LSAT 122 – Section 1 – Question 05

LSAT 122 - Section 1 - Question 05

June 2006

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT122 S1 Q05
+LR
+Exp
Main conclusion or main point +MC
Causal Reasoning +CausR
Sampling +Smpl
Math +Math
A
2%
156
B
79%
164
C
17%
157
D
2%
155
E
1%
152
134
146
158
 +Medium 146.495 +SubsectionMedium

Statistician: Two major studies found no causal link between medical procedure X and disorder Y, but these studies are flawed. One study looked at 1,000 people who had undergone procedure X and the other study looked at 1,100 people who had undergone procedure X. But because disorder Y occurs in only .02 percent of the population, researchers would need to include many more than 1,100 people in a study to detect even a doubling of the rate of disorder Y.

Summarize Argument: Counter-Position
The statistician identifies a problem with two studies. The studies are flawed because their sample sizes are too small to provide useful data, based on how rarely disorder Y actually occurs.

Identify Conclusion
The conclusion is the statistician’s criticism of the studies: “these studies are flawed.”

A
Contrary to the findings of two major studies, there is reason to think that procedure X causes disorder Y.
The statistician doesn’t go so far as to make this claim. He merely claims that the studies are flawed, without taking a position on whether or not procedure X actually does cause disorder Y.
B
Two studies that discovered no causal link between procedure X and disorder Y are unsound.
This is a good paraphrase of the conclusion. “Unsound” and “flawed” both get at the same point: the studies are unreliable.
C
Researchers should conduct more-extensive studies of procedure X to determine whether the procedure is causally linked with disorder Y.
The statistician never recommends any course of action for researchers. He also doesn’t suggest that, in general, studies of procedure X and disorder Y aren’t extensive enough. He merely notes that these two particular studies aren’t extensive enough.
D
The two studies cited did not reach a conclusion as to whether disorder Y results from procedure X.
This is contradicted by the statistician’s claim at the top of the stimulus. He acknowledges that the two studies reached a conclusion: they concluded that there was no causal link. He then goes on to explain why those studies’ conclusion is flawed.
E
Despite the opinions of many medical experts, it has not been established that there is a causal link between procedure X and disorder Y.
The statistician doesn’t consider the opinions of “many medical experts,” so such opinions can't be involved in his conclusion. Also, he only considers the findings of these two studies—he doesn’t suggest what has or hasn’t been established outside those studies.

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LSAT PrepTest 122 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Reading Comprehension

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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