LSAT 138 – Section 4 – Question 02

LSAT 138 - Section 4 - Question 02

December 2012

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT138 S4 Q02
+LR
+Exp
Method of reasoning or descriptive +Method
Causal Reasoning +CausR
A
1%
152
B
1%
151
C
1%
154
D
0%
152
E
97%
164
125
133
142
 +Easiest 146.393 +SubsectionMedium

All the books in the library have their proper shelf locations recorded in the catalog. The book Horatio wants is missing from its place on the library shelves, and no one in the library is using it. Since it is not checked out to a borrower nor awaiting shelving nor part of a special display, it must have been either misplaced or stolen.

Summarize Argument: Phenomenon-Hypothesis
The author hypothesizes that the book Horatio wants must have been either misplaced or stolen. He supports this by saying that the book is missing from its place on the shelf and no one in the library is using it. It also isn’t checked out to a borrower, awaiting shelving, or part of a special display.

Describe Method of Reasoning
The author supports his hypothesis that the book in question was either misplaced or stolen by eliminating alternative explanations for its absence from the shelf.

A
An observation about one object is used as a basis for a general conclusion regarding the status of similar objects.
The author does use an observation about the book Horatio wants, but he uses it to draw a specific conclusion about that same book, not a general conclusion about similar books.
B
A deficiency in a system is isolated by arguing that the system failed to control one of the objects that it was intended to control.
The author doesn't claim that the library system is deficient or that it failed to control the book. He simply argues that, since the book is missing and other explanations for its absence have been ruled out, it must have been misplaced or stolen.
C
A conclusion about a particular object is rebutted by observing that a generalization that applies to most such objects does not apply to the object in question.
The author never rebuts any conclusion about the book; he draws a conclusion by eliminating alternative explanations. He also doesn’t apply any generalizations about most books to the particular book that Horatio wants.
D
A generalization is rejected by showing that it fails to hold in one particular instance.
The author never rejects a generalization, nor does he show that a generalization fails to hold in the particular instance of the missing book. Instead, he supports a particular conclusion about the book.
E
The conclusion is supported by ruling out other possible explanations of an observed fact.
The author supports his conclusion by ruling out other possible explanations of the book's absence. Since no one is using it, it isn't checked out, waiting to be shelved, or part of a display, he concludes that it must have been misplaced or stolen.

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LSAT PrepTest 138 Explanations

Section 1 - Reading Comprehension

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Logical Reasoning

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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