Logical reasoning PrepTest 101 · Section 2 · Question 12

Question prompt

For years scientists have Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right

Credited answer: C

The notes below walk through why it fits the stem and how to eliminate the rest.

Argument or Facts

Argument

Valid or Flawed

Flawed

Question Type

Main Point Questions

Stimulus Summary

Scientists have spent a lot of time and money on trying to find aliens, but they’ve failed, so they’ll never find aliens.

Answer Anticipation

There are two things here that can let us quickly settle on the main point of the argument.
First, the argument here makes a prediction - finding aliens “is destined” to fail. Predictions tend to be conclusions. That’s backed up here by the following clause, which states that experience up until now “indicate[s]” that this prediction will pan out - and if something indicates another, that shows the former supports the latter, making the latter a conclusion.
The other statements tend to be statements of fact (e.g., the amount of money spent, or the sophistication of the technology involved), which are generally premises. And that experience is noted as being what “indicate[s]” the prediction will end up being true, reinforcing it as support.
So let’s find an answer reflecting the prediction - that finding aliens won’t happen.

Answer choices

  1. A
    There is no reason Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    This answer is tempting, but it goes a step beyond the argument. The argument concludes that scientists won’t find aliens, not that aliens don’t exist at all.

  2. B
    The equipment that scientists Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    The argument never discusses how sophisticated equipment should be, just how much more sophisticated it is now than in the past.

  3. C
    Scientists searching for extraterrestrial Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C matches the stem
    This answer reflects the argument’s prediction - that scientists looking for aliens are “destined” to have it remain a dream. This is based on the other statements in the stimulus, making it the main point of the argument.

  4. D
    Only if scientists had Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    First, this goes a step beyond the argument in discussing whether further searching is justified. The author could believe the search is destined to fail, but it’s still justified because, say, the technology developed for it is useful. Second, it puts a condition on that continued justification that isn’t present in the stimulus. This answer feels a bit like the final clause of the argument, but that says that the prior experience supports the idea that the search will continue to fail, not that it would justify continued searching.

  5. E
    We should not spend Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    Like many other answers, this one goes past the argument. There, the argument limits itself to discussing whether a search will be successful - not whether that means continuing it is justified.

What this tests

Question analytics

Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.

Answer choice distribution

  1. A 15%
  2. B 1%
  3. C Credited 69%
  4. D 9%
  5. E 6%

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