Logical reasoning PrepTest 109 · Section 4 · Question 15

Incorrect. This answer establishes that it shouldn't be taxpayers on the hook for people's hobbies. Since that would include mountain climbers, this answer justifies making those engaged in the hobby pay for the government costs associated with it, as the proposal suggests.

Incorrect. Requiring people to post a large amount of money before they climb a mountain will certainly serve as a deterrent for what has proven to be a risky activity, so this answer justifies the proposal.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Flawed

Question Type:
Bizarro Strengthen (Principle)

Stimulus Summary:
Facts (1992):
(1) 250 mountain climber rescues
(2) 25 people died
(3) $3m spent rescuing mountain climbers
(4) More climbers every year
Proposal - Require all climbers to post a lot of money before climbing that the government gets if they get into trouble

Answer Anticipation:
Strengthen (Principle) questions generally reach a judgment in the conclusion based on a description of a situation in the premises. The correct answer will present a principle justifying that judgment based on the details in the description. In this Bizarro Strengthen (Principle) question, four answers will do so.

That's why we made a bulleted list of all the details in this stimulus. They're all presented as reasons for the proposal made by the task force—to require people to post money to essentially pay for their rescue or recover if they get into trouble while mountain climbing.

Since we're tasked with finding a principle that justifies this, we need to connect that recommendation to any or all of the details presented in the description of the problem that the proposal is meant to resolve. Let's go through the answers and eliminate any that connect those details to the adoption of the proposal.

Answer Explanation:
The stimulus doesn't discuss training or permits, so this answer is out of scope. Since it doesn't help to justify the proposal, it's therefore the correct answer.

Key Takeaway:
Bizarro Strengthen (Principle) questions can end up feeling a bit repetitive in the answer choices. Here, most of the incorrect answers said very similar things, leaving the correct answer to be an outlier in that it brought up different concepts from the other answers (and the stimulus itself). Be wary in other questions that fall into this category, where the difference between the right and wrong answers is less stark, and it's mostly about a small detail that's off in the right answer!

Incorrect. The mountain climbers are using government rescue resources to the tune of $3m, so this answer justifies making them pay the bond to cover at least some of that cost.

Incorrect. Mountain climbers are engaged in physically risky behavior, and no one's welfare is dependent on them climbing (though this answer would exempt the rescuers!). As such, this answer justifies making the mountain climbers post money to cover the cost of treating any injuries—which would include sending EMTs up to them in the mountain.