Logical reasoning PrepTest 103 · Section 3 · Question 1

Question prompt

From the tenth century Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right

Credited answer: B

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

Argument or Facts

Argument

Valid or Flawed

Valid

Question Type

Paradox Questions

Stimulus Summary

Norse settlers - Lived in Greenland from 900-1500
Inuit settlers - Lived in Greenland from at least 900-after 1500
900-1500 - Average temperatures dropped
Opposing point - The temperature drop caused the Norse to die out because Greenland was too cold for humans
Argument - The Inuit survived, so the temperature can’t explain the end of the Norse settlements

Answer Anticipation

There are a lot of minor details in this stimulus, but it boils down to this - the Norse settlements in Greenland died out, when the Inuit ones didn’t. The question stem asks us to explain this discrepancy.
Since we’re tasked with describing the different outcomes, we should focus on answers that bring up a difference between the Norse and Inuit settlements that could explain why the latter survived while the former didn’t. And since we know that the temperature dropped around this time, the answer might bring that in.
It’s probably not worth anticipating all potential differences that could lead to one surviving while the others, so let’s head to the answer choices with these in mind.

Answer choices

  1. A
    The drop in average Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    Both the Inuit and Norse settlements were in Greenland, so comparing the temperature drop there compared to the rest of the world is out of scope.

  2. B
    The Norse settlers' diet, Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B matches the stem
    This answer highlights a relevant difference between the Norse and Inuit settlements. If the Norse relied on food that couldn’t survive the temperature drop, then their settlements would be wiped out at that time, while the Inuit continued to survive on their less temperature-dependent diets. Since this answer explains the different outcomes, it’s the correct answer.

  3. C
    There were settlements in Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    What is true of North America doesn’t explain why the Norse settlements couldn’t survive in Greenland. At most, this might explain where the individuals in those settlements went, which isn’t a part of the paradox.

  4. D
    The Inuit and the Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    This answer brings up a similarity between the settlements, so it can’t explain why some survived and others didn’t.

  5. E
    The Norse community in Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    The stimulus is about the Norse settlements in Greenland, not Norway, so this answer is out of scope.

What this tests

Question analytics

Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.

Answer choice distribution

  1. A 7%
  2. B Credited 90%
  3. C 2%
  4. D 1%
  5. E -100%

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