What does it mean when an answer choice, as is the case in PT17, Sec. 3, #20, Answer D, says, "Fails to consider the status..." of something?

In other words, in this instance, what is the definition of "status"?

https://classic.7sage.com/lsat_explanations/lsat-17-section-3-question-20/

I'll receive a study buddy request, approve it, then click on the message icon to contact them and then I'll get an error message saying the user doesn't exist. This has happened about 3 times so far. Anyone else having the problem?

Does anyone else find themselves mistakenly solving flaw questions as weaken questions when considering certain answer choices?

What I will find myself doing when evaluating certain answer choices is saying to myself, "Well if this were true, it wouldn't necessary weaken the argument, so it isn't the flaw of the argument"

I think this is incorrect because the best method for answering those two question types are different, but I don't actually know on a deeper level why the two methods don't sometimes overlap. Or maybe they do and I'm not always wrong in doing that.

Instead, I just accept that that is the wrong way to go about answering the question and try to catch myself when I do it and revert back to the correct method to answering a flaw question.

I know this is a bit abstract, but if someone could help explain more clearly why those two methods don't overlap sometimes when considering certain answer choices that would be helpful.

I had a few questions about the rules of actually taking the test in person I was hoping someone could clear up for me.

It's my understanding that you are only allowed to work on the section they tell you to work on and you can't open to any other section whether you've completed it or it's an upcoming one. Is that correct? Meaning, if taking section 2 of the test and the clock is going, you can't look back to section 1 and you can't look forward to 3/4/5.

Second, are the test booklets closed during the break? Am I leave it open to the last page of the last section just completed or do all booklets need to be closed?

Finally, are the scantrons of the actual test the same ones 7sage has for PT's? Meaning are all 5 sections on the same sheet?

Here's what prompted these questions: I was taking a PT today and I had trouble with the last question of section 1. During sections 2 and 3 my mind would wonder back to that question and think about it some more. I then realized why one answer was correct and why the answer I chose was wrong. I thought, damn, I missed that question. But then I realized I could just erase the answer and change it to what I know is the correct answer while I'm taking section 3. I never turned the page of the test booklet back to section 1. The whole reconsidering was done in my head alone. I figured if it's all on the same scantron and I'm not technically working on a different section in the booklet can't I just erase the answer on the section 1 part of the scantron?

If someone could answer these that would be helpful thanks!

I got this wrong because while I did see the author was appealing to authority, I thought it was reasonable to assume that if the author says what an authority figure says, then it can be said that the author would say that too.

Answer Choice E basically says that the Meteorologist did not evaluate the merit of example from the Statistician. I thought by citing experts who are saying that no single thing can cause climate the Meteorologist was evaluating the merit of the example from the Statistician. But then I thought about it some more and it occurred to me that you can't necessarily say the Meteorologist evaluated the merits of the example just because he cited experts who cite a general principle that speaks to the counterexample.

I know this is a rough evaluation of the question and answer choice, but what I wanted to get clarity on is what I concluded above:

If an author cites what someone else says without saying it themselves can that author be said to have said the same thing?

This question makes me think the answer is no, but I was hoping someone could verify that.

https://classic.7sage.com/lsat_explanations/lsat-21-section-2-question-25/

PT 77, Section 2, #18 Answer Choices C and D. Does "fails to exclude" mean the same thing more or less as "fails to consider"?

I thought "fails to exclude" was incorrect because the author doesn't need to exclude it, he just failed to consider it.

https://classic.7sage.com/lsat_explanations/lsat-77-section-2-question-18/

In PT 77, Section 2, Questions 5 and 14 they both use the word "linked" in their arguments. When the LSAT uses the word "linked," does it only mean correlation?

People who have done a lot of PTs often talk about the shift in language in the last 10 PTs, yet don't always know how to articulate what that shift specifically was. I think this is an example of a recent test question where the language has changed as compared to older tests (PTs 20-60).

I think the correct answer, E, requires you infer the author's perspective whereas older tests would have a more conservative interpretation of the stimulus. By saying that juries often make serious mistakes, you have to infer that the author would say making a serious mistake is an undesirable consequence.

In these LR questions where the stimulus has an opinion, it seems as though the test now tests your understanding of that opinion. That if someone is saying something would be a serious mistake, you need to be able to properly infer what that means. In this case, someone who says it would be a serious mistake then that person would also necessarily say that's an undesirable consequence.

https://classic.7sage.com/lsat_explanations/lsat-74-section-4-question-17/

Is it always the case that if an argument for a sufficient assumption question has descriptive premises with a normative conclusion (saying one should do something or ought to do it) then the answer choice must have normative language to close that gap?

Looking at PT 22, Section 4, Q13 and PT 62, Section 2, Q17, I can see many reasons to eliminate the other incorrect answer choices besides them lacking the normative language. However, I'm still hesitant to skip straight to the answer choices that say "should" because I'm still not sure if you need the word "should" or similar language to close the logical gap between the conclusion and premises. Is normative language in the answer choice always necessary to prove a normative conclusion when the premises don't have it?

Thanks!

Two questions regarding BR:

Does it decrease the utility of BR to review the same day you took the test? I try to do it next day but that kills some time I have after I've taken the test. I just want as accurate of a BR score as possible so I wait for the following day to review. Is it a big deal if I start reviewing same day as the test?

Does it decrease the utility of BR to review using the same marked up PT you used for the test? When I blind review now I have one copy of the test I use for the timed test and then once I have the questions circled I use a clean copy of the test to look at the questions. My thinking is that I do not want to be influenced during BR by my markings like crossed out answers and underlined conclusions, but getting a clean copy just for review isn't always practical.

For those of you who found the RC difficult from the June '17 (PT 81) test and want more practice like that, you should check out PT 5's RC section. I thought it was structured in a really similar way to PT 81 with a similar distribution of difficult among the passages like PT 81.

Taking full timed PT's have been great for tracking progress, getting used to the feel of the test, and, with blind review, it helps to pin point knowledge gaps and problem areas. However, I still get tripped up on occasional mental fatigue and loss of focus for LR and RC. After how many full PT's does that problem go away? Or does it stay with 176+ scorers too?

It's amazing how easy a question will seem on BR and then I go back and see the answer I picked and think I must have outright lost my mind on that question.

I've taken 38 full timed PT's under test conditions, 22 of those with blind review. I'm trusting the process and keep on going thinking that my score will continue to inch up point by point as it has, but I'm surprised by how easy I still can lose focus.

I'm consistently scoring in the 171-175 range and 174-179 after I blind review. Like I said, some of the ones I blind review I realize I still have things to learn, but on others I can't help but think they are due to loss of focus/lack of stamina/mental fatigue given how easy they were on BR.

I'm on track to do at least another 30 full timed PT's before the June test, but I'm concerned that since after all of my practice I'm still losing focus on 3-5 questions/test there might be some behavior pattern I'm not recognizing that I'm unknowingly reinforcing by continuing to take PT's without addressing it.

I've tried to narrow down the possible causes by making sure I don't do a test without a proper meal or a full night's sleep, if they're doing construction right outside my window I won't take one then either. (There's still some noise when I take the PT's, but not anymore than what I think there would be on test day.) Those little things have helped but I'm running out of ideas of what else might be the cause besides that I just need more practice.

What would be helpful to hear is that those kinks work themselves out with more practice and if I took another 30 full timed PT's then focus and stamina won't be an issue to the extent that I'll miss questions over it. I want to be careful not to reinforce some bad behavior for another few months only to realize it too late.

I took the June 2017 test, scored a 172. Goal was 176+. I definitely have room for improvement on LR, but I think I know how to approach that. RC I'm a little more unsure about. For reference, I was -3 on RC on the June test and that's right around where I usually score.

I've heard of people drilling RC but I don't know what that actually entails. Anyone have experience with that?

I've used PowerScore, LSAT Hacks, LSAT Trainer, and other tutor's videos on how to approach a passage. I've found that notation is distracting and prevents me from reading the passage. I just sort of read the passage, don't move on to the questions until I understand it and then when I answer questions I either go back and reference lines or I just know the answer. In other words, I just wing it.

If you had 6 weeks to dedicate just to RC, how would you structure that time?

Anyone know where to buy PT February 1997 for less than $30 new/unmarked? I know it is the basis for ItemWise on LSAC's website, but I was hoping to use it as a full test.

Maybe slightly off topic, but anyone have tips for screen sharing and drawing platforms for tablets for LG? Basically like JY's videos, but for screen sharing not recording videos.

I want to better understand how big of a difference my PT scores are from my BR scores and what I can reliably consider my BR score to be.

Right now I use the BR method, circle the question, don't look at the correct answer, write out the explanations, etc.

After I BR I score the test and usually there are a few questions I got wrong that I did not circle.

What I then do is note those question numbers and try to "blind" review those.

Of course, this sort of defeats the truly "blind" part of the blind review, however most of the time I do not remember what the correct answer was after I scored it nor do I always remember which answer choice I chose while taking the test. However, I do have the added knowledge that at the very least whichever answer I picked the first time around was incorrect.

Let's say I circled 4 questions during the test for BR, and after blind reviewing them I scored the test and of those 4 I correctly changed my answer on 3 during BR and 1 of those I still got wrong on BR. Now I look at the ones I did not circle for BR. Let's say there were 4 questions I got wrong that I did not circle. I then "blind" review those by not looking back at the correct answer or the answer I picked. Assuming I did not remember what the correct answer was during the scoring nor did I remember what my answer choice was on the test, if I got those 4 correct on the not-entirely-blind blind review, could I consider those as part of my BR score?

Usually there are a few questions for whatever reason I clearly remember what the correct answer choice was after scoring it and/or what the answer choice I chose on the test was. In those cases I know even if I got it correct in the second round of review, I had too much information at my disposable to properly consider that part of the BR score.

But of the ones where I did not remember the correct answer or what I chose on the test, can I consider those part of the BR? I am trying to figure out how much simply knowing that I got it wrong can affect the not-so-blind BR score even when I don't remember what I chose on the test and what the correct answer was. And by knowing that I can better gage my room for improvement.

Using the example above, I circle 4 for BR, of those 4 I get 3 right and 1 wrong on BR. I then score the test and got 4 others wrong, none of which I remember the correct answer or the answer choice I picked on the test. On the second round of "blind" review I get all 4 correct. So is my BR score for the test -1 or is it -5?

Obviously, if the method I'm using is anyway a deviation from the the BR method then my score is not necessarily a true BR score. But what I find valuable about the BR score is that it indicates that you probably know the material well enough to get it correct, you just need to practice more and then the gap between your raw score and BR score will close. So if my BR score is -1 it means one thing about how I approach studying and if my score is -5 it means another thing. That's why I am asking these questions.

My scaled score is a reliable ~172, my BR score is a ~174, and under the not-so-blind BR it's ~177. So is my reasonable room for improvement the difference between 172 and 174 or between 172 and 177? Am I fooling myself by saying I'm a 177 and all I need is more practice because the truth is I am more of a 174?

Of course, I could just be way stricter during the test and circle every question I have even the slightest doubt which would be creating a lot more of review work but at the very least I would get a more accurate BR score. In the meantime, however, feedback would be much appreciated!

As a side note, I don't know if it's been discussed on these boards, but to say that your BR score is where you could be with more time and practice is somewhat misleading because when you look at a question on the test it's for the first time, whereas on BR it's at least for the second time. Complex stimuli and question stems become way easier to decipher the more you read them so that could factor in why you get it correct on BR but incorrect on the test. Nevertheless it's the best review method I've found so far, so good going 7Sage!