Logical reasoning PrepTest 155 · Section 2 · Question 12

Incorrect. If anything, this would suggest that radiation continues to be a problem, and it doesn't connect to an increase in population.

Incorrect. This doesn't explain why there would be an increase in wildlife population. It explains why the radiation would have a more limited impact on certain species, but not why it would increase the population.

Incorrect. This answer doesn't connect to the population at all, so it's just more background information.

Incorrect. If anything, this makes the paradox worse. Some birds have decreased fertility; others don't. It never says that certain animals have an increase in fertility.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Facts

Question Type:
Paradox

Stimulus Summary:
Chernobyl led to animals with a lot of radiation. However, their populations have also increased rapidly.

Answer Anticipation:
We need to find an answer that explains why, after the accident, animal populations went up despite radiation. While it's possible that radiation causes an increase in fertility, that's probably not the answer, as radiation is pretty commonly known as a bad thing. So there must be another change that came with accident that increased the wild animal population. One idea that comes to mind is that the humans moved away.

Answer Explanation:
This answer matches the anticipation. However, even if you didn't think of that, you can still pick this answer as the correct one because it explains how the population would go up—through the elimination of a danger and the increase in habitat.

Key Takeaway:
In a paradox question, always note changes. Focusing on it and finding an explanation for the change will usually result in you finding the correct answer.