Dr. Peter Duesberg, a molecular biologist at U.C. Berkeley claims, "It is not proven that HIV is the cause of AIDS," because no one has proven that HIV causes AIDS and, "there should be scientific documents … which demonstrate that fact." Duesberg's argument entails which fallacy?
A) Faulty sign
B) Hasty generalization
C) Sweeping generalization
D) Red herring
E) Appeal to ignorance

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Duesberg's argument is an example of an appeal to ignorance fallacy because it suggests that because something has not been proven to be true, it is therefore false. This type of argument ignores the possibility that the lack of proof may be due to other factors, such as the complexity of the issue or limitations in current research methods, rather than the non-existence of the relationship between HIV and AIDS.

Dr Peter Duesberg, a Molecular Biologist at U