LSAT 140 – Section 1 – Question 12

LSAT 140 - Section 1 - Question 12

December 2013

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT140 S1 Q12
+LR
Strengthen +Streng
Causal Reasoning +CausR
Link Assumption +LinkA
A
9%
161
B
57%
166
C
29%
164
D
3%
159
E
2%
156
139
159
179
 +Harder 148.137 +SubsectionMedium

J.Y.’s explanation

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Video of JY doing this

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Climatologist: Over the coming century, winter temperatures are likely to increase in the Rocky Mountains due to global warming. This will cause a greater proportion of precipitation to fall as rain instead of snow. Therefore, the mountain snowpack will probably melt more rapidly and earlier in the season, leading to greater spring flooding and less storable water to meet summer demands.

Summarize Argument
The author concludes that the mountain snowpack in the Rocky Mountains will probably melt more rapidly and earlier in the season, which will lead to greater spring flooding and less storable ater to meet summer demands. This is based on the fact that winter temperatures are likely to increase in the Rocky Mountains, and this will lead to a greater proportion of precipitation to fall as rain instead of snow.

Notable Assumptions
The author assumes that when a greater proportion of precipitation falls as rain instead of snow, that will cause the mountain snowpack to melt faster and earlier in the season. The author also assumes that faster and earlier melting of a snowpack will lead to more spring flooding and less storable water.

A
Global warming will probably cause a substantial increase in the average amount of annual precipitation in the Rocky Mountains over the coming century.
This tells us the overall amount of precipitation will increase. But that has nothing to do with the relative proportion of rain vs. snow, which we already know about. The premise isn’t about amount, it’s about proportion of rain vs. snow.
B
In other mountainous regions after relatively mild winters, the melting of snowpacks has led to greater spring flooding and less storable water, on average, than in those mountainous regions after colder winters.
This give us examples of what the author predicts in the conclusion. The fact (B) is about other mountainous regions doesn’t make it irrelevant. It’s still evidence that after a warmer winter, snowpacks will melt faster/earlier, leading to more flooding and less storable water.
C
On average, in areas of the Rocky Mountains in which winters are relatively mild, there is less storable water to meet summer demands than there is in areas of the Rocky Mountains that experience colder winters.
This doesn’t help establish that mountain snowpacks will melt faster and earlier. It also doesn’t involve the same region after a warmer than usual winter. Contrast that with (B), which does involve a comparison within the same region after a warmer winter.
D
On average, in the regions of the world with the mildest winters, there is more spring flooding and less storable water than in regions of the world with much colder winters.
This concerns regions of the world with the “mildest” winters. But we’re interested in what happens to a region when it has a milder than normal winter. This isn’t necessarily the “mildest.” (D) also doesn’t help establish snowpacks will melt faster and earlier.
E
The larger a mountain snowpack is, the greater the amount of spring flooding it is likely to be responsible for producing.
This creates a relationship between the size of a snowpack and the amount of flooding. But the premises don’t suggest the snowpack will be larger. The author predicts that the snowpack will melt faster and earlier because of the precipitation’s proportion of rain vs. snow.

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LSAT PrepTest 140 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Logical Reasoning

Section 4 - Reading Comprehension

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