324 Answers to assignments
either party involved in the incident.
However, his evidence is compromised
by the fact that he did not come
forward until after he had seen White
and his car in a news photograph, and
knew that White had been arrested.
This knowledge makes his claims
unreliable.
d If Mrs Short is right about seeing a
parking ticket on the suspected car,
an obvious step would be to find out
if a ticket had been issued to White
on the day in question. If so it would
mean White and the restaurant owner
were lying, and one would have to
ask why. A parking ticket in such a
situation would come close to being
the ‘smoking gun’.
3 Variable responses4.4 Credibility
Responses will vary, but the following very
brief notes may be useful.
1 You should have considered the
following criteria:• plausibility of the statements made
• reputation (position, status, etc.)
• expertise; experience
• possibility of vested interest
• corroboration (if any) and whether
or not it is independent.
2 The most important items are the two
songs, including the chords, and what can
be inferred reliably from the similarities
and/or differences between them.
3 Obviously what Ewbank writes is hearsay,
not direct testimony. She is reporting what
those involved in the case have said when
interviewed, and in response to questions.
However, she is allegedly quoting them
directly in many cases. She also produces
some factual evidence, such as the content
of Berry’s scrapbook, and the song itself.
These factors need to be taken into account
when deciding how reliable her report is.
4, 5 Variable responses4.2 Explanation
1 A explanation; B explanation;
C argument; D argument; E explanation.
In all five cases reasons are given, but
only in C and D do the reasons function
as support for a conclusion.
2 B and C, if true, could explain the data. A
is simply a summary or interpretation of
the data: an observation. D is an inferred
generalisation, and not necessarily a safe
one.
3 Variable responses. (For example, that car
claims have risen so significantly it may
give the impression of a general rise. Or
that it seems likely that claims would rise,
and it is therefore assumed that they have.)
4 Variable responses. (In brief: primarily the
passage is explaining why mountain-
climbing ethics have changed. However,
it could be added that in explaining why
they have changed, the author is also
making the case that they have changed,
and changed for the worse. It is a good
example of the boundary between
argument and explanation becoming
blurred at times.)4.3 Evidence
1 Check your answer against the three
relevant sections of the chapter,
beginning with ‘Types of evidence’ on
page 145. Examples: variable.
2 a Mrs Short’s evidence provides
corroboration only in the sense that
it concurs with Green’s claim. But
her evidence is somewhat vague and
uncertain. We have no information
about Mrs Short herself: her age,
alertness, etc., or her relation to Green
other than their being neighbours. It
is weak evidence, possibly biased by
acquaintance / friendship.
b The restaurant owner is not
independent, so his reliability as a
witness is questionable.
c Long, we are told, is independent
inasmuch as he does not know