PrepTest 151

Incorrect. Stating these journals were "among the first" implies that there are more online now, leaving the paradox of why only a few are cited unresolved.

Incorrect. Giving prolific scientists access to more articles is just as likely to cause them to widen their citations as it is to get them to double down on the journals they're used to, so this leaves the paradox unresolved.

Incorrect. This answer would apply both before and after the move to online journals, and there's no indication that online journals would shrink the list of scientists that a given author knows.

Incorrect. If anything, this answer suggests there were even more options to cite, making the paradox worse.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Facts

Question Type:
Paradox

Stimulus Summary:
Moving online made scientific journals more accessible (both current and back issues). This increased access might lead one to expect that a larger variety of articles would be cited, but, instead, it led to scientists generally citing the same articles as each other.

Answer Anticipation:
In this paradox, the author believes increased access should have led to a wider variety of citations. However, it had the opposite effect. The correct answer should provide a reason why accessibility led to a smaller variety of citations.

Answer Explanation:
By citing a relevant change between print and online journals, this answer resolves the paradox. If scientists like to cite highly regarded views, and online journals make it easier to determine them, then scientists are likely to start citing this smaller subset of articles.

Key Takeaway:
This Paradox question follows a common pattern. A change was implemented, it had an expected result, but an unexpected thing happened instead. When this pattern is followed, be sure to pick an answer that explains something different about the periods before and after the change that wasn't anticipated.