GRE – Argument Writing No.01-10

• Woven baskets characterized by a particular distinctive pattern have previously been found only in the immediate vicinity of the prehistoric village of Palea and therefore were believed to have been made only by the Palean people. Recently, however, archaeologists discovered such a “Palean” basket in Lithos, an ancient village across the Brim River from Palea. The Brim River is very deep and broad, and so the ancient Paleans could have crossed it only by boat, and no Palean boats have been found. Thus it follows that the so-called Palean baskets were not uniquely Palean.

Write a response in which you discuss what specific evidence is needed to evaluate the argument and explain how the evidence would weaken or strengthen the argument.

You should write more than 250 words.

The following appeared as part of a letter to the editor of a scientific journal.

• A recent study of eighteen rhesus monkeys provides clues as to the effects of birth order on an individual’s levels of stimulation. The study showed that in stimulating situations (such as an encounter with an unfamiliar monkey), firstborn infant monkeys produce up to twice as much of the hormone cortisol, which primes the body for increased activity levels, as do their younger siblings. Firstborn humans also produce relatively high levels of cortisol in stimulating situations (such as the return of a parent after an absence). The study also found that during pregnancy, first-time mother monkeys had higher levels of cortisol than did those who had had several offspring.

Write a response in which you discuss one or more alternative explanations that could rival the proposed explanation and explain how your explanation(s) can plausibly account for the facts presented in the argument.

You should write more than 300 words.

The following appeared as a letter to the editor from a Central Plaza store owner.

• Over the past two years, the number of shoppers in Central Plaza has been steadily decreasing while the popularity of skateboarding has increased dramatically. Many Central Plaza store owners believe that the decrease in their business is due to the number of skateboard users in the plaza. There has also been a dramatic increase in the amount of litter and vandalism throughout the plaza. Thus, we recommend that the city prohibit skateboarding in Central Plaza. If skateboarding is prohibited here, we predict that business in Central Plaza will return to its previously high levels.

Write a response in which you discuss what questions would need to be answered in order to decide whether the recommendation is likely to have the predicted result. Be sure to explain how the answers to these questions would help to evaluate the recommendation.

You should write more than 300 words.

• Several recent studies have shown a link between health and stair usage. One recently completed study shows that people who live in stairs-only apartment buildings (that is, buildings without elevators) live an average of three years longer than do people who live in buildings with both elevators and stairs. A second study shows that elderly residents of buildings with elevators make, on average, twice as many visits to doctors each year as do residents of buildings without elevators. Furthermore, several doctor’s offices are reporting that residents of stairs-only buildings scored higher than average on questionnaires administered to new patients, in which the patients were asked to rate several aspects of their own health (e.g., fitness, sleep quality, susceptibility to injury, etc.). The clearest explanation for these findings is that the moderate daily exercise required of residents who must use the stairs instead of elevators increases people’s health and longevity.

Write a response in which you discuss one or more alternative explanations that could rival the proposed explanation and explain how your explanation(s) can plausibly account for the facts presented in the argument.

You should write more than 300 words.

The following appeared in a letter to the editor of a Relannian newspaper.

• Industry analysts report that the number of dairy farms in Relanna has increased by 25 percent over the last decade. Also, recent innovations in milking technology make it possible for farmers to significantly increase the efficiency of the milking process, allowing them to collect more milk in less time with minimal human intervention. In fact, data from the Relannian Department of Agriculture indicate that labor costs at the majority of Relannian dairy farms are actually lower now than they were ten years ago.
• Despite increased efficiency and lower labor costs, a carton of cream — a dairy product made from milk — at the local food market costs twice as much as it did two years ago. The only explanation for this dramatic price increase is that farmers are inflating the price of cream to increase their profits.

Write a response in which you discuss one or more alternative explanations that could rival the proposed explanation and explain how your explanation(s) can plausibly account for the facts presented in the argument.

You should write more than 300 words.

• According to an independent poll of 200 charitable organizations, overall donations of money to nonprofit groups increased last year, but educational institutions did not fare as well as other organizations. Donations to international aid groups increased the most (30 percent), followed by donations to environmental groups (23 percent), whereas donations to educational institutions actually decreased slightly (3 percent).
• Meanwhile, all of the major economic indicators suggest that consumer spending is higher than average this year, showing that potential donors have ample disposable income. Therefore, the clearest explanation for the decline in donations to educational institutions is that people actually value education less than they did in the past.

Write a response in which you discuss one or more alternative explanations that could rival the proposed explanation and explain how your explanation(s) can plausibly account for the facts presented in the argument.

You should write more than 300 words.

The following appeared on the Website Science News Today.

• “In a recent survey of more than 5,000 adolescents, the teens who reported eating the most meals with their families were the least likely to use illegal drugs, tobacco, or alcohol. Family meals were also associated with higher grades, better self-esteem, and lower rates of depression.
• Almost 30 percent of the teens said they ate at least seven meals per week with their families. Clearly, having a high number of family meals keeps teens from engaging in bad behaviors.”

Write a response in which you discuss one or more alternative explanations that could rival the proposed explanation and explain how your explanation(s) can plausibly account for the facts presented in the argument.

You should write more than 300 words.

The following appeared in a health newsletter.

• “Nosinia is an herb that many users report to be as effective as prescription medications at fighting allergy symptoms. Researchers recently compared Nosinia to a placebo in 95 men and women with seasonal allergies to ragweed pollen. Participants in the study reported that neither Nosinia nor the placebo offered significant relief.
• However, for the most severe allergy symptoms, the researchers reported that Nosinia was more effective than the placebo in providing relief. Furthermore, at the end of the study, participants given Nosinia were more likely than participants given a placebo to report feeling healthier.We therefore recommend using Nosinia to help with your severe allergy symptoms.

Write a response in which you discuss what questions would need to be answered in order to decide whether the recommendation and the argument on which it is based are reasonable. Be sure to explain how the answers to these questions would help to evaluate the recommendation.

You should write more than 300 words.

The following appeared in a memo from New Ventures Consulting to the president of HobCo, Inc., a chain of hobby shops.

• “Our team has completed its research on suitable building sites for a new HobCo hobby Shop in the city of Grilldon. We discovered that there are currently no hobby shops in southeastern Grilldon.
• When our researchers conducted a poll of area residents, 88 percent of those who responded indicated that they would welcome the opening of a hobby shop in southeastern Grilldon. Grilldon is in a region of the nation in which the hobby business has increased by 300 percent during the past decade. In addition, Grilldon has a very large population of retirees, a demographic with ample time to devote to hobbies.
• We, therefore, recommend that you choose southeastern Grilldon as the site for your next HobCo Hobby Shop. We predict that a shop in this area will draw a steady stream of enthusiastic new HobCo customers.”

Write a response in which you discuss what questions would need to be answered in order to decide whether the recommendation is likely to have the predicted result. Be sure to explain how the answers to these questions would help to evaluate the recommendation.

You should write more than 300 words.

The following appeared as part of an article in a Dillton newspaper.

• “In an effort to bring new jobs to Dillton and stimulate the city’s flagging economy, Dillton’s city council voted last year to lower the city’s corporate tax rate by 15 percent; at the same time, the city began offering generous relocation grants to any company that would move to Dillton.
• Since these changes went into effect, two new factories have opened in Dillton. Although the two factories employ more than 1,000 people, the unemployment rate in Dillton remains unchanged. The only clear explanation for this is that the new factories are staffed with out-of-town workers rather than Dillton residents.”

Write a response in which you discuss one or more alternative explanations that could rival the proposed explanation and explain how your explanation(s) can plausibly account for the facts presented in the argument.

You should write more than 300 words.

The author concludes that the woven baskets are not endemic to prehistoric village of palea based on the recent discovery of such a basket, in the across river village lithos. he states that since the Brim River was deep and broad, crossing the river was not possible without boats. since no boats were found in the palea, the author concludes that baskets were not native to the Palean. However, there are several flaws in the argument.

Firstly, the author mentions the distinctive pattern of the basket but fails to explain these pattern and compare it with the pattern of the basket found in lithos. For instance, he could have explained the design, color, size, or any of such particular features of the basket. hence, the argument would have been d more convincing if the feature of the baskets were proven to be similar.

Secondly, the author claims that the Brim River is very deep and broad. but the author does not explain about river condition in the ancient time. it might be possible that the river became broad and deep later in time. if the river was shallow in ancient then it would have been possible for the Palean’s to cross the river. hence, the argument would strengthen if the river condition in the past is specified.

Finally, the argument states that no sign of boats was discovered in Palean, so it was not possible for the Palean to cross the river. By this argument, the author neglects the possibility of crossing the river by any other mode of transport like small basket boat or small log boats which would have enabled ancients to cross the river and banter the things. Therefore, the author should explain further why other modes of transport were also not possible in order to make his clam more cogent.

In recapitulation, without further explanation, the argument made by the author looks faulty and less persuasive. In order to make the argument, a strong author should illustrate the details of the points made by him.

A study that tried to establish a relationship between the hormonal levels of first newborn monkeys and human babies showed that there is an increased level of the hormone Cortisol when these subjects faced unfamiliar or stimulating situations. This argument provides some conclusions based on some study findings but lacks a proper correlation between them. What has been studied and concluded for monkeys’ does not indicate that humans must possess the same characteristics.

The argument posits that a study of eighteen monkeys has found an increased level of Cortisol. But concluding that based on a sample size of eighteen is not justified. The sample size is generally a large number, with possibly variegated characteristics among the sample for accurate results. This argument does not give a clear picture as to what constituted the eighteen samples and factors that have been considered in selecting the sample.

Considering monkeys as the subjects, it is not clearly mentioned as to what constitutes a “stimulating situation”. It may not be true that all the monkeys display similar results for different stimulating situations. Secondly, it isn’t mentioned how many of the eighteen monkeys are parents, firstborn, and how many belong to other orders. It is possible that the increase in cortisol level among the monkeys can be accounted for some other factors as well such as environmental conditions, their age, etc.

Human infants, on the other hand, when faced with unfamiliar situations, exhibit higher levels of cortisol level. Though the hormone Cortisol is present in both the monkeys and humans, the stimulus in both cases can be different. It is not mentioned in the argument that Humans and monkeys possess similar hormonal reactions to the stimulus. Likewise, the stimulus considered in the argument is different for both cases. It could be helpful in this case if the number of infants studied is given. For example, we cannot generalize the conclusion if only a very few babies say twenty – were studied for the hormonal changes, for the entire population. Also, the fact that first-time pregnant monkey mothers had higher levels of cortisol does not clearly indicate a relationship with that of the offspring’s cortisol levels. This may be possible but based on the given information, but it does not mean that the same is true in the case of humans.

Hence, for the given information, there can be many reasons for the findings. These results can be varying in many different circumstances and an extensive study needs to be done to conclusively establish the above-mentioned results with respect to the birth order of offspring.

Prohibiting skateboarding cause to returning the business to its previously high level is a very simple view. The author failed to render strong evidence for the argument and prove that why there is a direct relationship between increasing the number of skateboard users and decreasing the business of store owners in central Plaza. Moreover, the author could not convince the readers why the amount of litter and vandalism has an upward trend throughout the Plaza. In addition, the author’s prediction about returning the business to its previous level does not have any supporting evidence to persuade the readers.

Decreasing the number of shoppers in Central Plaza may have several reasons that the author should take into account and then make a relation between this decreasing with the popularity of skateboarding. It is more likely that the most proportion of shoppers had economical problems due to inflation and could not continue their trade. Maybe, people who live around the central plaza do not have enough budgets to spend more money purchasing from the stores in the central plaza. The author could consider different measures that had a direct effect on decreasing business in this area.

Furthermore, the author brings weak evidence to prove his argument while the belief of store owners cannot convince the readers significantly because they did not have enough information about other factors that might have a profound influence on their sales. The writer could use stronger evidence and persuade the readers by certain statistics charts and could use the survey method and gather data from store owners about their observations. Increasing the number of skateboard users may have several reasons and do not have any effect on decreasing the business. Also, increasing the percentage of litter and vandalism throughout the plaza has several main reasons that should be taken into consideration the lacking of a police station is one of them. The writer could support his argument with decent evidence and render strong reasons and clarify why there is a correlation between increasing the rate of crimes and the number of skateboarding users.

The author also failed to illustrate an appropriate conclusion because of two basic reasons. Firstly, generalizing based on weak evidence and secondly prediction in a wrong way without using persuasive evidence to convince the readers. The author could show strong data and prove why prohibiting skateboarding users lead to increasing the business in central Plaza. It is less likely that having a downward trend for business has only one weak reason like increasing the number of skateboarding in this area. Prediction a trend needs analyzing the certain important measures that the author does not pay attention to them at all.

In conclusion, the argument has several basic weak points that cannot be overlooked easily and the conclusion is not enough strong to convince the readers. The author does not use decent evidence to support his argument and does not take certain important factors into account when wants to make a direct relationship between raising the number of skateboarding users and soaring the rate of crimes in Plaza. While the author could prove his claim by using certain methods and strong evidence and persuade the reader by rendering statistical data.

A recently completed study shows that people dwelling in stairs-only apartment buildings (that is, buildings without elevators) live an average of three years longer than do people who live in buildings with both elevators and stairs. A second study shows that elderly residents of buildings with elevators make, on average, twice as many visits to doctors each year as do elderly residents of buildings without elevators. These findings suggest that even a very moderate amount of daily exercise, such as that required to use the stairs leading to and from one’s apartment, can increase people’s health and longevity. The findings also suggest that new apartment buildings should be constructed with as few elevators as possible.

The arguer proposes that new apartment buildings should be constructed with as few elevators as possible. The reason cited by the arguer for this proposal is that people’s health and longevity can be increased by carrying out a reasonable amount of daily exercise like utilizing stairs for coming and going from one’s apartment. The arguer further cites the findings of two recent studies to bolster the recommendation made. The first study has concluded that people who live in buildings that do not have elevators outlive those who live in buildings that have elevators and stairs. The second study has concluded that elderly people residing in buildings with elevators make twice as many visits to the doctor as those made by the people who stay in buildings that do not have elevators. However, a close investigation reveals that these two studies accomplish little towards supporting the recommendation made by the arguer.

Firstly, both the studies make no mention of the number of floors in the buildings that were a part of the studies. It is likely that the number of floors in the buildings where there were no elevators were very less as compared to the buildings with elevators. Hence, the fewer number of stairs would probably make no contribution to the recommended daily exercise routine. Therefore, the health of the people residing in the buildings without elevators probably was not affected in any way by the usage of stairs. On the other hand, it is likely that the number of floors in the buildings with elevators is so high that it is not possible to use the stairs at all, especially for the people residing on the upper floors. Using the stairs may actually lead to fatigue and breathlessness, especially for elderly people. Therefore, without information about the number of floors in the buildings that are being compared, it would be highly unjustified to conclude that utilizing the stairs is providing health benefits and longevity.

Secondly, by making the sweeping statement that new apartments should not have elevators, the arguer completely ignores the problems that will be encountered in transporting commodities and luggage from the ground floor to the upper floors. Baby prams, people in wheelchairs, bulky luggage, small children, etc. will all require elevators to reach their destinations. Utilizing the stairs would be very tiring for the people who need to come and go to their apartments frequently during the day. Therefore, the recommendation to avoid constructing buildings with elevators is largely unwarranted.

Thirdly, linking the health-related problems of people residing in two different buildings with no information about their financial status, living conditions, age, etc. is unjustified. The people who are living longer or are making lesser trips to the doctor may be because of their living conditions and financial status that allow them to have a nutritious diet and take good care of their health. Also, it is likely that the healthier set of people is younger than the people who have poor health. Moreover, a trip to the doctor cannot be termed as a measure of one’s health. Probably, the elderly people go to the doctor to get a regular check-up as they are more health-conscious than their counterparts who reside in buildings without elevators.

Lastly, the arguer has not addressed any other forms of exercise that can be effectively used without creating inconvenience by not constructing elevators. Walking, jogging, playing, going to the gym, etc. are all convenient forms of exercise that can be easily adopted by people for maintaining a regular exercising regime. Unless the arguer rules out the possibility of using any of these forms of moderate exercises, it is difficult to be convinced that not constructing elevators is the only way to ensure that you get your daily quota of exercise. In conclusion, it can be seen that both the studies do little to substantiate the recommendation made by the arguer as there is no concrete evidence that links these two studies to the conclusion arrived at by the arguer.

The above letter states that in the town of Relannian a carton of cream costs twice as much as it did two years ago despite increased in efficiency and lower labor costs. Hence the explanation provided for this increase in price is that farmers are inflating the price of cream to increase their profits. But there can three other explanations that can cause the increase in the price of cream over the last two years.

Firstly, it is mentioned in the letter that the dairy farms in Relanna have increased by 25 percent over the last decade. This might have happened due to the increased demand for dairy products over the last decade which means that the population must have increased a lot in the area. If the demand is still higher than supply, this could lead to higher prices in milk products including cartons of creams.

Also recently, Relanna has received a major technological boom in milking technology which has resulted in an increase in efficiency of the milking process by reducing the time required to collect milk with minimal human intervention. Another explanation that can be concluded from this fact is that this milking technology involves using more machines than humans to produce milk. As this technology is recent, the machine prices might have not yet stabilized due to the high demand for them by dairy farmers. This might lead to an increase in the cost price of milk production and hence leading to an increase in the price of cartons of cream.

Finally, The labor costs might have decreased during the last decade but as times progress newer technology emerges, and hence miscellaneous expenses can increase too. For example, the packaging used ten years ago for cream cartons made it expire earlier, and hence, was cheaper than the packaging available today.

Hence, there can multiple other explanations for the increase in the price of cartons of milk in Relanna town, like an increase in demand, high machine and packaging prices.

The speaker unreasonably concludes that the decline in donations to educational institutions is because people don’t value education when compared to the past. This statement is not eloquent and purely irrational. Unless there is no proper explanation is provided with relevant examples and statistics this argument can’t be a cogent argument.

Firstly, the speaker mentions about the overall donations of money to nonprofit groups are increased over the earlier year but failed to state the real donation amount in both years. The poll of 200 charitable organizations was taken but the statistical data of the polls are missing. On what basis did he conclude that education institutions did not do better as compared with the other organizations, however, he also failed to state what the other organizations refer to?

Secondly, the donations to international aid groups increasing to 30 percent, and also the environmental groups to 23 percent don’t provide adequate statistical data to support the argument. Even the educational institutions decreasing percentage is calculated on what basis? What if the previous years had almost the same percentage overall which is not mentioned. Although it is decreased by the previous year the actual percentage can be compared only if the before one is provided.

Thirdly, the economic indicators suggesting the consumer spending is higher than the average of the year is not evidently proven in the argument. How can he conclude that the donors are potential enough and have ample disposable income? There might be a chance that they are just making their market spread more and publicize to people by doing such donations. What if some people who don’t like to enjoy luxuries instead spend their money by donations. Henceforth, it is very uncertain to come to conclusion as donors have disposable income.

In the conclusion, there is no stated evidence to prove that the decline of donations to educational institutions is less because people value education substantially low when compared with the past. As the speaker failed to provide the most empirical evidence to rationalize the evidence of the argument. A significant amount of more data could help us clearly support the reason behind the decline of donations in a particular area. Thus, the argument can’t be deemed to be persuasive.

The argument presented on the website Science News Today says that those adolescents who have more meals with their families are less likely to be engaged in illegal and harmful activities such as consuming alcohol, smoking, and taking illicit drugs. There is another side of the issue that is missing in this argument.

The first thing is that there are only 5000 adolescents in the survey that was conducted to conclude the above-said statement. Here, the full data set regarding family meals should have been mentioned for better clarification. Since the available information is limited, we can’t conclude that fewer number of meals is the cause for adolescents developing harmful habits. Proper data flow with valid reasons could be better in proving the assumptions stated in the argument and thus result in a reasonable conclusion.

The information that 30% of adolescents had a minimum of seven meals with their family is raw data that fails to mention the link between the meals consumed in a week and the use of drugs and alcohol. So, the general question which arises is how to get some definite results from the available data? Because there may be some adolescents whose number of meals with families in a week exceeds seven, but they would still be indulging in drugs. Therefore, some supporting statistics are needed here.

Another thing that can be considered here is the inverse relation of drug and alcohol consumption among adolescents with the number of meals with families. Families maintain their moral ethics and teach their kids to inculcate good habits in them, but children do not stay with their families all the time. They have their friends’ circle in school and outside, who also influence them. So, there is a high chance that the adolescents get bad habits from their peers, which the parents might not even be knowing.

It is a fact that spending more quality time with the family can help adolescents stay away from stress and remain happy, but how meals impact this relation is still unclear, as stated in the argument. Besides this, the grades of a student depend on the efforts he/she puts into the subjects rather than the number of meals taken with the family. There is a good chance that many of the adolescents from the remaining unsurveyed, 70% would be having a very less number of meals with families and yet excelling in academic performance. So, there seems to be no relationship between these two parameters.

Since the available data is insufficient, assumptions have been made in the argument to support the flaws in it. Instead of concluding anything from the limited available data, following a practical approach to address the issue seems to be more reasonable. No matter what the number of meals is, the parents and teachers must be vigilant about the activities of adolescents, guide them well, and maintain a friendly relationship with them. Counseling is required when adolescents are identified to have stated any harmful habits. This will help the adolescents to discuss their issues with the parents/teachers and get them resolved. Thus, they will be able to leave such habits in the early stages without harming themselves to a greater extent. Now, this approach is something that will help them to avoid entering into depression and instead live a life with self-confidence and self-esteem.

The author concludes that ‘Nosinia’, which is a herb, is better than any ‘placebo’ for curing seasonal allergies to ragweed pollen. He arrives at this judgment through a study conducted on 95 men and women who have been infected with the said seasonal allergy. One section of the population was given ‘nosinia’ while the other was put up with placebos. In the initial days of the treatment, none of the medications gave relief to the patients while later the ones infected with a severe form of this allergy found nosinia to be a soothing herb. Also, the patients who were administered Nosinia felt healthier than those who opted for placebos. Hence, the above derivation is achieved.

The argument seems flawless at first glance. But, as we read it over, there seem to be vague derivations that don’t strengthen the conclusion.

The author justifies his conclusion using a study that only dictates the strength of the population. There is no evidence regarding the age or general health of these people. Also, the author doesn’t state the stage of the disease at which the medication was provided to the patients. Such a plea that is incomplete cannot be a determinant of whether a medicine is recommendable or not. A patient’s medical history is a vital criterion to reach this conclusion. Before claiming the benefits of a drug, it is necessary to put forward the medical history of the people on whom the drug was tested; otherwise, it may not prove equally beneficial to every other person.

The next statement tells the readers that patients with severe allergies experienced relief after using Nosinia. Here the question that arises is whether there is any data regarding the number of patients suffering from a severe form of allergy. There could have been only one person who was offered Nosinia, and he showed a slight sign of recovery. Such conditions cannot be regarded as a parameter to uphold the usage of the prescribed Nosinia. In such a scenario where precise detail is not given, the derivation becomes debatable. Also, it is arguable as to how the severity of allergy was measured. There should have been a scale, and the author should have clearly stated the symptoms that proved the high intensity of the allergy. Only then can the people reading the excerpt relate to it and find the piece useful, otherwise, it becomes an article full of flaws.

The third argument given by the author states that people who took Nosinia felt healthier than those who took placebos. In a state where no medical past of the patient has been revealed or examined, the term healthy seems to be used vaguely. For example, all the people must have been primarily healthy with only a slight symptom of allergy by ragweed. In that case, the medicine prescribed to them gave relief, and they went back to their original state of health. However, the results may not be the same as people who had a severe form of allergy or some other ongoing medical issues.

The conclusion seemed to have been taken in a hurry as there are no reliable statements to prove its credibility. None with a degree of logical thinking go for any of the recommendations provided by the author. When making statements regarding a drug used to cure allergies that occur in both minor and severe forms, one must provide complete data regarding the research so that it helps those who are suffering from it or accumulating information regarding general illness and their respective treatments.

New Ventures Consulting giving recommendations to the president of HobCo.Inc about opening the next HobCo Hobby shop in the southeastern Grilldon has several questionable areas. The report has been drawn out on some weak points and doesn’t provide a proper explanation for them. Several questions arise from this survey and research report about the precision of their decision. Firstly, it has been stated in the report that the southeastern Grilldon has a substantial population of retirees who have enough time to devote to hobbies and hence would welcome a hobby shop there. It raises an important question about the economic stability of these people. Though the retired people might have ample time to devote to hobbies, most of them must be living under the care of their children or on a limited pension. In such a condition of financial dependence, is it possible for the retired people to invest in hobbies, which are pure entertainment for them and not a profitable addition to their lives?

Answering this question would also give us an insight into the economic condition of the majority of the families living in that area. This analysis would help HobCo fix the price range of products that could be brought for sale and purchased by their prospective customers, for the sake of hobby and relaxation, in that area. It would answer our doubts about the general economic condition of the residents.

Thirdly, it’s highly probable that businesses other than HobCo and consultant agencies other than New Ventures Consulting also have noticed the lack of Hobby shops in southeastern Grilldon. Thus it is also likely that other businesses who would also aim at establishing their shops and outlets of southeast Grilldon have a good track record. With this probability, it’s important to start any new venture after having an idea about the possible competitions, especially their pricing. Thus the next question stands as to what are the possible competitions that HobCo would face while establishing their store and what were the possibilities of any local brand being established there by the residents?

The next question is more of a doubt that proceeds from the previous question. What might be the reason behind the absolute absence of hobby shops in such an area where the majority of the people have an interest in pursuing a hobby as well as have time to invest in it? If hobby shops have increased their market and business to over 300 percent in the past decade in Grilldon, then there might be some serious problems with southeastern Grilldon that no business owner has attempted to set up their business in a market that already has a huge demand, for so many years. There can be several possibilities for this. If there are any legal issues relating to setting up hobby shops in that area, then HobCo must be thoroughly informed about it. Only then can they undergo legal procedures to clear the problems and set up their business or not attempt to start at all. On the other hand, superstitions and social prejudices might be another reason for all companies to keep away from that area, though this option is hardly possible as most of the residents have shown interest in a hobby shop.

Thus these are the three basic questions that strike us after we go through the recommendation of the consultant agency New Ventures Consulting. These are the underlying problems that need to be solved to estimate the economic investment and the possible legal procedures that HobCo has to undertake or whether they should undertake their new venture at all.

The article explains the steps taken by Dillton council to bring jobs and stimulate Dillton’s flagging economy by lowering the corporate tax by 15%. The author did not give any information on the amount of tax reduction given to companies. The tax relief might not be much when compared to the tax reduction given by other regions to attract businesses and companies. There might be a case where the corporate tax reduction of 15% was not reasonable for many companies which led them not to consider Dillton as a good place to do business in. Therefore very few companies managed to go there and begin their operations.

There is mention of relocation grants given to companies that would move to Dillton. Even after giving tax reduction and relocation grants, only two companies wanted to begin their operations in that region. Getting only two companies who want to do business in the region shows that the economic situation in the region was not that good for companies to open their units there. Also, the grants did not lure them enough to relocate to the region which can even mean that the efforts made by the council were not enough to attract investments in the area.

It is claimed by the author that there was no change in the unemployment rate in the region even after the two companies started functioning and gave employment to more than 1,000 people. In fact, the author’s claim is flawed because there is no clear information given in the article about the number of job seekers before and after the companies employed people. The unemployment rate is defined as the ratio of the number of people who are given jobs to the number of unemployed people seeking jobs. If there was no change in the unemployment rate, it could mean that there was an increase in job seekers or an increase in unemployment due to other companies laying off their employees. It means the change in the unemployment rate does not just depend on one factor but it also depends on various factors. In Dillton, there might be some factors which led the unemployment rate not to change like some people who actually not seeking jobs earlier were also looking for jobs due to some unavoidable or unplanned situations (including emergencies or sudden need of money). The existing employees of other factories might have joined the two companies so it could also become a factor that led the unemployment rate not to change.

The explanation given for this unchanged employment rate in Dillton is that those companies staffed workers from other towns rather than Dillton residents. This claim is biased and blames the two companies for not employing the local residents but it lacks sufficient reasons why it happened. There could be many reasons for hiring out-of-town workers which might include local residents who were not fit for jobs, they lack the required and important skills needed for jobs, etc. Staffing or hiring might be done purely on the basis of skills required for performing certain duties on jobs. So if the local people who were seeking jobs were not skilled enough to be employed by the two companies, it was not the fault of the companies but the onus was on the individuals seeking employment to develop their skills. Moreover, to a certain extent, the local administration also could have helped the local job seekers to get employed by providing them with sufficient training and development opportunities.