考生在备考新GMAT写作黄金范文第三十二部分。
The following appeared in the opinion section of a national newsmagazine.
“To reverse the deterioration of the postal service, the government should raise the price of postage stamps. This solution will no doubt prove effective, since the price increase will generate larger revenues and will also reduce the volume of mail, thereby eliminating the strain on the existing system and contributing to improved morale.”
Discuss how well reasoned... etc.
全国性新闻杂志的意见栏：
为了转变邮政服务退化的状况，政府应该提高邮资邮票的价格。这个解决方法将毫无疑问是有效的。因为价格提升会产生更大的收益而且会减少邮件数量，从而消除目前系统中存在的紧张并有助于提高士气
1价格提高带来的增加和数量减少带来的减少哪个大不是定数
2收益增加并不一定就会提高士气，因为他们的工资很可能是固定工资而不是绩效工资。
3其他方法可能更有效果。例如减低成本，把固定工资改成绩效工资。
1， 收入是否会增加?因为volume会减少。
2， 士气与volume的减少是否有关系?很可能工资是fixed salary，不会被其他改变。
3， 是否有其他的办法?比如引进技术，减少成本等等。
The author concludes that a postage-stamp price increase is needed to reduce the deterioration of the postal service. The author reasons that raising the price of stamps will accomplish this goal because it will generate more revenue, thereby eliminating the strain on the system. The author further reasons that a price increase will also reduce the volume of mail, thereby improving the morale of postal workers. The reasoning in this argument is problematic in three respects.
The main problem with the argument is the author’s mistaken assumption that eliminating strain on the system and improving employee morale are mutually achievable by way of an increase in stamp prices. A price increase will generate more revenue only if the volume of mail remains constant or increases. But, if the volume of mail increases or remains constant, worker morale will not be improved. On the other hand, if the price increase reduces the volume of mail, revenues may decrease, and the strain on the system will not be eliminated. Consequently, eliminating the strain on the system and improving the morale of the workers cannot both be achieved by simply raising the price of postage stamps.
Secondly, the author’s conclusion that the proposed price increase is necessary to reduce deterioration of the postal service relies on the assumption that no other action would achieve the same result. However, the author provides no evidence to substantiate this assumption. It is possible, for example, that careful cost-cutting measures that do not decrease worker morale might achieve the same goal. It is also possible that other revenue-enhancing measures that do not undermine employee morale are available.
Thirdly, the author unfairly assumes that reducing mail volume and increasing revenues will improve employee morale. This is not necessarily the case. It is possible that employee morale is materially improved only by other means, and that additional revenues will not be used in ways that improve morale. It is also possible that a decrease in mail volume will result in a reduction of the size of the labor force, regardless of revenues, which in turn might undermine morale.
In conclusion, the author’s proposed solution to the problem of the deterioration of the postal service will not work. Raising postage-stamp prices cannot bring about both of the outcomes the author identifies as being necessary to solve the problem. Before we can accept the argument, the author must modify the proposal accordingly and must provide more information about the relationship between employee morale and mail volume.
43. The following appeared in an article in the health section of a newspaper.
“There is a common misconception that university hospitals are better than community or private hospitals. This notion is unfounded, however: the university hospitals in our region employ 15 percent fewer doctors, have a 20 percent lower success rate in treating patients, make far less overall profit, and pay their medical staff considerably less than do private hospitals. Furthermore, many doctors at university hospitals typically divide their time among teaching, conducting research, and treating patients. From this it seems clear that the quality of care at university hospitals is lower than that at other kinds of hospitals.”
报纸的健康板块上的文章：
有一种普遍的错误观念认为大学医院比社区或私人医院更好。这个想法是无根据的，我们地区的大学医院较之私人医院，少雇15%的医生，对患者的治愈率要低20%，总体利润要小得多，给一户员工的待遇比私人医院低很多。而且，很多大学医院的医生将他们的时间分为教学，直到研究和看病几部分。从此可明显看出大学医院的服务质量比其他医院低。
1， 从一个医院的情况就推广到整个太草率
2， 治愈率低可能是因为接受的患者得的病都比较罕见等原因造成的
3， 工资低，总体利润低，时间分配给教学都不能一定说明质量差。可能其他福利好，接受的病人少，教学研究有助于进步
1. 首先，医生的人数与质量之间没有必然的因果原因。profit跟质量也无关系。很可能treating price is significantly lower。
2. 成功率不能说明问题。缺乏其他的证据，忽略了他因：比如因为质量高，所以很多serious illness的，而送往其他医院的一般都是common cases.
3. 时间不能代表问题。因为那些医生所做的研究很可能帮助他们进行治疗。
In this argument the author concludes that university hospitals provide no better care than private or community hospitals. The author bases this conclusion on the following claims about university hospitals: the ones in this region employ 15 percent fewer doctors; they have a 20 percent lower success rate in treating patients; they pay their staffs less money; they make less profit than community hospitals; and they utilize doctors who divide their time between teaching, research and treating patients. This argument is unconvincing for several reasons.
The most egregious reasoning error in the argument is the author’s use of evidence pertaining to university hospitals in this region as the basis for a generalization about all university hospitals. The underlying assumption operative in this inference is that university hospitals in this region are representative of all university hospitals. No evidence is offered to support this gratuitous assumption.
Secondly, the only relevant reason offered in support of the claim that the quality of care is lower in university hospitals than it is at other hospitals is the fact that university hospitals have a lower success rate in treating patients. But this reason is not sufficient to reach the conclusion in question unless it can be shown that the patients treated in both types of hospitals suffered from similar types of maladies. For example, if university hospitals routinely treat patients suffering from rare diseases whereas other hospitals treat only those who suffer from known diseases and illnesses, the difference in success rates would not be indicative of the quality of care received.
Finally, the author assumes that the number of doctors a hospital employs, its success rate in treating patients, the amount it pays its staff, and the profits it earns are all reliable indicators of the quality of care it delivers. No evidence is offered to support this assumption nor is it obvious that any of these factors is linked to the quality of care delivered to patients. Moreover, the fact that doctors in university hospitals divide their time among many tasks fails to demonstrate that they do a poorer job of treating patients than doctors at other kinds of hospitals. In fact, it is highly likely that they do a better job because they are more knowledgeable than other doctors due to their teaching and research.
In conclusion, the author’s argument is unconvincing. To strengthen the argument the author would have to demonstrate that university hospitals in this region are representative of all university hospitals, as well as establishing a causal link between the various factors cited and the quality of care delivered to patients.