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tlpalmer98138

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Lessons · Other Formal Arguments

tlpalmer98138

Friday, Oct 25 2024

C->EW means all cats eat watermelon.

Very different than C m->W which means most cats eat watermelon.

I wasn’t trying to be a jerk, but her lawgic translation was off. Most is not interchangeable with all.

Lessons · You Try - Chicxulub Crater (W)

tlpalmer98138

Wednesday, Oct 23 2024

Probably definitely lowers the bar needed to prove the conclusion of an argument since it factors in some room for error.

But, I actually don't think probably ends up being a major player here in this question. It is good to keep an eye out for though, because it will be an issue in future questions!

All I was saying is that stating that "a number" of dinosaurs clearly died because of the asteroid is not sufficient to prove "most" of the worlds dinosaurs died from the asteroid.

The mystery "number" of fossils we are looking for in Answer choice C has just as much of a chance of being less than half than it does of being more than half. In order for C to have a chance of being right, you have to make an unwarranted assumption that the number is more than half, which is not supported by the stimulus in any way.

PrepTests ·

PT125.S2.Q18

tlpalmer98138

Monday, Oct 21 2024

Super late on this, but I wish people would have explained to you how much more flexible unless is than it seems based on previous answers.

Unless belongs to the "negate sufficient" group. Meaning you choose either of your conditions, put it in the sufficient condition slot, and then slap a negation on it.

"If not" is a great way to think of it as others have mentioned. But, again you can freely choose which condition you make your sufficient so long as you don't forget to add the negation.

So, if one of your conditions has a negation already built into it, you can target that condition as your sufficient condition to get rid of the negation. This is helpful if you struggle with negations in your head.

Ex. I am going to the beach unless I don't get into law school

If you struggle with negations, I'd practice targeting the already negated condition "don't get into law school" to put in your sufficient slot. Since unless requires you to put another negation on your sufficient condition, now that negation goes away entirely.

law school -> beach

LSAT · Should we skip the Logic Games curriculum

tlpalmer98138

Sunday, Oct 20 2024

Please do not waste your time. The LG curriculum is totally unnecessary for diagramming conditional statements.

Spend the extra time drilling or taking PTs after you finish the new 7Sage curriculum.

PrepTests ·

PT109.S1.Q21

tlpalmer98138

Friday, Oct 18 2024

Hmmm. Like most other people here, the "every" quantifier threw me off the trail here. I thought it was too strong/broad here and quickly eliminated it like I would in a necessary assumption question.

But the more I think about it, the "every" quantifier is actually what makes it such an appealing answer choice. Almost to the point where it is nearly a necessary element. Imagine if the answer choice said "some" instead.

Since this is PSA, it might still pass as the right answer depending on how bad the other answer choices are, but if this was an SA question, using a weaker quantifier like "some" would absolutely cook that answer choice.

In that hypothetical, the principle only applies to "some" arguments. Now, the principle only has teeth if we make the unwarranted assumption that the argument in the stimulus falls inside that "some" subset.

Lessons · Example Essay #2: Commentary

tlpalmer98138

Saturday, Oct 05 2024

I just took a mock writing test on LSAC's lawhub. In the instructions section before the test, it says the following:

*In your essay, you should demonstrate your ability to:

- Clearly state a position on the issue and analyze the relationship between that position and one or more of the other perspectives.

Since it is explicitly mentioned in the LSAC's official instructions, I take this to mean that we are expected to work in at least one perspective. Beyond that, I doubt you are going to get extra points for each perspective you incorporate.

Also, for anyone wondering, the instructions also explicitly state that a strong response will address one or more counterarguments to your stated position.

PrepTests ·

PT149.S4.Q11

tlpalmer98138

Sunday, Sep 29 2024

PrepTests ·

PT149.S4.Q11

tlpalmer98138

Sunday, Sep 29 2024

So, giving full credit where it is due, LSAT Lab on YouTube uses a term for this type of flaw that makes perfect sense for this type of situation IMO... No shade to J.Y.

LSAT Lab calls this an unproven vs. proven false flaw. Just because the opposing argument is not convincing or not supported by the premises does not mean that their conclusion is automatically wrong. It just means that the jury is still out!

EX. Bringing up the point that humans have not yet discovered alien life is not, on its own, able to refute the conclusion that aliens exist. It just means we don't know until better evidence to refute the conclusion is discovered.

PrepTests ·

PT150.S3.Q3

tlpalmer98138

Sunday, Sep 29 2024

So glad I was not the only one that eliminated B because I thought normal levels of fuel efficiency was an unwarranted assumption. Don't let it get you down!

General · Drop After Core Curriculum

tlpalmer98138

Sunday, Sep 29 2024

I definitely do not think you wasted your time! The curriculum is great info and I doubt it could ever cause you harm, so please don't look at it that way.

Are all other factors constant between your -6ish sections when you started vs. now that you are done with the curriculum? Were they timed before and are they timed now?

Timing pressure can add a lot of additional stress at first that can make your scores drop. It will take a little bit of time to get your pace down to where you don't feel anxious to rush through the questions.

Are you flagging questions you are not 100% about and meticulously going through them in blind review after?

One or two bad PTs or a bad drilling day every once in a while is not uncommon to my understanding. My first timed PT was considerably worse than the rest. It's OK, you are not doomed to repeat a bad day.

You may be getting burnt out! Maybe take a day or two to relax and reset and then approach it with a clear head.

PrepTests ·

PT104.S3.P4.Q22

tlpalmer98138

Tuesday, Sep 24 2024

I am glad I came across this passage before test day. It threw me COMPLETELY off kilter when I was reading it during a drill. I was so conditioned to expect that the subject of discussion would come out of the first paragraph and without a good understanding of "the uncanny" that I was missing the main point of the passage. Typically, at least for me, the first paragraph is a make or break moment with passages.

But this is a good example of how the subject does not always have to come out of the first paragraph and, sometimes, you just need more context by reading further. Not to mention that this reinforces the salient point that on test day you need to do your best to understand and keep moving.

J.Y. brings up another great point when he reminded us that the purpose of the passage is just to help us answer the questions. We do not need to understand each little detail unless the questions ask that of us. While this passage was ridiculously dense, the questions were almost laughably easy. Kevin Lin mentions this concept in the new RC curriculum.

I am going to remember this passage as a reminder to control my sense of confusion on test day and try my best to just forge a path forward.

LSAT

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Tuesday, Sep 24 2024

tlpalmer98138

Best RC tips, especially for implied questions?

Taking the October LSAT here in a week. Nervous, like most, but I am confident in the time and work I have put in. Five of my six PTs are at or above my goal score so I'm just hoping for consistency.

I actually feel pretty comfortable with LR at this point. Not too surprising considering how great the new curriculum is and how long it spends going over every question type. RC is a totally different story. If they are easier passages I can score as well as a - 3, but more often than not I am struggling to finish all four passages and ending up anywhere from -7 to -12. I will try working on that this week by just drilling as much as I can.

According to analytics, a huge area of emphasis for me is implied questions. Maybe it's easily explainable due to me consistently not finishing passages, but any advice/tips are greatly appreciated considering how frequently these question types come up on the test.

P.S. If you are taking the October LSAT, good luck! Just apply what you have learned and see where it takes you. Don't let this test take control of you, even if you start off with a rocky section. You CAN bounce back.

PrepTests ·

PT139.S1.Q22

tlpalmer98138

Monday, Sep 23 2024

I wonder if changing the some quantifier in answer choice D to most would have made it a viable weakening answer?

I knew I needed to attack where the sample size was coming from, but I came at it from the wrong direction. I was looking for an answer that explained that, even though most of the best sales reps were engineers with no sales experience, a majority of engineers with no sales experience employed by the company are not good at the job.

In other words, yes, 8 of our 10 best sales employees are engineers with no sales experience, but we have hired 100 others that were awful. That would not be a convincing ratio.

Lessons · Checkpoint - How are you feeling about the Core Curriculum?

tlpalmer98138

Wednesday, Sep 18 2024

Speaking to you from the future here. Not sure when your test is, but try and make as much time as you can in your schedule to adequately cover the curriculum. You shouldn't rush it if you can afford not to. The good news is that once you do finish the curriculum your schedule will become a lot more flexible.

Once you finish the curriculum there is not much else to do other than simply drill and take PTs. That process is so much smoother if you have a solid foundation on the question types. Otherwise, you will likely just end up going back to the curriculum later.

PrepTests ·

PT101.S1.P2.Q10

tlpalmer98138

Tuesday, Sep 17 2024

C is not what the passage is all about. Young people are mentioned in paragraph 2, where it mentions young Koreans who were traditionally alienated from their Korean roots were able to close the gap with older generations of Koreans due to the rallying cause of the Pico Unionists.

I don't believe young people specifically are mentioned anywhere else outside of this context. Be careful with subsets in both LR and RC!

Another reason why C is wrong is it specifically says most successfully mobilize. It is easy to glance over, but using the qualifier most makes this a very strong claim! You better make sure you have support from the passage that would allow you to make the inference that there is not a more effective means of mobilizing said young people.

Lessons · YOU TRY: Main Point Question (Late Heavy Bombardment)

tlpalmer98138

Monday, Sep 16 2024

Thank you, sir!

General · Drilling vs. PTing (Short Timeline)

tlpalmer98138

Monday, Sep 16 2024

Drilling and curriculum lessons are probably more important if you have not mastered the question types. Don't forget to take advantage of blind review though! The curriculum covers this at the end, but I try to bookmark every question that I am not 100% sure why the right answer is right (in other words, taking an educated guess).

Before I score a drill section or PT, I go back over these questions without the timing constraint and see if I can understand why the right answer choice is correct, and each wrong answer choice is incorrect. I use the orange highlighter to specifically highlight the part of the wrong answer that made it incorrect (e.g. using a most quantifier when it should have been all, etc.)

Start untimed, and then gradually add more time constraints. You have to become comfortable with that constant duress of being timed or you will be prone to panic when you take the real thing. This is why the PTs are important too. Pacing really does matter a lot, and so does knowing when to skip a question and come back if you have extra time.

If you can squeeze it in, I would recommend taking 1-3 PTs before October though. It is a grind, but it's very possible to take two PTs in a weekend! You just have to accept that you won't be doing anything else on those days.

Good luck, friend.

PrepTests ·

PT131.S3.Q19

tlpalmer98138

Tuesday, Sep 10 2024

It took me so long to get this, but I think them using the quantifier all is very intentional. The conclusion tells us that all babies do not know the dictionary definitions of some of the words they utter. Which means they know the dictionary definition for at least one word.

Therefore, if the answer choice said babies understood anything less than all (e.g. some), then we would not have been able to rule out the possibility that the "some" quantity of words the babies understood is the same "some" quantity of words that they also had the definition too.

Really tricky question! Not sure if I would have been able to process all that in a timed scenario.

LSAT · Best study strategy for approaching LSAT

tlpalmer98138

Monday, Sep 09 2024

Are you using the blind review process for your drills and PTs that has been outlined in the curriculum? This lets you go back and look at every question after you finish so you can take a second look without the time constraints to see if you think you chose the right answer.

The hope is ideally that you should be able to catch most, if not all, of the mistakes you made in your drills/PTs in blind review. This tells you that you have the fundamental building blocks in place to understand why a right answer is right and the wrong answers are wrong. If this isn't clicking, you are probably better off carving out more time in your day to revisit the curriculum and rewatch some videos. I make it a point in blind review to point out at least one reason why EVERY wrong answer choice is wrong. This is a serious time commitment but has been so helpful.

Timing is, of course, an issue that all of us deal with and just have to rely on practice and repetition to help us speed up. Especially with RC. Overall, the consensus advice that I see online is the only way to get faster at these is just to do more of them. Also, get better at translating abstract concepts into real world examples as you read to help yourself from getting bogged down in a particularly dense passage.

Mastering this test is a SERIOUS time commitment. I would highly advise you to not take the test before you are ready if you can help it. I initially intended to sign up for the September LSAT, and being honest with myself and pushing my test back a month was, by far, the best decision I made. I have been studying since mid-June and I am only now starting to feel prepared to kick my PTs and drilling into high gear to get ready for the October LSAT.

As someone else suggested, sign up for the November test as a backup as well. As an October test taker, I will be doing the same!

Lessons · You Try - DNA as Admissible Evidence

tlpalmer98138

Sunday, Sep 08 2024

Hang in there. Don’t let this question get you down. The curriculum works and your hard work will pay off.

PrepTests ·

PT106.S3.Q24

tlpalmer98138

Saturday, Sep 07 2024

Full disclosure that I chose C as well. But, after watching the video and looking back at the stimulus with a fresh set of eyes, I realize I totally ignored a large part of the author's conclusion. The conclusion is about false attributions (major artists taking ownership for something that is not theirs.)

Your logic was pretty much the same as mine - that the reasoning for the disproportionate amount of major art pieces is easily explained by asserting that a lot of the minor ones are no longer in existence. If you edited the author's conclusion, you could definitely make a version of the stimulus that would fit this explanation.

BUT, the question is asking us to STRENGTHEN the author's argument. D is the only answer that fits the author's conclusion. C does, as you stated, introduce a very plausible alternate hypothesis to the phenomena, but an alternate hypotheses would WEAKEN the argument. Because now the author's conclusion is now unsupported.

I hope this helps.

Lessons · Describe Organization Question (Broadcasting)

tlpalmer98138

Monday, Sep 02 2024

Some times you need to slow down in order to speed up. Slow down and practice really picking the passage apart. Give it time.

From my perspective, you should be encouraged that you are getting the answers right once you have gotten a good grasp on what the passage is saying! I would be far more worried if you were getting them wrong even after you had taken a significant amount of time to dissect the passage.

I just started these, and I am struggling too. It genuinely takes me 30 minutes to do a drill with two passages. But, at the same time I am getting two, maybe 3 questions wrong in a two-passage drill. That is encouraging to me because it shows me at least I have a good understanding of what the question stems are asking me for and I can identify the right answer.

Lessons · YOU TRY: Main Point Question (Late Heavy Bombardment)

tlpalmer98138

Monday, Sep 02 2024

How would we best describe the relationship and differences between summary and main point questions?

I understand we have made the distinction that a summary of the passage is NOT the same as the main point point of the passage, even though a main point answer can include some elements of a summary as long as it focuses on the main perspective.

What about if we were given a summary question? Does a summary HAVE to include the main point to be accurate? If so, should we be treating summary and main point questions as being more or less the same in that our goal is looking for the main point in both?

#help

Lessons · Phen-Hypo Passage, Paragraph 3 (Late Heavy Bombardment)

tlpalmer98138

Monday, Sep 02 2024

In this case, I would encourage you to not think this deeply into it!

The author told us explicitly the Mars rock is evidence of Mars experiencing the LHB. I would take their word for it unless we are deliberately asked to call into question that specific phenomena.

In that case, then could you start introducing alternate hypotheses and causal factors.

Lessons · YOU TRY: Meaning in Context Question (Natives and Cameras)

tlpalmer98138

Saturday, Aug 31 2024

ME2 is worth the buildup.