Logical reasoning PrepTest 105 · Section 2 · Question 5

Question prompt

Archaeologist: A large corporation 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

Argument

Valid or Flawed

Flawed

Question Type

Principle Questions / Strengthen with Sufficient Premise Questions

Stimulus Summary

Many parts of an archaeological site have unexamined evidence, so it shouldn’t be fully restored.

Answer Anticipation

As with all Principle (Strengthen) questions, we should focus on justifying the judgment in the conclusion based on the details in the premises. Here, the Archaeologist’s recommendation is that an offer to restore the entirety of an archaeological site should be rejected. Why does she make that recommendation? Because many parts of the site contain unexamined evidence. Note that the entirety of the Archaeologist’s logic rests in that last sentence. She pivots away from the earlier statements (“however”) to provide both a premise and conclusion. As such, we can focus on just that portion of the stimulus. As such, we should look for an answer that justifies that connection: If a site has unexamined evidence, then it shouldn’t be fully restored.

Answer choices

  1. A
    The ownership of archaeological Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    The Archaeologist doesn’t justify her rejection of the offer of the business to restore it because businesses shouldn’t control these sites, so this answer misses her logic. Also, there’s no indication that the corporation would own the site after paying for the restoration.
  2. B
    Any restoration of an Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    While the mentioned restoration would restore the site to how it appeared at the height of the civilization that occupied it, not its most ancient period, the Archaeologist doesn’t use that detail to justify her conclusion.
  3. C
    No one should make Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    Similar to (B), this answer deals with a part of the stimulus that the Archaeologist doesn’t rely on to justify her conclusion. She pivots (“however”) in the last sentence to provide her reasoning, and that’s what we need to focus on.
  4. D
    Only those with a Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    There’s no indication that the large corporation isn’t truly concerned with the history here - maybe the owner is a huge history buff!
  5. E
    The risk of losing Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E matches the stem
    This answer justifies not taking action if it risks losing evidence that hasn’t yet been discovered/studied. Since the Archaeologist recommends against a restoration based on the presence of unexamined evidence, this principle justifies her argument, so it’s correct.

What this tests

Question analytics

Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.

Answer choice distribution

  1. A 3%
  2. B 3%
  3. C 1%
  4. D 2%
  5. E Credited 91%

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Discussion

  • Why not E? 1 reply

    Started by fionasullivan11@yahoo.com

  • Explanation 5 replies

    Started by Brendan

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