Logical reasoning PrepTest 123 · Section 2 · Question 16

Question prompt

Taylor:  Researchers at a local 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

Point at Issue Questions

Stimulus Summary

T: Researchers claim something, but this and all similarly precise claims are suspicious because science can't be that precise.
S: Some things are precise, some aren't, but enough are precise—including in some sciences—that precision isn't a reason to discount a conclusion.

Answer Anticipation

T uses some pretty strong language—"all such" claims; "never be established". He's making broad, blanket statements about precision.
S, on the other hand, is making more measured statements. She brings up that some areas aren't precise (agreeing with T a bit), but that other areas are. She also brings up not doubting things just because they're precise, which is a foil for T's contention that precision is a reason to think a claim is "suspect." Whether or not precision is possible and whether or not it's a reason to discount claims seems to be the point at issue here.

Answer choices

  1. A
    Research might reveal that Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    Incorrect. While S believes that there are areas where precision is possible, she never weighs in on whether linguistics is one of those areas. Since we don't know if she'd agree or disagree with this statement, we can eliminate it.
  2. B
    It is possible to Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    Incorrect. While T believes claims like this can never be established by science and thus disagrees, S doesn't weigh in on linguistics specifically. She believes precision is possible in some areas and not others, but since we don't know which category linguistics falls into, we don't know if she'd agree or disagree with this answer.
  3. C
    The study of verbal Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    Incorrect. T doesn't believe there are any areas to expect precision, so he'd agree with this. However, since S believes some areas can expect precision and others can't without weighing in on verbal/non-verbal communication, we don't know if she'd agree or disagree with this answer.
  4. D
    Some sciences can yield Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D matches the stem
    Correct. T states that all mathematically precise claims are suspect because science can never establish them, so he disagrees with this answer. S states that such claims are possible in some sciences and thus shouldn't be doubted just because they're precise, agreeing with this answer. Since one agrees and the other disagrees, this answer is correct!
  5. E
    If inherently suspect claims Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    Incorrect. This answer choice is out of scope for both T and S since it talks about whether the claims are usually false. T questions whether precise claims can be established by science, but that's different than being false. S doesn't talk about the frequency of areas that can and can't be precise, so an answer about things being "usually" false is something she doesn't have a clear opinion on.

What this tests

Question analytics

Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.

Answer choice distribution

  1. A 9%
  2. B 18%
  3. C 27%
  4. D Credited 37%
  5. E 9%

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