Self-study
Conclusion Animal feed should not include genetically modified plants. █ █████ █████ ████ ██████████ ████ ███ ███████████ ████████ ████████ ███ ██ ████ ██████ ██ ███████ ██████████ ███████████ ███ █ ████████ ██████ ███████ ███████ ████ ███ █ ██████ ████ ██ █████ ████ ████ ███ ███████████ ████████ ███ ███ ███████ █████ █████████
Summarize Argument
The author concludes that animal food should not contain genetically modified plants. He supports this by citing a study where rats fed genetically modified potatoes for 30 days developed intestinal issues and a weakened immune system, while rats fed a normal diet of non-genetically modified food did not have these problems.
Notable Assumptions
The author assumes that the study was representative and that the results observed in lab rats can be applied to all animals. Similarly, he assumes that the study on genetically modified potatoes can be generalized to all genetically modified plants, without considering differences between plant types.
He also assumes that the problems in the rats were caused solely by the genetic modification of the potatoes, without considering other factors or variables between the groups that could have influenced the results.
13.
Which one of the following, ██ █████ ████ ███████ ███ █████████
a
Potatoes are not ████████ █ ████ ██ ███ ████ ██ ██████████ █████
This highlights the assumption that the genetic modification of potatoes caused the rats' problems. But if potatoes aren’t typically part of lab rats’ diets and the other group ate a “normal diet,” it makes sense that the rats fed only potatoes might develop issues.
Alternate explanation
Alternate explanation
Weaken: Introduce or support an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
Strengthen: Helps to eliminate an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
b
The rats tended ██ ███ ████ ██ ███ ███████████ ████████ ████████ ██ ███ █████████ ██ ███ ██ ████ ████ ████ ███ ██████ ███ ███ ██ ███ ██ █████
This doesn’t weaken the argument because, regardless of when in the 30 day study the rats ate most potatoes, they still developed intestinal deformities and weakened immune systems by the end of the study.
c
Intestinal deformities at █████ ███ ███ ████████ █████ ████ ████ ██ ██████████ ███████████
Even if this were true, the rats fed a normal diet would be expected to have intestinal deformities too. Also, the study focuses on problems that developed during the 30-day period, so any issues the rats had from birth wouldn’t affect the results.
Failed alternate explanation
Failed alternate explanation
Weaken Qs: Answers that try to introduce an alternate explanation, but fall short, or try to explain a different phenomenon.
Strengthen Qs: Answers that try to eliminate an alternate explanation, but fall short, or try to eliminate an explanation for a different phenomenon.
d
Genetically modified potatoes ████ ███ ████ ███████████ █████ ██ ████ ██ ██ ████████ ████ ███ ███ ███████████ █████████
The nutritional value of genetically modified potatoes versus normal potatoes is irrelevant to this argument, which only addresses the effects of genetically modified potatoes.
e
The researchers conducting ███ █████ ████ ██████ ██ ███████ ███ ███ ███████ █████████████ ██ ███ ████████ █████ ████ ██████ ███ ██████████ ███████████ ██ █ ████████ ██████ ██████ ██ ███ █████
Whether the researches could explain why the genetic modifications caused the rats’ problems does not weaken the author’s conclusion that they did cause the problems and thus shouldn’t be present in animal feed.
Illusory inconsistency
Illusory inconsistency
Answer is attractive because it seems to (but doesn't actually) contradict the premises or conclusion.