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What is the secret of success? The question is as old as philosophy itself. The Greeks argued
that it boiled down to the possession and exercise of certain character traits, such as generosity
and bravery. But new research emerging from social psychology suggests you have to be self-
confident to be successful. The study, involving over 200 successful people from all walks of
life, comprised detailed interviews and the observation of mental and physical problem solving.
The research found that all of the participants had a strong belief in their own abilities and
persevered in the face of challenges because they thought they could do it. If you want to be
successful, then, you must have faith in your own abilities.
Which one of the following is the best statement of the flaw in the above argument?
It assumes that self-confidence is responsible for success, and not vice versa.
It relies on different senses of the expression ‘self-confidence’.
It ignores the significance of other factors, such as luck.
It assumes that everyone can become self-confident.
It justifies a claim on the basis of how things were in the past.
The presence of a mind requires the presence of self-consciousness. Machines do not have
self-consciousness, therefore machines do not have minds.
Which one of the following most closely parallels the reasoning used in the above argument?
To count as an emotion, a mental state needs to have representational content.
Depression does not have representational content, therefore depression is not an
emotion.
The morally best option is that which maximises benefit. Larger charities are able to
provide the most benefit from donations, therefore it is morally best to choose larger
charities to donate to.
There is no obligation to keep promises to someone after they have died, since the virtue
of keeping promises is to promote the promisee’s wellbeing, and their capacity for
wellbeing ceases upon death.
Trust and reliance are not the same thing, because trust is a mental attitude, whereas
reliance is not.
Only true beliefs can be knowledge. My belief that the world is spherical is true, therefore I
know that the world is spherical.