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Scientists hypothesize that a particular type of fat known as "P-fat" is required for the development of eyesight. Researchers were led to this hypothesis by observing that babies who are fed formulas low in P-fat tend to have worse eyesight than babies fed mother's milk, which is high in P-fat. It has also been shown that babies that are five to six weeks premature tend to have worse eyesight than babies carried to term. | 200410_4-LR2_14_14 | [
"Adults whose diets lack P-fat tend to have worse eyesight than those whose diets are high in P-fat.",
"A fetus typically receives high levels of P-fat from the mother during only the last four weeks of pregnancy.",
"Babies whose mothers have poor eyesight do not tend to have poor eyesight themselves.",
"Babies generally prefer mother's milk to formulas low in P-fat.",
"The eyesight of a fetus develops during the last trimester of pregnancy."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following, if true, most supports the scientists' hypothesis? |
Artists have different ways of producing contours and hatching, and analysis of these stylistic features can help to distinguish works by a famous artist both from forgeries and from works genuinely by other artists. Indeed, this analysis has shown that many of the drawings formerly attributed to Michelangelo are actually by the artist Giulio Clovio, Michelangelo's contemporary. | 200410_4-LR2_15_15 | [
"Contours and hatching are the main features that distinguish the drawing styles of different artists.",
"Many of the drawings formerly attributed to Michelangelo are actually forgeries.",
"No forgery can perfectly duplicate the contour and hatching styles of a famous artist.",
"The contour and hatching styles used to identify the drawings of Clovio cited can be shown to be features of all Clovio's works.",
"There is an analyzable difference between Clovio's contour and hatching styles and those of Michelangelo."
]
| 4 | If the statements above are true, then which one of the following must also be true? |
Moralist: Immoral actions are those that harm other people. But since such actions eventually harm those who perform them, those who act immorally do so only through ignorance of some of their actions' consequences rather than through a character defect. | 200410_4-LR2_16_16 | [
"People ignorant of their actions' consequences cannot be held morally responsible for those consequences.",
"An action harms those who perform it only if it also eventually harms others.",
"Only someone with a character defect would knowingly perform actions that eventually harm others.",
"Those who, in acting immorally, eventually harm themselves do not intend that harm.",
"None of those who knowingly harm themselves lack character defects."
]
| 3 | Which one of the following is an assumption required by the moralist's argument? |
Climatologists believe they know why Earth has undergone a regular sequence of ice ages beginning around 800,000 years ago. Calculations show that Earth's orbit around the Sun has fluctuations that coincide with the ice-age cycles. The climatologists hypothesize that when the fluctuations occur, Earth passes through clouds of cosmic dust that enters the atmosphere; the cosmic dust thereby dims the Sun, resulting in an ice age. They concede, however, that though cosmic dust clouds are common, the clouds would have to be particularly dense in order to have this effect. | 200410_4-LR2_17_17 | [
"Earth did not pass through clouds of cosmic dust earlier than 800,000 years ago.",
"Two large asteroids collided 800,000 years ago, producing a tremendous amount of dense cosmic dust that continues to orbit the Sun.",
"Earth's average temperature drops slightly shortly after volcanic eruptions spew large amounts of dust into Earth's atmosphere.",
"Large bits of cosmic rock periodically enter Earth's atmosphere, raising large amounts of dust from Earth's surface.",
"Rare trace elements known to be prevalent in cosmic debris have been discovered in layers of sediment whose ages correspond very closely to the occurrence of ice ages."
]
| 3 | Each of the following, if true, would lend support to the climatologists' hypothesis EXCEPT: |
Philosopher: The rational pursuit of happiness is quite different from always doing what one most strongly desires to do. This is because the rational pursuit of happiness must include consideration of long-term consequences, whereas our desires are usually focused on the short term. Moreover, desires are sometimes compulsions, and while ordinary desires result in at least momentary happiness when their goals are attained, compulsions strongly drive a person to pursue goals that offer no happiness even when reached. | 200410_4-LR2_18_18 | [
"The majority of people do not have compulsions.",
"Attaining the goal of any desire results in momentary happiness.",
"Most people do not pursue happiness rationally.",
"Most people want more than their own personal happiness.",
"All actions have long-term consequences."
]
| 1 | If all of the philosopher's statements are true, each of the following could be true EXCEPT: |
Political scientist: All governments worthy of respect allow their citizens to dissent from governmental policies. No government worthy of respect leaves minorities unprotected. Thus any government that protects minorities permits criticism of its policies. | 200410_4-LR2_19_19 | [
"Politicians are admirable if they put the interests of those they serve above their own interests. So politicians who sometimes ignore the interests of their own constituents in favor of the nation as a whole deserve admiration, for they are putting the interests of those they serve above their own.",
"All jazz musicians are capable of improvising and no jazz musician is incapable of reading music. Therefore all musicians who can read music can improvise.",
"Ecosystems with cool, dry climates are populated by large mammals. No ecosystems populated by large mammals have abundant and varied plant life. Thus ecosystems that do not have cool, dry climates have abundant and varied plant life.",
"Some intellectuals are not socially active, and no intellectual is a professional athlete. Therefore any professional athlete is socially active.",
"First-person narratives reveal the thoughts of the narrator but conceal those of the other characters. Some third-person narratives reveal the motives of every character. Thus books that rely on making all characters' motives apparent should be written in the third person."
]
| 1 | The flawed pattern of reasoning in which one of the following most closely parallels that in the political scientist's argument? |
Advertisement: Each of the Economic Merit Prize winners from the past 25 years is covered by the Acme retirement plan. Since the winners of the nation's most prestigious award for economists have thus clearly recognized that the Acme plan offers them a financially secure future, it is probably a good plan for anyone with retirement needs similar to theirs. | 200410_4-LR2_20_20 | [
"It ignores the possibility that the majority of Economic Merit Prize winners from previous years used a retirement plan other than the Acme plan.",
"It fails to address adequately the possibility that any of several retirement plans would be good enough for, and offer a financially secure future to, Economic Merit Prize winners.",
"It appeals to the fact that supposed experts have endorsed the argument's main conclusion, rather than appealing to direct evidence for that conclusion.",
"It takes for granted that some winners of the Economic Merit Prize have deliberately selected the Acme retirement plan, rather than having had it chosen for them by their employers.",
"It presumes, without providing justification, that each of the Economic Merit Prize winners has retirement plan needs that are identical to the advertisement's intended audience's retirement plan needs."
]
| 3 | The advertisement's argumentation is most vulnerable to criticism on which one of the following grounds? |
A small car offers less protection in an accident than a large car does, but since a smaller car is more maneuverable, it is better to drive a small car because then accidents will be less likely. | 200410_4-LR2_21_21 | [
"An artist's best work is generally that done in the time before the artist becomes very well known. When artists grow famous and are diverted from artistic creation by demands for public appearances, their artistic work suffers. So artists' achieving great fame can diminish their artistic reputations.",
"It is best to insist that a child spend at least some time every day reading indoors. Even though it may cause the child some unhappiness to have to stay indoors when others are outside playing, the child can benefit from the time by learning to enjoy books and becoming prepared for lifelong learning.",
"For this work, vehicles built of lightweight materials are more practical than vehicles built of heavy materials. This is so because while lighter vehicles do not last as long as heavier vehicles, they are cheaper to replace.",
"Although it is important to limit the amount of sugar and fat in one's diet, it would be a mistake to try to follow a diet totally lacking in sugar and fat. It is better to consume sugar and fat in moderation, for then the cravings that lead to uncontrolled binges will be prevented.",
"A person who exercises vigorously every day has less body fat than an average person to draw upon in the event of a wasting illness. But one should still endeavor to exercise vigorously every day, because doing so significantly decreases the chances of contracting a wasting illness."
]
| 4 | Which one of the following arguments employs reasoning most similar to that employed by the argument above? |
Trainer: Research shows that when dogs are neutered in early puppyhood, their leg bones usually do not develop properly. Improper bone development leads in turn to problems with arthritis as dogs grow older. Thus, if you want to protect your dog from arthritis you should not neuter your dog until it is full-grown. | 200410_4-LR2_22_22 | [
"It fails to state exactly what percentage of dogs neutered in early puppyhood experience improper bone development.",
"It fails to explain the connection between improper bone development and arthritis.",
"It fails to address the effects of neutering in middle or late puppyhood.",
"It fails to consider the possibility that the benefits of neutering a dog early might outweigh the risk of arthritis.",
"It fails to consider the possibility that dogs with properly developed bones can develop arthritis."
]
| 2 | Of the following, which one is a criticism to which the reasoning in the trainer's argument is most vulnerable? |
Political scientist: One of the most interesting dilemmas in contemporary democratic politics concerns the regulation of political campaign spending. People certainly should be free, within broad limits, to spend their money as they choose. On the other hand, candidates who can vastly outspend all rivals have an unfair advantage in publicizing their platforms. Democratic governments have a strong obligation to ensure that all voices have an equal chance to be heard, but governments should not subsidize expensive campaigns for each candidate. The resolution of the dilemma, therefore, is clear: ____. | 200410_4-LR2_23_23 | [
"only candidates with significant campaign resources should be permitted to run for public office",
"an upper limit on the political campaign spending of each candidate is warranted",
"government subsidization of all political campaigns at a low percentage of their total cost is warranted",
"all wealthy persons should be prohibited from spending their own money on political campaigns",
"each candidate should be allowed to spend as much money on a political campaign as any other candidate chooses to spend"
]
| 1 | Which one of the following most logically completes the political scientist's argument? |
Some people have maintained that private ownership of the means of production ultimately destroys any society that sanctions it. This may be true of a less technologically advanced society that must share its economic resources to survive. But since only private ownership of the means of production permits individuals to test new technologies without the majority's consent, a technologically advanced society will actually endanger its survival if the means of production become public property. | 200410_4-LR2_24_24 | [
"It is a generalization that the argument suggests is no more applicable to less technologically advanced societies than to more technologically advanced societies.",
"It is a hypothesis for whose widespread acceptance the argument offers an explanation.",
"It is a general hypothesis that the argument suggests is inapplicable to societies more dependent for survival upon the introduction of new technologies than upon the sharing of resources.",
"It is a contention about the consequences of an economic arrangement that the argument claims is incompatible with the needs of any society.",
"It is a generalization about societies that according to the argument is true for any society in which the majority of its citizens does not impede the introduction of new technologies."
]
| 2 | The proposition that private ownership of the means of production ultimately destroys any society that sanctions it plays which one of the following roles in the argument above? |
A certain medication that is frequently prescribed to lower a patient's cholesterol level is generally effective. A recent study of 1,000 subjects ranging widely in age indicates, however, that the cholesterol level of someone taking the medication is typically 12 to 15 percent higher than the average for that person's age group. | 200410_4-LR2_25_25 | [
"A recently developed cholesterol-lowering medication is more effective than the medication described above.",
"Another medication is prescribed to treat high cholesterol just as often as the medication described above is.",
"In most cases, people with high cholesterol levels are not treated with drug therapy but are put on restrictive low-cholesterol diets.",
"The medication described above is usually prescribed only for people whose cholesterol level is at least 30 percent above the average for their age group.",
"Within the population as a whole, approximately the same number of people have relatively high cholesterol levels as have relatively low cholesterol levels."
]
| 3 | Which one of the following, if true, most helps to explain how both of the claims made above could be true? |
Political theorist: For all of its members to be strong in foreign policy, an alliance of countries must respond aggressively to problems. An alliance will do so only if every member of the alliance perceives the problems as grave. But the European Union countries will not all perceive a problem as grave unless they all agree that it threatens their alliance's economy. Thus, not all of the member countries of the European Union will be strong in foreign policy. | 200410_4-LR2_26_26 | [
"Countries that refuse to join alliances generally respond more aggressively to problems than do countries that do join alliances.",
"Countries become less aggressive in foreign policy if greater wealth leads them to think that they have more to lose by responding to problems aggressively.",
"Problems that appear to some member countries of the European Union to threaten the alliance's economy will not appear so to others.",
"European Union member countries that fail to perceive the economic relevance of problems are generally weak in foreign policy.",
"Alliances that are economically beneficial for a given country are not necessarily beneficial with regard to foreign policy."
]
| 2 | The conclusion drawn above follows logically if which one of the following is assumed? |
The obsession of economists with consumption as a measure of economic well-being has prevented us from understanding the true nature of economic well-being. We get very little satisfaction out of the fact that our clothing wears out, our automobiles depreciate, and the gasoline in our tanks burns up and must be replaced. | 200412_1-LR1_1_1 | [
"economic well-being cannot be defined solely in terms of consumption",
"satisfaction is possible without consumption",
"valid measures of consumption cannot be devised",
"modern products are designed for early obsolescence",
"satisfaction can provide an adequate quantitative measure of economic well-being"
]
| 0 | The author is arguing that |
Commentator: Many people argue that the release of chlorofluorocarbons into the atmosphere is harming humans by damaging the ozone layer, thus allowing increased amounts of ultraviolet radiation to reach Earth. But 300,000 years ago a supernova greatly damaged the ozone layer, with no significant effect on our earliest ancestors. Because the supernova's disruption was much greater than the estimated effect of chlorofluorocarbons today, there is no reason to think that these chemicals in the atmosphere harm humans in this way. | 200412_1-LR1_2_2 | [
"Extraterrestrial influences on the ozone layer tend to occur less often than terrestrial ones.",
"Natural events, such as the eruption of volcanoes, continue to damage the ozone layer today.",
"Our earliest ancestors possessed genetic characteristics making them more resistant than we are to the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation.",
"The ozone layer regenerates at a slow rate, barring counteractive processes.",
"Scientists have discovered that genetic changes occurred in our ancestors during the period in which the supernova affected Earth."
]
| 2 | Which one of the following, if true, would most seriously weaken the commentator's argument? |
A reason Larson cannot do the assignment is that she has an unavoidable scheduling conflict. On the other hand, a reason Franks cannot do the assignment is that he does not quite have the assertiveness the task requires. So, the task must be assigned to Parker, the only supervisor in the shipping department other than Larson and Franks. | 200412_1-LR1_3_3 | [
"Larson has the assertiveness the task requires.",
"The task cannot be assigned to anyone other than a supervisor in the shipping department.",
"Franks would be assigned the task if Franks had the assertiveness the task requires.",
"The task cannot be assigned to anyone who has any kind of scheduling conflict.",
"No one who is not a supervisor in the shipping department has the assertiveness this task requires."
]
| 1 | The argument depends on assuming which one of the following? |
Columnist: Analysts argue that as baby boomers reach the age of 50, they will begin seriously planning for retirement. This will lead them to switch from being primarily consumers to being savers. Thus, these analysts conclude, more money will flow into the stock market, resulting in continued gains in stock prices. Analysts would stand to gain if this were true, but they are being overly optimistic. As consumption decreases, so will corporate earnings; therefore high stock prices will not be justified, and thus boomers' money will more likely flow into investments other than stocks. | 200412_1-LR1_4_4 | [
"attempts to undermine the analysts' argument by questioning the truth of its premises",
"attempts to undermine the analysts' argument by suggesting that the analysts present it for self-serving reasons",
"attempts to undermine the analysts' argument by drawing an alternative conclusion from the analysts' premises",
"argues that the analysts' conclusion is basically right, but suggests that it is somewhat too optimistic",
"argues in favor of the analysts' conclusion, but does so on the basis of a different body of evidence"
]
| 2 | The columnist's argument does which one of the following? |
Maria: Popular music is bad art because it greatly exaggerates the role love plays in everyday life and thereby fails to represent reality accurately. Theo: Popular music is not supposed to reflect reality; it performs other artistic functions, such as providing consoling fantasies and helping people create some romance in their often difficult lives. You should understand popular music before you condemn it. | 200412_1-LR1_5_5 | [
"most good art creates consoling illusions",
"some bad art exaggerates the role love plays in everyday life",
"art should always represent reality as it could be, not as it is",
"art need not represent reality accurately to be good art",
"popular music should not be considered to be an art form"
]
| 3 | The dialogue provides the most support for the claim that Maria and Theo disagree over whether |
An artificial hormone has recently been developed that increases milk production in cows. Its development has prompted some lawmakers to propose that milk labels should be required to provide information to consumers about what artificial substances were used in milk production. This proposal should not be implemented: just imagine trying to list every synthetic fertilizer used to grow the grass and grain the cows ate, or every fungicide used to keep the grain from spoiling! | 200412_1-LR1_6_6 | [
"proposing an alternative course of action for achieving the objectives of the proposal being argued against",
"raising considerations in order to show that the proposal being argued against, if strictly implemented, would lead to absurd consequences",
"using specific examples in order to show that an alternative to the proposal being argued against would better achieve the ends to which the original proposal was directed",
"introducing a case analogous to the one under consideration to show that a general implementation of the proposal being argued against would be impossible",
"questioning the motivation of those who made the proposal being argued against"
]
| 1 | The argument proceeds by |
Trust, which cannot be sustained in the absence of mutual respect, is essential to any long-lasting relationship, personal or professional. However, personal relationships, such as marriage or friendship, additionally require natural affinity. If a personal relationship is to endure, it must be supported by the twin pillars of mutual respect and affinity. | 200412_1-LR1_7_7 | [
"A friendship supported solely by trust and mutual respect will not be long-lasting.",
"In the context of any professional relationship, mutual respect presupposes trust.",
"If a personal relationship is supported by mutual respect and affinity, it will last a long time.",
"Personal relationships, such as marriage or friendship, are longer-lasting than professional relationships.",
"Basing a marriage on a natural affinity will ensure that it will endure."
]
| 0 | If the statements above are true, then which one of the following must also be true? |
The use of phrases like "as so-and-so said" or "as the saying goes" suggests that the quote that follows has just been illustrated. Such phrases are inappropriately used when an apparent counterexample has just been given. | 200412_1-LR1_8_8 | [
"Fatima was a mathematician who often thought about unsolved problems of mathematics, although it was unpleasant to be reminded that most would probably remain unsolved in her lifetime. As the saying goes, \"Strange how much you've got to know before you know how little you know.\"",
"Harold's friends were surprised when he revealed that he had left his wallet at home and asked that someone lend him money. But he had done the same thing many times before. As Halliard said, \"The force of selfishness is as inevitable and as calculable as the force of gravitation.\"",
"The best model of vacuum cleaner was the most expensive on the market, but it would have made Roger unhappy to purchase it. For although he never wanted anything but the best, he was also quite frugal, and would never have forgiven himself for spending the money. As the saying goes, \"A penny saved is a penny earned.\"",
"Sharon loved cats, but her husband was allergic to them. Still, he was occasionally willing to accompany her to cat shows. As the saying goes, \"Shared lives mean shared loves.\"",
"Raoul spent a year planning and preparing for a fantastic ski trip. He enjoyed his ski trip greatly until he broke his leg and had to spend two weeks in the hospital. As the saying goes, \"All's well that ends well.\""
]
| 4 | Which one of the following contains an inappropriate usage of a phrase, according to the principle stated above? |
Rachel: Though contemporary artists are pleased to be free of the constraints that bound their predecessors, this freedom has caused a decline in the quality of art. Great art can be produced only when artists struggle to express themselves within externally imposed boundaries. James: People have always been critical of the art of their own time. They forget all but the greatest art from past eras. Since inferior contemporary artworks have not yet been forgotten, people today mistakenly think that contemporary art is generally inferior to earlier art. | 200412_1-LR1_9_9 | [
"contemporary art is of lower quality than earlier art",
"contemporary artists are bound by the same constraints as their predecessors",
"great art is produced only when an artist struggles against limitations",
"inferior art from past eras is generally forgotten",
"one can correctly assess the quality of art only if it was produced in past eras"
]
| 0 | On the basis of their statements, Rachel and James are committed to disagreeing with each other about whether |
The average cost of groceries will rise again next month. Consequently, butter and eggs can be expected to cost more next month. | 200412_1-LR1_10_10 | [
"The price of gasoline has been rising each month for the past year. Therefore, we can expect to pay more for gasoline next month.",
"Either the government will reduce taxes or the economy will fall into a recession. The government is unlikely to reduce taxes. Therefore, the economy will fall into a recession.",
"The average amount of time spent by people younger than 20 in watching television has recently risen rapidly. Therefore, the amount of time fourth graders spend watching television must have risen recently.",
"Since sugar is a major ingredient in ice cream, the price of ice cream increases whenever the price of sugar increases. The price of sugar is expected to increase next month. Therefore, the price of ice cream can be expected to increase next month.",
"Real estate prices go down when the population of those from 20 to 30 years old declines, and the number in that age group will decrease over the next decade. Therefore, real estate prices will go down over that period."
]
| 2 | The flawed reasoning in the argument above most closely parallels the reasoning in which one of the following? |
Biologists have noted reproductive abnormalities in fish that are immediately downstream of paper mills. One possible cause is dioxin, which paper mills release daily and which can alter the concentration of hormones in fish. However, dioxin is unlikely to be the cause, since the fish recover normal hormone concentrations relatively quickly during occasional mill shutdowns and dioxin decomposes very slowly in the environment. | 200412_1-LR1_11_11 | [
"Some of the studies that show that fish recover quickly during shutdowns were funded by paper manufacturers.",
"The rate at which dioxin decomposes varies depending on the conditions to which it is exposed.",
"Normal river currents carry the dioxin present in the river far downstream in a few hours.",
"Some of the fish did not recover rapidly from the physiological changes that were induced by the changes in hormone concentrations.",
"The connection between hormone concentrations and reproductive abnormalities is not thoroughly understood."
]
| 2 | Which one of the following statements, if true, most seriously weakens the argument? |
If the play were successful, it would be adapted as a movie or revived at the Decade Festival. But it is not successful. We must, regrettably, conclude that it will neither become a movie nor be revived at the Decade Festival. | 200412_1-LR1_12_12 | [
"fails to draw the conclusion that the play will not both be adapted as a movie and be revived at the Decade Festival, rather than that it will do neither",
"fails to explain in exactly what way the play is unsuccessful",
"equates the play's aesthetic worth with its commercial success",
"presumes, without providing justification, that there are no further avenues for the play other than adaptation as a movie or revival at the Decade Festival",
"fails to recognize that the play's not satisfying one sufficient condition does not preclude its satisfying a different sufficient condition for adaptation as a movie or revival at the Decade Festival"
]
| 4 | The argument's reasoning is flawed because the argument |
Physician: In order to investigate diseases caused by hormonal imbalances, a certain researcher wants to study, among others, 200 children whose pituitary glands fail to produce typical amounts of Human Growth Hormone (HGH). The study would involve administering a synthetic version of HGH to the children over a two-year period. But medical research should be permitted only if it is likely to reveal important information about a medical condition and is known to pose only a minimal risk to the subjects. The researcher's proposed study should be prohibited. | 200412_1-LR1_13_13 | [
"The resources expended on the HGH study could be spent instead on research likely to lead to treatments for medical conditions more serious than diseases stemming from hormonal imbalances.",
"About 10,000 children have already been given synthetic HGH without obvious side effects.",
"Obtaining informed consent from children is impossible, because they are not yet mature enough to understand complex medical issues.",
"Although hormonal imbalances can cause disease, the imbalances themselves do not constitute a medical condition.",
"The long-term effects of synthetic HGH have never been tested and are unknown."
]
| 4 | Which one of the following, if true, would most help to justify the physician's argumentation? |
At the request of Grove Park residents, speed bumps were installed on all streets in their neighborhood. However, although through traffic does cause noise and congestion in Grove Park, this remedy is blatantly unfair. The neighborhood is not a private community, and its streets were built with public funds, and thus all drivers have the right to use them whenever they please. | 200412_1-LR1_14_14 | [
"ignores the possibility that speed bumps may not reduce the speeds at which drivers drive through the neighborhood",
"neglects the possibility that drivers frequently drive through the neighborhood at high speeds",
"provides no evidence that drivers have complained about the new speed bumps in the neighborhood",
"contains the tacit assumption that residents of neighborhoods should have the right to restrict traffic through their communities",
"presumes, without providing justification, that speed bumps do prevent drivers from using the roads on which the bumps are found"
]
| 4 | The reasoning in the argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that it |
Literary critic: Often the heirs of a successful writer decide to publish the manuscripts and the letters the dead writer left behind, regardless of the merit of the work. However, many writers have manuscripts that they judge to be unworthy of publication and with which they would not like to be publicly associated even after they die. Hence a successful writer who decides not to publish a recently completed manuscript should destroy it immediately. | 200412_1-LR1_15_15 | [
"Some writers whose work becomes both popular and respected after they die received no literary recognition during their lifetimes.",
"Writers who achieve a certain degree of fame can expect that some of their personal correspondence will become publicly available after they die.",
"Most successful writers' judgments of their recently completed work is unnecessarily harsh and is often later revised.",
"Many posthumously published books would have been published by the author had the author lived.",
"Some heirs of successful writers do not consider themselves qualified to judge the merits of a literary work."
]
| 2 | Which one of the following statements, if true, most calls into question the soundness of the literary critic's advice? |
In practice the government will have the last word on what an individual's rights are, because its police will do what its officials and courts say. But that does not mean that the government's view is necessarily the correct view; anyone who thinks it is must believe that persons have only such moral rights as the government chooses to grant, which means that they have no moral rights at all. | 200412_1-LR1_16_16 | [
"Individuals have no rights at all unless the government says that they do.",
"What government officials and courts say an individual's rights are may not be correct.",
"Individuals have rights unless the government says that they do not.",
"The police always agree with government officials and the courts about what an individual's rights are.",
"One should always try to uphold one's individual rights against the government's view of what those rights are."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following most accurately expresses the conclusion of the argument? |
There is evidence to suggest that our cave-dwelling ancestors polished many of their flints to a degree far surpassing what was necessary for hunting purposes. It seems, therefore, that early humans possessed an aesthetic sense. | 200412_1-LR1_17_17 | [
"Most flints used by our cave-dwelling ancestors were not highly polished.",
"The caves in which the highly polished flints were found are unadorned by cave paintings.",
"There is evidence that these highly polished flints were used for display in religious ceremonies.",
"Flints were often used by early humans for everyday chores other than hunting.",
"Any benefits that an aesthetic sense would have given to cave-dwelling humans are poorly understood."
]
| 3 | Which one of the following statements, if true, most seriously weakens the argument? |
Columnist: Much of North America and western Europe is more heavily forested and has less acid rain and better air quality now than five decades ago. Though this may be due largely to policies advocated by environmentalists, it nonetheless lends credibility to the claims of people who reject predictions of imminent ecological doom and argue that environmental policies that excessively restrict the use of natural resources may diminish the wealth necessary to adopt and sustain the policies that brought about these improvements. | 200412_1-LR1_18_18 | [
"Nations sustain their wealth largely through industrial use of the natural resources found within their boundaries.",
"The more advanced the technology used in a nation's industries, the greater is that nation's ability to devote a portion of its resources to social programs.",
"A majority of ecological disasters arise from causes that are beyond human control.",
"If a compromise between the proponents of economic growth and the environmentalists had been enacted rather than the current policies, the environment would have seen significantly less improvement.",
"The concern demonstrated by a nation for the health and integrity of its natural ecosystems leads to an increase in that nation's wealth."
]
| 0 | Which one of the following, if true, most strengthens the columnist's reasoning? |
Reviewer: Many historians claim, in their own treatment of subject matter, to be as little affected as any natural scientist by moral or aesthetic preconceptions. But we clearly cannot accept these proclamations of objectivity, for it is easy to find instances of false historical explanations embodying the ideological and other prejudices of their authors. | 200412_1-LR1_19_19 | [
"takes for granted that the model of objectivity offered by the natural sciences should apply in other fields",
"offers evidence that undermines rather than supports the conclusion it reaches",
"fails to recognize that many historians employ methodologies that are intended to uncover and compensate for prejudices",
"takes for granted that some historical work that embodies prejudices is written by historians who purport to be objective",
"fails to recognize that not all historical explanations embodying ideologies are false"
]
| 3 | The reviewer's reasoning is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that it |
Although the geological record contains some hints of major meteor impacts preceding mass extinctions, there were many extinctions that did not follow any known major meteor impacts. Likewise, there are many records of major meteor impacts that do not seem to have been followed by mass extinctions. Thus the geological record suggests that there is no consistent causal link between major meteor impacts and mass extinctions. | 200412_1-LR1_20_20 | [
"If there were a consistent causal link between major meteor impacts and mass extinctions, then all major meteor impacts would be followed by mass extinctions.",
"Major meteor impacts and mass extinctions cannot be consistently causally linked unless many mass extinctions have followed major meteor impacts.",
"Of the mass extinctions that did not follow any known major meteor impacts, few if any followed major meteor impacts of which the geological record contains no hints.",
"If there is no consistent causal link between major meteor impacts and mass extinctions, then not all mass extinctions could have followed major meteor impacts.",
"There could be a consistent causal link between major meteor impacts and mass extinctions even if not every major meteor impact has been followed by a mass extinction."
]
| 0 | Which one of the following assumptions enables the argument's conclusion to be properly inferred? |
When uncontrollable factors such as lack of rain cause farmers' wheat crops to fail, fertilizer and seed dealers, as well as truckers and mechanics, lose business, and fuel suppliers are unable to sell enough diesel fuel to make a profit. | 200412_1-LR1_21_21 | [
"If several of the businesses that sell to farmers do not prosper, it is because farming itself is not prospering.",
"If rainfall is below average, those businesses that profit from farmers' purchases tend to lose money.",
"Farmers are not responsible for the consequences of a wheat crop's failing if wheat growth has been affected by lack of rain.",
"A country's dependence on agriculture can lead to major economic crises.",
"The consequences of a drought are not restricted to the drought's impact on farm productivity."
]
| 4 | Which one of the following claims follows logically from the information above? |
For each action we perform, we can know only some of its consequences. Thus the view that in no situation can we know what action is morally right would be true if an action's being morally right were the same as the action's having the best consequences. | 200412_1-LR1_22_22 | [
"On some occasions we can come to learn that it is morally wrong to perform a certain action.",
"On some occasions we can know what action is morally right.",
"Knowing that an action has the best consequences requires knowing all the consequences of that action.",
"Only the immediate consequences of our actions are relevant in determining whether they are morally right.",
"An action may be morally right for one particular person without being morally right for all people."
]
| 2 | The conclusion follows logically if which one of the following is assumed? |
In criminal proceedings, defense attorneys occasionally attempt to establish that a suspect was not present at the commission of a crime by comparing the suspect's DNA to the DNA of blood or hair samples taken from the scene of the crime. Although every person's DNA is unique, DNA tests often fail to distinguish among DNA samples taken from distinct individuals. Hence, it is a mistake to exonerate a suspect simply because that person's DNA did not match the DNA samples taken from the scene of the crime. | 200412_1-LR1_23_23 | [
"It assumes without warrant that the use of physical evidence in identifying suspects is never mistaken.",
"It confuses a test that incorrectly identifies DNA samples as coming from the same person with a test that incorrectly shows as coming from different persons samples that come from a single person.",
"It generalizes about the reliability of all methods used to identify those involved in the commission of a crime on the basis of results that pertain to only a few such methods.",
"It relies on experimental data derived from DNA testing that have not been shown to hold under nonexperimental conditions.",
"It fails to demonstrate that physical evidence taken from the scene of a crime is the only sort of evidence that should be admitted in criminal court proceedings."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following is an error in the reasoning above? |
Some visitors to the park engage in practices that seriously harm the animals. Surely, no one who knew that these practices seriously harm the animals would engage in them. So it must be concluded that some of the visitors do not know that these practices seriously harm the animals. | 200412_1-LR1_24_24 | [
"Some of the people who worked on the failed project will be fired. Everyone in this department played an important part in that project. Therefore some people in this department will be fired.",
"Some of the people who signed the petition were among the mayor's supporters. Yet the mayor denounced everyone who signed the petition. Hence the mayor denounced some of her own supporters.",
"Some of the people polled live outside the city limits. However, no one who can vote in city elections lives outside the city. Therefore some of the people polled cannot vote in the upcoming city election.",
"All of the five original planners are responsible for this problem. Yet none of the original planners will admit responsibility for the problem. Thus some of the people responsible for the problem will not admit responsibility.",
"Some members of the Liberal Party are in favor of the proposed ordinance. But all members of the city council are opposed to the proposed ordinance. Hence some members of the city council are not Liberals."
]
| 2 | The pattern of reasoning exhibited by which one of the following arguments is most similar to that exhibited by the argument above? |
Rapid population growth can be disastrous for a small city. Ideally there should be at least one municipal employee for every hundred residents; when too many people move in at once, city services responsible for utilities and permits are quickly overloaded. Most city budgets do not allow for the immediate hiring of new staff. | 200412_1-LR1_25_25 | [
"During budget shortages, small cities tend to place a high priority on basic municipal services while cutting back on less essential services.",
"New residents of any city bring with them new ideas about how a city should be run.",
"Some large cities can absorb rapid population growth more readily than many small cities can.",
"A low unemployment rate is one of the main reasons that new residents move to a city.",
"New residents of most small cities do not start paying city taxes for at least a year."
]
| 4 | Which one of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument? |
Mayor McKinney's policies have often been criticized on the grounds that they benefit only wealthy city residents, but that is not a fair evaluation. Some of McKinney's policies have clearly benefited the city's less affluent residents. McKinney actively supported last year's proposal to lower the city's high property taxes. Because of this tax decrease, more development is taking place in the city, helping to end the housing shortage and stabilize the rents in the city. | 200412_4-LR2_1_1 | [
"It is impossible to tell whether McKinney is more committed to the interests of the wealthy than to those of the poor.",
"McKinney's policies have often been criticized for benefiting only wealthy city residents.",
"The decrease in property taxes that McKinney supported caused more development to take place in the city.",
"The criticism that McKinney's policies benefit only the wealthy is unjustified.",
"McKinney's efforts helped end the housing shortage and stabilize the rents in the city."
]
| 3 | Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main conclusion of the argument? |
A factory spokesperson argued that the factory should not be required to clean up the water in the nearby wetlands, maintaining that although wastewater from the factory polluted the wetlands over the past several years, the factory is not to blame for this, since the disposal of the factory's wastewater is handled entirely by an independent contractor. | 200412_4-LR2_2_2 | [
"A recent survey revealed that over two-thirds of the teachers in the district are permitted to teach classes on subjects in which they have received no formal training. Thus parents of students in the district should check the qualifications of their children's teachers.",
"I object to the policy of making parents responsible for the offenses of their older adolescent children. After all, these adolescents have minds of their own and freely choose to act as they do, often in ways that do not reflect the wishes of their parents.",
"The students are justified in their objection to the reading assignment. Many of the topics concern material that is not covered in class, and students should not be required to do such reading in order to do well in the course.",
"The most recent appointee to the prize committee should not be permitted to participate in the selection of this year's winner. Unlike each of the other committee members, the appointee has a relative in the contest.",
"Despite all the publicity, I am skeptical of the politician's claims of having just returned from the remote village. Just two days ago a reporter spoke with the villagers and said that not a single one reported seeing the politician in the past several months."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following arguments most closely conforms to the principle underlying the reasoning in the spokesperson's argument? |
Nylon industry spokesperson: Even though cotton and nylon are used for similar purposes, some people have the mistaken notion that cotton is natural but nylon is not. However, nylon's main components come from petroleum and from the nitrogen in the atmosphere. Clearly the atmosphere is natural. And petroleum comes from oil, which in turn comes from ancient plants—a natural source. | 200412_4-LR2_3_3 | [
"A substance is unnatural only if the function it serves is unnatural.",
"A substance is no less natural than the processes used in its production.",
"A substance is no more natural than its least natural component.",
"One substance can be more natural than another if only one is wholly derived from natural substances.",
"A substance is natural if the origins of its main components are natural."
]
| 4 | Which one of the following principles, if valid, most helps to justify the nylon industry spokesperson's reasoning? |
Computer manufacturers and retailers tell us that the complexity involved in connecting the various components of personal computers is not a widespread obstacle to their use, but this is wrong. Customers who install accessories to their personal computers have to take full responsibility for the setting of jumpers and switches to satisfy mysterious specifications. Many accessories require extra software that can cause other accessories to stop working; adding a modem, for instance, may disable a printer. | 200412_4-LR2_4_4 | [
"Personal computer instruction manuals usually explain the purposes of the jumpers and switches.",
"Software for accessories can often be obtained for free.",
"Installing an accessory will become extremely easy in the foreseeable future.",
"A personal computer is usually sold as part of a package that includes accessories and free installation.",
"Computer manufacturers rarely take into account ease of installation when they are designing programs or accessories."
]
| 3 | Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument? |
Rats fed high doses of the artificial sweetener saccharin develop silicate crystals that are toxic to cells lining the bladder. When the cells regenerate, some are cancerous and form tumors. Unlike rats, mice fed high doses of saccharin do not get bladder cancer. | 200412_4-LR2_5_5 | [
"Urine proteins that react with saccharin to form silicate crystals are found in rats but not in mice.",
"Cells in the bladder regenerate more quickly in mice than they do in rats.",
"High doses of saccharin are much more likely to produce silicate crystals than lower doses are.",
"The silicate crystals are toxic only to the cells lining the bladder and not to other bladder cells.",
"High doses of other artificial sweeteners have been shown to produce silicate crystals in mice but not in rats."
]
| 0 | Which one of the following, if true, does the most to resolve the apparent discrepancy in the information above? |
Although we could replace the beautiful—but dilapidated—old bridge across Black River with a concrete skyway, we should instead replace it with a cable bridge even though this would be more expensive than building a concrete skyway. The extra cost is clearly justified by the importance of maintaining the beauty of our river crossing. | 200412_4-LR2_6_6 | [
"It is no more costly to maintain a cable bridge than a concrete skyway.",
"A concrete skyway would not have any practical advantages over a cable bridge.",
"The beauty of the river crossing must be preserved.",
"If the new cable bridge is built, most people who see it will think the extra money well spent.",
"Building a cable bridge across Black River would produce a more aesthetically pleasing result than building a concrete skyway."
]
| 4 | Which one of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends? |
A typical gasoline-powered lawn mower emits about as much air-polluting material per hour of use as does an automobile. Collectively, such mowers contribute significantly to summer air pollution. Since electric mowers emit no air pollutants, people can help reduce air pollution by choosing electric mowers over gasoline ones whenever feasible. | 200412_4-LR2_7_7 | [
"Lawns help to clean the air, replacing pollutants with oxygen.",
"Electric lawn mowers are more expensive to purchase and maintain than are gasoline mowers.",
"Producing the power to run an electric mower for an hour causes less air pollution than does running an automobile for an hour.",
"Most manufacturers of gasoline lawn mowers are trying to redesign their mowers to reduce the emission of air pollutants.",
"Lawn mowers are used for fewer hours per year than are automobiles."
]
| 2 | Which one of the following, if true, provides the most support for the argument? |
Ariel: Government art subsidies never benefit art, for art's role is to challenge society's values. A society's values, however, are expressed by its government, and artists cannot challenge the very institution upon which they depend. Sasha: I agree that art should challenge society's values. However, by its very nature, a democratic government respects dissent and encourages challenges to its own values. Therefore, in a democratic society, government art subsidies ensure that artists can be fully committed to their work while expressing themselves freely. | 200412_4-LR2_8_8 | [
"art's role is to challenge society's values",
"a society's values are expressed by its government",
"artists can express themselves freely in a nondemocratic society",
"art subsidies provided by a democratic government benefit art",
"only governments that respect dissent ensure that art subsidies are fairly distributed"
]
| 3 | The dialogue most supports the claim that Ariel and Sasha disagree with each other about whether |
Public health expert: Until recently people believed that applications of biochemical research would eventually achieve complete victory over the microorganisms that cause human disease. However, current medical research shows that those microorganisms reproduce so rapidly that medicines developed for killing one variety will only spur the evolution of other varieties that are immune to those medicines. The most rational public health strategy, therefore, would place much more emphasis than at present on fully informing people about the transmission of diseases caused by microorganisms, with a view to minimizing the incidence of such diseases. | 200412_4-LR2_9_9 | [
"A medicine that kills one variety of disease-causing microorganism can cause the evolution of a drug-resistant variety.",
"A patient who contracts a disease caused by microorganisms cannot be effectively cured by present methods.",
"There is good reason to make a particular change to public health policy.",
"No one who is fully informed about the diseases caused by microorganisms will ever fall victim to those diseases.",
"Some previous approaches to public health policy ignored the fact that disease-causing microorganisms reproduce at a rapid rate."
]
| 2 | Of the following, which one most accurately expresses the conclusion drawn by the public health expert? |
The enthusiastic acceptance of ascetic lifestyles evidenced in the surviving writings of monastic authors indicates that medieval societies were much less concerned with monetary gain than are contemporary Western cultures. | 200412_4-LR2_10_10 | [
"employs the imprecise term \"ascetic\"",
"generalizes from a sample that is likely to be unrepresentative",
"applies contemporary standards inappropriately to medieval societies",
"inserts personal opinions into what purports to be a factual debate",
"advances premises that are inconsistent"
]
| 1 | The reasoning in the argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that the argument |
Between 1976 and 1985, chemical wastes were dumped into Cod Bay. Today, 3 percent of the bay's bluefin cod population have deformed fins, and wary consumers have stopped buying the fish. In seeking financial reparations from companies that dumped the chemicals, representatives of Cod Bay's fishing industry have claimed that since the chemicals are known to cause genetic mutations, the deformity in the bluefin cod must have been caused by the presence of those chemicals in Cod Bay. | 200412_4-LR2_11_11 | [
"What is the incidence of deformed fins in bluefin cod that are not exposed to chemicals such as those dumped into Cod Bay?",
"What was the incidence of deformed fins in bluefin cod in Cod Bay before the chemical dumping began?",
"Has the consumption of the bluefin cod from Cod Bay that have deformed fins caused any health problems in the people who ate them?",
"Are bluefin cod prone to any naturally occurring diseases that can cause fin deformities of the same kind as those displayed by the bluefin cod of Cod Bay?",
"Are there gene-altering pollutants present in Cod Bay other than the chemical wastes that were dumped by the companies?"
]
| 2 | The answer to each of the following questions would be helpful in evaluating the representatives' claim EXCEPT: |
Columnist: If you received an unsigned letter, you would likely have some doubts about the truth of its contents. But news stories often include statements from anonymous sources, and these are usually quoted with the utmost respect. It makes sense to be skeptical of these sources, for, as in the case of the writer of an unsigned letter, their anonymity makes it possible for them to plant inaccurate or slanted statements without ever having to answer for them. | 200412_4-LR2_12_12 | [
"pointing out that a certain attitude would presumably be adopted in one situation, in order to support the claim that a similar attitude would be justified in an analogous situation",
"drawing an analogy between an attitude commonly adopted in one situation and a different attitude commonly adopted in another situation, and establishing that the latter attitude is better justified than the former",
"inferring that an attitude would be justified in all situations of a given type on the grounds that this attitude is justified in a hypothetical situation of that type",
"calling into question a certain type of evidence by drawing an analogy between that evidence and other evidence that the argument shows is usually false",
"calling into question the motives of those presenting certain information, and concluding for this reason that the information is likely to be false"
]
| 0 | The columnist's argument proceeds by |
Art theft from museums is on the rise. Most stolen art is sold to wealthy private collectors. Consequently, since thieves steal what their customers are most interested in buying, museums ought to focus more of their security on their most valuable pieces. | 200412_4-LR2_13_13 | [
"Art thieves steal both valuable and not-so-valuable art.",
"Art pieces that are not very valuable are not very much in demand by wealthy private collectors.",
"Art thieves steal primarily from museums that are poorly secured.",
"Most museums provide the same amount of security for valuable and not-so-valuable art.",
"Wealthy private collectors sometimes sell their stolen art to other wealthy private collectors."
]
| 1 | The argument depends on assuming which one of the following? |
Insufficient rain can cause crops to falter and agricultural prices to rise. Records indicate that during a certain nation's recent crisis, faltering crops and rising agricultural prices prompted the government to take over food distribution in an effort to prevent starvation. Thus, the weather must have played an important role in bringing about the crisis. | 200412_4-LR2_14_14 | [
"concludes, merely from the fact that the period of insufficient rain occurred before the nation's crisis, that insufficient rain caused the nation's crisis",
"fails to take into account the possibility that the scarcity was not severe enough to justify the government's taking over food distribution",
"uses the term \"crisis\" equivocally in the reasoning, referring to both a political crisis and an economic crisis",
"infers, merely from the fact that one event could have caused a second event, that the first event in fact caused the second",
"takes for granted that any condition that is necessary for an increase in agricultural prices is also sufficient for such an increase"
]
| 3 | The argument's reasoning is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that the argument |
The cost of a semester's tuition at a certain university is based on the number of courses in which a student enrolls that semester. Although the cost per course at that university has not risen in four years, many of its students who could afford the tuition when they first enrolled now claim they can no longer afford it. | 200412_4-LR2_15_15 | [
"Faculty salaries at the university have risen slightly over the past four years.",
"The number of courses per semester for which full-time students are required to enroll is higher this year than any time in the past.",
"The cost of living in the vicinity of the university has risen over the last two years.",
"The university awards new students a large number of scholarships that are renewed each year for the students who maintain high grade averages.",
"The university has turned many of its part-time office jobs, for which students had generally been hired, into full-time, nonstudent positions."
]
| 0 | Each of the following, if true, helps to resolve the apparent discrepancy above EXCEPT: |
People are not happy unless they feel that they are needed by others. Most people in modern society, however, can achieve a feeling of indispensability only within the sphere of family and friendship, because almost everyone knows that his or her job could be done by any one of thousands of others. | 200412_4-LR2_16_16 | [
"People who realize that others could fill their occupational roles as ably as they do themselves cannot achieve any happiness in their lives.",
"The nature of modern society actually undermines the importance of family life to an individual's happiness.",
"Most people in modern society are happy in their private lives even if they are not happy in their jobs.",
"A majority of people in modern society do not appreciate having the jobs that they do have.",
"Fewer than a majority of people in modern society can find happiness outside the sphere of private interpersonal relationships."
]
| 4 | The statements above most strongly support which one of the following? |
Art critic: Criticism focuses on two issues: first, whether the value of an artwork is intrinsic to the work; and second, whether judgments about an artwork's quality are objective rather than merely matters of taste. These issues are related, for if an artwork's value is not intrinsic, then it must be extrinsic, and thus judgments about the quality of the work can only be a matter of taste. | 200412_4-LR2_17_17 | [
"judgments about the quality of an artwork are always a matter of taste",
"people sometimes agree about judgments that are only matters of taste",
"judgments about extrinsic value cannot be objective",
"judgments about intrinsic value are always objective",
"an artwork's value is sometimes intrinsic to it"
]
| 2 | The art critic's reasoning is most vulnerable to the criticism that it takes for granted that |
Decentralization enables divisions of a large institution to function autonomously. This always permits more realistic planning and strongly encourages innovation, since the people responsible for decision making are directly involved in implementing the policies they design. Decentralization also permits the central administration to focus on institution-wide issues without being overwhelmed by the details of daily operations. | 200412_4-LR2_18_18 | [
"In large institutions whose divisions do not function autonomously, planning is not maximally realistic.",
"Innovation is not always encouraged in large centralized institutions.",
"For large institutions the advantages of decentralization outweigh its disadvantages.",
"The central administrations of large institutions are usually partially responsible for most of the details of daily operations.",
"The people directly involved in implementing policies are always able to make innovative and realistic policy decisions."
]
| 0 | The statements above most strongly support which one of the following? |
According to some astronomers, Earth is struck by a meteorite large enough to cause an ice age on an average of once every 100 million years. The last such incident occurred nearly 100 million years ago, so we can expect that Earth will be struck by such a meteorite in the near future. This clearly warrants funding to determine whether there is a means to protect our planet from such meteorite strikes. | 200412_4-LR2_19_19 | [
"makes a bold prescription on the basis of evidence that establishes only a high probability for a disastrous event",
"presumes, without providing justification, that the probability of a chance event's occurring is not affected by whether the event has occurred during a period in which it would be expected to occur",
"moves from evidence about the average frequency of an event to a specific prediction about when the next such event will occur",
"fails to specify the likelihood that, if such a meteorite should strike Earth, the meteorite would indeed cause an ice age",
"presumes, without providing justification, that some feasible means can be found to deter large meteorite strikes"
]
| 2 | The reasoning in the argument is most subject to criticism on the grounds that the argument |
Polling data reveal that an overwhelming majority of nine-year-olds can correctly identify the logos of major cigarette brands. However, of those nine-year-olds who recognize such logos, less than 1 percent smoke. Therefore, there is little or no connection between recognition of cigarette brand logos and smoking. | 200412_4-LR2_20_20 | [
"The concern about the long-term effect on dolphins of small quantities of mercury in the ocean is unfounded. During a three-month observation period, 1,000 dolphins were exposed to small quantities of mercury in seawater, with no effect on the animals.",
"Many ten-year-olds dream of becoming actors. Yet it is not likely they will seriously consider becoming actors, because most parents discourage their children from pursuing such a highly competitive career.",
"Most dentists recommend using fluoride to reduce the incidence of cavities, but few recommend giving up candy entirely; so, using fluoride is probably more effective in preventing cavities than is avoiding sweets.",
"A large percentage of men exercise moderately throughout their lives, but the average life span of those who do so is not significantly greater than of those who get little or no exercise. So there is little or no correlation between moderate exercise and good health.",
"Most people cannot name their legislative representatives. Nonetheless, this is insignificant, for when queried, most of them displayed an adequate command of current political issues."
]
| 0 | Which one of the following uses flawed reasoning most similar to the flawed reasoning above? |
Etiquette firmly opposes both obscene and malicious talk, but this does not imply that speech needs to be restricted by law. Etiquette does not necessarily even oppose the expression of offensive ideas. Rather, it dictates that there are situations in which the expression of potentially offensive, disturbing, or controversial ideas is inappropriate and that, where appropriate, the expression and discussion of such ideas is to be done in a civil manner. | 200412_4-LR2_21_21 | [
"Neighbors should not be gruff or unfriendly to one another when they meet on the street.",
"When prosecutors elicit testimony from a cooperative witness they should do so without intensive questioning.",
"There should be restrictions on speech only if a large majority of the population finds the speech offensive and hateful.",
"The journalists at a news conference should not ask a politician potentially embarrassing questions about a controversial policy issue.",
"The moderator of a panel discussion of a divisive moral issue should not allow participants to engage in name-calling."
]
| 4 | Which one of the following judgments most closely corresponds to the principles of etiquette stated above? |
The only preexisting recordings that are transferred onto compact disc are those that record companies believe will sell well enough on compact disc to be profitable. So, most classic jazz recordings will not be transferred onto compact disc, because few classic jazz recordings are played on the radio. | 200412_4-LR2_22_22 | [
"Few of the preexisting recordings that record companies believe can be profitably transferred to compact disc are classic jazz recordings.",
"Few compact discs featuring classic jazz recordings are played on the radio.",
"The only recordings that are played on the radio are ones that record companies believe can be profitably sold as compact discs.",
"Most record companies are less interested in preserving classic jazz recordings than in making a profit.",
"No recording that is not played on the radio is one that record companies believe would be profitable if transferred to compact disc."
]
| 4 | The conclusion above follows logically if which one of the following is assumed? |
Agricultural economist: Over the past several years, increases in worldwide grain production have virtually ceased. Further increases will be extremely difficult; most usable farmland is already being farmed with near-maximal efficiency. But worldwide demand for grain has been increasing steadily, due largely to continuing population growth. Hence, a severe worldwide grain shortage is likely. | 200412_4-LR2_23_23 | [
"It is one of the two conclusions drawn by the agricultural economist, neither of which is used to provide support for the other.",
"It is a description of a phenomenon, a causal explanation of which is the main conclusion of the argument.",
"It is the only premise offered in support of the argument's main conclusion.",
"It is a prediction for which the agricultural economist's first claim is offered as the primary justification.",
"It is an intermediate conclusion that is presented as evidence for the argument's main conclusion."
]
| 4 | Which one of the following most accurately describes the role played in the agricultural economist's argument by the claim that further increases in worldwide grain production will be extremely difficult? |
Bardis: Extensive research shows that television advertisements affect the buying habits of consumers. Some people conclude from this that violent television imagery sometimes causes violent behavior. But the effectiveness of television advertisements could be a result of those televised images being specifically designed to alter buying habits, whereas television violence is not designed to cause violent behavior. Hence we can safely conclude that violent television imagery does not cause violence. | 200412_4-LR2_24_24 | [
"relies on an illegitimate inference from the fact that advertisements can change behavior to the claim that advertisements can cause violent behavior",
"fails to distinguish a type of behavior from a type of stimulus that may or may not affect behavior",
"undermines its own position by questioning the persuasive power of television advertising",
"concludes that a claim is false on the basis of one purported fault in an argument in favor of that claim",
"fails to consider the possibility that the argument it disputes is intended to address a separate issue"
]
| 3 | The reasoning in Bardis's argument is flawed because that argument |
Sarah: Our regulations for staff review are vague and thus difficult to interpret. For instance, the regulations state that a staff member who is performing unsatisfactorily will face dismissal, but they fail to define unsatisfactory performance. Thus, some staff may be dismissed merely because their personal views conflict with those of their supervisors. | 200412_4-LR2_25_25 | [
"Performance that falls only somewhat below expectations results in disciplinary measures short of dismissal.",
"Interpreting regulations is a prerogative that belongs solely to supervisors.",
"A vague regulation can be used to make those subject to it answer for their performance.",
"A vague regulation can be used to keep those subject to it in subordinate positions.",
"Employees usually consider specific regulations to be fairer than vague regulations."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following generalizations, if applicable to Sarah's company, most helps to justify her reasoning? |
Cox: The consumer council did not provide sufficient justification for its action when it required that Derma-35 be recalled from the market. Crockett: I disagree. Derma-35 in fact causes inflammation, but in citing only the side effect of blemishes as the justification for its decision, the council rightly acknowledged that blemishes are a legitimate health concern. | 200506_2-LR1_1_1 | [
"Derma-35 should remain on the market",
"blemishes are sometimes caused by inflammation",
"the council based its decision on the threat of inflammation or on the threat of blemishes",
"the council gave an adequate reason for its decision to recall Derma-35",
"inflammation is a serious health threat"
]
| 3 | Cox and Crockett disagree over whether |
Literary historian: William Shakespeare, a humble actor, could have written the love poetry attributed to him. But the dramas attributed to him evince such insight into the minds of powerful rulers that they could only have been written by one who had spent much time among them; Francis Bacon associated with rulers, but Shakespeare did not. | 200506_2-LR1_2_2 | [
"Bacon wrote the dramas attributed to Shakespeare, but could not have written the love poetry.",
"Bacon wrote both the love poetry and the dramas attributed to Shakespeare.",
"Shakespeare wrote neither the love poetry nor the dramas attributed to him.",
"One person could not have written both the love poetry and the dramas attributed to Shakespeare.",
"Shakespeare may have written the love poetry but did not write the dramas attributed to him."
]
| 4 | Which one of the following logically follows from the literary historian's claims? |
Philosopher: Effective tests have recently been developed to predict fatal diseases having a largely genetic basis. Now, for the first time, a person can be warned well in advance of the possibility of such life-threatening conditions. However, medicine is not yet able to prevent most such conditions. Simply being informed that one will get a disease that is both fatal and incurable can itself be quite harmful to some people. This raises the question of whether such "early warning" tests should be made available at all. | 200506_2-LR1_3_3 | [
"The advance of medicine fails to provide solutions to every problem.",
"The advance of medicine creates new contexts in which ethical dilemmas can arise.",
"Medical technologies continue to advance, increasing our knowledge and understanding of disease.",
"The more we come to learn, the more we realize how little we know.",
"The advance of technology is of questionable value."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following statements is best illustrated by the state of affairs described by the philosopher? |
Chapin: Commentators have noted with concern the recent electoral success by extremist parties in several democratic countries. But these successes pose no threat to democracy in those countries. The extremists have won pluralities, not majorities. Furthermore, they have won only when the moderate parties were preoccupied with arguing among themselves. | 200506_2-LR1_4_4 | [
"Parties that win pluralities but not majorities never directly or indirectly effect changes in their country's political arrangements.",
"Multiparty political systems are always more democratic than two-party political systems are.",
"Countries in which extremist parties win pluralities sometimes have democratic governments as strong as those in countries that lack extremist parties.",
"Members of moderate parties who consider extremist parties to be a serious threat to democracy will sometimes put aside their differences with each other to oppose them.",
"People are not always supporting a move toward an extremist government when they vote for extremist parties in democratic elections."
]
| 0 | Which one of the following, if assumed, enables Chapin's conclusion to be properly drawn? |
Futurist: Artists in the next century will be supported largely by private patrons. Because these patrons will almost invariably be supporters of the social order—whatever it happens to be at the time—art in the next century will rarely express social and political doctrines that are perceived to be subversive of that social order. | 200506_2-LR1_5_5 | [
"Art patrons tend not to support artists whose art expresses social and political views that are in opposition to their own.",
"Art patrons tend to be more interested in formal artistic problems than in the social and political issues of their time.",
"Artists are as prone to attack the contemporary social and political order in their work as they are to defend it.",
"Artists tend to become more critical of contemporary social and political arrangements after they are freed of their dependency on private patrons.",
"Art patrons tend to oppose all social change except that initiated by artists."
]
| 0 | Which one of the following principles, if valid, provides the most support for the futurist's inference? |
University budget committee: Athletes experience fewer injuries on artificial-turf athletic fields than on natural-grass fields. Additionally, natural-grass fields are more expensive to maintain than fields made of artificial turf. Nevertheless, this committee recommends replacing the university's current artificial-turf field with a natural-grass field. | 200506_2-LR1_6_6 | [
"The university's current artificial-turf athletic field has required extensive maintenance since its original installation.",
"Most injuries sustained on artificial-turf fields take longer to heal and require more expensive physical therapy than do injuries sustained on natural-grass fields.",
"It is difficult for spectators at athletic events to determine whether an athletic field is artificial turf or natural grass.",
"Maintaining artificial-turf fields involves the occasional replacement of damaged sections of turf, whereas natural-grass fields require daily watering and periodic fertilization.",
"Athletes who have spent most of their playing time on natural-grass fields generally prefer not to play on artificial-turf fields."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following, if true, most helps to resolve the apparent discrepancy in the committee's position? |
Although instinct enables organisms to make complex responses to stimuli, instinctual behavior involves no reasoning and requires far fewer nerve cells than does noninstinctual (also called flexible) behavior. A brain mechanism capable of flexible behavior must have a large number of neurons, and no insect brain has yet reached a size capable of providing a sufficiently large number of neurons. | 200506_2-LR1_7_7 | [
"The behavior of organisms with elaborate brain mechanisms is usually not instinctual.",
"Insect behavior is exclusively instinctual.",
"All organisms with brains larger than insects' brains are capable of some measure of flexible behavior.",
"All organisms with large brains are biologically equipped for flexible behavior.",
"Only organisms with brains of insect size or smaller engage in purely instinctual behavior."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following can be properly inferred from the statements above? |
The laboratory experiment, the most effective method for teaching science, is disappearing from most secondary school curricula, and students are now simulating experiments with computers. This trend should be stopped. It results in many students' completing secondary school and going on to a university without knowing how to work with laboratory equipment. | 200506_2-LR1_8_8 | [
"Scientific knowledge is changing so rapidly it is difficult for secondary schools to keep up without using computers.",
"In some secondary schools, teachers conduct laboratory experiments while students observe.",
"Computers have proven to be a valuable tool for teaching secondary school students scientific terminology.",
"Secondary schools and universities across the nation have put a great deal of money into purchasing computers.",
"University students can learn science effectively without having had experience in working with laboratory equipment."
]
| 4 | Which one of the following, if true, most weakens the argument? |
Alice: In democracies, politicians garner support by emphasizing the differences between their opponents and themselves. Because they must rule in accord with their rhetoric, policies in democracies fluctuate wildly as one party succeeds another. Elwell: But despite election rhetoric, to put together majority coalitions in democracies, politicians usually end up softening their stands on individual issues once they are elected. | 200506_2-LR1_9_9 | [
"politicians heighten the differences between themselves and their opponents during elections",
"basic policies change drastically when one party succeeds another in a democracy",
"in a democracy the best way of ensuring continuity in policies is to form a coalition government",
"most voters stay loyal to a particular political party even as it changes its stand on particular issues",
"the desire of parties to build majority coalitions tends to support democratic systems"
]
| 1 | The statements above provide the most support for the claim that Alice and Elwell disagree about whether |
Air traffic controllers and nuclear power plant operators are not allowed to work exceptionally long hours, because to do so would jeopardize lives. Yet physicians in residency training are typically required to work 80-hour weeks. The aforementioned restrictions on working exceptionally long hours should also be applied to resident physicians, since they too are engaged in work of a life-or-death nature. | 200506_2-LR1_10_10 | [
"There is no indispensable aspect of residency training that requires resident physicians to work exceptionally long hours.",
"Resident physicians have a more direct effect on the lives of others than do air traffic controllers and nuclear power plant operators.",
"The more hours one works in a week, the less satisfactorily one performs one's work.",
"Those who are not engaged in work that has life-or-death consequences should only sometimes be allowed to work exceptionally long hours.",
"Some resident physicians would like to complete their residency training without working exceptionally long hours."
]
| 0 | Which one of the following is an assumption the argument depends on? |
Career consultant: The most popular career advice suggests emphasizing one's strengths to employers and downplaying one's weaknesses. Research shows this advice to be incorrect. A study of 314 managers shows that those who use self-deprecating humor in front of their employees are more likely to be seen by them as even-handed, thoughtful, and concerned than are those who do not. | 200506_2-LR1_11_11 | [
"bases a conclusion about how one group will respond to self-deprecation on information about how a different group responds to it",
"ignores the possibility that what was viewed positively in the managers' self-deprecating humor was the self-deprecation and not its humor",
"ignores the possibility that non-self-deprecating humor might have been viewed even more positively than self-deprecating humor",
"infers from the fact that self-deprecating humor was viewed positively that nonhumorous self-deprecation would not be viewed positively",
"bases a conclusion about certain popular career advice on a critique of only one part of that advice"
]
| 0 | The career consultant's reasoning is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that it |
Researcher: We studied two groups of subjects over a period of six months. Over this period, one of the groups had a daily routine of afternoon exercise. The other group, the control group, engaged in little or no exercise during the study. It was found that those in the exercise group got 33 percent more deep-sleep at night than did the control group. Exercising in the afternoon tends to raise body temperature slightly until after bedtime, and this extra heat induces deeper sleep. | 200506_2-LR1_12_12 | [
"Regular afternoon exercise is one of the things required for adequate deep-sleep.",
"Exercise in the morning is almost as likely to have as many beneficial effects on sleep as is exercise in the afternoon.",
"The best way to get increased deep-sleep is to induce a slight increase in body temperature just before bedtime.",
"No one in the control group experienced a rise in body temperature just before bedtime.",
"Raising body temperature slightly by taking a warm bath just before bedtime will likely result in increased deep-sleep."
]
| 4 | The researcher's statements, if true, most strongly support which one of the following? |
Companies wishing to boost sales of merchandise should use in-store displays to catch customers' attention. According to a marketing study, today's busy shoppers have less time for coupon-clipping and pay little attention to direct-mail advertising; instead, they make two-thirds of their buying decisions on the spot at the store. | 200506_2-LR1_13_13 | [
"Companies are increasingly using in-store displays to catch customers' attention.",
"Coupons and direct-mail advertising were at one time more effective means of boosting sales of merchandise than they are now.",
"In-store displays are more likely to influence buying decisions made on the spot at the store than to influence other buying decisions.",
"In-store displays that catch customers' attention increase the likelihood that customers will decide on the spot to buy the company's merchandise.",
"Many of today's shoppers are too busy to pay careful attention to in-store displays."
]
| 3 | Which one of the following is an assumption that the argument requires? |
Roger Bacon, the thirteenth-century scientist, is said to have made important discoveries in optics. He was an early advocate of hands-on experimentation, and as a teacher warned his students against relying uncritically on the opinions of authorities. Nevertheless, this did not stop Bacon himself from appealing to authority when it was expedient for his own argumentation. Thus, Bacon's work on optics should be generally disregarded, in view of the contradiction between his statements and his own behavior. | 200506_2-LR1_14_14 | [
"presumes, without providing justification, that authority opinion is often incorrect",
"attacks Bacon's uncritical reliance on authority opinion",
"uses Bacon's remarks to his students as evidence of his opinions",
"ignores the fact that thirteenth-century science may not hold up well today",
"criticizes Bacon's character in order to question his scientific findings"
]
| 4 | The reasoning in the argument is flawed because the argument |
One's palate is to a great extent socially determined: that is, if we notice that a lot of people enjoy consuming a certain type of food, we will eventually come to like the food as well, once we have become accustomed to the food. | 200506_2-LR1_15_15 | [
"Maxine spoke to her neighbor about the many different ways he prepared pasta, and after trying some of his recipes found out that she loves to eat pasta.",
"Mike dislikes lima beans, due to his having parents who dislike them and few family members who enjoy them.",
"All of George's Ukrainian relatives love to eat pierogis, and by staying with them for several summers, George has become very fond of pierogis as well.",
"Yolanda dislikes pickles because she has observed that many of her relatives wince when eating pickles.",
"Sally found jalapeño peppers to be too hot when she first tried them, but now she can eat them without discomfort, because her family members use them frequently in their cooking."
]
| 2 | Which one of the following most closely conforms to the principle above? |
The ability to access information via computer is a tremendous resource for visually impaired people. Only a limited amount of printed information is accessible in braille, large type, or audiotape. But a person with the right hardware and software can access a large quantity of information from libraries and museums around the world, and can have the computer read the information aloud, display it in large type, or produce a braille version. Thus, visually impaired people can now access information from computers more easily than they can from most traditional sources. | 200506_2-LR1_16_16 | [
"A computerized speech synthesizer is often less expensive than a complete library of audiotapes.",
"Relatively easy-to-use computer systems that can read information aloud, display it in large type, or produce a braille version of it are widely available.",
"Many visually impaired people prefer traditional sources of information to computers that can read information aloud, display it in large type, or produce a braille version of it.",
"Most visually impaired people who have access to information via computer also have access to this same information via more traditional sources.",
"The rate at which printed information is converted into formats easily accessible to visually impaired people will increase."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument? |
Legislator: The recently released crime statistics clearly show that the new laws requiring stiffer punishments for violators have reduced the crime rate. In the areas covered by those laws, the incidence of crime has decreased by one-fourth over the four years since the legislation was enacted. Analyst: The statistics are welcome news, but they do not provide strong evidence that the new laws caused the drop in crime. Many comparable areas that lack such legislation have reported a similar drop in the crime rate during the same period. | 200506_2-LR1_17_17 | [
"pointing out that the legislator has provided no evidence of the reliability of the statistics on which the legislator's conclusion is based",
"arguing that the legislator has unreasonably concluded that one event has caused another without ruling out the possibility that both events are effects of a common cause",
"objecting that the statistics on which the legislator is basing his conclusion are drawn from a time period that is too short to yield a meaningful data sample",
"claiming that the legislator has attempted to establish a particular conclusion because doing so is in the legislator's self-interest rather than because of any genuine concern for the truth of the matter",
"implying that the legislator has drawn a conclusion about cause and effect without considering how often the alleged effect has occurred in the absence of the alleged cause"
]
| 4 | Which one of the following most accurately describes the strategy used by the analyst to call into question the legislator's argument? |
Many physicists claim that quantum mechanics may ultimately be able to explain all fundamental phenomena, and that, therefore, physical theory will soon be complete. However, every theory in the history of physics that was thought to be final eventually had to be rejected for failure to explain some new observation. For this reason, we can expect that quantum mechanics will not be the final theory. | 200506_2-LR1_18_18 | [
"Only a few species of plants now grow in very dry climates; therefore, few species of animals can live in those climates.",
"Four companies have marketed a new food processing product; therefore, a fifth company will not be able to market a similar product.",
"Your sister is a very good chess player but she has never won a chess tournament; therefore, she will not win this chess tournament.",
"A rare virus infected a group of people a decade ago; therefore, it will not reinfect the same population now.",
"Each team member has failed to live up to people's expectations; therefore, the team will not live up to people's expectations."
]
| 2 | Which one of the following arguments is most similar in its reasoning to the argument above? |
In an experiment, researchers played a series of musical intervals—two-note sequences—to a large, diverse group of six-month-old babies. They found that the babies paid significantly more attention when the intervals were perfect octaves, fifths, or fourths than otherwise. These intervals are prevalent in the musical systems of most cultures around the world. Thus, humans probably have a biological predisposition to pay more attention to those intervals than to others. | 200506_2-LR1_19_19 | [
"Several similar experiments using older children and adults found that these subjects, too, had a general tendency to pay more attention to octaves, fifths, and fourths than to other musical intervals.",
"None of the babies in the experiment had previous exposure to music from any culture.",
"All of the babies in the experiment had been exposed to music drawn equally from a wide variety of cultures around the world.",
"In a second experiment, these same babies showed no clear tendency to notice primary colors more than other colors.",
"Octaves, fifths, and fourths were played more frequently during the experiment than other musical intervals were."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument? |
Professor Donnelly's exams are always more difficult than Professor Curtis's exams. The question about dinosaurs was on Professor Donnelly's last exam. Therefore, the question must be difficult. | 200506_2-LR1_20_20 | [
"Lewis is a better baker than Stockman. Lewis made this cake. Therefore, it must be better than most of Stockman's cakes.",
"Porter's new book of poetry is better than any of her other books of poetry. This poem is from Porter's new book, so it must be good.",
"Professor Whitburn is teaching English this year and always assigns a lot of reading. Therefore, this year's English class will have to do more reading than last year's class.",
"Shield's first novel has a more complicated plot than any other that she has written. Hence, that plot must be very complex.",
"Mathematics is more difficult than history. Therefore, my calculus test will be more difficult than my history test."
]
| 1 | Which one of the following exhibits both of the logical flaws exhibited in the argument above? |
Ethicist: As a function of one's job and societal role, one has various duties. There are situations where acting in accord with one of these duties has disastrous consequences, and thus the duties are not absolute. However, it is a principle of morality that if one does not have overwhelming evidence that fulfilling such a duty will have disastrous consequences, one ought to fulfill it. | 200506_2-LR1_21_21 | [
"A teacher thinks that a certain student has received the course grade merited by the quality of his work. The teacher should fulfill her duty not to raise the student's grade, even though the lower grade might harm the student's chance of obtaining an internship.",
"A person should not fulfill his duty to tell his friend the truth about the friend's new haircut, because lying will make the friend happier than the truth would.",
"A police investigator discovers that a contractor has slightly overcharged wealthy customers in order to lower rates for a charity. The investigator should not fulfill his duty to report the contractor provided that the contractor stops the practice.",
"A psychiatrist's patient tells her about his recurring nightmares of having committed a terrible crime. The psychiatrist should fulfill her duty to report this to the authorities because the patient may have broken the law, even though the psychiatrist also has a duty of confidentiality to her patients.",
"A journalist thinks there is a slight chance that a story about a developing crisis will endanger innocent lives. Therefore, the journalist should await further developments before fulfilling his duty to file the story."
]
| 0 | Which one of the following most closely conforms to the principle of morality cited by the ethicist? |
Detective: Laser-printer drums are easily damaged, and any nick in a drum will produce a blemish of similar dimensions on each page produced by that printer. So in matching a blemish on a page with a nick on a drum, we can reliably trace a suspicious laser-printed document to the precise printer on which it was produced. | 200506_2-LR1_22_22 | [
"Criminals are unlikely to use their own laser printers to produce suspicious documents.",
"Drum nicks are usually so small that it requires skill to accurately determine their size and shape.",
"The manufacturing process often produces the same nick on several drums.",
"Blemishes on documents are sometimes totally concealed by characters that are printed over them.",
"Most suspicious documents are not produced on laser printers."
]
| 2 | Which one of the following, if true, most weakens the detective's argument? |
Whoever is kind is loved by somebody or other, and whoever loves anyone is happy. It follows that whoever is kind is happy. | 200506_2-LR1_23_23 | [
"Whoever loves someone loves everyone.",
"Whoever loves everyone loves someone.",
"Whoever is happy loves everyone.",
"Whoever loves no one is loved by no one.",
"Whoever loves everyone is kind."
]
| 3 | The conclusion follows logically if which one of the following is assumed? |
It is now clear that the ancient Egyptians were the first society to produce alcoholic beverages. It had been thought that the ancient Babylonians were the first; they had mastered the process of fermentation for making wine as early as 1500 B.C. However, archaeologists have discovered an Egyptian cup dating from 2000 B.C. whose sides depict what appears to be an Egyptian brewery, and whose chemical residue reveals that it contained a form of alcoholic beer. | 200506_2-LR1_24_24 | [
"It makes a generalization about Egyptian society based on a sample so small that it is likely to be unrepresentative.",
"It uses the term \"alcoholic beverage\" in a different sense in the premises than in the conclusion.",
"It presumes, without providing justification, that because one society developed a technology before another, the development in the latter was dependent on the development in the former.",
"It ignores the possibility that the first known instance of a kind is not the first instance of that kind.",
"It provides no evidence for the claim that the Babylonians produced wine as early as 1500 B.C."
]
| 3 | The reasoning above is most vulnerable to criticism on which one of the following grounds? |
Studies have shown that specialty sports foods contain exactly the same nutrients in the same quantities as do common foods from the grocery store. Moreover, sports foods cost from two to three times more than regular foods. So very few athletes would buy sports foods were it not for expensive advertising campaigns. | 200506_2-LR1_25_25 | [
"Sports foods are occasionally used by world-famous athletes.",
"Many grocery stores carry sports foods alongside traditional inventories.",
"Sports foods are easier than regular foods to carry and consume during training and competition.",
"Regular foods contain vitamins and minerals that are essential to developing strength and endurance.",
"Sports foods can nutritionally substitute for regular meals."
]
| 2 | Which one of the following, if true, most weakens the argument? |
Sambar deer are physically incapable of digesting meat. Yet sambar deer have been reported feeding on box turtles after killing them. | 200506_3-LR2_1_1 | [
"Sambar deer eat only the bony shells of box turtles.",
"Sambar deer often kill box turtles by accident.",
"Sambar deer kill box turtles only occasionally.",
"Box turtles sometimes compete with sambar deer for food.",
"Box turtles are much slower and clumsier than are sambar deer."
]
| 0 | Which one of the following, if true, best resolves the discrepancy above? |
Benson: In order to maintain the quality of life in our city, we need to restrict growth. That is why I support the new zoning regulations. Willett: I had heard such arguments ten years ago, and again five years ago. Each time the city council was justified in deciding not to restrict growth. Since there is nothing new in this idea of restricting growth, I oppose the regulations. | 200506_3-LR2_2_2 | [
"It presumes that growth is necessarily good without offering support for that position.",
"It is based on attacking Benson personally rather than responding to Benson's reasoning.",
"It ignores the possibility that new reasons for restricting growth have arisen in the past five years.",
"It fails to take into account the variety of factors that contribute to the quality of life in a city.",
"It overlooks the possibility that the city council of ten years ago was poorly qualified to decide on zoning regulations."
]
| 2 | Which one of the following most accurately describes a way in which Willett's reasoning is questionable? |
A recent study involved feeding a high-salt diet to a rat colony. A few months after the experiment began, standard tests of the rats' blood pressure revealed that about 25 percent of the colony had normal, healthy blood pressure, about 70 percent of the colony had high blood pressure, and 5 percent of the colony had extremely high blood pressure. The conclusion from these results is that high-salt diets are linked to high blood pressure in rats. | 200506_3-LR2_3_3 | [
"How much more salt than is contained in a rat's normal diet was there in the high-salt diet?",
"Did the high blood pressure have any adverse health effects on those rats that developed it?",
"What percentage of naturally occurring rat colonies feed on high-salt diets?",
"How many rats in the colony studied had abnormally high blood pressure before the study began?",
"Have other species of rodents been used in experiments of the same kind?"
]
| 3 | The answer to which one of the following questions is most relevant to evaluating the conclusion drawn above? |
Detective: Bill has been accused of committing the burglary at the warehouse last night. But no one saw Bill in the vicinity of the warehouse. So we must conclude that Bill did not commit the burglary. | 200506_3-LR2_4_4 | [
"treats evidence that is irrelevant to the burglar's identity as if it were relevant",
"merely attacks the character of Bill's accusers",
"fails to provide independent evidence for the theory that Bill committed the burglary",
"treats a lack of evidence against Bill as if it exonerated Bill",
"fails to establish the true identity of the burglar"
]
| 3 | The reasoning in the detective's argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that the argument |
Psychologist: Because of a perceived social stigma against psychotherapy, and because of age discrimination on the part of some professionals, some elderly people feel discouraged about trying psychotherapy. They should not be, however, for many younger people have greatly benefited from it, and people in later life have certain advantages over the young—such as breadth of knowledge, emotional maturity, and interpersonal skills—that contribute to the likelihood of a positive outcome. | 200506_3-LR2_5_5 | [
"Certain psychotherapists practice age discrimination.",
"Elderly people are better able to benefit from psychotherapy than are younger people.",
"Elderly people should not be reluctant to undergo psychotherapy.",
"Characteristics associated with maturity are important factors in psychotherapy's success.",
"Elderly people are less inclined to try psychotherapy than are younger people."
]
| 2 | Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main conclusion of the psychologist's argument? |
Heavy salting of Albritten's roads to melt winter ice and snow began about 20 years ago. The area's groundwater now contains approximately 100 milligrams of dissolved salt per liter. Groundwater in a nearby, less highly urbanized area, where little salt is used and where traffic patterns resemble those of Albritten 20 years ago, contains only about 10 milligrams of dissolved salt per liter. Since water that contains 250 or more milligrams of dissolved salt per liter tastes unacceptably salty, continuing the salting of Albritten's roads at its present rate will render Albritten's groundwater unpalatable within the next few decades. | 200506_3-LR2_6_6 | [
"Even water that contains up to 5,000 milligrams of dissolved salt per liter is safe to drink.",
"The concentration of dissolved salt in Albritten's groundwater is expected to reach 400 milligrams per liter within a few decades.",
"Salting icy roads is the simplest way to prevent accidents on those roads.",
"Albritten's groundwater contained roughly 90 milligrams of dissolved salt per liter 20 years ago.",
"Salting of Albritten's roads is likely to decrease over the next few decades."
]
| 3 | Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument? |
Numerous books describe the rules of etiquette. Usually the authors of such books merely codify standards of behavior by classifying various behaviors as polite or rude. However, this suggests that there is a single, objective standard of politeness. Clearly, standards of politeness vary from culture to culture, so it is absurd to label any one set of behaviors as correct and others as incorrect. | 200506_3-LR2_7_7 | [
"reaches a conclusion about how people actually behave on the basis of assertions regarding how they ought to behave",
"bases a generalization about all books of etiquette on the actions of a few authors",
"fails to justify its presumption regarding the influence of rules of etiquette on individual behavior",
"overlooks the possibility that authors of etiquette books are purporting to state what is correct behavior for one particular culture only",
"attempts to lend itself credence by unfairly labeling the position of the authors of etiquette books \"absurd\""
]
| 3 | The reasoning in the argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that the argument |
In jazz history, there have been gifted pianists who, because they had no striking musical ideas, led no memorable recording sessions. But precisely because they lacked such ideas, they were able to respond quickly to the ideas of imaginative and difficult leaders. Thus, these pianists are often heard adding masterful touches to some of the greatest jazz recordings. | 200506_3-LR2_8_8 | [
"The success of a group enterprise depends on the ability of the leader to recognize the weaknesses of others in the group.",
"The production of any great work requires contributions from those who are unimaginative but technically skilled.",
"People without forceful personalities cannot become great leaders in a field.",
"A trait that is a weakness in some settings can contribute to greatness in other settings.",
"No one can achieve great success without the help of others who are able to bring one's ideas to fruition."
]
| 3 | Which one of the following principles is best illustrated by the information above? |
Editorial: When legislators discover that some public service is not being adequately provided, their most common response is to boost the funding for that public service. Because of this, the least efficiently run government bureaucracies are the ones that most commonly receive an increase in funds. | 200506_3-LR2_9_9 | [
"The least efficiently run government bureaucracies are the bureaucracies that legislators most commonly discover to be failing to provide some public service adequately.",
"When legislators discover that a public service is not being adequately provided, they never respond to the problem by reducing the funding of the government bureaucracy providing that service.",
"Throughout the time a government bureaucracy is run inefficiently, legislators repeatedly boost the funding for the public service that this bureaucracy provides.",
"If legislators boost funding for a public service, the government bureaucracy providing that service will commonly become less efficient as a result.",
"The most inefficiently run government bureaucracy receives the most funding of any government bureaucracy."
]
| 0 | The statements in the editorial, if true, most strongly support which one of the following? |
Fred argued that, since Kathleen is a successful film director, she has probably worked with famous actors. But, while Fred is right in supposing that most successful film directors work with famous actors, his conclusion is not warranted. For, as he knows, Kathleen works only on documentary films, and directors of documentaries rarely work with famous actors. | 200506_3-LR2_10_10 | [
"maintaining that too little is known about Kathleen to justify any conclusion",
"showing that Kathleen must not have worked with famous actors",
"claiming that Fred has failed to take relevant information into account",
"showing that Fred has mistakenly assumed that all successful film directors work with famous actors",
"demonstrating that Fred has failed to show that most successful film directors work with famous actors"
]
| 2 | Which one of the following strategies is used above to criticize Fred's reasoning? |
In early 1990, Queenston instituted a tax increase that gave its school system a larger operating budget. The school system used the larger budget to increase the total number of teachers in the system by 30 percent between 1990 and 1993. Nevertheless, there was no change in the average number of students per teacher between 1990 and 1993. | 200506_3-LR2_11_11 | [
"No classes in Queenston's school system experienced an increase in enrollment between 1990 and 1993.",
"The total number of students enrolled in Queenston's school system increased between 1990 and 1993.",
"The operating budget of Queenston's school system increased by exactly 30 percent between 1990 and 1993.",
"Most teachers who worked for Queenston's school system in 1990 were still working for the system in 1993.",
"The quality of education in Queenston's school system improved between 1990 and 1993."
]
| 1 | If the statements above are true, then on the basis of them which one of the following must also be true? |
Our computer experts are asked from time to time to allocate funds for new hardware and software for our company. Unfortunately, these experts favor cutting-edge technologies, because that is what excites them, despite the fact that such experimental technologies are highly expensive, full of undiscovered "bugs," and thus are not the most profitable investments. | 200506_3-LR2_12_12 | [
"When senior executives choose to promote junior executives, they tend to favor those who share their professional interests, not those who have had the most education.",
"When supermarkets choose foods, they choose the kinds that can be sold for the most profit, not the kinds of foods that are the most healthful for consumers.",
"When librarians choose books for the library, they choose the kinds that they enjoy reading, not the kinds of books that serve the interests of the community.",
"When students choose courses, they choose those that require the least amount of work, not those in which they might learn the most.",
"When television executives choose programs to air, they choose the ones with the most sex and violence because that is what viewers want, not the shows with the highest artistic merit."
]
| 2 | Of the following, which one conforms most closely to the principle illustrated by the situation described above? |
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