Logical reasoning PrepTest 107 · Section 4 · Question 1

Question prompt

Combustion of gasoline in Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right

Credited answer: D

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

Strengthen Questions

Stimulus Summary

Gasoline - Burning it leads to benzene (carcinogen)
Methanol - Burning it leads to formaldehyde (carcinogen)
Environmentalists - Switch from gasoline to methanol
Conclusion - Switching from gasoline to methanol doesn’t have much merit

Answer Anticipation

First, note that we’re tasked with strengthening the Environmentalists’ proposal, not the argument’s conclusion that it has little merit.
The conclusion here notes that a proposal - switching from gasoline to methanol - wouldn’t do much good. This is based on the fact that both, when burned, generate a carcinogen.
However, that both create a carcinogen doesn't mean that methanol isn’t in some way better than gasoline. Maybe benzene is a more potent carcinogen. Maybe a lot more benzene is made when burning gasoline than formaldehyde is when burning methanol. Maybe there’s some other benefit to methanol over gasoline! Any reason that methanol is better than gasoline will serve to support the Environmentalist’s proposal, as the stem tasks us to do. Let’s find an answer that establishes such information.

Answer choices

  1. A
    The engines of some Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    This doesn’t speak to whether methanol is preferable to gasoline for the engines that still use it.
  2. B
    Several large research efforts Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    First, this is about the future, not the present. Second, if anything, this suggests that gasoline will get better in the future, which cuts against the Environmentalists’ argument that we should switch away from it.
  3. C
    In some regions, the Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    Both gasoline and methanol are considered automobile fuel, so this answer doesn’t really add anything to the argument. Especially since, if anything, it presents economic reasons to stick with one over the other instead of health reasons.
  4. D
    Formaldehyde is a less Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D matches the stem
    If formaldehyde is less hazardous to health than benzene, then there are health reasons to make the switch from methanol (which leads to formaldehyde) over gasoline (which leads to benzene). That strengthens the Environmentalists’ argument to make that switch.
  5. E
    Since methanol is water Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    This is a reason to stick with gasoline instead of making the switch to methanol, thus weakening the Environmentalist's argument.

What this tests

Question analytics

Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.

Answer choice distribution

  1. A 5%
  2. B 3%
  3. C 1%
  4. D Credited 73%
  5. E 17%

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