Summarize Argument
The author concludes that life may be able to arise under difficult conditions throughout the universe. This is based on the finding of fossilized bacteria in 3.5 billion-year-old rocks. Since these bacteria were already complex, the author draws a subsidiary conclusion that the bacteria had a long evolutionary history by the time they were fossilized. Since Earth is only 4.6 billion years old, the author believes the bacteria must have appeared shortly after the Earth was formed, when conditions were difficult. This is why the author believes live might be able to arise under difficult conditions.
Identify Argument Part
The referenced text is a subsidiary conclusion.
A
It is a claim for which no support is provided in the argument, and that is used to illustrate the conclusion of the argument as a whole.
The referenced text has support from the claim that the bacteria were quite complex.
B
It is a claim for which no support is provided in the argument, and that is used to support a claim that in turn lends support to the conclusion of the argument as a whole.
The referenced text has support from the claim that the bacteria were quite complex.
C
It is a claim for which some support is provided in the argument, and that itself is used to support another claim that in turn lends support to the conclusion of the argument as a whole.
This accurately describes the role of the referenced text. It’s a subsidiary conclusion.
D
It is a claim for which some support is provided in the argument, and that itself is not used to support any other claim in the argument.
The referenced text is used to support the claim that the first life on Earth must have appeared soon after the planet’s formation.
E
It is a claim for which some support is provided in the argument, and that itself is used to support two distinct conclusions, neither of which is intended to provide support for the other.
The referenced text does not support two distinct, unrelated conclusions. It supports the claim that the first life on Earth must have appeared soon after the planet’s formation. This claim in turn supports the last sentence. But these conclusion are not unrelated.
Summary
Psychologists have discovered that allowing flexible work schedules does not cause managers’ job satisfaction or efficiency to increase. These flexible schedules do cause job satisfaction, productivity, and attendance to increase among nonmanagerial employees. However, these benefits decrease over time and are reduced even further if schedules are too flexible.
Strongly Supported Conclusions
The benefits of flexible work schedule policies are better observed among nonmanagerial employees than among managers.
A
Implementing flexible schedules would be an effective means of increasing the job satisfaction and efficiency of managers who do not already have scheduling autonomy.
We don’t know if flexible schedules would in fact increase satisfaction and efficiency among managers. We can’t assume that the explanation given for why managers don’t reflect these benefits is true, it is only suggested as one possible explanation.
B
Flexible-schedule policies should be expected to improve the morale of some individual employees but not the overall morale of a company’s workforce.
We don’t know if flexible schedule policies would not improve the overall morale of a company. We could reasonable assume that overall morale would improve if the morale of the nonmanagerial workforce improves.
C
Flexible schedules should be expected to substantially improve a company’s productivity and employee satisfaction in the long run.
We don’t know if flexible schedule policies improve satisfaction in the long run. We are told that the benefits of these policies decrease over time.
D
There is little correlation between managers’ job satisfaction and their ability to set their own work schedules.
We don’t know if there is in fact little correlation between these two ideas. The explanation offered for why managers don’t experience increased job satisfaction or efficiency is only one possible explanation.
E
The typical benefits of flexible-schedule policies cannot be reliably inferred from observations of the effects of such policies on managers.
The effects of flexible schedule policies cannot be observed among managers because these managers did not experience an increase in job satisfaction or efficiency. On the other hand, nonmanagerial employees did see increases in these areas.
Summarize Argument: Counter-Position
Some advertising for heartburn medications is false because unrelieved heartburn is not likely to cause esophageal cancer. In reality, only about 5 percent of people with severe heartburn have a condition that raises the risk of cancer. So, only about 5 percent of people—those with this condition—are at a higher risk of developing cancer due to heartburn.
Identify Conclusion
The conclusion is the author’s contention that some heartburn medications are falsely advertised because it is not true that unrelieved heartburn is likely to cause esophageal cancer.
A
Only those people with Barrett’s esophagus can suffer an increased risk of developing cancer from heartburn.
This is a premise. The stimulus notes that only 5% of people—those with Barrett's esophagus—have a higher risk of cancer to support the conclusion that heartburn isn’t "likely" to increase the risk of cancer. If only 5% of people are at risk, it’s unlikely for the average person.
B
An increase in the risk of esophageal cancer arises from cells similar to those in the stomach’s lining developing in the lower esophagus.
This is a premise. It provides background on a condition called Barrett's esophagus, which the author mentions to support her conclusion. Since readers may be unfamiliar with Barrett’s esophagus, this claim gives them the information needed to follow the author’s argument.
C
Unrelieved heartburn is not likely to cause esophageal cancer.
This accurately states the main conclusion. The author argues that some heartburn-medication ads are untrue because unrelieved heartburn is not likely to cause esophageal cancer. Since only 5% of people are at risk, the average person is not "likely" to have an increased risk.
D
Some heartburn-medication advertisements imply that unrelieved heartburn is likely to cause esophageal cancer.
This is context. The claim that some heartburn-medication ads imply unrelieved heartburn is likely to cause esophageal cancer helps explain the author's argument, which concludes that this advertising is false since heartburn only increases cancer risk in about 5% of people.
E
The dangers touted by heartburn-medication advertisements will affect relatively few of the people who see those advertisements.
The stimulus doesn’t make this claim. A premise states that only 5% of people will have a higher risk of esophageal cancer from heartburn but doesn’t suggest that only 5% of people who see the ads have this condition. People with the condition may be more likely to see the ads.