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0 pointsjakear4y ago0 comments

What "source" is this? I found https://nces.ed.gov/Pubs2007/2007480_3.pdf, which is considerably more clear as it lists the three statements as entirely separate list items:

> Any statement such as the following:

> To enable people to better serve and sell to the Hispanic community

> To improve marketing strategies to the Hispanic community

> To enable people to establish contacts to serve the Hispanic community

I truly disbelieve you can claim in good faith that that is "equally clear" as:

> Acceptable answers include statement such as:

> To enable people to better serve and sell to the Hispanic community; to improve marketing strategies to the Hispanic community; and to enable people to establish contacts to serve the Hispanic community.

I think interpreting the semi-colon'd sentence as a single "statement", especially given the ambiguity introduced by their grammatical error, is entirely reasonable. I was genuinely unsure as to the correct interpretation. Who's to say that the correct edit is adding an `s` to the end of `statement` versus adding an `a ` to its beginning?

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3 comments · 1 top-level

thaumasiotes4y ago· 2 in thread

The source is the same one linked in the post you're trying to slam. The URL has changed from http://nces.ed.gov/NAAL/sample_question.asp , as written in the post, to https://nces.ed.gov/naal/sample_items.asp . You can easily find the question by using the Text String Search field.

> I was genuinely unsure as to the correct interpretation. Who's to say

You're arguing at the level of this handless guy now. https://xkcd.com/169/

jakearOP4y ago

You seem to be confusing your argument for my own. I'm the one claiming that the text is ambiguous and shouldn't be, you seem to be outright denying that it's ambiguous at all? You're the handless guy feeling smug about their innate knowledge that the author's intention was "Acceptable answers include statements such as:" rather than "Acceptable answers include a statement such as:", I'm the top-hat dude calling you out.

thaumasiotes4y ago

You are the handless guy protesting that you're technically correct despite being forced to use interpretations that nobody else would ever consider. Try asking people how to read that post. See how many of them misunderstand it or think it's confusing.

> I'm the one claiming that the text is ambiguous

Between the handless guy and the top-hat dude, which one is claiming the text is ambiguous? How well-grounded is that claim?

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