Summarize Argument
The fortune-teller concludes that some people must possess ESP. Her reasoning is that, despite many attempts to do so, it has not yet been scientifically proven that ESP does not exist.
Identify and Describe Flaw
This is the cookie-cutter flaw of mistaking an unsupported conclusion for a false conclusion. The fortune-teller says that we don’t have enough support to conclude that ESP doesn’t exist. That tells us that ESP could exist, not that it must exist. Future research could prove that ESP doesn’t exist.
A
takes for granted that proof that many people lack a characteristic does not establish that everyone lacks that characteristic
This is valid reasoning, so it can’t be the flaw in the argument.
B
takes for granted that the number of unsuccessful attempts to prove a claim is the only factor relevant to whether one should accept that claim
This can’t be the flaw, because the fortune-teller introduces her citation of the number of attempts as a factor with “furthermore.” This indicates that the previous sentence provided a distinct factor (namely, that ESP has not been scientifically disproven).
C
overlooks the possibility that some of the scientific studies mentioned reached inaccurate conclusions about whether ESP exists
There’s no particular reason to think that the scientific studies reached inaccurate conclusions.
D
takes for granted that there is no scientific way to determine whether some individuals possess ESP
This can’t be the flaw, since the author doesn’t take it for granted. If anything, she seems to not believe this, because she acknowledges that it has been proven that some self-proclaimed psychics are frauds.
E
takes for granted that the fact that a claim has not been demonstrated to be false establishes that it is true
The fortune-teller alleges that it has not yet been proven that a conclusion (the existence of ESP) is false, so therefore it must be true. But this is a mistake; future investigation could show that ESP doesn’t exist.
Summarize Argument: Counter-Position
The editorial concludes that it may not be true that increased government services have caused a decrease in volunteer organizations. This is supported by the proposal that declining volunteerism may instead have caused the increase in government services.
Describe Method of Reasoning
The editorial points out that a correlation between two events could potentially be explained with an opposite causal relationship than the one put forward by others. By introducing an alternative explanation, the editorial casts doubt on others’ explanation of the correlation.
A
showing that there is no causality involved
The editorial does not claim that there is no causality involved, just that the particular causal relationship proposed by others is not necessarily true.
B
offering a counterexample to the alleged correlation
The editorial does not deny or attempt to counter the correlation between increasing government services and decreasing volunteerism.
C
proving that no generalization can properly be drawn about people’s motives for volunteering
The editorial doesn’t make any claims regarding drawing a generalization about people’s motivation for volunteering.
D
offering an alternate explanation of the correlation cited
The editorial offers an alternate explanation of the correlation between increased government services and decreased volunteering: that the latter phenomenon could cause the former, instead of the other way around.
E
proving that governments must do what community organizations fail to do
The editorial doesn’t make any judgments about what governments must or must not be responsible for.
Summarize Argument
The author concludes that businesses must use a cash-flow statement. This is because expenses don’t always occur monthly, and only taking into account monthly expenses can cause businesses to overexpand.
Notable Assumptions
The author assumes that a cash-flow statement accounts for expenses that don’t occur monthly.
A
Only a cash-flow statement can accurately document all monthly expenses.
We need to know about non-monthly expenses.
B
Any business that has overexpanded can benefit from the use of a cash-flow statement.
We need to know why cash-flow statements are critical in the first place. Do they account for non-monthly expenses?
C
When a business documents only monthly expenses it also documents only monthly revenue.
We don’t care about revenue. We care about documenting non-monthly expenses.
D
A cash-flow statement is the only way to track both monthly expenses and expenses that are not monthly.
A cash-flow statement accounts for monthly and non-monthly expenses. This strengthens the author’s claim that a cash-flow statement solves the problem of accounting only for monthly expenses.
E
When a business takes into account all expenses, not just monthly ones, it can make better decisions.
Do cash-flow statements allow businesses to do this? We don’t know.