Hi there!

That question is tricky, so you should not feel bad about getting tripped up! Like any sufficient or necessary assumption question, the first key is to identify the argument's conclusion, which in this case is that country A's standard of living increased from 1980 to 1990. The main support for this conclusion is provided by the premises that

standard of living is based on GDP per capita;

Country A increased their GDP per capita relative to some other body between 1980 and 1990

(not exact wording because I don't have the question pulled up anymore)

I think what makes this question tricky is that while GDP is measured relative to another, standard of living is measured in absolute terms instead. The conclusion is not that Country A's standard of living increased relative to the other body, but that it increased compared to what it was in in Country A in 1980.

Let's assume answer choice D is actually false, and the other body's GDP fell by a whole lot between 1980 and 1990. I'm guessing you can see the possibility that this invites -- country A's GDP (and therefore standard of living) could also have decreased, but as long as they decreased less than the body they're being compared to, their GDP advantage would grow even as their standard of living fell compared to what it was in 1980. Unless we assume answer choice D is correct, the conclusion completely falls apart.

I would strongly recommend reviewing the core curriculum instruction on the negation test for necessary assumption questions -- J.Y. kind of teaches you how to hack them.

I hope this helps!

Yes! I also do the same thing with CBT/CBF questions when I notice that only 1 or 2 answer choices include floaters. It's especially effective in this context when there are a lot of deductions -- and thus not a lot of open spaces on the gameboard.

@ said:

@ said:

Are you getting -1/-2 in 35 min (very good!) and looking to get faster for a safety margin or are you getting -1/-2 taking as much time as you need. If it's the second it would be helpful to know how much time you are taking to answer all questions successfully, but really the biggest thing would be to start applying time pressure to yourself to force yourself to go faster. If it's the first one I'm in a similar position so I can't help much I'm afraid other than practice practice practice haha.

I'm getting -1/-2 given as much time as I need- I roughly take 10 mins too long :(. If I put pressure on myself to be faster, I never finish the last game, and occasionally miss one or two extra questions, which sucks. I've heard competing suggestions (don't time-just practice to perfection; always time; do individual games to time; do full-length sections) so I am just trying to figure out strategically what the best thing to spend my time on would be.

Oh my Holy Jesus... if you're two weeks in and nearly acing them with 10 extra minutes, please trust me, you will be fine. The inferences will come easier as you start to subconsciously recognize the patterns. It honestly took me 3-4 months to get where you are, and I now get between -0 and -2 on timed PrepTest LG sections. I think once you get to where you currently are, the best way to practice LG is as follows. If you:

a) Figured out the inferences, finished in time, and got 100% (or made a mistake that was obviously silly on one or two questions), you're done. Move on. Pat yourself on the back. Fuck yeah.

b) Did well in terms of accuracy but took too long: Watch JY's video and see if you missed any inferences. Usually, if a game takes too long, it's because you missed inferences up front or got hung up on one or two tricky questions. If you missed inferences, make a note on the game, then come back to it on a later day, make all the inferences from memory, make some hypothetical gameboards or something to see how the inferences really impact the remaining possible worlds, then approach the questions once you feel you REALLY understand how the game works. I took this advice to heart and it helped me so much.

c) Straight up did not understand the game after taking a substantial amount of time on the rules and doing trial and error on the questions: watch JY's video and follow along carefully as he builds his gameboard and approaches the questions. He usually finds ways to address the hardest games that seem obvious in hindsight and, more importantly, will apply to similar challenging games you will face in the future. Once you've done this and feel more confident, make a note on it, come back to it later, make the inferences from memory, and take another run at the questions.

I wish you the best of luck -- you're in a great place right now! Keep practicing each of the three sections evenly, taking practice tests under real conditions, and you are going to crush it. Cheering for you.