Editorial: Contrary to popular belief, teaching preschoolers is not especially difficult, for they develop strict systems (e.g., for sorting toys by shape), which help them to learn, and they are always intensely curious about something new in their world.

Summarize Argument
The editorialist concludes that teacher preschoolers isn’t especially difficult. This is because preschoolers develop strict learning systems and are very curious about new things.

Notable Assumptions
The editorialist assumes that preschoolers aren’t difficult to teach so long as they’re curious and have strict learning systems. This means the editorialist thinks that these two things are sufficient for children to be “not especially difficult to teach,” rather than simply necessary factors. Thus, the editorialist believes there’s no outside factor that can make preschoolers difficult to teach.

A
Preschoolers have a tendency to imitate adults, and most adults follow strict routines.
We don’t care why preschoolers follow strict routines. We care about whether or not they’re especially difficult to teach.
B
Children intensely curious about new things have very short attention spans.
Even though preschoolers’ curiosity might be helpful on one hand, those same preschoolers also have terrible attention spans. Thus, they may well be “especially difficult” to teach.
C
Some older children also develop strict systems that help them learn.
The editorialist isn’t arguing about older children. We only care about preschoolers.
D
Preschoolers ask as many creative questions as do older children.
Like (C), we’re not interested in comparing preschoolers with older children. We need to weaken the idea that preschoolers aren’t difficult to change due to their curiosity and strict systems.
E
Preschool teachers generally report lower levels of stress than do other teachers.
This doesn’t tell us that preschoolers themselves aren’t difficult to teach. Maybe preschool teachers generally manage their stress better than other teachers.

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Jurist: A nation’s laws must be viewed as expressions of a moral code that transcends those laws and serves as a measure of their adequacy. Otherwise, a society can have no sound basis for preferring any given set of laws to all others. Thus, any moral prohibition against the violation of statutes must leave room for exceptions.

Summary

A nation’s laws must be based on a moral code.

The moral code provides the basis for evaluating laws (E.g., if a law abides by the moral code, it is adequate; if it doesn’t, it’s inadequate.)

Any moral rule that mandates compliance with the law must allow for exceptions. In other words, there are times when moral rules require that the law should not be followed.

Very Strongly Supported Conclusions

There must be occasions when strict compliance with a nation’s laws would lead to violating the nation’s moral code.

A
Those who formulate statutes are not primarily concerned with morality when they do so.

Unsupported. The stimulus tells us that a nation’s laws can be understood as expressions of a moral code, which indicates that lawmakers are probably consciously or unconsciously deeply concerned with morality when they write said laws.

B
Sometimes criteria other than the criteria derived from a moral code should be used in choosing one set of laws over another.

Anti-supported. The stimulus says that, without a moral code, there would be no sound basis for choosing one set of laws over another. In other words, the moral code is the only thing that allows a society to effectively compare the adequacy of different laws.

C
Unless it is legally forbidden ever to violate some moral rules, moral behavior and compliance with laws are indistinguishable.

Unsupported. (C) says: “if it it’s legally permitted to violate some moral rules, then behaving morally is the same as complying with the law.” The stimulus doesn’t discuss legal permissibility of violating moral rules, so we can’t infer anything from that sufficient condition.

D
There is no statute that a nation’s citizens have a moral obligation to obey.

Anti-supported. Statutes can be viewed as expressions of a moral code, so the nation’s citizens presumably have a moral obligation to obey at least some statutes!

E
A nation’s laws can sometimes come into conflict with the moral code they express.

Very strongly supported. The author’s conclusion is that moral mandates to follow the law need to allow for exceptions. So we can infer that there are times when the moral thing is actually not to follow the law, because the law conflicts with the nation’s moral code!


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Correction: At 0:22 J.Y. mistakenly says that (E) is the right answer choice. (C) is the actual right answer choice.


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Correction: At 0:22 J.Y. mistakenly says that (E) is the right answer choice. (C) is the actual right answer choice.

The average length of stay for patients at Edgewater Hospital is four days, compared to six days at University Hospital. Since studies show that recovery rates at the two hospitals are similar for patients with similar illnesses, University Hospital could decrease its average length of stay without affecting quality of care.

Summarize Argument
The author concludes that University Hospital could decrease its average length of stay without affecting its quality of care. This is based on the fact that the average length of stay for patients at University Hospital is higher than that of patients at Edgewater Hospital, and the recovery rates at University and Edgewater are similar for patients who have similar illnesses.

Identify and Describe Flaw
The author overlooks the possibility that the proportion of patients at University Hospital that have illnesses that require longer treatment is higher than the proportion of those patients at Edgewater. This disparity could be the reason University has a higher average length of stay. “Similar recovery rates for patients with similar illnesses” doesn’t tell us that University and Edgewater have similar proportions of patients with each kind of illness.

A
equates the quality of care at a hospital with patients’ average length of stay
The author believes University can decrease average length of stay without changing quality of care. So the author doesn’t treat the two things as equal. The author believes that they are different and changing one does not necessarily change the other.
B
treats a condition that will ensure the preservation of quality of care as a condition that is required to preserve quality of care
The author doesn’t confuse sufficient and necessary conditions. The author doesn’t assert that anything is enough to preserve quality of care, nor does he assert that anything is necessary for preserving quality of care.
C
fails to take into account the possibility that patients at Edgewater Hospital tend to be treated for different illnesses than patients at University Hospital
This possibility shows that the greater average length of stay at University could be due to having a higher proportion of patients with longer-to-treat illnesses. So, University might not be able to bring length of stay down without hurting quality of care.
D
presumes, without providing justification, that the length of time patients stay in the hospital is never relevant to the recovery rates of these patients
The author’s position is that University’s average length of stay could be brought down without impacting recovery rates. This doesn’t mean he thinks the length of stay could be brought down to zero without impacting recovery rates.
E
fails to take into account the possibility that patients at University Hospital generally prefer longer hospital stays
What patients prefer has no impact on the author’s reasoning. Even if some might prefer longer stays, the author has statistics that appear to suggest that University can bring down its length of stay without affecting quality of care.

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Publisher: The new year is approaching, and with it the seasonal demand for books on exercise and fitness. We must do whatever it takes to ship books in that category on time; our competitors have demonstrated a high level of organization, and we cannot afford to be outsold.

Summarize Argument
The publisher contends that his company must ensure timely shipping for exercise and fitness books as the new year approaches. He notes that his competitors are well-organized, and his company risks being outsold if it doesn’t match the competitors’ efficiency.

Identify Conclusion
The conclusion is the publisher’s directive that the company “must do whatever it takes” to ship exercise and fitness books on time.

A
The company should make shipping books its highest priority.
The publisher argues that shipping exercise and fitness books on time is crucial but not that it’s the "highest priority." The company can have higher priorities so long as it timely ships the books. Moreover, the conclusion only discusses shipping specific books, not all books.
B
By increasing its efficiency, the company can maintain its competitive edge.
The publisher doesn't make this argument. He concludes that shipping exercise and fitness books "on time" is crucial but doesn’t specify how to achieve it. The company might already be efficient, and the publisher could be reinforcing the need to maintain that efficiency.
C
The company will be outsold if it does not maintain its competitors’ high level of organization.
The publisher does not make this argument. The publisher concludes the company "cannot afford to be outsold," but doesn't claim the company will be if it doesn’t match its competitors' organization. The company may not need the same level of organization to ship books on time.
D
It is imperative that the company ship fitness and exercise books on time.
This is a good summary of the argument’s main conclusion. The publisher concludes that it is necessary, or “imperative,” that the company ship its fitness and exercise books on time because it cannot afford to be outsold by its competitors.
E
The company should do whatever is required in order to adopt its competitors’ shipping practices.
The publisher does not make this argument. The publisher concludes the company must ship exercise and fitness books on time, not that it must follow its competitors' shipping practices. The company may already have better shipping practices that ensure timely shipping.

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