LSAT 133 – Section 3 – Question 21

LSAT 133 - Section 3 - Question 21

June 2011

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Question QuickView	Type	Tags	Answer Choices	Curve	Question Difficulty	Psg/Game/S Difficulty	Explanation
PT133 S3 Q21	+LR	Strengthen +Streng Sampling +Smpl Link Assumption +LinkA	A 4% 158 B 63% 165 C 6% 159 D 13% 160 E 14% 159	149 158 167	+Harder	147.69 +SubsectionMedium

Chemist: The molecules of a certain weed-killer are always present in two forms, one the mirror image of the other. One form of the molecule kills weeds, while the other has no effect on them. As a result, the effectiveness of the weed-killer in a given situation is heavily influenced by which of the two forms is more concentrated in the soil, which in turn varies widely because local soil conditions will usually favor the breakdown of one form or the other. Thus, much of the data on the effects of this weed-killer are probably misleading.

Summarize Argument

The chemist concludes that the data on the weed-killer's effects is likely misleading. She supports this by saying that the weed-killer’s molecules are present in two forms: one kills weeds, while the other doesn’t. The weed-killer’s effectiveness depends on which form is more concentrated in the soil, and this can vary a lot due to local soil conditions, which usually favor the breakdown of one form or the other.

Notable Assumptions

The chemist concludes that the data is misleading without explaining how it was collected. She assumes that the research on the weed-killer fails to account for the variability in local soil, ignoring the possibility that it might have been conducted in representative local conditions.

In general, if the molecules of a weed-killer are always present in two forms, then it is likely that weeds are killed by one of those two forms but unaffected by the other.

The chemist’s conclusion is about the reliability of the data; we need an answer choice that suggests that the data is indeed misleading. (A) simply reinforces the fact that one of the weed-killer’s molecules kills weeds and the other doesn’t.

Almost all of the data on the effects of the weed-killer are drawn from laboratory studies in which both forms of the weed-killer’s molecules are equally concentrated in the soil and equally likely to break down in that soil.

This suggests that the data is indeed misleading. If the data comes from lab studies where both molecules are equally concentrated and likely to break down, it doesn't reflect how the weed-killer works in local soil, where one form usually breaks down more than the other.

Of the two forms of the weed-killer’s molecules, the one that kills weeds is found in most local soil conditions to be the more concentrated form.

Even if the weed-killing molecule is more concentrated in most local soil conditions, this tells us nothing about whether the data is misleading. Did the data account for the fact that this molecule is more concentrated in most local soil conditions?

The data on the effects of the weed-killer are drawn from studies of the weed-killer under a variety of soil conditions similar to those in which the weed-killer is normally applied.

This weakens the chemist’s argument. If the data was drawn from studies that used a variety of representative local soil conditions, then it’s less likely that the data is misleading.

Data on the weed-killer’s effects that rely solely on the examination of the effects of only one of the two forms of the weed-killer’s molecules will almost certainly be misleading.

It’s true that data that examines just one form of the molecule is likely misleading. However, we don’t know if the data in the argument makes this mistake. It might examine both forms, in which case (E) doesn’t tell us anything about its reliability.

LSAT 133 – Section 3 – Question 21

LSAT 133 - Section 3 - Question 21

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Review Results

LSAT PrepTest 133 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Logical Reasoning

Section 4 - Reading Comprehension

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