LSAT 133 – Section 1 – Question 09

LSAT 133 - Section 1 - Question 09

June 2011

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Question QuickView	Type	Tags	Answer Choices	Curve	Question Difficulty	Psg/Game/S Difficulty	Explanation
PT133 S1 Q09	+LR	Inference +Inf Math +Math	A 2% 157 B 1% 156 C 7% 156 D 85% 164 E 4% 155	138 147 155	+Medium	146.357 +SubsectionMedium

Computer scientist: For several decades, the number of transistors on new computer microchips, and hence the microchips’ computing speed, has doubled about every 18 months. However, from the mid-1990s into the next decade, each such doubling in a microchip’s computing speed was accompanied by a doubling in the cost of producing that microchip.

Summary

For several decades, the number of transistors on computer microchips has doubled every 18 months.

For several decades, microchips’ computing speed has also doubled every 18 months.

From the mid-1990s into the next decade, the cost of producing a microchip doubled each time the microchip’s computing speed doubled.

Very Strongly Supported Conclusions

From the mid-1990s into the next decade, the cost of producing a microchip doubled every 18 months.

From the mid-1990s into the next decade, the cost of producing a microchip doubled each time the number of transistors on a microchip doubled.

The only effective way to double the computing speed of computer microchips is to increase the number of transistors per microchip.

Unsupported. Doubling the number of transistors on a microchip is one effective way to double the computing speed of that microchip, but it’s not necessarily the only effective way.

From the mid-1990s into the next decade, there was little if any increase in the retail cost of computers as a result of the increased number of transistors on microchips.

Unsupported. We don’t know anything about how the retail cost of computers was affected by the increased number of transistors. We only know that, during this time period, the production cost of microchips doubled each time the number of transistors doubled.

For the last several decades, computer engineers have focused on increasing the computing speed of computer microchips without making any attempt to control the cost of producing them.

Unsupported. Just because microchip production costs increased from the mid-1990s into the next decade doesn’t mean that engineers made no effort to control those costs.

From the mid-1990s into the next decade, a doubling in the cost of fabricating new computer microchips accompanied each doubling in the number of transistors on those microchips.

Very strongly supported. During this time, production costs doubled each time a microchip’s speed doubled, and speed doubled each time the number of transistors doubled, so we know that production costs doubled each time the number of transistors doubled.

It is unlikely that engineers will ever be able to increase the computing speed of microchips without also increasing the cost of producing them.

Unsupported. Just because production costs doubled with microchip speed in the 90s doesn’t mean engineers can’t increase computing speed without raising costs in the future.

LSAT 133 – Section 1 – Question 09

LSAT 133 - Section 1 - Question 09

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LSAT PrepTest 133 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Logical Reasoning

Section 4 - Reading Comprehension

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