On May 5th, 1997, the European edition of Business Tech Magazine led with Hoffmans cover story "Internet Communities: How theyre Shaping ElectronicCommerce". This cover story highlights the extent to which the term virtual community has become almost synonymous with various forms of group-CMCs(computer mediated communication), including email-list forums, chat-systems such as IRC, web-based discussion areas and UseNet news-groups. There was no debate in the Business Tech Magazine article as to whether the group-CMC discussions are really 'communities', rather how community as opposed to content can be used to encourage people to return to a particular part of cyberspace for commercial gain. In a similar vein, Simpson and Armstrong in "Internet Gain" argue that ignoring virtual communities would be a great loss of a marketing tool for businesses. They define virtual communities as computer mediated space where there is an integration of content and communication with an emphasis on member-generated content.Not all virtual community commentators agree with the Spartan position taken by Hoffman. Rheingold, one of the prime popularizes of the term virtual community, provides us with a more emotive definition in his book The Virtual Community: Homesteading on the Electronic Frontier. According to Rheingold, "virtual communities are social aggregations that emerge from the Net when enough people carry on those public discussions long enough, with sufficient human feeling, to form webs of personal relationships in cyberspace". Rheingold's definition is extremely popular and has been quoted in many discussions about virtual communities. As discussed below, for social scientists, particularly sociologists, Rheingold's definition raises many issues, especially concerning the notion of community. This is because Rheingold argues via a variety of analogies from the real world such as homesteading that virtual communities are indeed new forms of "community". In fact, Rheingold implies that virtual communities are actually "a kind of ultimate flowering of community". Moreover, Rheingold maintains that whenever computer mediated communications technology becomes available; people inevitably create communities with it. Rheingold can thus be labeled as a technological determinist as he holds that there is a predictable relationship between technology and people's behavior.The debate over the validity of Rheingold's position has raised doubts about the existence of virtual communities and the appropriate use of the term. Weinreich claims that the idea of virtual communities must be wrong because community is a collective of kinship networks that share a common geographic region, a common history, and a shared value system, usually rooted in a common religion. In other words, Weinreich rejects the existence of virtual communities because group-CMC discussions cannot possibly meet his definition. In Weinreich's view, anyone with even a basic knowledge of sociology understands that information exchange in no way constitutes a community.Weinreich rejects Rheingolds inclusion of virtual communities in the definition of communities for all of the following reasons EXCEPT
A study of business partnerships in which one partners management style differs from that of the other partner reveals that such partnerships are more likely be fraught with problems and to ultimately end in dissolution. Thus, mismatched management styles can seriously jeopardize a business partnership.Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument above?
A report on the use of monosodium glutamate in food concluded, "Most Americans who consume monosodium glutamate regularly are not being harmed." Critics of the report insist the conclusion be changed to, "Most Americans who consume monosodium glutamate do not show visible symptoms of harm by the substance, such as abnormal rashes or slower rates of metabolism." Which of the following, if true, provides the best logical justification for the critics’ insistence that the reports conclusion be changed?
On May 5th, 1997, the European edition of Business Tech Magazine led with Hoffmans cover story "Internet Communities: How theyre Shaping ElectronicCommerce". This cover story highlights the extent to which the term virtual community has become almost synonymous with various forms of group-CMCs(computer mediated communication), including email-list forums, chat-systems such as IRC, web-based discussion areas and UseNet news-groups. There was no debate in the Business Tech Magazine article as to whether the group-CMC discussions are really 'communities', rather how community as opposed to content can be used to encourage people to return to a particular part of cyberspace for commercial gain. In a similar vein, Simpson and Armstrong in "Internet Gain" argue that ignoring virtual communities would be a great loss of a marketing tool for businesses. They define virtual communities as computer mediated space where there is an integration of content and communication with an emphasis on member-generated content.Not all virtual community commentators agree with the Spartan position taken by Hoffman. Rheingold, one of the prime popularizes of the term virtual community, provides us with a more emotive definition in his book The Virtual Community: Homesteading on the Electronic Frontier. According to Rheingold, "virtual communities are social aggregations that emerge from the Net when enough people carry on those public discussions long enough, with sufficient human feeling, to form webs of personal relationships in cyberspace". Rheingold's definition is extremely popular and has been quoted in many discussions about virtual communities. As discussed below, for social scientists, particularly sociologists, Rheingold's definition raises many issues, especially concerning the notion of community. This is because Rheingold argues via a variety of analogies from the real world such as homesteading that virtual communities are indeed new forms of "community". In fact, Rheingold implies that virtual communities are actually "a kind of ultimate flowering of community". Moreover, Rheingold maintains that whenever computer mediated communications technology becomes available; people inevitably create communities with it. Rheingold can thus be labeled as a technological determinist as he holds that there is a predictable relationship between technology and people's behavior.The debate over the validity of Rheingold's position has raised doubts about the existence of virtual communities and the appropriate use of the term. Weinreich claims that the idea of virtual communities must be wrong because community is a collective of kinship networks that share a common geographic region, a common history, and a shared value system, usually rooted in a common religion. In other words, Weinreich rejects the existence of virtual communities because group-CMC discussions cannot possibly meet his definition. In Weinreich's view, anyone with even a basic knowledge of sociology understands that information exchange in no way constitutes a communityThe author says there was no debate in the Business Tech Magazine article to emphasize which of the following points?
To deal with this explosion of data, one can use the computer and communications technology to help us sort, store, transport, and most important, understand the information.
Unemployment in Winston County has risen only 4% since I took office. Under my predecessor, unemployment rose 14%. Clearly, my economic policies are far more effective.Which of the following must be true in order for this argument to be valid?
