LSAT 116 – Section 2 – Question 02

LSAT 116 - Section 2 - Question 02

June 2004

You need a full course to see this video. Enroll now and get started in less than a minute.

Request new explanation

Target time: 0:58

This is question data from the 7Sage LSAT Scorer. You can score your LSATs, track your results, and analyze your performance with pretty charts and vital statistics - all with a Free Account ← sign up in less than 10 seconds

Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT116 S2 Q02
+LR
Argument part +AP
Analogy +An
A
95%
163
B
3%
159
C
1%
152
D
1%
154
E
1%
152
120
130
141
 +Easiest 146.822 +SubsectionMedium

Essayist: Earth is a living organism, composed of other organisms much as animals are composed of cells, not merely a thing upon which creatures live. This hypothesis is supported by the fact that, like all organisms, Earth can be said to have a metabolism and to regulate its temperature, humidity, and other characteristics, divorced from the influences of its surroundings. Of course, Earth does not literally breathe, but neither do insects (they have no lungs), though they respire successfully.

Summarize Argument
The essayist concludes that Earth is a living organism. As support for this conclusion, the essayist says that it can be said that Earth has a metabolism and can regulate its temperature and humidity. The essayist then anticipates and rejects a counter argument: the essayist concedes that Earth does not breathe, but to show that breathing is not necessary for being considered an organism, cites the example of insects, which are organisms that do not breathe.

Identify Argument Part
The assertion in the question stem is used to reject the counter-argument that the essayist anticipates. The assertion in the question stem demonstrates why it is not relevant to the essayist’s conclusion that the Earth does not literally breathe.

A
a reason for not rejecting Earth’s status as an organism on the basis of its not breathing
The assertion in the question stem demonstrates why it is not a problem for the essayist’s conclusion that Earth does not literally breathe.
B
a reason for rejecting as false the belief that Earth is a living organism
The assertion in the question stem actually provides support for the belief that Earth is a living organism; the assertion in the question stem allows the essayist to reject an anticipated counter-argument.
C
an illustration of the general claim that to be an organism, a creature must have a metabolism
The claim about insects is used to demonstrate that not all organisms breathe; the assertion in the question stem is not provided in relation to the claim that all organisms have a metabolism.
D
an example of a type of organism whose status, like Earth’s, is unclear
Insects are given as an example of a living thing that is clearly an organism, not an organism whose status is unclear.
E
an illustration of a type of organism out of which Earth is composed
The assertion in the question stem is used to show that not all living things must be able to breathe; it is not given as an example of the kinds of organisms that make up Earth.

Take PrepTest

Review Results

LSAT PrepTest 116 Explanations

Section 1 - Reading Comprehension

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Logical Reasoning

Section 4 - Reading Comprehension

Get full LSAT course

Leave a Reply