LSAT 103 – Section 2 – Question 14

LSAT 103 - Section 2 - Question 14

September 1998

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT103 S2 Q14
+LR
Resolve reconcile or explain +RRE
A
10%
165
B
1%
159
C
2%
156
D
88%
167
E
1%
150
124
139
154
 +Easier 149.468 +SubsectionMedium

The common ancestors of Australian land- and tree-dwelling kangaroos had prehensile (grasping) tails and long opposable thumbs, attributes that are well-adapted to tree-dwelling but offer kangaroos few advantages on land. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that land-dwelling kangaroos eventually lost these attributes; what is puzzling is the fact that all modern tree-dwelling kangaroos now lack them as well.

"Surprising" Phenomenon
What caused modern tree-dwelling kangaroos to lose traits of their ancestors that were well-suited for life in trees?

Objective
The right answer will be a hypothesis that offers a similarity between land- and tree-dwelling kangaroos. This similarity will explain why modern tree-dwelling kangaroos, like their land-dwelling counterparts, lost the prehensile tails and opposable thumbs of their ancestors, even though these traits are well-adapted to tree-dwelling kangaroos’ lifestyles.

A
Modern tree-dwelling kangaroos must back down tree trunks slowly and carefully, but the common ancestors of modern tree- and land-dwelling kangaroos used their opposable thumbs to descend trees quickly headfirst.
This does not help explain the puzzling fact. (A) says that modern tree-dwelling kangaroos must descend tree trunks more slowly than their ancestors, presumably because they lack opposable thumbs, without explaining why they lost this trait.
B
Modern tree-dwelling kangaroos are smaller than most modern land-dwelling kangaroos but larger than their common ancestors.
This does not help explain the puzzling fact. (B) discusses size, which is not one of the traits the stimulus discusses as being beneficial for a tree-dwelling lifestyle. Furthermore, (B) offers a difference between land- and tree- dwelling kangaroos, not a similarity.
C
Modern tree-dwelling kangaroos’ tails cannot grasp branches, but they are somewhat longer and more flexible than those of modern land-dwelling kangaroos.
(C) offers a difference between land- and tree- dwelling kangaroos, not a similarity. The difference in length and flexibility of the kangaroos’ tails is not helpful for explaining the puzzling fact in the stimulus.
D
Modern tree-dwelling kangaroos are descended from species of land-dwelling kangaroos that had been land-dwellers for many generations before modern tree-dwelling kangaroos started to develop.
(D) says modern land- and tree-dwelling kangaroos share a similarity: in addition to sharing a common ancestor, they both evolved from land-dwelling kangaroos. This explains why modern tree-dwelling kangaroos lost some of their earlier ancestor’s beneficial tree-dwelling traits.
E
Modern tree-dwelling kangaroos have smaller and weaker hind legs than modern land-dwelling kangaroos, and they move more slowly on land than do modern land-dwelling kangaroos.
(E) offers a difference between land- and tree- dwelling kangaroos, not a similarity. The difference in the size and strength of the kangaroos’ hind legs is not helpful for explaining the puzzling fact in the stimulus.

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LSAT PrepTest 103 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Logical Reasoning

Section 4 - Reading Comprehension

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