaluative question to indicate disapproval

Question 6

What is the "first rule of fair-minded interpretation"?

Question 7

The example in the text about the word person and the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling that corporations are persons reinforces the idea that ________.
(a) people are biological
(b) corporations are immortal
(c) meaning matters
(d) what person means is not all that important

Question 8

Which critical thinking skill, along with the critical thinking habit of judiciousness, is the primary skill for determining the meaning and significance of what is being communicated?
(a) Analysis
(b) Interpretation
(c) Inference
(d) Evaluation
(e) Explanation

Question 9

Saying that a term or expression is problematically vague means that the word or expression ________.
(a) is difficult to read in the limited lighting available
(b) has unclear boundaries in a given context and purpose
(c) is not appropriate to use in polite company d. has more than one meaning for a given context and purpose

Question 10

Professor Smith informed the students of her intention to be a "fair" teacher. One student thought she meant that her approach to grading was going to be objective and just. Another student thought that the professor meant that she had quite modest aspirations for the quality of her teaching efforts. This is an example of ________.
(a) evaluation
(b) negotiation
(c) vagueness
(d) inconsistency
(e) ambiguity

Question 11

Saying that a term or expression is problematically ambiguous means that the word or expression ________.
(a) is difficult to read because the writing is smudged
(b) has unclear boundaries in a given context and purpose c. is not appropriate to use in polite company
D) has more than one meaning for a given context and purpose

Question 12

James is in the process of purchasing a new home. He is going back and forth with the sellers over the one issue of the selling price. Neither James nor the sellers want to compromise. Jim thinks the sellers are asking too much. The sellers think Jim is not a serious buyer. Jim and the sellers are engaging in ________.
(a) closed auction negotiation
(b) interest-based negotiation
(c) positional negotiation
(d) arbitrated negotiation

Question 13

The reason for using the image of both parties to the negotiation sitting on the same side of the table is to illustrate that interest-based negotiation ________.
(a) is meant for weak people who are afraid to go head to head
(b) encourages applying critical thinking to force the opponent to compromise
(c) results more often in animosity and hard feelings
(d) starts with both parties trying to identify the interests they are trying to achieve
(e) starts with both sides putting their bargaining position on the table

Question 14

Almost every word in the dictionary has more than one meaning. Why then do we not become confused constantly by this ambiguity? The multiple meanings of most of the words we use do not confuse us because ________.
(a) we never know what a person means anyway
(b) we use context and purpose to pick out the speaker's meaning
(c) we use vagueness to negotiate interests
(d) we go online to find out what a word means

Question 15

When the TV sports announcer said that 2015 marked the first time that there was a "real college football champion," the donkey cart word real was being used in order to ________.
(a) show how enthusiastic the announcer was that his alma mater had won
(b) being ironic since the announcer did not approve of using a playoff format to pick a champion
(c) explain that NCAA football players should be compensated for playing
(d) twist the meaning of "college football champion" to exclude all previous national #1 teams

Question 16

The book uses the example about "No animals are allowed in the airport terminal except assistance animals" to illustrate the point that ________.
(a) occasionally context and purpose are not sufficient to resolve all questions
(b) clear and well-placed public signs explain the rules precisely
(c) there is no difference between a companion animal and an assistance animal
(d) people are not animals

Question 17

Explain why written communication is generally a "poor messenger" as compared to face-to-face conversation.

Question 18

Jerome asks his colleague the following questions: "Who said that? Where were they when they said it? To whom did they say it?" What is Jerome trying to do?
(a) confuse his colleague
(b) establish context
(c) promote ambiguity
(d) encourage his opportunism

Question 19

What is one reliable way to identify different language communities?
(a) attending to how they use particular words, symbols, and expressions
(b) finding people who prefer to use interest-based negotiation
(c) distinguishing strong critical thinkers from those who have lesser skills
(d) using a geographical mobile device app, like Google Earth

Question 20

Seeking to form an accurate interpretation of a speaker's words, images, gestures, poem, report, and so on, what questions can a person use to discover the speaker's purpose?

Question 21

Contextualizing resolves problematic ambiguity by reminding us of the topic being discussed or the circumstances within which a statement was made.

Question 22

The school principal was giving out Perfect Attendance Awards to the children in the second grade and called Jennifer to the front of the class saying. "Jennifer gets a Perfect Attendance Award too because she did not miss a single day of school except for the three days her parents held her out for religious reasons. And, after all, authentic perfect attendance means attending school each and every day that you should have attended." Explain what makes the school principal's message problematic to interpret.

Question 23

Describing a word or expression as ambiguous means that the word or expression ____________.

Question 24

Rather than bargaining with her partner until a compromise was hammered out about which one of them had to stay late to complete the paperwork, Judy, a police officer, preferred to approach disagreements with her partner using ______________ negotiation.

Question 25

One of the most practical ways of resolving problematic vagueness and ambiguity is to introduce _____________ that clarify which cases are included or excluded.

Question 26

Describing a word or expression as vague means that the word or expression ____________.

Question 27

Explain why interpreting the meaning of a political campaign promise like "We will reform government so that we do what is right!" is problematic.

Question 28

What does "taking a person's words out of context" mean and why is that a problem? Use examples to amplify your explanation.

Question 29

Explain why the word cause is problematic in this statement "Everything and everyone has a cause."

Question 30

The priority humans give to efficient communication should give way to concerns about problematic vagueness and problematic ambiguity only if miscommunications have occurred or are likely to occur.

Question 31

Using examples based on recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings or comparable examples of your own choosing, explain why strong critical thinking includes the development of the skill of interpretation and the habit of judiciousness.

Question 32

Contrast interest-based negotiation from position-based negotiation and describe how you may be able to approach the problem of finding a job on campus using interest-based negotiation. You may use examples from the text or, preferably, introduce your own examples to illustrate your points.

Question 33

When does vagueness or ambiguity become problematic?

Question 34

What is a language community?

Question 35

Regardless of context or purpose, vague or ambiguous words or expressions are always problematic.

Question 36

Why do we not consider people who use critical thinking to be a special language community?

Question 37

When Uncle Frank issued his command that "Bad language" should never be used in his presence, his college-aged nieces and nephews agreed out of respect to honor his wishes. But later, when they were out together and he was not with them, they discussed what each of them thought that Uncle Frank had meant. Explain why it can be difficult to interpret an expression like "Don't use bad language!"

Question 38

How does the discussion of academic language communities help college freshmen and sophomores find success in typical college introductory courses? And, how does applying critical thinking help students move more easily into the academic language community of their chosen major?

Question 39

In the sentence "The disappointed one who lives with no expectations is truly happy," the word truly is used as a ____________ word to twist the meaning of happy.