LSAT 132 – Section 4 – Question 07

LSAT 132 - Section 4 - Question 07

December 2010

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT132 S4 Q07
+LR
Resolve reconcile or explain +RRE
Causal Reasoning +CausR
A
4%
158
B
1%
155
C
92%
164
D
1%
150
E
1%
149
124
135
146
 +Easier 146.238 +SubsectionMedium

Researcher: Over the course of three decades, we kept records of the average beak size of two populations of the same species of bird, one wild population, the other captive. During this period, the average beak size of the captive birds did not change, while the average beak size of the wild birds decreased significantly.

"Surprising" Phenomenon

Why did the average beak size of wild birds shrink while the average beak size of captive birds stayed constant?

Objective

Any hypothesis explaining these findings must state a difference between the birds in the wild and the birds in captivity that explains why the beaks of the wild birds apparently shrunk. It may be a physical difference between the bird populations or it may be a difference in the way the birds were apprehended and measured.

A
The small-beaked wild birds were easier to capture and measure than the large-beaked wild birds.

This does not explain why the average beak size of wild birds decreased. It would explain why wild birds had smaller beaks than captive birds, but does not state that they became any less difficult to capture over time.

B
The large-beaked wild birds were easier to capture and measure than the small-beaked wild birds.

This does not explain why the average beak size of wild birds decreased. Even if more large-beaked wild birds were captured, it remains a mystery why their average beak size decreased over time.

C
Changes in the wild birds’ food supply during the study period favored the survival of small-beaked birds over large-beaked birds.

This explains why wild birds’ beaks shrunk over the study period. Birds with smaller beaks were favored by natural selection, so they became more prominent in the wild, while captive birds did not experience that change.

D
The average body size of the captive birds remained the same over the study period.

This consistency among captive birds does not explain why the wild birds’ beaks decreased in size. It is possible the average body size of wild birds remained the same as well.

E
The researcher measured the beaks of some of the wild birds on more than one occasion.

This does not explain why the wild birds’ beak measurements decreased. It is not implied that the birds measured repeatedly had beaks that were any larger or smaller than average.

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LSAT PrepTest 132 Explanations

Section 1 - Reading Comprehension

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Reading Comprehension

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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