Principle: Only if a professor believes a student knowingly presented someone else' s ideas without attribution should the professor make an official determination that the student has committed plagiarism. Application: It is not the case that Professor Serfin should make an official determination that Walters committed plagiarism in the term paper about Willa Cather that Walters wrote for Serfin' s class. Which one of the following, if true, justifies the above application of the principle?
A: Although the main thesis of Walters's term paper is identical to that of a book that he did not cite, Professor Serfin is convinced that Walters did not knowingly try to pass anyone else's ideas off as his own.
B: Professor Serfin does not have completely compelling evidence to conclude that Walters presented someone else's ideas as if they were his own in the term paper about Willa Cather.
C: Walters does not believe that Professor Serfin should make an official determination that he plagiarized.
D: If Walters had realized that the main thesis of his term paper is identical to the main thesis of a book he had read, Walters would have attributed the idea to the book.
Choose A, B, C or D as your solution.
A