PrepTest 107

[lcid:3524] Prep Test 107 LSAT — Logical Reasoning — S1 Logical reasoning

Question prompt

Prosecutor: Dr. Yuge has 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

Argument

Valid or Flawed

Flawed

Question Type

Errors in Reasoning Questions

Stimulus Summary

Conclusion - There was enough light for Klein to make a reliable identification

Answer Anticipation

There’s a lot of confusing language in this stimulus, so we should start with the conclusion and work backwards to see what justifies it.
The conclusion here is that last line (“So”), stating that there was enough light for Klein to make a reliable identification. What backs that up?
Well, we know the crime happened between 1:15am and 1:30am - which is before the moon set at 1:45am. When the moon was out, it was full enough to provide considerable light. So the conclusion that there was enough light during the crime is supported by the claim that the moon was full enough to provide considerable light.
Does that guarantee there was enough light to make an identification? Not necessarily! It’s possible there was some other factor that prevented the moonlight from allowing Klein to see the robber. Maybe they were inside, and thus shielded from the moon. Or there could have been cloud cover, blocking the moon’s light even though it was providing enough to make an ID if it could shine through the clouds.
Note that the correct answer won’t deal with unrelated reasons that Klein might not be able to make an ID (e.g., he was asleep, or he wasn’t paying attention). The reason for this is that the conclusion states there was enough light to make an ID, not that Klein can/should be able to make an identification.

Answer choices

  1. A
    Klein may be mistaken Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    The Prosecutor states that they have “conclusively shown” the crime happened between 1:15 and 1:30am, so there’s no room for that to be wrong.
  2. B
    The perpetrator may closely Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    The argument isn’t about whether any identification by Klein will be reliable, but rather whether there was enough light for it to be potentially reliable. As such, the similarity of the perpetrator to others is out of scope.
  3. C
    Klein may have been Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    The conclusion is about the amount of light present, not other factors that may have prevented Klein from seeing who the robber was, so this answer is out of scope.
  4. D
    Without having been there, Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    Yuge’s claim is that the moon was full enough to provide considerable light, not that it provided sufficient light to see a robber.
  5. E
    During the robbery the Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E matches the stem
    While the moon may have been very bright, that light may have been blocked by cloud cover. If that was the case, then there wasn’t enough moonlight making it to the location of the robbery for Klein to make an identification, so this is the correct answer.

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