Logical reasoning PrepTest 104 · Section 1 · Question 12

Question prompt

Clothes made from natural Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right

Credited answer: E

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

Argument or Facts

Facts

Valid or Flawed

NA

Question Type

Must Be True Questions

Stimulus Summary

Natural fibers vs. Artificial fibers - The former shrink in the wash, while the latter don’t
Clothing → Straight fibers
Natural fibers - Naturally tightly curled, but straightened to be made into clothing
Fiber exposed to high temperature → Return to original state

Answer Anticipation

Each statement here falls into a common type of logic that we should pay attention to when anticipating an answer.
The first statement is a comparative one that tells us something about natural fibers vs. artificial ones. That difference? The former shrink in the wash (hot water), whereas the latter don’t.
This overlaps with the final statement - a conditional statement - which tells us that all fibers (including natural and artificial ones) return to their natural state when washed in hot water.
This allows us to know what happens to the natural fibers when washed in hot water, based on the second (causal) statement. The clothes made from natural fibers shrink when washed in hot water because they return to their natural state, which is tightly curled.
This doesn’t speak to the artificial fibers, though - so can we figure out anything about them? Well, we know that they don’t shrink as natural clothes do when washed in hot water. But when they’re washed in hot water, we know that they return to their natural state. As such, they can’t be returning to a tightly curled state, so their natural state must be straight since clothing requires straight fibers. Let’s find an answer stating that.

Answer choices

  1. A
    Washing clothes made from Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    There’s no discussion of the effects of low-temperature washing, just washing at high temperatures, so this answer is out of scope.

  2. B
    High temperatures have no Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    The stimulus doesn’t discuss blended fabrics. And, if anything, the final statement suggests that these fabrics would shrink as the natural fibers return to their natural state.

  3. C
    Clothes made from natural Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    The stimulus doesn’t discuss stretching, just shrinking in hot water.

  4. D
    If natural fibers that Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    The stimulus is silent on ways to straighten the fibers after they’ve been turned into clothing and washed, so this answer is out of scope.

  5. E
    Artificial fibers are straight Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E matches the stem
    Artificial fibers don’t shrink when washed in hot water, so they must be in their natural state. And to be used in clothing, the fibers must be straight. As such, the artificial fibers must start out straight, so this is the correct answer.

What this tests

Question analytics

Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.

Answer choice distribution

  1. A 8%
  2. B 4%
  3. C 8%
  4. D 9%
  5. E Credited 71%

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