PrepTest 140

Incorrect. The stimulus never states that people should live in large cities, so this answer doesn't reflect the argument.

Incorrect. The argument never debates that cities are generally more polluted than the countryside, just that this doesn't mean they increase overall pollution. The argument here pivots to a paradox instead of an opposing point.

Incorrect. The argument is set up to explain how urbanization can lead to less overall pollution, so the argument is the conclusion—a key logical role.

Incorrect. The structure of that first sentence ("Although . . . ") lets us know that the statement in question isn't supporting that first half of the sentence.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Valid

Question Type:
Argument Structure

Stimulus Summary:
Large cities have public transportation and more efficient housing, so the same number of people will pollute less in cities than in small towns, and urbanization thus may decrease overall pollution.

Answer Anticipation:
The stimulus starts with "Although," which is an interesting keyword—it highlights that a statement is being introduced, but the argument is going to pivot away from it in some way in that same sentence. Generally, the "Although" statement will either be an opposing point ("Although many believe that . . . "), or a fact that the author agrees with but doesn't lead to the conclusion you might expect (which is what we see here).

Here, the argument pivots from that initial fact that the author agrees with to a paradoxical statement. Since that paradox will need an explanation that we're likely to get in the rest of the argument, this is either the main point or an intermediate conclusion. Since it's the statement in question, that's an important distinction!

The argument does go on to provide information explaining why that paradoxical statement makes sense, but there's also another conclusion in there, so we do need to figure out which of the two conclusions is subsidiary to the other. And since that final sentence explains how increasing urbanization could reduce overall pollution, it's an intermediate conclusion, and the statement in question is the main point of the argument.

Answer Explanation:
This answer is an abstract way of describing a conclusion, so it's correct.

Key Takeaway:
"Although" is a keyword like "Since" in that it tells us two things. "Although" is used to introduce a fact or opinion that the author is then going to pivot away from. In general, it'll either be phrased as an opposing point that the author takes issue with, or a fact that the author thinks doesn't lead to the conclusion someone might quickly draw from it. In this case, it's the latter—the increased level of pollution in cities might suggest urbanization will increase pollution, but, according to the author, it actually won't.