I’m registered for the August 2021 LSAT, where we’ll have 4 section with a 10-minute break between section 2 and 3. To prepare I’ve been doing full length PT with the same 10 minute break in middle. However, I find that my scores in section 2 and 3 tend to be my lowest and I do feel myself become more passive as I read. Also on the break I tend to close my eyes or mentally test but I think that could be contributing as well since the 10 minute break isn’t exactly waking me up.

I am considering doing 3 sections back to back to increase stamina, focus, and endurance. Do you think that would help amp up my focus in those sections?

Hi, so I was unhappy with my June 2021 LSAT score and have lost some confidence. Should I still take the August exam or truly try and prep for the October examination instead? Or simply take both? For some background info, the June LSAT Flex was the first exam I have taken.

My preptest formatting is off. It won't allow me to save questions that I am unsure about for blind review and I feel like taking preptests is a waste if I can't use the highlighting feature nor circle questions I was uncertain about. Can anyone #help me figure out this technical issue?

My untimed score was a whopping 13 points higher than a clean timed PT. It was 7 points higher than my usual blind review score. Other than LG, I didn't use THAT much more time than 35 minutes. Maybe somewhere around 45 minutes. Anyone curious as to how we can efficiently push through this moat?

[I am posting on behalf of a 7Sage user. Please feel free to leave your comments below. Thank you for your help!]

I am confused on one of the lesson. Lesson 11 question 2 says that it's not an argument because the author is only reporting what the researchers concluded. Lesson 16 question 4 has the same scenario that the author is sharing what researchers concluded but yet this one does have a premise and conclusion. Just wondering how this is different. Thank you

Hey Everyone! I wanted to ask you all for advice. I recently took the June LSAT and got a 158. Since this is my first LSAT, I have the option until today to cancel my score but im not sure if I should. I've listened to most opinions and understand law schools don’t care much about your past scores and only need to report your highest score. I plan on taking it again in August with a goal of a 170+. So, is there any benefit for cancelling or keeping? I did pay for the score preview so I don’t want to waste money if there’s even little benefit. Would a single score or a score improvement look better? Thanks so much.

do you guys ever end up hating the lsat and just feeling so so stupid? sometimes ill do something and feel confident then check my test scores and im like omg what is wrong with me. I end up beating myself up over answer choices and feel like no matter how hard I work I'm constantly missing something. When I do well I feel energized and happy and when I do bad I end up calling myself names and end up going into self hatred mode. is this normal?

So I know the most recent PT's are obviously the most representative of the real thing... but I am running short on these and so I have had to now turn to older PT's to compensate and get that "never before seen" experience.

I know the test has changed a lot since the 1990's but could performance on these still help serve as an accurate predictor of one's scores?

Hello! Due to a lot of unfortunate circumstances (loss of job, funeral, etc) I have fallen a good few weeks behind on the study schedule. Whenever they explain the study schedule they say if you fall behind you can adjust it but I am not sure how to do that? I am trying to adjust it so its more evenly spread out on what I need to catch up on rather than just overdoing myself and burning out trying to catch up. How do I do this? Thank you!

How long did it take you to find that balance where you know you need to slow down on certain questions?

I'll go through my BR and miss like 3 stupid ones, and than perhaps 2-3 more difficult ones. I feel like just avoiding the small mistakes would get me to a consistent 165 at least.

I think I like have an understanding of all the questions and stuff. I suppose my challenge is the execution.

P.S. if anyone has any general or specific questions on how to get to early 160ish avg score thats in the 150s feel free to send a message. It's helpful for me to walk through someone a LR or RC question that may not understand.

Hi all, I am unsure if I am going through a natural digression from my typical performance or if it is a symptom of burnout. I have recently began to do considerably worse on PTs and sections, although if feel that I still understand the material fairly well. I will say that I have been getting less sleep than usual recently, but I am not convinced that is the only reason for my atypical performance. What are the symptoms of burnout and how do you treat it while not being entirely absent from studying? Does this sound like a natural progression in scoring that everyone goes through?

Hi 7-sagers,

I am planning to take the august lsat and aiming for 171+

My current stats by section:

LR -3 to -1

LG -1 to 0

RC -11 to -4

My average LSAT score is 168, currently taking one pt every 3days. Is it possible to improve my RC and bring my average up to 171+ In a month?

What are some good advices/materials for RC?

Thank you!!!!

Hi everyone,

Was curious to know if anyone has tried Ellen Cassidy's method of the translation and CLIR and if they've found success with it? Also, how did you implement it in your prep AND practice tests? Appreciate it!

Hi all!

I feel like people often make a distinction between recent PTs that are available and older tests which some would say are less difficult. My question is: what counts as one of these recent tests? Is it anything after PT70? PT80? I would like to make sure to save those for when things get "real".

Hi everyone,

I wanted to write this because I felt it important to demonstrate that with hard work and dedication, this test IS learnable. I still have a long way to go but don't give up, I have seen a few posts in the last couple of days about a member not feeling like they have seen any improvement, or just struggling with the test, I am here to say that is possible with hard work. I am an older student (mid 30s) with a family, work, school full time and it CAN be done. Do not give up, if you are struggling rewatch the CC or hire a tutor if needed. I started to actively study end of May, my score was a whopping 146, my test today after a month and a week, 161. I was so defeated and still am at times but I have seen a huge improvement in the month that I've been studying. I have attached screenshots of the first test and one that I just finished now.

I want to thank this community, although I am not one to post, I am always reading and appreciative of the support and advice shared.

Goodluck to everyone taking their tests soon and a big congratulations to those who already took it.

-Cynthia

https://i.imgur.com/M5Tdpqp.png

https://i.imgur.com/j4YcxbA.png

Reviving this excellent resource so we can add to it and keep it alive. Credit to @alyhobbs and the 3 years ago crew. Hope you all are killing it wherever you are.

Original thread: https://classic.7sage.com/discussion/#/discussion/16979/help-with-flaw-type-examples

Will be adding to this but hey, don't make me do all the work... please post your examples up (especially for unaddressed categories) and I'll add them to the OP. It would be sweet if you copied the general format that follows too so I can just copy and paste. I'll credit you and you can be immortalized in the sage archives for all time.

Future 7sagers: please do continue to do this... copy what follows and make it your own. Please credit the original poster below and carry the flame.

@alyhobbs wrote:

Hey everyone, I am having a hard time with Flaw Questions. I know we are supposed to memorize the common argument flaws but that is where my struggle is. I am very much a visual/example type of learner. When going through the flaw types I realized it would really help me to understand and memorize them if I had examples. So I have been going through PTs and Drills that I have done trying to match them up with the flaw types and could use some help. Some I am able to easily match up to the type of flaw and others I am not. I have listed the different types below, some have specific question examples and then underneath I have a list of questions I need help matching. If anyone knows of any specific PT questions that match up with the other flaws please let me know so I can add them to my list. I hope this can also help others that struggle with flaws.

Flaw Types with Example Questions

1) Attacking the source of the argument

PT19S2Q14 *Thanks keets993

"rejects a claim by attacking the proponents of the claim rather than addressing the claim itself"

PT25S4Q04 *Thanks keets993

"assails legislation on the basis of the questionable character of supporters of the legislation"

PT39S4Q11 *Thanks keets993

"diverts attention from the content of the article by focusing on the writers' actions"

2) Uses terms unclearly/equivocation

PT25S04Q17

"The argument ambiguously uses the word "afford""

PT53S1Q12 *Thanks keets993

"ambiguity of risk"

PT59S2Q15 *canihazJD

"the meaning of a key term shifts illicitly during the course of the argument"

PT22S2Q24 *Thanks keets993

"draws a conclusion based on equivocal language"

3) Analogies that really aren’t analogous enough

"It relies on an analogy between two things that are insufficiently alike in the respects in which they would have to be alike for the conclusion to be supported"

4) Appealing to authority in an area outside their expertise

PTJ07S2Q17 @WickedLost @"Granger Danger"

"The argument relies on the testimony of experts whose expertise is not shown to be sufficiently broad to support their general claim"

PT20S4Q20 @"Granger Danger"

Parallel flaw with classic appeal fallacy.

5) Causation confusions

PT47S3Q23

“It takes for granted that if a correlation has been observed between two phenomena, they must be causally connected”

PT30S2Q25 *Thanks keets993

"because hormone levels are correlated with heart disease they influence heart disease"

PT47S1Q23 *Thanks keets993

"ignores the possibility that an increase in theta waves may not always be accompanied by a state of profound creativity"

PT18S4Q9 *Thanks keets993

"It mistakes a correlation between the type of brain damage described and Parkinson's disease for a causal relation between the two"

PT39S4Q20 *Thanks keets993

"overlooks the possibility that the same thing may causally contribute both to education and to good health"

PT20S1Q10 *Thanks akistotle

"ignores the possibility that drivers who drive recklessly have a preference for red cars"

PT20S4Q14 *Thanks akistotle

"It concludes that one thing was caused by another although the evidecnce given is consistent with the first thing's having caused the second"

PT30S2Q25 *Thanks akistotle

"Because hormone levels are correlated with heart disease they influence heart disease"

PT31S2Q9 *Thanks akistotle

"offers no evidence that the individuals queried would have responded differently had they been asked the same questions in years prior to the survey"

PT64S1Q5 *Thanks akistotle

"dogs' misbehavior is the cause of, rather than the result of, frequent discipline"

PT65S1Q8 *Thanks akistotle

"illicitly infers a cause from a correlation"

PT66S4Q25 *Thanks akistotle

"foods containing fiber also contain other substances that, when consumed, tend to prevent colon cancer"

PT89S4Q15 *canihazJD

“surmises from the fact that two phenomena are correlated that one causes the other”

6) Circular Reasoning

PT17S2Q2 *Thanks keets993 and akistotle

"draws a conclusion that simply restates a claim given in support of that conclusion"

PT17S3Q20 *Thanks keets993 and akistotle

"assumes what it sets out to conclude"

PT6S3Q8 *Thanks akistotle

"It assumes what it seeks to establish"

PT24S2Q8 *Thanks akistotle

"presupposes the truth of the conclusion it is attempting to establish"

PT49S2Q23 *Thanks akistotle

"The purported evidence that it cites in support of its conclusion presumes that the conclusion is true"

7) Confusing necessary and sufficient conditions

PT63 S1 Q25

“infers that something that is sufficient to provide a motive is necessary to provide a motive”

PT22S2Q25 *Thanks keets993

"confuses a sufficient condition with a required condition"

PT17S2Q11 *Thanks keets993 and akistotle

"It mistakenly interprets P to be claiming that a factor assures, rather than is necessary for, a legislator's effectiveness"

PT17S3Q9 *Thanks keets993

"does not establish that only a bird could have made the track"

PT18S4Q3 *Thanks keets993

"Grass seeds will not germinate well unless they are pressed firmly into the ground. The grass seeds sown in this yard were pressed firmly into the ground, so they will germinate well"

PT22S4Q21 *Thanks akistotle

"presupposing that if an action's having a certain property is necessary for its being a certain type of action, then having that property is sufficient for being that type of action"

PT23S2Q19 *Thanks akistotle

"taking the nonexistence of something as evidence that a necessary precondition for that thing also did not exist"

PT23S3Q17 *Thanks akistotle

"mistakes being sufficient to justify punishment for being required to justify it"

PT24S2Q23 *Thanks akistotle

"From the assertion that something is necessary to a moral order, the argument concludes that that thing is sufficient for an element of the moral order to be realized"

PT30S4Q14 *Thanks akistotle

"It mistakes something that is necessary for its conclusion to follow for something that ensures that the conclusion follows"

PTJ07S3Q25 *Thanks akistotle

"confuses a condition's being required for a given result to occur in one case with the condition's being sufficient for such a result to occur in a similar case"

PT64S1Q24 *Thanks akistotle

"confuses a claim that under certain conditions a certain action should be taken with a claim that the action need not be taken in the absence of those conditions"

PT67S2Q09 *Thanks akistotle

"treats a statement whose truth is required for the conclusion to be true as though it were a statement whose truth ensures that the conclusion is true"

PT68S3Q21 *Thanks akistotle

"takes for granted that the speech could not be inappropriate if it was not inflammatory"

PT89S4Q20 *canihazJD

"mistakes necessary conditions for sufficient condition"

8) False dichotomy

PT22S4Q09 *Thanks keets993

"treats two things, neither one of which can plausibly be seen as excluding the other, as though they were mutually exclusive"

PT38S1Q11 (Thanks to @"Slow is Fast" for finding it!) @"Burden.of.Floof"

"fails to consider that some students may be neither fascinated by nor completely indifferent"

PT39S4Q26 *Thanks keets993

"Since there is a storm moving in, the outside temperature cannot rise this afternoon. Therefore, it must fall."

PT59S3Q20 @cldennis94

9) Confusing probability for certainty

"It takes for granted that the economic incentive to construct colonies on the Moon will grow sufficiently to cause such a costly project to be undertaken."

10) Confusing "is" for "ought"

PT60S3Q16 *thanks @"cole.davis10"

"Takes for granted that preserving a currently endangered species in a habitat does not have higher priority than preserving species in that habitat that are not endangered"

11) Percentages v. quantity

"Far more pedestrians cross at corners than jaywalk"

12) Surveys and samplings to reach a general conclusion

PT 63S1Q3

“It relies on the opinions of a group unlikely to be representative of the group at issue in the conclusion”

PT51S1Q4

“fails to state the number of dermatologists surveyed, which leaves open the possibility that the sample of doctors is too small to be reliable”

PT31S2Q03 *Thanks keets993

"Those who are best able to provide answers to the question are patients, rather than physicians"

PT39S4Q21 *Thanks keets993

"that there may be few if any other plumbers working in Moore's town"

13) Hasty generalization

PT51S3Q6

“draws a generalization that is broader than is warranted by the findings cited”

PT30S2Q13 *Thanks samantha.ashley92

"Treats a claim about what is currently the case as if it were a claim about what has been the case for an extended period"

PT39S2Q2 *Thanks samantha.ashley92

“draws a conclusion about all cases of a certain kind on the basis of evidence that justifies such a conclusion only about some cases of that kind”

PT18S4Q25 *Thanks keets993

"He attempts to refute a general claim by reference to nonconforming cases, although the claim is consistent with the occurrence of such cases"

14) Experiments to reach a general conclusion

"playing the study's card game perfectly requires fairly low levels of perception and memory"

15) Your argument fails therefore the opposite of your conclusion must be true

PT47S1Q8

“takes for granted that the fact that a claim has not been demonstrated to be false establishes that it is true”

PT51S1Q15 *Thanks samantha.ashley92

“the argument, in its attempt to refute one theory of species classification, presupposes the truth of an opposing theory

16) Relative v. absolute

PT 53S1Q22 *Thanks keets993

"mistakes a merely relative property for one that is absolute"

PT 85S3Q24

"takes for granted that there are not significantly more households with a dog than ones with a cat"

17) Confusing one possible solution for the only solution

PT30S4Q6 *Thanks samantha.ashley92

"Confuses being an adequate solution with being a required solution"

PT59S2Q8 *canihazJD

"fails to consider alternative explanations of the decline in sales of ice cream"

18) Red herring

PT26S2Q11

"it appeals to the emotion of pity rather than addressing the issue raised"

PT18S4Q11 *Thanks keets993

"relies on an irrelevant reason for rejecting the civil libertarian's argument"

PT18S2Q04 *Thanks keets993

"He argues against a point that is not one that Marianna was making"

19) Tradition fallacy and novelty fallacy

“fails to show that a certain conclusion of the recent report is better justified than an opposing conclusion reached in older studies”

20) Confusing part v. whole

PT 47S3Q25 *Thanks keets993

"To put together this year's two All-Star Teams, the best players in the league were selected. Half of them were put on Team One, and half were put on Team Two. Since each player on the two teams was one of the best players in the league this year, it follows that the two All-Star Teams are the two best teams this year."

I also describe this is as 'falsey transfers attributes that can't be transferred' *Thanks keets993

PT17S3Q19 *Thanks keets993

"Of all the flowers grown in the university's botanical garden, the Oakland roses are the most beautiful. Since the university's botanical garden is the most beautiful . Since the university's botanical garden is the most beautiful garden in the region, the Oakland roses grown in the garden must be the most beautiful flowers grown in the entire region."

PT17S3Q16 *Thanks keets993

"assuming that because something is true each of the parts of a whole it is true of the whole itself"

PT62S2Q7 *Thanks LCMama2017

"This paragraph is long. So the sentences that comprise it are long."

PT87S3Q7 *canihazJD

"infers that a food will have a certain property simply because one of the foods ingredients has that property"

21) Beliefs v. facts

PT 80.S1.Q19 @cldennis94

"opposing higher taxes is not a factor contributing to good leadership."

Note: a Weaken question, but belief vs. facts is the flaw here in the argument.

PT 28.S1.Q19 @cldennis94

"infers that something is the case because it is believed to be the case."

22) Relies on people's opinions as fact

PT28S1Q09 *Thanks keets993

"a claim is inferred to be false merely because a majority of people believe it to be false"

Match the flaw

PT47S1Q23

“ignores the possibility that an increase in theta waves may not always be accompanied by a state of profound creativity”

PT51S1Q6

“It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time”

PT51S1Q18

“overlooks the possibility that most people may have voted for small cities even though a large city received more votes than any other single city”

PT51S3Q4

“fails to consider that the total amount of money spent on education may be much greater than the total spent on sports”

PT51S3Q9

“fails to consider the possibility that the vehicle related fatality rates in other areas are also rising”

PT67S2Q9

"treats a statement whose truth is required for the conclusion to be true as though it were a statement whose truth ensures that the conclusion is true"

PT67S2Q21

"the argument fails to consider that bees might be present even in the absence of a particular condition that would ensure their presence"

More added by @samantha.ashley92

PT30S4Q8: "The argument presumes that no other evidence is relevant to the issue at hand"

Relative v. absolute? I have no idea.

PT30S4Q14: "It mistakes something that is necessary for its conclusion to follow for something that ensures that the conclusion follows"

23) Unrepresentative sample

PTM20S3Q18 *canihazJD

"making a generalization on the basis of a sample that is likely to be unrepresentative"

PT88S4Q19 *canihazJD

"draws a conclusion on the basis of a biased sample"

24) Sneaking something in (dont have a good name/category for this yet).

I have an LSAT score from June 2016. I thought it would of expired by June 2021...anyone have any insight on this?

I have been studying consistently for about 5 hours a day, 5/6 days a week and I am seeing no improvement. I took a PT and my score was exactly the same (144) as my first diagnostic test. My goal is to score 164. I have a study schedule of 5 months and feel very discouraged that I am seeing no improvement 2 months in. I don't know what I should be doing differently in order to start seeing improvements in my score. Any help/advice welcomed :)

I keep getting these wrong and it's up and very dark red in my Analytics. Any help/anyone who knows where in the syllabus I can go to to cover it again is super appreciated!

Hello to anyone working at 7sage. Is there anything in the pipeline that will add an experimental section to the PTs?

First and foremost, congratulations to everyone who took the test in June and survived it lol. I have a question about the LG on there, do you guys recall what game types were on there? Thanks in advance.

[I am posting on behalf of 7Sage user. Please feel free to leave your comments below. Thank you for your help!]

I've studied the past 2.5 months for an average of a bout 3-4 hours a day. I've finished David M. Killoran's Logic Games Bible, Mike Kim's LSAT trainer, and the Logical reasoning Loophole by Ellen Cassidy. I've gotten to a point where I feel like I can finish LG timed at -1 to -2, but I'd like to get that down to 0 with some practice. Obviously, I'd also like to improve my LR and RC as much as humanly possible. I haven't taken any fully timed LR sections, but I've been -2 to -4 untimed so far. All of this is a long winded way of asking, where do I start? I only have a month and a half until test day, so I can't imagine going over the basics again would be as beneficial as working on timing or the more difficult areas of each section. Advice would be appreciated.

Hi all - I'm taking the LSAT in August and it's my first time doing so. As such, I have a few logistics questions for those who know/have taken the FLEX recently.

Can you take the exam on a desktop? LSAC website says yes, but the Writing Sample Video (and presumably the actual exam) suggest that we're supposed to show our work environment, including floor, etc. Has anyone encountered this issue using a desktop?

Can you use scratch paper on RC/LR? Obviously we use them for LG, but has anyone been called out by a proctor for writing out, say, lawgic for a complicated LR question?

Any other tips for first-timers re: technology, proctoring, logistics? Hoping to keep stressors like these to a minimum on actual test day.

Thank you!!

Hello,

I am just about to begin studying for the LSAT. I have seen recommendations that I should take a practice LSAT before I begin studying as a baseline for what to work on. Should I use one of the practice tests on 7Sage's syllabus for this, or should I take the practice test from elsewhere, and if so where?

Thanks.

Hey guys!

After scoring a 159 on the February LSAT, I scored a 171 in June.

I studied for a year while working full time, and there were many months when I thought I would never reach my goal.

But I remained persistent, practiced, drilled, used multiple resources (including 7Sage!), and was finally able to reach my goal.

To anyone struggling with the LSAT: don't give up. Just keep pushing.