1E Practice: Deductive and Inductive Arguments - Are the arguments best classified as deductive or inductive?

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

All fires need oxygen. There is no oxygen in that room. So there is no fire in that room.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

All elements with atomic weights greater than 64 are metals. Z is an element with an atomic weight of 79. Therefore, Z is a metal.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

Anyone over 21 years of age can legally play the slot machines in Las Vegas. Sam is 33 years old. Sam can legally play the slot machines in Las Vegas.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

Most Doberman dogs bark a lot. My cousin just got a Doberman dog. Therefore, my cousin's Doberman dog will probably bark a lot.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

All dogs bark. Fido is a dog. So Fido barks.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

Rodents all have large, sharp front teeth that they use for gnawing. A capybara is a rodent, so it too must have large, sharp front teeth.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

No whale lives in fresh water, and the lake is fresh water, so there are no whales living there.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

It usually takes 2-3 days for a delivery to ship from the warehouse to your door via most major shipping services. You ordered on Tuesday morning, so it's safe to assume your package will arrive Thursday or Friday.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

Cats routinely kill birds and mice. There is a cat, so it almost assuredly kills birds and mice.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

The treasure is probably under one of the stones in the yard. Once we check under every stone, we should find the treasure.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

Winners never quit and quitters never win. Mike and Tom both quit, so they won't win.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

All mollusks are invertebrates. Snails are mollusks, so snails must be invertebrates.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

All reptiles ever examined are cold-blooded. Dinosaurs resemble reptiles in many ways. So dinosaurs were cold-blooded.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

Some cookies are burnt. Some burnt things are good to eat. So some cookies are good to eat.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

The overwhelming majority of mutations are not beneficial to an organism's survival. So the odds are that no mutation is going to give an organism super powers.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

Based on a survey of 2200 randomly selected likely voters, 56.2% indicate that they will vote for the incumbent in the upcoming election. Therefore, approximately 56% of the votes in the upcoming election will be for the incumbent.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

No book in English begins numbering its pages on a left-hand page. This is a book in English, therefore it will begin its numbering on a right-hand page.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

The majority rules in the House of Representatives. Either the Democrats or the Republicans will control the House of Representatives. As there are an odd number of representatives in the House, it follows that there is no way there will be a tie in the House of Representatives.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

On a National Geographic map, no two adjacent nations appear shaded with the same color. Brazil is shaded green on this map, and it is a National Geographic map. Only two nations in South America are not adjacent to Brazil. So at most three South American nations on this map are shaded green.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

There are no octagon-shaped fruit. Papayas are fruit. Thus, papayas are not octagon-shaped.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

I heard lots of barking last night. The neighbor's dog must've been pretty upset about something, since he rarely barks.

. Is the following argument best classified as deductive or inductive?

Crackers almost always have salt on them, so the crackers at this restaurant will most likely be salted in some way.

Back to top