argument 35 同主题练习

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Topic 35: The following appeared in a letter from the owner of the Sunnyside Towers apartment complex to its manager.
"One month ago, all the showerheads in the first three buildings of the Sunnyside Towers complex were modified to restrict maximum water flow to one-third of what it used to be. Although actual readings of water usage before and after the adjustment are not yet available, the change will obviously result in a considerable savings for Sunnyside Corporation, since the corporation must pay for water each month. Except for a few complaints about low water pressure, no problems with showers have been reported since the adjustment. I predict that modifying showerheads to restrict water flow throughout all twelve buildings in the Sunnyside Towers complex will increase our profits even more dramatically."
Write a response in which you discuss what questions would need to be answered in order to decide whether the prediction and the argument on which it is based are reasonable. Be sure to explain how the answers to these questions would help to evaluate the prediction.


In this letter, the owner recommended that all twelve Sunnyside Towers follow the practice of restricting the maximum water in order to increase the profits with the belief that the measure could save considerable water. A number of questions need to be answered in order to evaluate the argument.

The first question we need to investigate is whether the modification of the maximum water flow indeed had indeed saved the water. Since the owner said that the water usage data before and after the adjustment are not available yet, it is hard for us to scrutinize the results. Maybe most people in the three buildings are accustomed to take a bath with average water flow which has nothing to do with the maximum water flow. This could also explain why there was only a few complaints about low water pressure last month.  If that was the case, restricting the water flow would not save the water significantly.


The next issue we need to know is the real attitudes of the tenants. While there were only a few complaints which had been submitted on the low water pressure, it does not mean the resident were completely satisfied with the project. Maybe people were not fully cognizant of the effect of restriction on maximum water flow since they had not received the water bills. Or maybe they were complaining privately and discussing how to make the change or simply decided to terminate the contract and move out of the apartment. Therefore, it is necessary for us to investigate how tenants feel about the change through other methods such as calling or interviewing.

Even if the tenants are completely satisfied with the modification, the issue we still need to look into is the living habits of tenants in bathing. Maybe people don’t need much water flow when bathing now because it is in winter, but with the rise of the temperature in Summer, they may become more eager for the maximized water flow. Therefore, we need to investigate the average water flow with which tenants typically bath a time and how it changes over the year in terms of utilizing database.

In addition, we need more information about the cost to modify the showerheads, the water price and how they balance with rental revenue. Specifically, we want to know if the savings can compensate for the cost for modification. Maybe the water will not be saved much, as we have discussed above, while the cost for modification is the fixed expenses for every tenant in the three buildings. Meanwhile,  rental revenue will shrink if some discontented tenants decide to end the contract. If so, the profits of the Sunnyside Towers complex would be compromised.

Overall speaking, it is understandable that the company looks for ways to increase profits. But this modification should not be extended to more apartments unless the questions raised above are answered and the information collected clearly suggests that this modification is a desirable move.