Self-paced
Support The cattle egret is a bird that lives around herds of cattle. ███ ████ █████████ ███████████ ██ ███ ████ ████ ███ ██████ █████ ███████ ██████ █████ ██ ████ ███ ██████ ███████ ███ ███████ ███████ ██ ████ ███ ███████ ██ ███ ██████ █████ ██████
Summarize Argument: Phenomenon-Hypothesis
The author hypothesizes that cattle egrets follows herds of cattle because the cattle herds’ grazing process offers the egrets with convenient access to insects. This is based on the phenomenon that cattle egrets live around herds of cattle.
Notable Assumptions
The author assumes there is no other explanation for why cattle egrets live around herds of cattle.
6.
Which one of the following, ██ █████ █████ ████ █████████ █████████ ███ █████ ████ ███ ███████████ █████ █████ ██ ███ ████ █████████ ████
a
Birds other than ██████ ██████ ████ ████ ████████ █████████ ███████ ███████ ██ ██ ███ ████████ ██ ███████
This strengthens the argument. It shows that a number of bird species benefit in the same way from herds of cattle, strengthening the argument that this benefit is why cattle egrets live around herds of cattle.
Directionally wrong
Directionally wrong
Answers that, if they have any effect, do the opposite of what we want (weaken when we're trying to strengthen, or strengthen when we're trying to weaken).
b
Cattle egrets are █████ ██ ██████ █████ ███████████ ████████ ████ ██ ████████████ ███ ████████
This does not affect the argument. Cattle egrets following other slow-moving animals does not make the author’s explanation for why they follow herds of cattle any less convincing. For all we know, buffalo and rhinoceroses also stir up insects that the birds consume.
c
The presence of ██████ █████████ ████ ████████ █████████ ██ ███ ██████ ██████
This weakens the argument by offering an alternative explanation for the phenomenon. If living near cattle provides protection from potential predators, the egrets gain a significant safety benefit from their proximity to the herds.
Alternate explanation
Alternate explanation
Weaken: Introduce or suggest an alternate explanation for the target phenomenon.
Strengthen: Helps to eliminate an alternate explanation for the target phenomenon.
d
Cattle egrets are ███ █████████ █████ ██ ████ ███████ ███ █████ ██ ██████ ███████████ ████████
This does not affect the argument. Cattle egrets’ propensity for living near slow-moving animals does nothing to weaken the author’s explanation for why they live around herds of cattle.
e
Forests are generally ████████████ ██ ██████ ██████ ███████ ██ █ ████ ██ ███████ ██ ███ ████ ██████ ███ ████████
This does not affect the argument. The fact that forests are inhospitable to cattle egrets does not challenge the author’s explanation for why these birds live around herds of cattle.
Directionally wrong
Directionally wrong
Answers that, if they have any effect, do the opposite of what we want (weaken when we're trying to strengthen, or strengthen when we're trying to weaken).