Self-study
Pedro: Unlike cloth diapers, disposable diapers are a threat to the environment. ███████ ███████ ██████████ ███████ ███ █████████ █████████ ███████ ██ █████████ ██ ██ ████████ █████ ██ ██████ ████ ████ ██████ ██████████ ███████ ███ ███ █████ ████████
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Stimulus Breakdown
Maria responds to Pedro's argument that people should use cloth diapers rather than disposable diapers, because disposable diapers threaten the environment—unlike cloth diapers. Maria specifically objects to the claim that cloth diapers aren't a threat. She points out several ways that cloth diapers do threaten the environment: washing them requires energy and creates wastewater pollution, and using diaper services requires fuel-burning trucks.
Objective: Describe Maria's Method of Reasoning
Maria and Pedro both rely on cost-benefit reasoning to establish the environmental impact of different diapers. Pedro only discusses the costs of disposable diapers, and assumes cloth diapers have no costs. So Maria objects by pointing out costs that Pedro overlooked to show that the situation is more complex than that.
When considering the answer choices, it's also important to recognize what Maria doesn't do. She doesn't object to Pedro's claim that disposable diapers are environmentally harmful; she also doesn't say Pedro's conclusion is necessarily wrong. However a similar argument could have made these claims, so trap answer choices might incorporate these ideas. The correct answer will be strictly limited to what Maria actually says—it will contain no inaccuracies.
21.
Maria objects to Pedro’s argument ██
a
claiming that Pedro ██████████ ███ ████████ ████████ █████ ██████████ ███████ ██ ███ ██████ ██ ███ ████████ ██ █████ ██ █████ ███████
Maria doesn't object to Pedro's negative evidence about disposable diapers. She shows that Pedro understated the issues with cloth diapers, not the other way around.
b
indicating that Pedro █████ █ █████ ███████████ █████ ██ ██████████ ████████ █████ █████ ███████
Maria shows that Pedro inadequately considered the evidence about cloth diapers: he failed to acknowledge several environmental harms cloth diapers cause. And this indicates that Pedro's conclusion is hastily drawn. Maria doesn't say whether Pedro's conclusion is ultimately right or wrong, but it certainly isn't based on all the facts.
c
pointing out that █████ ██ ██ █████████ ███ ██ ███ ████ ████████████████ ██ █████████ ████████
Pedro uses "disposable" pretty unambiguously, and Maria accordingly doesn't claim this is an issue with Pedro's argument. She seems pretty clear on what "disposable" means in this context.
d
demonstrating that cloth ███████ ███ █ ███ ████ ███████ ██████ ██ ███ ███████████ ████ ██████████ ███████ ███
(D) is a trap answer choice that takes Maria's argument too far. Maria demonstrates that cloth diapers pose some environmental threat, but she never compares the magnitude of this threat to that of disposable diapers.
(D) could be correct if Maria claimed that Pedro's conclusion was incorrect. However, Maria doesn't take this position. She shows that Pedro hasn't accounted for all the evidence, but leaves open the possibility that cloth diapers could still be better, even given their issues.
e
suggesting that the ████████ ██████████ ██ █████ ███████ ████████ ████████ █████████████ ██████ ████ ███ █████
Maria never mentions economic advantages, of cloth diapers or anything else. She's concerned with the environmental costs of cloth diapers, not with their benefits.