Reading comp PrepTest 137 · Section 1 · Question 24

Incorrect. There's no discussion of other violin makers at the time, and the question is about why Stradivarius' violins are superior violins, so this answer is incorrect.

Incorrect. This doesn't answer the question posed at the beginning of the argument, so it's not a logical completion to the argument.

Incorrect. This answer is too extreme—the question only posits that "most" violins aren't as good as a Stradivarius, so there might be a few modern violins that are equally excellent. That said, this answer also doesn't answer the question posed.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Facts

Question Type:
Argument Completion

Stimulus Summary:
Question - Why are Stradivarius violins so much better than all others?
Expert answer - Secret varnishes
Rebuttal - There's no evidence for this
Climatologists - Weather patterns at the time gave trees special musical powers
Therefore - __________

Answer Anticipation:
When an argument poses a question, the author's answer is usually the main point. Here, an answer by experts is brought up and then dismissed before the argument brings up information from Climatologists. Since the author has dismissed one explanation but then brought up this info from Climatologists as the only premise for her argument, she must be reaching a conclusion based on this information. And remembering that the whole point of this argument is to answer a question—why are Stradivarius violins so great?—that information must provide an answer.

The info brought up by the Climatologists establishes that the wood at the time had "special acoustic properties," so the argument should conclude by stating that the wood with these special properties are responsible for the superiority of Stradivarius' violins.

Answer Explanation:
This answer both builds from the information established by the Climatologists and answers the question posed, so this is our answer.

Key Takeaway:
When an argument raises a question, the conclusion is usually the answer to it that the author finds correct/most plausible. Other answers tend to be opposing points.

Incorrect. While the argument builds to the conclusion that the acoustically special wood played a role in the quality of Stradivarius violins, that doesn't preclude him also employing secret methods in using that wood. This answer doesn't directly answer the question, so it's out of scope.