CAPITULO IV: RESULTADOS
4. Resultado de la Encuesta y Análisis
4.10. Modelo de Negocios CANVAS para Lácteos Baños
T
he word argument is sometimes used in the sense of “quarrel”— that is, a dispute characterized by angry exchanges. We will use the term differently, to mean the statement of a point of view andthe evidence that supports it in a way intended to be persuasive to other people. Candidates for political office argue when they present their
positions on issues. Lawyers argue when they try cases in court. Scholars in various academic fields argue when they offer new theories or inter- pretations. Students argue when they take a position on an issue in class discussion or answer an essay question that calls for judgment.
An argument expresses a “line of reasoning,” which may be thought of as a kind of equation, such as a plus b equals c. In a verbal argument, a and
b would be statements (called premises) that are presented as true; c would
be the conclusion that is represented as following logically from those state- ments. If the statements presented as true are indeed true, and the conclu- sion follows logically from them, then the argument is sound. If one or more of the statements (premises) are false, the argument is not sound, even though the conclusion may follow logically from those statements. An ex- ample using mathematical calculations will make these distinctions clearer:
Example: Statement A:Our business took in $10,000 in receipts last week. Statement B:Our business also had $8,000 in payroll and expenses. Conclusion C:Therefore, our net profit for the week was $2,000.
Comment: If the figures of $10,000 and $8,000 are correct, the profit is in fact $2,000. But suppose that one of the figures is inaccurate, for instance, that the receipts were only $9,500. In that case, the conclusion is mistaken, even though the calculation made
with the stated figures is correct.
Arguments can vary in length from a single sentence to a brief essay or even to a 100,000-word book. The simplest kinds of arguments consist of stating what we think and why we think it. More complex arguments contain a network of asser- tions or claims, together with supporting data. Chapter Two discussed simple arguments; this chapter will focus on complex arguments.
Logic offers numerous rules for deciding whether an argument is sound. Those rules are beyond the scope of this book. We will continue to focus on the most fundamental test—whether the argument can be demonstrated to be more
reasonable than competing arguments. And we will continue to use the com- prehensive thinking strategy presented in Chapter Two. However, in this chapter that strategy is modified to reflect the special challenge presented by complex arguments. This modification will enable you to become as pro- ficient in analyzing those arguments as you have become in analyzing sim- ple ones. Here is a comparison of the earlier strategy and the new one:
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ORIGINAL STRATEGY (CHAPTER TWO)
Step 1: Identify facts and opinions
Step 2: Check the facts and test the opinions
Step 3: Evaluate the evidence Step 4: Make your judgment
REVISED STRATEGY
Step 1: Identify facts and opinions Step 2: Check the facts and test the opinions
Step 3: Conduct research Step 4: Evaluate the evidence Step 5: Make your judgment We will return to the revised strategy later in the chapter, after discussing library and Internet research and expanding our treatment of evidence. Let’s begin with research.
Conducting library research
Research is merely a matter of finding information, and all that is necessary to do that, in any given situation, is to identify relevant sources of information and then consult them. Following are the most basic
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THE MELVIL DEWEY STORY
Imagine how difficult it would be to use a library if there were no system for shelving the books. If you wanted a particular book, you’d have no idea how to find it. It might be on the top shelf of aisle one, the bottom shelf of aisle forty, or anywhere in between. The larger the library, the more difficult it would be to use. A large university library would be virtually impossible to use.
The situation was never that bad, but up until 1876 the system in use was in- flexible and cumbersome. Each book had a designated place on the library shelves. A book on astronomy might be between a book on woodworking and another on medieval architecture. Then Melvil Dewey, a student assistant in the Amherst College library, had the creative idea that brought him fame and the appreciation of library users everywhere.
Dewey’s creative idea was to invent a new shelving system, which came to be known as the Dewey Decimal System. When he left Amherst, he installed the system in Columbia University and then in the New York State Public Library.
The Dewey Decimal System has ten main divisions: 000 is Computers, Infor- mation, and General Reference; 100, Philosophy and Psychology; 200, Religion; 300, Social Sciences; 400, Language; 500, Science; 600, Technology; 700, Arts and Recreation; 800, Literature; 900, History and Geography. Each division has a series of subdivisions. Dewey’s system makes it possible to manage—and to use—any library more flexibly and efficiently. Today it is used in more than 135 countries and has been translated into more than thirty languages. It is also proving useful in classifying Internet resources.
Dewey’s devotion to improving things also led to other achievements. He is credited with establishing the first library school, reforming library standards, and (with others) founding the American Library Association. In addition, he was a pioneer in creating job opportunities for women.
For more information on Melvil Dewey, see www.oclc.org/dewey/resources/ biography/.
good thinking!
information sources. The most important library source is the profes- sional staff that works there. Ask your campus librarian to help you identify the sources listed below and answer any other research questions.
For a broad overview of a subject: an encyclopedia.An encyclopedia is a compendium of information about a wide variety of topics and is
therefore a good starting point for research. Each article is written by a person or persons with specific knowledge of that subject.
For statistical data and miscellaneous facts: an almanac. The best known almanacs include The World Almanac and Information Please
Almanac.
For newspaper reports: The New York Times Index.This index is the standard newspaper index for the United States. It covers all stories that appeared in that newspaper from 1851 to the present.
For general magazines and journals: Reader’s Guide to Periodical
Literature. The Reader’s Guide is an index of articles published in popular magazines.
For specialized periodicals: an appropriate index. Specialized in- dexes provide information on articles in scholarly journals compa- rable to the information Reader’s Guide provides about popular articles.
For government publications: a state or federal monthly catalog.State and federal governments publish more documents than any other publishing source.
For abstracts of scholarly works: an appropriate data base or abstract service.These sources offer summaries of scholarly articles in various fields.
For library holdings: your library’s computer catalog. This source is your key to the books, tapes, monographs, and other materials available in your library. If you are looking for a specific title that is not available in your library, your librarian will usually be able to obtain it from another library. You can also visit your college’s offi- cial website.
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105
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To use many of the information sources listed above you’ll need to ask your campus librarian. Carry out that direction for each of the sources and record your librarian’s response.
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THE STORY OF LARRY PAGE AND SERGEY BRIN
This story could well be titled, “From Research Project to Empire.” It began when two young graduate students met at Stanford University. Larry Page, the son of a computer science professor, and Sergey Brin, the Russian-born son of a mathematics professor, didn’t much care for each other at first. Eventually, they collaborated on a research paper with the daunting title, “The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web-Search Engine.” That effort led them to found one of the most successful companies in re- cent history, known around the world by the odd-sounding name “Google.” (The term is a modification of “googol,” a math term meaning one followed by 100 zeroes.)
When Google was founded in 1998, there were a number of competing “search engines” in use, but, as Brin points out, they did not focus exclusively on infor- mation searching or the order in which the results were presented. Page and Brin gave special attention to these concerns; they also “developed a system that determines the best and most useful websites.” In doing so, they faced a number of challenges, notably how to ensure that the search results were relevant to the search term and objective—presenting a full range of viewpoints on an issue.
Their cash investment in the fledging company matched their time investment. As Page recalls, “We had to use all of our credit cards and our friends’ credit cards and our parents’ credit cards.” But Google has been well worth the effort. It is the number one search engine in the world, with an estimated 65 million daily users. Brin sums up the company philosophy as follows: “Google is all about getting the right information to people quickly, easily, cheaply—and for free. We serve the world— all countries, at least 100 different languages. It’s a powerful service that most peo- ple probably couldn’t have dreamed of twenty years ago. It’s available to the rich, the poor, street children in Cambodia, stock traders on Wall Street—basically everybody.” For more information on Larry Page and Sergey Brin, see www.kottke.org/plus/ misc/google-playboy.html or do a Google search on each individual’s name.