Archive for May, 2019

Real World Graduation, Question 84: Cabinet Nominations

by Edward Posted: Sunday, 5/26/2019

RealWorldGraduation_Question_84_Cabinet_Nominations   <– PDF

Article 2, Section 2 of the U. S. Constitution states, regarding the office of the President:

“He shall have power, by and with the consent of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two-thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law; but the Congress may by law vest the appointments of such inferior officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in courts of law, or in heads of departments.”

The President’s Cabinet members fall under the category of “officers of the United States”, and require confirmation by the Senate.  A member of the U. S. Senate once voted against the creation of a federal Department of Education (although it passed).  But now, many years later, he has been nominated by the President to be the Secretary (head) of the Department of Education.  On what grounds should the Senate confirm or not confirm him?

a) His original opposition to the creation of any federal Department proves that he cannot be trusted to lead any department. Therefore the Senate should not confirm him.

b) The Senate should not confirm him. The fact that he voted against the creation of the Department proves he is opposed to education, so schools will get worse under his “leadership”.

c) The Senate should not confirm him. If he voted against the creation of the Department, then it is likely that he has contempt for teachers, teachers unions, Department of Education workers, and children in general.  Such a person would not command respect within the department.

d) The Senate should confirm him only in the interest of getting him out of the Senate. True, his original vote proves he is unqualified, but he will do less harm overall as a member of the bureaucracy than as a member of the Senate.

e) The Senate should confirm him only if he promises not to change current policy and promises to recuse himself from budget debates; that way, his biases against education will have no practical effect.

(The answer is on p. 2 of the PDF.)

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Posted in Congress, Constitutional Convention, critical thinking, Real World Graduation, U. S. Constitution | No Comments »

Real World Graduation, Question 83: Rat Sightings

by Edward Posted: Sunday, 5/19/2019

RealWorldGraduation_Question_83_Rat_Sightings   <– PDF

There are 8.143 million (8,143,000) people and an estimated 25 million (25,000,000) rats in the New York City metropolitan area.  Suppose that the estimated rat population is accurate.  The area of the metropolitan area is 322 square miles (8,976,844,800 square feet).  Therefore, density of rats is 25,000,000/8,976,844,800 = .002784 rats per square foot, or one rat for every 359 square feet.    Likewise, the density of people is 8,143,000/8,976,844,000 = .000907 persons per square foot, or one person per 1102.4 square feet.  Since the density of rats is higher, and an area of 359 sq. ft. is a square with sides 18.9 ft long, and since the distance from the center of such a square to any corner (where a person could be) is 26.8 ft, a researcher has concluded (to a first approximation) that a person in New York City is at most (on average) 26.8 ft. from a rat.

On the other hand, another researcher conducted a survey about how often rats are observed in New York City.  Some people reported seeing rats every day, while others could not recall the last time they saw one, even for protracted periods.   A survey was taken in 2002.  In the survey, people were asked if they had seen rats or evidence of rats in their homes in the previous 90 days.  On the upper end, 43% of Hispanic people with income less than $25,000 had seen rats or evidence of them, while only 10% of white people making over $50,000 saw them [1].  Other income levels among whites and Hispanics fell between these two extremes, as did the data for black people of all income levels.

How can these two sets of facts about rats be reconciled?

a) They can be reconciled if one recalls that white people and some upper-class black people have high rates of baseball bat ownership, which rats fear the most.

b) They can be reconciled if one realizes that some people in New York live in expensive neighborhoods and others live in slums because they are victims of the rich. Since rats prefer to live in the poorer neighborhoods because the rodent controls are not as effective, it is logical that some (the poor) see rats every day while others (the rich) never see them.

c) They can be reconciled if one recalls that averages do not apply here because rats prefer to live near people of Hispanic descent because Hispanics throw out a lot of unused vegetables, which are the favorite food of rats.

d) The data can be reconciled because most blacks and nearly all whites will deny or minimize any rat problems in their homes.

e) The data can be reconciled because most Hispanics will exaggerate any rat problems in their homes.

[1]   A. Karpati, B. Kerker, F. Mostashari, T. Singh, A. Hajat, L. Thorpe, M. Bassett, K, Henning, T. Frieden, Health Disparities in New York City, NY: New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, 2004, p. 23

 

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Real World Graduation, Question 82: Pennies

by Edward Posted: Sunday, 5/12/2019

RealWorldGraduation_Question_82_Pennies   <– PDF

There has been some discussion in recent years about the utility of small-denomination U. S. coins such as the penny and the nickel.  Some people have concluded that we would be better off to abolish these coins.  What is the most plausible reason for abolishing the penny?

a) The buying power of the penny is so low as to not be worth continuing; for example, there is no such thing as “penny candy” any more.

b) The penny is too heavy to justify carrying around, when considered with regard to its buying power.

c) The effect of monetary inflation has made penny nearly worthless. People don’t even collect change if it is only a few cents; people won’t stop to pick up a penny on the street.

d) It has always been an inconvenience, since it is nearly the same size as a dime.

e) Some combination of a), b), and c).

(The answer is on p. 2 of the PDF.)

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Real World Graduation, Question 81: Test Drives

by Edward Posted: Sunday, 5/5/2019

RealWorldGraduation_Question_81_Test_Drives   <– PDF

A person went to a new car dealer to buy a new car. He found one that he was interested in, and the dealer offered to let him take a test drive, but required that the prospective buyer first provide his drivers license so the dealer could make a copy of it before the test drive.  Why did the dealer want to see the license and make a copy?

a) To check with the police to see if the prospective buyer has any outstanding arrest warrants and report him to the local police.

b) To make sure the prospective buyer is legally allowed to buy a car.

c) To see if the prospective buyer has any unpaid parking tickets, and report him to the local parking violation bureau.

d) To verify that the prospective buyer has adequate automobile insurance, in case of an accident during the test drive.

e) Some combination of the above, which varies from state to state depending on the state and local laws.

(The answer is on p. 2 of the PDF.)

Posted in critical thinking, Economics, Real World Graduation | No Comments »