Logical reasoning PrepTest 126 · Section 3 · Question 7

Question prompt

Scientist: In our study, 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

Valid

Question Type

Argument Structure Questions

Stimulus Summary

Study - Chemical R didn’t cause cancer in lab rats
Potential conclusion - Chemical R is safe for humans
Scientist - We can’t reach that conclusion
Why not? - Some carcinogens only act after long periods of exposure, and rats are short-lived. This is probably why many human carcinogens don’t cause rat cancer.

Answer Anticipation

This argument has a Scientist analyzing the results of an experiment.
The experiment shows that a certain chemical didn’t cause cancer in lab rats. The Scientist notes, however, that a certain conclusion (chemical R is safe for humans) can’t be drawn based on these results. This second statement - the pivot statement - suggests an opposing point and the Scientist’s opinion of it, so it’s very likely the main point.
That’s reinforced by the next statement starting with “After all,” which generally highlights support for the previous statement. And the final clause explains that “after all” statement, serving as support for it.
The statement in question is the first one - the results of the experiment. The Scientist accepts those results, but she says that they don’t lead to a conclusion that one might think they do, so we should find an answer reflecting that.

Answer choices

  1. A
    It is cited as Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    The Scientist suggests that some might use the study’s results to conclude that chemical R is safe for humans, but that’s not a valid conclusion. She doesn’t argue against that conclusion, though - she just claims that it’s not proven by the study results. Since there’s no argument against the conclusion that chemical R is safe for humans, this answer is incorrect.
  2. B
    It is advanced to Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    This answer is too broad and strong for the argument generally while also failing to describe the role of the statement in question. It’s too broad and strong in applying to all types of lab results - presumably, there are some tests done on rats that could tell us something about humans. And the results of the study aren’t themselves advanced to show that these lab results are useless.
  3. C
    It illustrates the claim Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    While this claim is made in the stimulus, the opening statement/study wasn’t designed to illustrate this since chemical R isn’t known to cause cancer in humans.
  4. D
    It is used as Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    That chemical R didn’t cause cancer in a study probably wouldn’t help the conclusion that it does cause cancer.
  5. E
    It is cited as Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E matches the stem
    The study suggests a conclusion - chemical R is safe for humans, since it’s safe for rats. The Scientist, however, says that this isn’t a conclusion that should be drawn from the results of the study. So the statement in question - the study results - is insufficient to support the conclusion that chemical R is safe for humans, according to the Scientist, and this is the correct answer.

What this tests

Question analytics

Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.

Answer choice distribution

  1. A 3%
  2. B 12%
  3. C 4%
  4. D 1%
  5. E Credited 80%

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