Independent Clauses Emphasize Claims
Claim 1: Since the program lowers the crime rate by giving free heroin to the addicts, it won’t help them end their addiction.
Claim 1 Flipped: While the program doesn’t help addicts end their addiction, it reduces the crime rates in the city by providing the addicts free heroin in the cleanest way possible.
Dependent Clauses Minimize Objections
Claim 2: While the addicts will unfortunately remain dependent on heroin, the city will have the opportunity to thrive.
Claim 1 Flipped: Although this program might save the city, the addicts will still be dependent on heroin.
In Class Exercise
As a Reply below, and using “A Price Too High” as your subject matter, produce three sets of sentences, like those above, that flip the dependent and independent clauses to prove different claims.
Claim 1:
Claim 1 Flipped:
Claim 2:
Claim 2 Flipped:
Claim 3:
Claim 3 Flipped:
a1175
aeks123
alyse816
bmdpiano
chancetoremember
chippy1313
dancestar10
davidbdale
dunkindonuts10
dupreeh79
Cleo
gossipgirl3801
greeneggsandham234
harp03
j6128
killerbeanforever
kingoflizards
krustykrabpizza7
nayr79
nickalodeansallthat
omgmafia
romanhsantiago
rose1029
samtheman1448
shaquilleoatmeal2250
Shiloh Vasko
sixers103
starbucks732
stripedsweater21
studentwriter1212
taxmanmaxwell
tenere84
More Money Maintenance
therealjohnsanchez
torthey
walmaarts
wentzwagon11
Counterintuitive 
Claim 1: Even though no disaster like the one in Japan has happened here, it is still a huge risk.
Claim 1 Flipped: Although it is a risk, we still continue to hold nuclear power plants in the U.S.
Claim 2: Although power plants create nuclear waste, they don’t release greenhouse gases.
Claim 2 Flipped: Even though power plants don’t release greenhouse gases, they still create nuclear waste.
Claim 3: Even though nuclear power plants are very expensive to build and maintain, they create a lot of safe energy.
Claim 3 Flipped: Although nuclear power plants create a lot of safe energy, they are still very expensive to build and maintain.
Just right, Chippy. Very impressive.
3/3
Claim 1: While nuclear power might be a huge risk, the US is dependent on it.
Flipped: While the US is dependent on it, nuclear power might not be a risk worth taking.
Claim 2: Even though nuclear plants create dangerous waste, public officials don’t mention it.
Flipped: Even though public officials don’t mention it, nuclear plants create dangerous waste.
Claim 3: While our current nuclear plants have had dozens of issues, the Obama administration wants to build more plants.
Flipped: While the Obama administration wants to build more, our current nuclear plants have had dozens of problems.
These are brilliant, Nayr. Beautifully made.
Claim 1: While nuclear power produces less greenhouse gas, the risk is too high for it to be implemented.
Claim 1 Flipped: Although there is a risk, greenhouse gasses can be reduced when using nuclear power.
Claim 2: While nuclear power is beneficial, they cost too much to make and maintain.
Claim 2 Flipped: Although the cost is high, these planets will provide the US with mass amounts of energy.
Claim 3: Even If the United States wants more power plants, the nuclear industry has long been notorious for abandoning projects.
Claim 3 Flipped: While the cost is high, jobs and mass amounts of energy will be generated.
Nice work, Walmaarts. #3 is more re-crafted than just flipped, but the two versions do work to support very different positions.
Claim 1: Although there is no safe and reliable place to store nuclear waste, the city will benefit from the low amounts of greenhouse gases that come from nuclear power.
Claim 1 Flipped: Even though the city will benefit from the low amounts of greenhouse gases that come from nuclear power, there is no safe and reliable place to store nuclear waste.
Claim 2: While nuclear power plants are unbelievably expensive to construct, they create a safer city environment.
Claim 2 Flipped: Although nuclear power plants create a safer city environment, they are unbelievably expensive to construct.
Claim 3: While power plants are a tremendous risk to city dwellers, there are few catastrophic accidents at nuclear power plants.
Claim 3 Flipped: Even though there are few catastrophic accidents at nuclear power plants, they are still a tremendous risk to city dwellers.
Very nicely done, Harp. In two cases, reasonable people could choose either version. In #3, the way you phrase the options, the first seems very difficult to endorse.
Claim 1: Concern over global warming has increased the appeal of nuclear power, which does not produce the high levels of greenhouse gases that come from fossil fuels.
Claim 1 Flipped: Due to nuclear plants producing high levels of greenhouse gases that come from fossil fuels, concern over global warming has increased the appeal of nuclear power
Claim 2: A big part of the problem at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi power station are the highly radioactive spent fuel rods kept in storage pools at the plant.
Claim 2 Flipped: The highly radioactive spent fuel rods kept in storage pools at the plant, it creates a big part of the problem at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi
Claim 3: Nuclear advocates and public officials don’t talk about it much. Denial is the default position when it comes to nuclear waste.
Claim 3 Flipped: Denial is the default position when it comes to nuclear waste, due to nuclear advocates and public officials not talking much about it
J, you seem unclear about how to form dependent and independent clauses. I’m glad we’re “having this talk.” Let’s review.
1. A simple sentence is an Independent Clause.
(example with a subject, verb, and object): David eats breakfast.
2. We call that a sentence because it’s unattached from other clauses.
It could be attached to another independent clause.
David eats breakfast, and Donna likes lunch.
3. Two independent clauses connected in this way create a Compound Sentence in which neither clause is dominant. Flipping them makes no difference at all.
Donna likes lunch, and David eats breakfast.
4. In a Complex Sentence, one clause is subordinate—or less important—than the other. The subordinate clause is a Dependent Clause.
5. We recognize the dependent clause by the presence of a subordinator (a word like although, or while, or if, or since).
6. Here, we’re making complex sentences using the comparison subordinators (though, although, even though, despite, whereas . . . ) to make the dependent clause less important than the independent clause.
7. Independent clause: Nuclear power emits no greenhouse gas.
8. Dependent clause: Although the plants are expensive to build . . .
9. A weighted Complex Sentence: Although nuclear power plants are expensive to build, they emit no greenhouse gas.
10. That sentence emphasizes the ecological benefit of the plant and minimizes the cost.
11. Weighted the other way: Although nuclear power plants to eliminate greenhouse gas, they’re just too expensive to build.
Those two sentences (9 and 11) are flipped. They both use the same two claims, but 9 subordinates the cost and 11 subordinates the green benefit.
Does that help? I’d really like to know.
If so, give this exercise another try. Like nothing else you do all semester, it will demonstrate your desire and ability to improve your work following feedback.
Claim 1: While there is no safe and reliable place to store nuclear waste, the city will benefit from the low amounts of greenhouse gases that come from nuclear power.
Claim 1 Flipped: Although the city will benefit from the low amounts of greenhouse gases that come from nuclear power, there is no safe and reliable place to store nuclear waste.
Claim 2: Even though nuclear power is beneficial, they cost too much to make and maintain.
Claim 2 Flipped: Although the cost is high, these nuclear plants will provide the US with mass amounts of energy.
Claim 3: Despite our current nuclear plants have had dozens of issues, the Obama administration wants to build more plants.
Claim 3 Flipped: Even though the Obama administration wants to build more, our current nuclear plants have had dozens of problems.
Waaaaaaaay better. 🙂
(Did I over-explain?)
No i felt that was a better explanation than in class. You went more in depth, and I got a better understanding of the assignment
Claim 1: Even though nuclear plants create dangerous waste, they don’t release greenhouse gases.
Claim 1 Flipped: Even though nuclear plants don’t release greenhouse gases, they still create lots of waste.
Claim 2: While building new plants can be extremely expensive and loans are needed, banks are not lining up to support the construction.
Claim 2 Flipped: Even though banks aren’t lining up to support construction, the building of new plants still requires loan guarantees.
Claim 3: While there have been very few catastrophic accidents at these plants, these plants could still blow causing extreme destruction.
Claim 3 Flipped: Even though these plants could blow and cause lots of destruction, there has been few reported accidents.
Nice work overall, Shaq. I’m looking for a more obvious cause/effect relationship in the middle example. Did you mean to provide a reason banks don’t want to lend for nuclear power plants?
Claim 1: Nuclear power in the US is at a high risk of leading to deadly consequences, but the US is dependent on it.
Claim 1 Flipped: Though the US is dependent on nuclear power, it is not worth the risk because of its deadly consequences.
Claim 2: Building new nuclear power plants is very expensive but they are needed to create a safer environment around them.
Claim 2 Flipped: Even though nuclear power plants create safe environments for the people around, them they are much too expensive to construct.
Claim 3: Any nuclear power plant is at risk for catastrophe, but the chances are extremely low and rare.
Claim 3 Flipped: The chances might be low and rare, but nuclear power plants are at risk for catastrophe all the time.
Well done, GossipGirl.
Claim 1: Although the likelihood of a disaster like the one in Japan happening in the U.S. is not great, nature is unpredictable and human beings are fallible.
Flipped: Although nature is unpredictable, the likelihood of a disaster like the one in Japan happening in the U.S. is not great.
Claim 2: Even though nuclear powerplants produce mass amounts of power efficiently, they still create a huge safety risk.
Flipped: Even though nuclear powerplant creates a huge safety risk, some choose to ignore that because they produce mass amounts of power efficiently.
Claim 3: Although there have been very few catastrophic accidents at nuclear powerplants, the danger they bring is still present.
Flipped: Although the danger nuclear powerplants bring is very present, there still has yet to be many catastrophic accidents.
Nice work, Rose.
claim one: Although a disaster like the one in Japan has not happened in the United States, nature is unpredictable and humans can make mistakes.
claim flipped: Although nature is unpredictable and humans can make mistakes, a disaster like the one in Japan has not happened in the United States.
claim two: Although there is an increasing like for nuclear plants, they are extremely expensive and need government loans.
claim flipped: Although nuclear plants are expensive and require government loans, there is an increasing like for them.
claim three: Although nuclear power has its benefits and big-time shortcomings, it’s not even close to being the answer to the nation’s energy needs and global warming changes.
claim flipped: Although nuclear power is not even close to being the answer to the nation’s energy needs and global warming changes, it does have it’s benefits and big-time shortcomings.
Number 3 would be stronger, A, if one clause stressed the benefits, the other the risks. Instead, you have both benefits and risks in one clause, which makes it hard to use the other clause for contrast.
Otherwise very nice.
Claim 1: Although there is no safe way to store nuclear material, global warming has showed the the appeal of nuclear power and the decreased level of greenhouse gases.
Claim 1 Flipped: Global warming has showed the the appeal of nuclear power and the decreased level of greenhouse gases, but there is no safe way to store nuclear material.
Claim 2: While there are very few catastrophic accidents at nuclear power plants, 104 commercial nuclear plants in the U.S. are getting old, and many have had serious problems over the years.
Claim 2 Flipped: 104 commercial nuclear plants in the U.S. are getting old, and many have had serious problems over the years, but there are very few catastrophic accidents at newer nuclear power plants.
Claim 3: Although the Obama administration favors building new plants, they can be breathtakingly expensive and requires government loan guarantees.
Claim 3 Flipped: Building new plants can be breathtakingly expensive and requires government loan guarantees, but the Obama administration gladly favors it.
You clearly understand the point of the exercise, BMD, but you haven’t technically created dependent clauses. For, And, Nor, But, Or, and Yet are coordinating conjunctions that connect independent clauses. Just for the record.
You could say, for example, “While building new plants can be breathtakingly expensive and requires government loan guarantees, the Obama administration gladly favors it.”
That version makes the first clause dependent and makes the second claim stronger.
The same rule applies to your other sentences as well.