"Surprising" Phenomenon
Despite the graduate payment plans, average loan payments to MetroBank had decreased by the end of the five-year term.
Objective
The correct answer will be a hypothesis explaining how the graduated payment plans could have result in lower average payments by the end of the five-year term. The hypothesis must account for the fact that the payment plans entailed a slight increase each month, while the result was ultimately a decrease by the end of the five-year term.
A
The number of small companies receiving new loans from MetroBank increased over the five-year term.
We’re talking about the ten companies in question. It doesn’t matter how MetroBank handled other companies.
B
Several of the ten small companies also borrowed money from other banks.
It doesn’t matter where else the small companies get their money from. We need to know why the average payment to MetroBank ended up decreasing.
C
Most banks offer a greater number of loans for under $100,000 than for over $100,000.
MetroBank loaned these companies $100,000 or less. Other banks don’t factor into our problem.
D
Of the ten small companies, the three that had borrowed the largest amounts paid off their loans within three years.
By the end of the five-year term, only seven of the ten companies were paying off their loans. Their loan payments were still increasing on a graduated plan, but MetroBank received a lower average payment overall since the bigger borrowers were out of the picture.
E
For some loans made by MetroBank, the monthly payment decreases slightly over the term of the loan.
Not these loans. According to the stimulus, the loans issued to small companies all had graduated payment plans, meaning the monthly payments were increasing.
Summarize Argument
The author concludes that health experts would be able to get people to eat wholesome foods if they emphasized flavor over health. This is because people generally choose what they eat based on flavor rather than health.
Notable Assumptions
The author assumes people would genuinely like foods like broccoli and lentils taste enough to start incorporating them into their diets. The author also assumes most people don’t choose some small portion of their diet based on nutrition rather than taste, in which case recommending foods based on their nutritional value may in fact be a more successful strategy.
A
Most people currently believe that wholesome foods are more flavorful, on average, than unwholesome foods are.
Most people would presumably be eating wholesome foods, given that most people choose what they eat based on taste. We need to strengthen the claim that emphasizing flavor will encourage more people to eat wholesome foods.
B
Few people, when given a choice between foods that are flavorful but not nutritious and foods that are nutritious but not flavorful, will choose the foods that are nutritious but not flavorful.
This is basically stated. People generally choose based on flavor.
C
Health experts’ attempts to encourage people to eat wholesome foods by emphasizing how nutritious those foods are have been moderately successful.
We need to strengthen the claim that emphasizing how these foods taste will be even more successful.
D
The studies that revealed that people choose the foods they eat primarily on the basis of flavor also revealed that people rated as most flavorful those foods that were least nutritious.
This doesn’t help the author’s argument. People who eat based on flavor like unhealthy foods most of all.
E
In a study, subjects who were told that a given food was very flavorful were more willing to try the food and more likely to enjoy it than were subjects who were told that the food was nutritious.
People are more likely to try and enjoy foods they’re told are flavorful than foods they’re told are nutritious. Thus, it’s probably a good idea for health experts to emphasize flavor over taste.
Summarize Argument
The author concludes that world hunger would not be significantly reduced by many more people excluding meat from their diet.
Notable Assumptions
The author assumes that there’s nothing about excluding meat from one’s diet that could end up helping to reduce other people’s hunger. This overlooks the possibility that producing less meat in the world might lead to the production of greater amounts of non-meat foods.
A
Hunger often results from natural disasters like typhoons or hurricanes, which sweep away everything in their path.
This connects hunger to natural disasters. But it’s not clear how this relates to meat or other foods. This doesn’t suggest that there’s something about excluding meat that could lead to more food in the world.
B
Both herds and crops are susceptible to devastating viral and other diseases.
This suggests both meat (herds) and non-meat (crops) are vulnerable to diseases. This doesn’t suggest that there’s something about excluding meat that could lead to more food in the world.
C
The amount of land needed to produce enough meat to feed one person for a week can grow enough grain to feed more than ten people for a week.
This shows how a lot of people excluding meat from their diet might lead to more food in the world. We can grow grain instead of meat and feed more people than we could before.
D
Often people go hungry because they live in remote barren areas where there is no efficient distribution for emergency food relief.
This suggests hunger is frequently due to lack of access to relief. This doesn’t suggest that excluding meat can lead to more food in the world or less hunger.
E
Most historical cases of famine have been due to bad social and economic policies or catastrophes such as massive crop failure.
This suggests hunger can be due to social or economic policies. This doesn’t suggest that excluding meat can lead to more food in the world or less hunger.
Dairy farmer: On our farm, we have great concern for our cows’ environmental conditions. We have recently made improvements that increase their comfort, such as providing them with special sleeping mattresses. These changes are intended to increase blood flow to the udder. This increased blood flow would boost milk output and thus increase profits.
Summary
A dairy farmer explains that his farm is very concerned about its cows’ environmental conditions. To this end, it recently made improvements that increase the cows’ comfort, such as special mattresses that increase blood flow to the udder. The increased blood flow boosts milk output and raises profits.
Strongly Supported Conclusions
This practice (increasing blood flow to the udder) can also improve the cow’s environmental conditions.
A
Dairy cows cannot have comfortable living conditions unless farmers have some knowledge about the physiology of milk production.
There are no conditions in the stimulus that dictate whether a cow can have comfortable living conditions (much less one that involves knowing the physiology of milk production).
B
Farming practices introduced for the sake of maximizing profits can improve the living conditions of farm animals.
The practice “introduced for the sake of maximizing profits” (special mattresses that increase blood flow) is said to increase the cows' comfort. Thus, this answer choice is supported.
C
More than other farm animals, dairy cows respond favorably to improvements in their living environments.
This has no support and is very difficult to support. The stimulus does not give any information about how cows respond to improvements in living environments, and there is no evidence that they respond more favorably than other farm animals.
D
The productivity of dairy farms should be increased only if the quality of the product is not compromised.
The stimulus does not give any conditions about whether the productivity of a dairy farm should be increased. There is also no mention of the quality of the product.
E
The key to maximizing profits on a dairy farm is having a concern for dairy cows’ environment.
The stimulus only says that the farmer is very concerned about the cows’ conditions and that a change to improve these conditions also led to increased profits. There is no evidence that the *key* to maximizing profits is to have a concern for cows’ environment.
Amar: Frankness is not intimacy. Intimacy requires a real social bond, and social bonds cannot be formed without direct personal contact.
Speaker 1 Summary
Pat argues towards the unstated conclusion that e-mail promotes intimacy with strangers. How so? E-mail allows anonymity. Anonymity removes barriers to self-revelation, and removing those barriers promotes intimacy. Chaining that together, we can infer that e-mail promotes intimacy.
Speaker 2 Summary
Amar claims that e-mail does not promote intimacy (although this conclusion is also unstated). In support, Amar says that a real social bond is necessary for intimacy, and in turn, direct personal contact is necessary for real social bonds. Since e-mail doesn’t include direct personal contact, we can infer that e-mail cannot foster intimacy.
Objective
We want to find a point of disagreement. Pat and Amar disagree about whether e-mail can lead to intimacy with strangers.
A
barriers to self-revelation hinder the initial growth of intimacy
Neither speaker makes this claim. Pat is the only speaker who talks about barriers to self-revelation, but it’s just to say that removing those barriers speeds up intimacy. Amar never discusses these barriers at all.
B
E-mail can increase intimacy between friends
Neither speaker talks about the effect of e-mail on intimacy between established friends. The conversation is just about whether e-mail can build intimacy between strangers.
C
intimacy between those who communicate with each other solely by e-mail is possible
Pat agrees with this, but Amar disagrees: this is the point of disagreement. Pat’s argument supports the conclusion that e-mail promotes intimacy between strangers, but Amar’s implied conclusion is that email cannot create intimacy due to a lack of direct personal contact.
D
real social bonds always lead to intimacy
Neither speaker makes this claim. Amar is the only speaker who talks about real social bonds, but the claim Amar makes is that real social bonds are necessary for intimacy, not that they’re sufficient.
E
the use of e-mail removes barriers to self-revelation
Pat agrees with this, but Amar doesn’t state an opinion. Amar doesn’t discuss barriers to self-revelation at all, so cannot be said to agree or disagree with this claim.
Summary
The criminologist predicts that criminal organizations will try to further their involvement with certain types of tech. She supports this with two claims: Most criminal organizations want to generate profit, and these technologies will generate profit.
Missing Connection
The support establishes something that these organizations want (profit), and one sufficient path to obtain it (tech). But we can’t assume that a path will be taken just because it is guarantees a goal. We need to know that this ambition is a sufficient condition for the criminologist’s prediction.
A
If an organization tries to become increasingly involved in areas that promise to generate enormous profits, then the main purpose of that organization is to generate profits.
This is switching sufficient and necessary. This answer choice can only support a conclusion about purpose, but we need a conclusion about increasing involvement.
B
At least some criminal organizations are or will at some point become aware that the ongoing revolutions in biotechnology and information technology promise to generate enormous profits.
Awareness does not guarantee action. This would be a correct answer for a Necessary Assumption question.
C
Criminal organizations are already heavily involved in every activity that promises to generate enormous profits.
The conclusion is about increasing efforts. An increase is relative, and we don’t know their starting level of involvement. Regardless of initial involvement, they might not increase their involvement. But we need an airtight conclusion that they will increase involvement.
D
Any organization whose main purpose is to generate profits will try to become increasingly involved in any technological revolution that promises to generate enormous profits.
We know that most criminal organizations would have this purpose. So we can conclude that they will try to increase their involvement.
E
Most criminal organizations are willing to become involved in legal activities if those activities are sufficiently profitable.
Willingness does not guarantee action. We need to know that these organizations will try to increase their involvement, not just that they are willing to. Additionally, (E) is assuming that these technologies are considered legal activities.