Self-study
Farmer: Conclusion In the long run, it is counterproductive for farmers to use insecticides. ███████ ████████ ██████████ ██ ████████████ █████████ ████ ███████████ ████ ███████ ████ ██ ███ ███████ ███ ███████ ███████ ██ ██████ ████████████ ██ ███████ ██████ ██████
Summarize Argument: Phenomenon-Hypothesis
Using insecticides over a long period is more harmful to farmers than helpful. As farmers use insecticides, insects gradually develop resistance, so farmers have to use larger and more costly amounts to keep controlling pests, making the practice less productive in the long run.
Identify Argument Part
The stimulus text refers to an intermediary conclusion, also called a “subsidiary conclusion” or “major premise.” The claim that “insects' resistance to insecticides increases with insecticide use," supports the stimulus text because it explains why farmers must use larger amounts of insecticides to control pests. The stimulus text supports the main conclusion by showing why it is counterproductive for farmers to use insecticides in the long run—because, over time, farmers need more expensive insecticides to achieve the same results.
25.
Which one of the following ████ ██████████ █████████ ███ ████ ██████ ██ ███ ████████ ████████ ██ ███ ███████████ ████ ███████ ████ ██ ███ ███████ ███ ███████ ███████ ██ ██████ ████████████ ██ ███████ ██████ ██████
a
It is the ██████████ ████ ███████████ ███ ███ ███ ████ ███████████
The stimulus text is not the argument’s main conclusion. It is a sub-conclusion that supports the main conclusion: “In the long run, it is counterproductive for farmers to use insecticides,” by explaining why long-term pesticide use is not productive.
b
It is a █████ ███ █████ █ ██████ ███████████ ██ ████████ ███ █████ ██████ ██ ████ ██ ██████ ███████ ███ ███ ██████████ ████ ███████████
This labels the stimulus text as a sub-conclusion. The claim “insects’ resistance to insecticides increases with insecticide use” is a causal explanation (cause: insecticide; effect: greater resistance), supporting the stimulus text, which—in turn—supports the main conclusion.
c
It is the ██████████ ████ ███████████
The stimulus text is not the argument’s only conclusion. It is a sub-conclusion that supports the main conclusion: “In the long run, it is counterproductive for farmers to use insecticides,” by explaining why long-term pesticide use is unproductive.
d
It is a █████ ████ ██ ████ ██ ██████ ███████ ███ ██ ████████████ ███████████ █████ ██ ████ ██ ████ ██ ██████ ███████ ███ ███ ██████████ ████ ███████████
The stimulus text doesn’t support an intermediary conclusion. It supports the main conclusion that “in the long run, it is counterproductive for farmers to use insecticides,” by explaining why long-term pesticide use is unproductive.
e
It identifies a ██████████ ███ █████ ███ ██████████ ████ ██████████ ██████ █ ██████ ████████████
This incorrectly labels the stimulus text as context. The main conclusion does not explain the stimulus text. Instead, the stimulus text explains the main conclusion by showing why long-term pesticide use is unproductive.