PrepTest 123

[lcid:3589] Prep Test 123 LSAT — Logical Reasoning — S2 Logical reasoning

Question prompt

Consumer:  The latest Connorly Report Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right

Credited answer: A

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

The C Report says O's meals are not nutritious. But the C Report is paid for by O's rival, which approves all material. Since the C Report is biased, O's foods must be nutritious.

Answer Anticipation

The Consumer here points out a valid consideration when looking at any C Report—there's potential bias in it. Based on potential bias, there's reason to be suspicious of the report, and question its conclusions. However, the Consumer goes a step further here—she doesn't just question the conclusion of the report, but she actually reaches the opposite conclusion. Reaching the opposite conclusion of an argument because of a flaw in that argument is, itself, a flaw—just because an argument's conclusion is unsupported doesn't make it wrong.

Answer choices

  1. A
    treats evidence that there Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A matches the stem
    Correct. This answer choice directly matches our anticipated answer. The Consumer takes evidence of bias as showing that the conclusion—O's foods are not nutritious—is false—they are nutritious. The bias only proves that the conclusion might be wrong, so the argument goes a step too far, and this answer is correct.
  2. B
    draws a conclusion based Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    Incorrect. If the argument jumped between O's prepackaged meals in the premise to all of their food in the conclusion, then this sampling flaw answer might be correct. However, both the premises and conclusion are about prepackaged meals, and there's no indication that the C Report cherry-picked those meals, so this answer is wrong.
  3. C
    fails to take into Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    Incorrect. A hypothetical report by O doesn't impact an argument about whether the C Report from D is biased or wrong.
  4. D
    fails to provide evidence Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    Incorrect. The premises and comparisons aren't based on a comparison between the two corporations, so this answer choice is out of scope. The argument here is about whether O's prepackaged meals are nutritious or not, not whether they're more nutritious than other options.
  5. E
    presumes, without providing justification, Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    Incorrect. The argument is about whether a report on O's food is biased and thus wrong because of the needed approval of D's PR department before publication. What else they would approve outside of reports on O's food is immaterial to whether their bias influences the information in this report.

What this tests

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