Friday, October 7, 2011

Distinguishing Evidence from Reason

       In class on Tuesday we read and discussed the topics of Distinguishing Evidence From Reasons, and Distinguishing Evidence from reports of it. Both of these topics will most likely play a crucial role in the writing of our second papers. We will definately need to supply concrete evidence to support our reasons behind our claims for the bands or artists we have chosen to write about. Statements that we will make throughout our papers must report a shared, public fact that readers will agree not to question for the purpose of the argument, and to count as evidence as well. We must consider the idea that readers will question the quality of the facts we present. To be able to silence the skeptics we must be clear as to how we collected our evidence, and by whom it was collected. Ultimately we must be able to assure our readers that they can trust the data we have presented them with. To achieve this we should think critically about whose data we use, and how we use it.

        Even if you have not chosen who you want to write about, you can still consider the approaches you can use. Thinking about what types of data and evidence you would like to use to support your reasons and claims will only help you be better prepared, and able to write more effectively. I feel that the forms of data that are used in our research is extremely important. This not only affects our ability to convince or pursuade our readers, but also our credibility as writers. If we don't provide credible evidence, we will not come off as quality researchers.
 
Matthew Bush

17 comments:

  1. Leslie Boylan said.

    A reason could simply be just a personal belief, and although there is nothing wrong with personal believes, a reader will not change their opinion based off of the writers personal believes. A researcher’s reason must be backed up with credible evidence in order to gain the readers interest and belief in the contents. If a research paper is written based just off of facts from the back of a cereal box, the reader will most likely question the credibility of the evidence provided. It is important for the sake of your paper to provide credible and unquestionable evidence for your reader.

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  2. Reason can be based on a persons beliefs. Even though you can persuade someone off of what you think its always good to back your reason up with evidence. I can't just go out and persuade people to join a club/organization because i like it. Those people don't care about my personal opinion they need evidence/facts, like the history, how the club/organization gives back and etc.

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  3. Yes, providing objective distinguished evidence vs. reasoning it important in a research paper. Factoring this into a paper add validity to the researchers information.

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  4. A researcher should state where he or she got their information. It shows readers that they can trust this information and that it’s true. If you do not your readers might not believe you as much. I would not believe something as much if I saw it on food rather than if I saw/read it in the newspaper.

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  5. It is extremely important to provide evidence in a research paper. I liked how you mentioned when writing a paper; you want the reader to trust your evidence. Having reliable sources is extremely important. All over the internet you can find false information, even on sites such as Wikipedia. Using scholarly journals is always a good source to use. If you reader does not believe your evidence, they will not believe your argument.

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  6. Evidence should be always present in your paper. You have a point about credibility because no one is gonna take you seriously if you can't prove your claims.

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  7. I think that providing the reader with both concrete and known information is important. This allows the reader to trust the writer and his or her view on a topic. Evidence is very important when dealing with an audience with little knowledge of the subject.

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  8. Including known information and incorporating new information in a paper will allow the reader to be comfortable while reading, but also will permit the reader to learn more. However, without evidence the paper would not be as creditable. Therefore, evidence is important.

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  9. With no evidence you have no argument because no one will believe what you are saying because they will think its made up.

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  10. When more evidence is provided it can help the audience to feel more comfortable, it makes your research a better rounded paper. Our research should have a concrete wall of facts to support your information.

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  11. Without evidence, you dont have a valid argument. The writer cannot use their personal opinion as an arguement, because you are only one person. You probably only know as much as the person reading it. And if you know more it is because you researched it. If you researched it, prove it in your evidence.

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  12. Without providing legitimate information on where the researcher got her points and evidence at, how are the readers to trust whether what they are reading is the truth or made up? Its crucial that when writting a paper always state where you got the information from, so it can be looked up if not believed.

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  13. I agree, you must included evidence throughout your entire paper so the reader is not skeptical toward your topic and arguments. You will always have that one reader that doubts every point you are making, so you have to prove every single one.

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  14. Evidence is important and must be used to be considered a quality writer and researcher. The blog was very informative on what evidence is and why it should be used.

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  15. I agree with Matt's post about evidence. Without proper evidence it is almost impossible to persuade the reader and have them agree with you on the topic at hand.

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  16. Evidence plays an important role in writing a paper. Without evidence in your paper you wont have a strong argument or just to prove a point in your paper

    ADAM CLEMENTS

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  17. I agree with Londen's post above. Valid evidence rather than reasoning adds substance to your paper. With just factoring reasoning in the paper, I can't really call it a research paper because it is missing support for the thesis statement.

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