Self-study
Very powerful volcanic eruptions send large amounts of ash high into the atmosphere, blocking sunlight and causing abnormally cold temperatures for a year or more after the eruption. ██ ██ ████ █████ ███ █ ████████ ████████ ██ █████ ████ ██ ███████ ██ ███ █████████ █████ ███████ ██████████ ████████ ██████ ██████ ███ ██████ ████████ ██ ██████ █████████ ██ █████ ████ ██ ███████ ██ █████ █████████ ████ ██████ ██ ████████ ███ ██ ███ ███████████ ████ ███ ███ ████ ████ ███ ██████████ ██ █████ ██████ ████████ ████ ████ ██████ ████ █████ ██████████
Summarize Argument
The author concludes that if a change in climate in China in 45 B.C. was caused by volcanic ash, then ash from Mount Etna must have spread over vast distances. This is because Mount Etna in Sicily erupted a year prior to the climate irregularities in China, but the two locations are thousands of miles apart.
Notable Assumptions
The author assumes that if any volcano caused the change of climate in China, then that volcano was Mount Etna; in other words, that there were no other powerful eruptions closer to China at that time. The author also assumes that the changes must have come directly from ash spreading to China, rather than the impact being indirect.
9.
In evaluating the support given ███ ███ ██████████ ████████ ██ ███ ████ ████████ ██ ███ ████████ ██ █████ ██ ████ █████████ ██ █████████ ███████
a
modern monitoring equipment ███ ██████ ███ ███████ ████ ██ ████████ ███ ██ ███ ██████████
Whether or not modern equipment can precisely track volcanic ash, that doesn't tell us anything more about an eruption in 44 B.C. This is simply irrelevant.
b
the abnormal weather ██ █████ ██████ ███ █ ████ ████ ██ ██████
We know powerful volcanoes can cause effects that last a year or longer, but that doesn’t mean those effects have to last a year or longer. This wouldn't tell us anything useful.
c
temperatures in Sicily ████ ██████████ ████ █████ █████ ████ ███████
Knowing the answer to this wouldn’t affect the author’s conclusion, which is if any volcano caused the phenomena in China, it was Mount Etna. The conditions in Sicily are irrelevant.
d
there were any ████████ █████████ ████ █████ ██████ ███ ████ ██ █████ ██████ ████████
If the answer is yes, then that's an alternate explanation: other volcanoes, rather than Mount Etna, caused the changes. If the answer is no, then the conclusion is strengthened. Knowing this would certainly be important.
Alternate explanation
Alternate explanation
Weaken: Introduce or support an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
Strengthen: Helps to eliminate an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
e
subsequent eruptions of █████ ████ ████ ██ ████████ ██ ███ ███ ██ ██ ████
We’re not interested in subsequent eruptions. Knowing the answer wouldn’t tell us whether Etna was the only volcano that could have caused the phenomena in China, so it's not useful.