LSAT 125 – Section 2 – Question 14

LSAT 125 - Section 2 - Question 14

June 2008

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT125 S2 Q14
+LR
Weaken +Weak
Causal Reasoning +CausR
A
7%
159
B
3%
158
C
71%
164
D
2%
154
E
17%
159
137
150
164
 +Medium 145.417 +SubsectionEasier

The number of serious traffic accidents (accidents resulting in hospitalization or death) that occurred on Park Road from 1986 to 1990 was 35 percent lower than the number of serious accidents from 1981 to 1985. The speed limit on Park Road was lowered in 1986. Hence, the reduction of the speed limit led to the decrease in serious accidents.

Summarize Argument
The author concludes that the speed reduction caused the decrease in serious accidents. This is because the number of serious accidents was 35% lower for the years after the speed reduction than the years before the speed reduction.

Notable Assumptions
Based solely on a correlation between the speed reduction and the reduction in serious accidents, the author assumes that the former caused the latter. This means she doesn’t believe there was some hidden third factor that occurred at the same time as the speed reduction (e.g. road repairs, better driving instruction, new hospitalization procedures, less traffic) that was the real reason why serious accidents decreased.

A
The number of speeding tickets issued annually on Park Road remained roughly constant from 1981 to 1990.
Even if speeding tickets remained the same, the limit indeed dropped in 1986. This doesn’t weaken the idea that the speed reduction caused the reduction in serious accidents.
B
Beginning in 1986, police patrolled Park Road much less frequently than in 1985 and previous years.
We have no idea what effect a police presence would have. We care about why accidents reduced after 1986.
C
The annual number of vehicles using Park Road decreased significantly and steadily from 1981 to 1990.
Since traffic gradually decreased throughout the decade, it makes sense that there would be less accidents near the end than near the start. Thus, we have another reason why serious accidents decreased that doesn’t include the speed reduction.
D
The annual number of accidents on Park Road that did not result in hospitalization remained roughly constant from 1981 to 1990.
We only care about serious accidents, which result in either death or hospitalization.
E
Until 1986 accidents were classified as “serious” only if they resulted in an extended hospital stay.
This says that the definition of “serious” became more inclusive after the speed reduction. But accidents were decreasing at that point, so all this really does is tell us even fewer accidents were happening than the stimulus led us to believe.

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LSAT PrepTest 125 Explanations

Section 1 - Reading Comprehension

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Reading Comprehension

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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