Work through the informal procedures for evaluating inductive arguments on the specific argument below. The steps are listed in the Revisiting Argument Flowchart Video from this week. Try to figure out what kind of inductive argument it is, answer the appropriate questions for that kind, and explain why you think it is a strong or weak argument on the basis of these answers. If you think it is weak, does it commit one of the fallacies? This argument is a famous argument for the existence of God. Some philosophers think it is a strong one and others think it is weak. Here is the argument:

"The universe is like a watch. It has many parts that work together in an organized and systematic way. A watch would have to have an intelligent watchmaker to bring it into being. It wouldn't just pop into existence accidentally. So, the universe must have had an intelligent designer that made it."

Keep it friendly. Our only goal is to practice articulating reasons for thinking the argument is strong or weak on the basis of the informal procedures given. Don't bring in other arguments for or against the existence of God. This exercise is not really about the existence of God. It's more about practicing evaluating the quality of an argument.

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

Answer Kind of inductive argument The universe is like a watch It has many parts that work together in an organized and systematic way A watch would h... View the full answer