the framework I use for strengthening and weakening is that the answer type has to either be strong in language (only, all, most...in this case "necessitating") or it has to be conceptually strong--especially the latter, because relying on indicators is risky but still worth a try in times you have to guess because of time. what is the most powerful thing in the answer choice that poses a significant issue for this argument? what is the strongest thing I can find that can patch up a deadly vulnerability?

there are two kinds of wrong answers on this exam. either it leaves something out that is crucial, or it adds something in that is disastrous. (what we would call contradicting, irrelevant or even random). you need to think in terms of one answer not being perfect, but being correct out of necessity because the others commit these two errors. in other words, four of the answer choices has something that is terrible. the writers of the test don't even call them incorrect answers, they call them "distractors"---and it's for good reason. take your time and go verrrry slowly, really consider the implications of each answer. its written in a language to confuse you.

don't compare the answer choices to each other, compare them to the stimulus.

you've got this.

my mindset is that the answer choice has to address both sides of the discrepancy. not just one or the other, not none, but both. you need something that will tell you about the decrease in car theft, but also to explain why people are getting convicted more. my thinking for choosing A was, if less people are just bailing after the crime If the owner sneaks up on them and just jacking the car and driving off, the odds of them getting convicted are much higher than if they just had abandoned the car mid-jacking and bolted for it. so that's second point part addressed. notice that it required me making a whole scenario riddled with assumptions, none that are too much of a stretch though. that's the key for resolution questions.

second, it tells us that there are less thieves, so we can go out on a limb (this is where you have to be careful about what's reasonable or not) and assume its because there's less theft. boom, first point addressed.

another tip is that I like to think that resolution questions have to be somewhat powerful. not just in language, but conceptually. what's a reallllly strong reason that could explain what's going on.

goat strategy

Set the drills to easy mode first, and do them untimed. I like to think of this as a debate. What is one speaker specifically addressing from the other when they are responding? make sure you understand the premises and conclusions, especially the second speaker's conclusion.

Agree! Writing down my own notes is a bit tedious

10/12 im in shock. I felt so lost on the science question but the low res summary helped me so much. and I did it mentally!

very curious about this as well

you broke this down beautifully