PrepTest 149

[lcid:3693] Prep Test 149 LSAT — Reading Comp — S2 Reading comp

Passage

Questions 6-12  .       In a typical Hollywood action movie, the hero  . skirts death to complete a mission. Bad guys Remaining source text redacted.
Passage walkthrough
Passage SummaryTopic: Science

Paragraph 1
  • Paragraph note
    • What must be an analogy is introduced
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • While not 100% apparent before reading the start of paragraph 2, this is an analogy, comparing the heroes of action movies to universes that can sustain life
Paragraph 2
  • Paragraph note
    • The analogy is brought around to the universe
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Any small change to the laws of physics would have made life impossible
    • Example - Strong nuclear force
Paragraph 3
  • Paragraph note
    • Some cosmologists make an argument
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Question - If this universe is so improbable, how can it exist?
    • Cosmologist Solution - It's just one of many multiverses, so it's likely one would have life
Paragraph 4
  • Paragraph note
    • The Author poses a question about that view and brings up what it's based on
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Question - How unique are the laws allowing life in our universe?
    • Cosmologists - We can't find another set of laws that lead to life
Paragraph 5
  • Paragraph note
    • The Author points out a flaw in the opposing point and research that calls it into question
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Flaw - The Cosmologists tweak one variable at a time
    • New research by Author - Changing several variables at a time lets you find sets that allow for life
Paragraph 6
  • Paragraph note
    • The Author brings her view back to the question of the multiverse
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • The Author's view doesn't call into question the multiverse because:
      • Models of the universe's creation support a multiverse
      • Other cosmological puzzles are potentially solved by a multiverse
    • This seems more like an add-on since the Author and Cosmologists are on the same side - the main debate is between the Cosmologists and Author over the uniqueness of the physical laws allowing for life
Main Point:
Some cosmologists argue that the laws of physics allowing for life are relatively rare, but recent research shows that there are numerous potential universes with significantly different laws that would allow for life.

Key Lines:
Lines 7-10 - A general view of the universe is established to set up background for the debate
Lines 18-22 - The view of the Cosmologists is introduced
Lines 28-29 - The Author introduces a new question to be answered
Lines 33-35 - The process of the Cosmologists is discussed
Lines 38-39 - A problem with that process is introduced
Lines 40-45 - The Author's research rebutting their view/process is established
Lines 49-50 - A point of agreement between the Author and Cosmologists is noted

Meta-Structure:
There are several Question/Answer substructures here, but the overall passage falls into the Old Belief (Cosmologists)/New Belief (Author) structure. There's a point of agreement noted at the end, however!

Last Thoughts:
There's a lot of information here, and a lot of back and forth. Usually when dealing with Science passages, we're concerned with Causality. Here, there's not a lot of that. Instead, the passage focuses on comparing and contrasting the methods and conclusions drawn by two sides of a debate about laws of physics, life, and the universe/multiverse. We should keep those differences in mind, and also be sure to note the similarity explored at the end.

Also, this passage has a rare feature—the Author speaking in the first person. That allows for stronger answers than we might otherwise expect, as the Author is presenting directly from her experience.

Question prompt

If the multiverse hypothesis Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right

Credited answer: B

The notes below walk through why it fits the stem and how to eliminate the rest.

Question Type

Science

Answer choices

  1. A
    had a team of Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    Incorrect. (Paragraph 1) The universe is analogous to the hero in this analogy, so multiverses would have multiple heroes, not people supporting the hero.
  2. B
    was actually just one Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B matches the stem
    Correct. Question Type:
    Parallel Reasoning

    Strategy Overview:
    Reiterate what the multiverse hypothesis is and then check it against the analogy

    Answer Anticipation/Relevant Lines:
    The multiverse theory states that there are multiple universes—so many, in fact, that the highly improbable set of laws that allow for life would become probable based on sheer numbers.

    In the original analogy, our universe was the hero in an action movie, surviving and succeeding at a mission despite a lot of improbable things needing to be true for that to happen. So if our universe was analogous to a hero in an action movie, then with a multiverse, there would need to be a large number of heroes that are trying to accomplish the mission, and most die—but our universe/the hero succeeded just because of the sheer number of people attempting the mission. Let's find an answer lining up with that.

    Answer Explanation:
    (Paragraph 1) The universe is analogous to the hero in this analogy, so a multiverse would analogously have multiple heroes. And as our universe improbably has the right laws for life while others don't, the analogy would see the other universes/heroes fail in their mission. This answer is correct.

    Key Takeaway:
    For Parallel Reasoning questions in RC, you end up with fewer questions that have key logical features such as causation, conditional statements, or common flaws. Instead, you should try to match the elements up between the analogous situations. Here, seeing that the universe was analogous to the hero was key to finding the correct answer.
  3. C
    had developed the survival Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    Incorrect. (Paragraph 1) The universe is analogous to the hero in this analogy, so multiverses would have multiple heroes, not the same hero going on multiple missions.
  4. D
    was actually just one Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    Incorrect. (Paragraph 1) The universe is analogous to the hero in this analogy, and so a multiverse would have multiple heroes, as this answer states. However, the Author notes that our universe is relatively rare in having the right laws for life. While she does show, through her research, that there are ""numerous scenarios"" with different laws that can still lead to life, that's a far cry from ""each"" hero/universe finding a way to succeed, as this answer states.
  5. E
    was equipped with a Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    Incorrect. (Paragraph 1) The universe is analogous to the hero in this analogy, so multiverses would have multiple heroes, and there's no hint of that in this answer.

What this tests

Discussion

View all discussions Start a discussion