Does the position of a car driver’s seat have a significant impact on driving safety? It probably does. Driving position affects both comfort and the ability to see the road clearly. A driver who is uncomfortable eventually becomes fatigued, which makes it difficult to concentrate on the road. Likewise, the better the visibility from the driver’s seat, the more aware the driver can be of road conditions and other vehicles.

Summarize Argument
The author concludes that the position of the driver’s seat has an effect on driving safety. Driving position affects comfort, which can affect concentration, and visibility, which affects how the driver scans the road for hazards.

Identify Argument Part
The referenced text refers to a premise of the argument. It’s used to show that the position of the driver’s seat indeed has an effect of driving safety.

A
It is the conclusion drawn in the argument.
The referenced text supports the conclusion that driver’s seat position affects driving safety. How does seat position affect safety? By affecting comfort and visibility, which the author goes on to show can have an impact on safety.
B
It is a claim that the argument shows to be inconsistent with available evidence.
The argument would agree that driver’s seat position can affect comfort and visibility. She certainly isn’t trying to dispute the claim.
C
It is used to provide a causal explanation for an observed phenomenon.
The referenced text is support. There’s no observed phenomenon in this argument, but rather a number of general claims about how driver’s seat position affects driving safety.
D
It describes evidence that the argument ultimately refutes.
The argument doesn’t refute this claim. It uses the claim to support the conclusion—driver’s seat position probably has an affect on driving safety.
E
It is a premise offered in support of the conclusion drawn in the argument.
This answer choice simply says the referenced text is support, which it is. Why does driver’s seat position probably have a significant affect on driving safety? Because it affects comfort and visibility.

17 comments

Physician: There were approximately 83,400 trampoline-related injuries last year. This suggests that trampolines are quite dangerous and should therefore be used only under professional supervision.

Trampoline enthusiast: I disagree. In the past ten years sales of home trampolines have increased much more than trampoline-related injuries have: 260 percent in sales compared with 154 percent in injuries. Every exercise activity carries risks, even when carried out under professional supervision.

Speaker 1 Summary
The physician concludes that trampolines should be used only under professional supervision. This is because there were many trampoline-related injuries last year, which indicates that trampolines are dangerous.

Speaker 2 Summary
The trampoline enthusiast concludes that professional supervision should not be required for trampoline use. This is because sales of home trampolines have increased a much faster pace than trampoline injuries have increased, and because trampolines would still pose a risk, even if used under professional supervision.

Objective
We’re looking for a point of disagreement. The speakers disagree about whether trampoline use should require professional supervision. The physician thinks it should. The enthusiast thinks it shouldn’t. (That’s what the enthusiast means by “I disagree.”)

A
trampolines cause injuries to a significant number of people using them
Not a point of disagreement. The enthusiast could agree that trampolines cause injuries to a lot of people. But the enthusiasts’ point is that professional supervision still should be required despite the existence of trampoline injuries.
B
home trampolines are the main source of trampoline-related injuries
Neither expresses an opinion. The physician doesn’t distinguish between home trampolines and non-home trampolines. The enthusiast doesn’t compare home trampolines to non-home trampolines.
C
the rate of trampoline-related injuries, in terms of the number of injuries per trampoline user, is declining
The physician doesn’t express an opinion. The physician doesn’t comment on trampoline injuries per user or whether that number has changed.
D
professional supervision of trampoline use tends to reduce the number of trampoline-related injuries
Not a point of disagreement. The enthusiast doesn’t suggest that professional supervision wouldn’t reduce the number of trampoline injuries. He just believes that we shouldn’t require professional supervision, because there will always be risk from trampolines.
E
trampoline use is an activity that warrants mandatory professional supervision
The speakers disagree. The physician thinks supervision should be required. The enthusiast doesn’t think so. We know this since the enthusiast suggests that trampolines are not as dangerous as the physician thinks, and points out that there will always be risk from trampolines.

18 comments

Interior decorator: All coffeehouses and restaurants are public places. Most well-designed public places feature artwork. But if a public place is uncomfortable it is not well designed, and all comfortable public places have spacious interiors.

Summary

All coffeehouses are public places.

All restaurants are public places.

Most well-designed public places feature artwork.

If a public place is uncomfortable it is not well-designed.

All comfortable public places have spacious interiors.

Notable Valid Inferences

We can connect the conditional statements in the last sentence. If a public place is well-designed, that means it is comfortable. That in turn means the well-designed public place has a spacious interior.

A
Any restaurant that has a spacious interior is comfortable.

Could be false. We know all public places that are comfortable have spacious interiors. That doesn’t imply all public places with spacious interiors are comfortable. They might be uncomfortable places despite having spacious interiors.

B
Most public places that feature artwork are well designed.

Could be false. We know most well-designed public places feature artwork. That doesn’t mean most public places featuring artwork are well-designed. Most A is B doesn’t imply Most B is A.

C
Most coffeehouses that are well designed feature artwork.

Could be false. We know most well-designed public places feature artwork. Coffeehouses are just one kind of public place. The well-designed public places that feature artwork might just be other kinds of public places besides coffeehouses.

D
Any well-designed coffeehouse or restaurant has a spacious interior.

Must be true. Coffeehouses and restaurants are public places. So, if they’re well-designed, they must be comfortable. If they’re comfortable, they have a spacious interior.

E
Any coffeehouse that has a spacious interior is a well-designed public place.

Could be false. We know well-designed public places have spacious interiors. That doesn’t imply all public places with spacious interiors are well-designed. There could be some public places with spacious interiors that are not well-designed.


44 comments