Diagramming Sufficient Assumption Qs?

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• 1 Like

  Alex Alum Member ⭐

  January 2018 23929 karma

  @"paulmv.benthem" said:
  So, I'm currently completing the sufficient assumption section of the CC, and I have a question about diagramming. When I'm currently doing the practice problems and problem sets, I find that I am most successful (95% and <1min) with these questions when I simply focus on the passage and be clear in my mind where the gap is in the argument, without drawing any diagrams, and then move onto the choices.

  From those who have completed a strong number of PTs, is this setting myself up for failure when I encounter more difficult or more "unusual" questions of this type on tests? I did spend quite chunk of time working through the logic sections of the CC, so I know I am working through some of proper process in my head...but, should I be concerned about my head failing me for some of the more taxing/complex questions?

  As always, any thoughts are appreciated!

  I think as long as you can diagram the harder ones if need be, you'll be absolutely fine. To be honest, I can't remember the last time I diagrammed an SA out on an actual PT and I think most high scorers would recommend avoiding doing so due to it being a time drain.

  I think during drills you should practice diagramming them though because it really helps instill the correct process in your mind.
• 1 Like

  BinghamtonDave Alum Member ⭐ 🍌🍌

  January 2018 8711 karma

  Hello, if you can do sufficient assumption question with no diagramming with a high degree of accuracy, fantastic. Don't fix what isn't broken.

  As for your question about where this might lead you in the future, for the most part, if your logic is that good, you will be alright in my estimation. Tough sufficient assumption questions come in essentially two forms from my experience:
  1.Tough conditional logic sufficient assumption questions: see PT 49-2-7.
  If you can answer that question with full confidence in under 45-50 seconds, to me, you're doing fantastic, the question of diagram vs. not diagram becomes immaterial at that point in my view. I personally have to diagram that question, but do it with confidence and accuracy. Notice that many sufficient assumption questions follow our valid argument forms from the CC. Diagramming to me is the equivalent to taking pictures of an engine before I decide to fix it myself, it is a quick, efficient way to make sure I have accurately recreated what is in front of me and I don't get lost.

  2.Every once in awhile we get a sufficient assumption question that is not as cookie-cutter as the others. I believe these questions come down to giving us the link in a more intuitive/not strictly conditional way in the answer choices themselves. I'm thinking here of PT 42-2-23. Here understanding conditional chains is not sufficient to get this question correct . Instead, what we are relying on here is our experience reading/following an argument's structure: other people's opinion, the link between "I observed" and a strong conclusion, running a straight forward contrapositive etc... At bottom, we are not looking for a conditional chain here where the lack of a coherent diagram might cause me to negate an element the wrong way and therefore fall for an attractive wrong answer choice: like 49-2-7, instead, we are looking for an assumption that in and of itself is not necessarily derived from our ability to read a conditional chain, but rather to understand how the author's example of the observation supports the wide ranging "never" in the conclusion.

  Now, taking it a step further, there is an even deeper element of moving away from a more "traditional" sufficient assumption question like 49-2-7 here: that is, conditionally stated, the missing linking here is: If the author observed a specific instance then that instance is representative of all such instances in the universe. The answer choice states that in a different way. Every once in awhile we are going to come across a non-traditional question like this.

  Slight tangent: we might also come across a question where we might have to combine both a conditional understanding of the argument's structure and an intuitive/not strictly conditional understanding of the argument. See here: PT 44-2-13.

  In summation, if you are doing the traditional ones without a diagram, you should be fine on those because at bottom they are all very similar. The unique ones are slightly different, but engagement with the argument here pays off. Take a look at the above examples, let me know how your approach payed off. If your approach worked: hone in on making that 95% into 99% and these questions should be banked for you come test day. If your approach did not work: slightly tweak your approach to accommodate the more unique questions.

  Hope this helps
  David
• paulmv.benthem Alum Member

  January 2018 1032 karma

  @"Alex Divine" said:
  I think during drills you should practice diagramming them though because it really helps instill the correct process in your mind.

  @"Alex Divine" Doing this make a lot of sense to me. Typically, I also find that my attempts to diagram the SA questions cause me to loose my focus on how the relationships are playing out within the passage. Occasionally, I find a crude venn diagram off to the side can help keep some of the more complex one's organized.

  Wowzers, @BinghamtonDave, thanks for the comprehensive answer. I found your comments very helpful! You mentioned that you often find yourself diagramming SA questions; do you diagram the question as you are reading it for the first time, or do you read it through once an then diagram it? When I do come across a question that, after the first couple sentence, I get the sense I will need to draw a diagram, I typically return to the beginning of the passage and draw right away. However, as a result I seem to miss some of the questions that require a more intuitive understanding of the situation being described.

  Thanks again to both of you for the help!
• 1 Like

  MattLaP323 Member

  July 2021 edited July 2021 32 karma

  @BinghamtonDave incredible breakdown! Really provided me with some much needed clarification and insight on my confusion.
• WinningHere Member

  July 2021 417 karma

  @"paulmv.benthem" has anyone ever given you advice to start from the conclusion back to premises