1. My hypothesis is that when some arguments leave room for alternative explanations or gaps in information by the support given the argument is weaker and easier to disapprove. And when an argument covers its bases for how its support leads to that conclusion, it becomes stronger and more difficult to disapprove.

2. I did:

Disney 1st Strongest:

It's the strongest out of the 3 because the support supplies us with 2 requirements that must be met: If not one then the other limits our possibilities. Then it gives enough info that it narrows it down to one choice that must have been true.

Tiger 2nd Strongest:

It provides support that the conclusion can logically follow from. It's weaker than the Disney one because it assumes those two characteristics define what a suitable pet is, leaving room to weaken the argument with new information.

Mr. Fat Cat and Trash is the weakest. It makes very strong assumptions, such as the cat "intentionally" knocking it over AND eating it. Of which we have very weak evidence for. What if the cat licks his paws when he bathes too? Or what if Mr. Fat Cat was actually at the Vet when this happened? Its easy to disapprove.

My own version to help me apply the theory:

Vegetables would not be a good replacement for popcorn at movie theaters. After all, people associate popcorn with going to the movies and offering vegetables instead could upset people.

Would "vegetables would not be a a good replacement for popcorn at movie theaters" make it more likely that "people associate popcorn with going to the movies?"No, that wouldn't really make sense.

The first sentence is giving me a big claim. The second sentence is giving me to reasons for why the first sentence is true.

LEARNING: I learned the hard way that thinking"I know not to have cognitive biases in the LSAT duh," did not hold true when I got to a topic I was knowledgable in (E.g. having a background in research & getting a question on a theory I studied).

TIP: Read to parse out the support relationship, then I can quickly fish out ONLY what the author is giving me (premises) to convince (aim) me of their conclusion (argument). Understanding the support relationship is a big deal: I ask "the author wants me to believe that? how the hell did he get there?"

Keep an open mind even if you're an expert on the topic - use only what the arg. gives you - don't let your brain add-in knowledge Why? Bc the lsat WANTS to trick us

Shout-out to the NEW accessibility features that brought me back to 7Sage today. Subtitles+audio+visual learning is necessary for an inclusive learning environment and it hurt to not have that here before. Thank you.

I had the same fear over my GPA until I followed around some lawyers. Turns out the most successful attorney I met, well, nobody could tell me what school he went to. They knew he was good at what he does, that he had a great rapport with VA courts, and an impressive track record of clients.

So, let's aim to be a great attorney over a great school attended. It seems to be the bigger focus long term :)

Not Just You! Me too.

This may be helpful:

W/ Prometric's online Oct. Test Center Registration I had the same sitch:

Registration opens & queue is high --> I'm given 1 center in U.S. out of state I'd rather not make the trek to (after my address finally loads for the 3rd time).

What worked to get my local in-person test center:

1). Complete registration for the far away place & time given during registration opening (for safety)

2). Come back when scheduling re-opens, enter your address, see if your local test center pops up.

When I got to step 2, my local test center & day I wanted showed

NOTE: BC November shld have highest # of test takers, I can't promise it'll be the same.

Making a GroupMe is usually easiest what do you think?

Also down! Need that accountability as well :)

A - Simple and to the point. Keep.

B - Part of premise

C- Not relevant.

D - If true would be the major premise, sub conclusion.

E- Too harsh, Author never says voting is a "public duty" or "dishonest", he's just explaining why one vote means something to a group effect.

Sounds great, thanks for coordinating!

I'm a 162 Score avg, I took the real LSAT in April and am signed up for January! Anyone into the Pomodoro Testing method? Would love to be part of a group that's highly productive with their time management!

I'm taking in January, PT Score avg 161, and have been searching for a study group! It can get so lonely.

Honestly following Skinner's Operant conditioning is the only way I've found I stay dedicated. For example, if I voluntarily dedicate 3 hours to studying (with breaks) before my part time job I buy myself a pack of beer or cool new stationary that day. If I don't get any studying done, then I go home after work and get ready for bed early. Oddly enough my subconscious mind fights for that study time harder.

I've found that the study schedule 7Sage curates for you is not realistic for me; it made me feel always behind which decreased my motivation. So, find little ways instead that will make you feel like you're getting somewhere and not that this is never-ending.

Yay!!! So happy to see there's a whole group of us now! :) Also joining in on this. @ I texted you btw before seeing this :smile:

Bazgha- Thank you, it's comforting to have someone else in my corner who gets it. I am so relieved to hear it is possible to do it on paper you have no idea. Currently working with my doctor so solve out accommodations. This is quite a relief that it is possible to receive on paper I appreciate you taking the time to respond with information.

Thursday (9/22) at 5:30pm works for me! I'm off work every Thursday, Friday.

I am also studying to be taking the January LSAT. Should we create a Groupme?

Absolutely not. The Powerscore podcast has a good episode on this. The creators of the LSAC have to follow very strict protocol for disabilities- their website goes into this in more detail as well. Like any minority group, those with learning disabilities are part of a statistic they need to meet. I'm going into special education law and have been learning a lot about this.

Thanks for your direct message @ I am near Dupont Circle, walking distance to GW campus! Would you want to meet in person @ and @ ?

This was so uplifting thank you for taking the time to share! We all need to hear from someone in our inner group that we can reach our goal.

Understanding My Mistakes

Welp:

1. I was wrong to think "unreliable" = "not accurate"

*"mistakes" is a safer umbrella for "unreliable"

2. Misjudged how significant quality of source was: tapes vs. reports

*a tape is raw data, a report is subjective data

3. If one part of an answer choice is attractive by description, double check that I'm not glossing over modifier words that make the description INCORRECT!

*B was too vague I thought, D is better I thought. But really, B is just general enough to apply the flaw!

#help

Ugh what am I missing? Why is C the most reasonable AC for having an assumption that is "warranted"? How is assuming whether the disease is killing the moose more reasonable than assuming the type of predator (option A)?

I went with E bc it would mean there's essentially been no effect. My logic is: sure it wouldn't help boost the population of moose, but it doesn't need to boost it since the moose were "increasing in number" already anyway.

@ Could you send a new invite for Discord? Would love to get in on this, struggling to stay consistent with my study schedule lately.

Hiii I'm also looking for an evening time available accountability partner! Maybe we could make this into a small study group? I thrive off of even just body-doubling, it helps keep me accountable and consistent. Time management during questions is my struggle, I'm currently blind reviewing my last 161 score. Would love to talk out any PT Qs as a team.

Main Conclusion Versus Main Point

- I've come back to this lesson to remind myself the difference between a Main Conclusion and a Main Point :

1. *A Main Conclusion cannot exist without being with Main Point but a Main Point can exist without a Main Conclusion argument. When a MC exists, it must be included in a Main Point Q's Correct AC but it won't necessarily be the only part of your Main Point Correct AC.

For example, a MP question I got wrong on a PT LSAT was due to picking an AC that only stated the author's argument.I was misguided in thinking that the MP wouldn't include the big ideas / Main Topics as well. From now on I will look at MP as more of a Summary and the Main Conclusion as solely the argument being made.

2. A Main Point Question can exist without the Main Conclusion. When we see a stimulus that is just a bunch of facts and conclusions made by others, we can still draw a Main Point out of the paragraph.

*For example, In RC Passages this happens a lot with Main Point Qs where the passage does not take a position he's merely presenting a debate or highlighting an artist's work. Yet we are still able to draw a main point out of what the author has said.