PrepTest 152

This answer doesn't explain why the birds reuse box nests instead of vegetation nests; it doesn't even mention them.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Facts

Question Type:
Paradox

Stimulus Summary:
This one type of bird sets up nests in woody vegetation, wooden boxes, and open areas at about the same frequency. Some birds reuse other birds' nests. One might expect them to reuse the woody vegetation nests, but they mostly use the box nests.

Answer Anticipation:
This paradox question presents three options (vegetation, boxes, and open), but only talks about two (vegetation and boxes). Our first anticipation is that open-area nests will not feature into the explanation, since they're not part of the paradox.

Focusing on the vegetation and box options, we should be open to any answer that explains why the vegetation nests wouldn't be used or the box ones would.

Answer Explanation:
This answer explains why the vegetation nests aren't used—they're hard to find. While we wouldn't select it on a first pass as it'd be better if it mentioned that the box nests are easier to find, it will end up being correct.
Key Takeaway:
When the paradox in a Paradox question compares two options, answers that apply equally to both options won't resolve the paradox.

This answer doesn't state that the birds for vegetation nests behave more aggressively than those in box nests. Since it doesn't distinguish between the two, it can't explain why one type of nest is selected more than another.

This answer brings up a fact that would apply equally to both vegetation and box nests, so it doesn't explain the discrepancy in reuse between them.

This answer explains why the birds want to hide their nests, but not why they'd reuse the box nests more than the vegetation nests. If anything, this explains why they wouldn't choose the open nests, but that's not a part of the presented paradox.