Summary
Some people limit their intake of calories and cholesterol in order to lose weight and reduce the amount of cholesterol in their blood. When a person loses weight, this causes fat cells to decrease in size. As fat cells decrease in size, fat cells release the cholesterol they contain into the bloodstream.
Strongly Supported Conclusions
Therefore, a person on a low-calorie and low-cholesterol diet may as a result have more cholesterol in their blood.
A
might at first have an increased level of cholesterol in his or her blood
This answer is strongly supported. Since shrinking fat cells cause these cells to release cholesterol into a person’s bloodstream, a person losing weight may experience increased levels of cholesterol in their blood.
B
will not lose weight any faster than will a person whose diet is high in calories
This answer is unsupported. We don’t know what the effects are of a diet high in calories to draw this comparison.
C
might lose more weight by going on a low-calorie, high-cholesterol diet than by going on the low-calorie, low-cholesterol diet
This answer is unsupported. We don’t know what the effects are of a diet low in calories and high in cholesterol to draw this comparison. We only know the effects of a diet low in both calories and cholesterol.
D
will not decrease the size of his or her fat cells
This answer is anti-supported. We know from the stimulus that a diet low in calories and low in cholesterol causes a person to lose wieght, which in turn causes a person’s fat cells to shrink.
E
will both decrease the level of cholesterol in his or her blood and gain weight
This answer is unsupported. We don’t know whether a person would gain weight as a result of a diet low in both calories and cholesterol.
Summary
The US ranks far behind Sweden and Canada in workplace safety. In all three countries, joint labor-management committees have been very successful in reducing workplace injuries. In the US, these communities are only found in the companies that have voluntarily established them, whereas, in Sweden and several Canadian provinces, they are required by law and exist in all medium and large-sized workplaces.
Strongly Supported Conclusions
Joint labor-management committees play a role in reducing occupational industries.
A
The establishment of joint safety committees in all medium-sized and large workplaces in the United States would result in a reduction of occupational injuries.
The stimulus says that these committees are successful in reducing occupational injuries. We also know that countries where they are mandatory (Sweden and Canada), have much higher workplace safety.
B
A joint safety committee that is required by law is more effective at reducing occupational injuries than is a joint safety committee that is voluntarily established.
There is no information about the efficacy of joint safety committees established by law vs those voluntarily established. This answer choice requires close reading to eliminate!
C
Workplace safety in Sweden and Canada was superior to that in the United States even prior to the passage of laws requiring joint safety committees in all medium-sized and large workplaces.
There is no information about workplace safety prior to the passage of any laws.
D
Joint safety committees had been voluntarily established in most medium-sized and large workplaces in Sweden and several Canadian provinces prior to the passage of laws requiring such committees.
There is no information about Sweden or Canada before the passage of mandatory joint safety committee laws.
E
The United States would surpass Sweden and Canada in workplace safety if joint safety committees were required in all medium-sized and large workplaces in the United States.
There is no support for the idea that the US would surpass Sweden and Canada in workplace safety. This comparative statement requires a bunch of assumptions to make it work.
Summarize Argument
The argument concludes that the high resale prices of several artworks sold off by a museum settle the issue of whether the artworks were of high or low quality. According to the argument, the prices prove that critics were correct that the artworks were first-rate pieces.
Identify and Describe Flaw
The argument uses the increased resale prices of the artworks as definitive evidence that the artworks were truly of high quality. However, this doesn’t account for the relevant circumstances of the resale compared to when the works were first sold. The first sale was “discreet,” while the resale followed the critics’ public outcry about how great the pieces were. This could easily have affected the prices.
A
It concludes that a certain opinion is correct on the grounds that it is held by more people than hold the opposing view.
The argument doesn’t use the number of people who think the artworks are high-quality as evidence.
B
It rejects the judgment of the experts in an area in which there is no better guide to the truth than expert judgment.
The argument doesn’t reject the judgment of experts. It’s merely siding with one group of experts, the critics, over another expert, the museum director.
C
It rejects a proven means of accomplishing an objective without offering any alternative means of accomplishing that objective.
The argument isn’t concerned with how to accomplish any objective.
D
It bases a firm conclusion about a state of affairs in the present on somewhat speculative claims about a future state of affairs.
The argument doesn’t make any claims about any future state of affairs.
E
It bases its conclusion on facts that could, in the given situation, have resulted from causes other than those presupposed by the argument.
The argument’s conclusion is based on the fact that the artworks resold for high prices. The supposed cause is that the artworks were of high quality. However, the high prices could also have resulted from the publicity of the critics’ public outcry about the artworks.
Summarize Argument
The author concludes that medieval Arab poets weren’t interested in Aristotle’s Poetics. This is because Aristotle frequently references Homer, whose work a medieval Arab poet would presumably want to read. But Homer wasn’t translated into Arabic until much later, which signals there was low demand at the time.
Notable Assumptions
The author assumes medieval Arab poets couldn’t read Homer in the original Greek, or in some other translated language. The author also assumes that medieval Arab poets were numerous enough to generate translation demand, and that Homer was available to Arab translators.
A
A number of medieval Arab translators possessed manuscripts of the Homeric epics in their original Greek.
Arab translators had Homer in Greek. The fact they never translated Homer strengthens the claim that there simply wasn’t adequate demand. Thus, medieval Arab poets probably weren’t too interested in Aristotle’s Poetics.
B
Medieval Arabic story cycles, such as the Arabian Nights, are in some ways similar to parts of the Homeric epics.
This suggests medieval Arab poets or writers had read Homer. We’re trying to strengthen the opposite claim.
C
In addition to translating from Greek, medieval Arab translators produced Arabic editions of many works originally written in Indian languages and in Persian.
Irrelevant. Yes, translators translate from one language to another. We need to strengthen the claim Arab poets weren’t interested in Aristotle’s Poetics.
D
Aristotle’s Poetics has frequently been cited and commented on by modern Arab poets.
We don’t care about modern Arab poets.
E
Aristotle’s Poetics is largely concerned with drama, and dramatic works were written and performed by medieval Arabs.
Lots of works are concerned with drama. This doesn’t tell us medieval Arab poets actually read Aristotle’s Poetics.
Summary
Today, we’re learning about glass. Glass is a fluid, so when it’s put under pressure, its volume stays the same but it flows slowly to an area of lesser pressure. The stimulus proposes an example where an extremely heavy object is placed on the middle of a sheet of glass. So what happens?
Strongly Supported Conclusions
Based on the scenario given, we can see that a heavy object would put pressure on the middle of the sheet of glass. Because glass flows away from pressure without changing in volume, we can infer that over time the sheet of glass would shift away from the pressure, becoming thinner in the middle where the object is, and thicker around the edges.
A
become larger in size yet still be of uniform thickness
This is anti-supported. Because fluid flows away from areas of higher pressure, the glass would thin out in the part under the heavy object and become thicker in the non-pressured areas. Thus, it would not remain uniformly thick.
B
flow toward the point at which the pressure of the object is greatest
This is anti-supported. The stimulus directly states that fluids flow away from areas of higher pressure. Since glass is a fluid, it would therefore flow away from the point of greatest pressure, not towards.
C
compress, although not as much as a piece of steel would
This is anti-supported. The stimulus explains that glass, as a fluid, does not compress; instead, it flows. Because fluids do not compress, glass would not compress under pressure.
D
divide into exactly two pieces that are equal in neither size nor shape to the original piece of glass
This is not supported. The stimulus specifically sets out the condition that the glass would not crack, so it could only divide into two pieces if the glass flowed fully out from underneath the object. And we just don’t have a good sense of whether or not that would happen.
E
be thinner in the portion of the glass that is under the pressure of the object than in those portions of the glass that are not under that pressure
This is strongly supported. We know that glass flows away from pressure. This means it would slowly move away from the pressure created by the object and towards non-pressured areas, causing the sheet to be thinner where there’s pressure and thicker where there isn’t.
Summary
The percent of money spent on treating disease X that went to standard (effective) treatments has gone down over the past 10 years. Thus, the amount of money spent on effective treatments of disease X has gone down over the past 10 years.
Missing Connection
Although the PERCENT that went to standard treatments has gone down, that doesn’t prove anything about the AMOUNT spent on standard treatments. This is because the overall amount spent on treating disease X might have increased. To prove that the amount spent on standard treatments has gone down, we want to learn that the overall amount spent on treating disease X has NOT increased.
A
Varieties of disease X requiring expensive special treatment have become less common during the past decade.
Although these varieties have become less common, that doesn’t prove with certainty that the overall amount spent on treating disease X has not increased. Perhaps these varieties are less common, but people have become more aware of disease X and are more likely to seek treatment for it today.
B
Nonstandard methods of treating disease X are more expensive now than they were a decade ago.
(B) doesn’t establish anything about the overall amount spent on treating disease X. It leaves open the possibility that the overall amount increased, in which case the conclusion wouldn’t have to be true.
C
Of total medical expenditures, the percentage that is due to treatment of disease X increased during the past decade.
We care about whether the overall amount spent on disease X has increased. But the proportion that disease X spending represents out of all medical expenditures (including things such as heart surgery, cancer, etc.) doesn’t reveal anything about the overall amount spent on disease X.
D
Most of the money spent on treating disease X during the last decade went to pay for nonstandard treatments.
Even if most disease X spending goes toward nonstandard treatments, and only, let’s say, 40% goes toward standard treatments, we still don’t know whether overall spending on disease X has increased. So (D) doesn’t guarantee that the amount spent on standard treatments for disease X has gone down.
E
The total amount of money spent on treating disease X slowly declined during the past decade.
(E) establishes that the overall amount of disease X spending has not increased. If we know that the overall amount has not increased, but the % that went to standard treatments has gone down, we can validly infer that the amount that went to standard treatments has gone down.
Summary
Despite what some anthropologists claim, agriculture must not have begun under conditions of drought and hunger. Why? Because agricultural discoveries are the result of the study of natural processes. People cannot study natural processes without leisure, and people have leisure only when resources are plentiful.
Strongly Supported Conclusions
Agriculture began under societies that had plentiful resources.
A
whenever a society has plentiful resources, some members of that society devote themselves to the study of natural processes
Plentiful resources are a necessary condition for people to devote themselves to studying natural processes. We don’t know whether a sufficient condition occurs just because a necessary condition occurs.
B
plants cannot be cultivated by someone lacking theoretical knowledge of the principles of plant generation and growth
We don’t know whether plants cannot be cultivated if a person lacks theoretical knowledge. The stimulus also does not address what would be considered theoretical knowledge.
C
agriculture first began in societies that at some time in their history had plentiful resources
Since some anthropologists are wrong, agriculture must have begun when a society had plentiful resources.
D
early agricultural societies knew more about the natural sciences than did early nonagricultural societies
We don’t know anything about nonagricultural societies. Additionally, the stimulus is limited to agriculture, whereas “natural sciences” is too broad.
E
early societies could have discovered by accident how the plants they cultivated reproduced and grew
We don’t know whether early societies discovered agriculture by accident.