LSAT 120 – Section 4 – Question 02

LSAT 120 - Section 4 - Question 02

October 2005

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT120 S4 Q02
+LR
+Exp
Except +Exc
Strengthen +Streng
Causal Reasoning +CausR
A
1%
156
B
1%
152
C
94%
162
D
1%
156
E
3%
157
120
127
140
 +Easiest 146.628 +SubsectionMedium

Dr. Theresa Pagano, a biologist, has found that the checkerspot butterfly is becoming more prevalent in regions farther north than before and less prevalent in regions farther south. The northward shift of the butterflies is almost perfectly correlated with the northward shift of the warm zones in the global climate, and Dr. Pagano has therefore concluded that the changing climate is responsible for the northward movement of the butterflies.

Summarize Argument: Phenomenon-Hypothesis
Dr. Pagano hypothesizes that climate change has caused butterflies to move north. This is based on a correlation between the northern shift of butterflies and the northern shift of the climatic warm zone.

Notable Assumptions
Dr. Pagano assumes that butterflies will actively migrate towards warm zones. She also assumes that the butterflies in question had some reason for doing so, since she never mentions that their previous habitat was unsatisfactory.

A
Checkerspot butterfly colonies observed under laboratory conditions are critically affected by small temperature changes.
The butterflies are very sensitive to climate change. They thus expand their range north as northern climates become incrementally warmer.
B
Climate does not affect checkerspot butterflies themselves directly, but the plants they depend on thrive best in warm climates.
While the butterflies aren’t directly affected, their food source grows better in warmer climates. This explains why they’ve expanded their range north, where climates are warming.
C
Experimental evidence suggests that the checkerspot butterfly can adapt easily to a wide range of temperatures and geographic conditions.
This weakens the author’s argument. If the butterflies can adapt to many climates, then they’re not migrating north for the warm climate.
D
In recent years, abnormally low average temperatures have been correlated with a reduced checkerspot butterfly population.
This shows that butterflies are sensitive to temperature, which is necessary for the author’s argument.
E
Several studies have shown that several other species of butterfly closely related to the checkerspot butterfly survive only in warm climates.
These butterflies need warm climates. This explains why they’ve only expanded their range north once the climate has warmed.

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LSAT PrepTest 120 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Reading Comprehension

Section 3 - Logical Reasoning

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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