LSAT 143 – Section 4 – Question 01

LSAT 143 - Section 4 - Question 01

June 2015

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT143 S4 Q01
+LR
+Exp
Most strongly supported +MSS
Principle +Princ
Causal Reasoning +CausR
Rule-Application +RuleApp
Net Effect +NetEff
A
2%
155
B
0%
145
C
1%
154
D
0%
155
E
96%
164
123
132
142
 +Easiest 146.108 +SubsectionMedium

Among Trinidadian guppies, males with large spots are more attractive to females than are males with small spots, who consequently are presented with less frequent mating opportunities. Yet guppies with small spots are more likely to avoid detection by predators, so in waters where predators are abundant only guppies with small spots live to maturity.

Summary
Male Trinidadian guppies with large spots are more attractive to females than males with small spots, who have fewer chances to mate. However, small-spotted guppies are better at avoiding predators, so in areas with many predators, only the small-spotted ones survive to maturity.

A trait that helps an organism in one situation (such as mating) might harm it in a different situation.
Some seemingly advantageous traits may ultimately have negative consequences in certain environments.

A
A trait that helps attract mates is sometimes more dangerous to one sex than to another.
Unsupported. The stimulus discusses the effects of spot size among male guppies, but does not discuss spot size among female guppies. So we do not know whether this trait is more dangerous to one sex than to another.
B
Those organisms that are most attractive to the opposite sex have the greatest number of offspring.
Unsupported. Large-spotted guppies are more attractive to females and thus have more frequent mating opportunities, but they are less likely to live to maturity in waters with many predators. We do not know whether they have the greatest number of offspring.
C
Those organisms that survive the longest have the greatest number of offspring.
Unsupported. Small-spotted guppies are more likely to live to maturity in waters with many predators, but they are also less attractive to females and thus have less frequent mating opportunities. We do not know which kind of guppy has the greatest number of offspring.
D
Whether a trait is harmful to the organisms of a species can depend on which sex possesses it.
Unsupported. Like answer choice A, the stimulus does not discuss spot size among female guppies. So we do not know whether this trait is more harmful to one sex than to another.
E
A trait that is helpful to procreation can also hinder it in certain environments.
Strongly supported. The stimulus closely conforms to this generalization because it shows that large spots among guppies are helpful in mating but harmful in waters with many predators.

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LSAT PrepTest 143 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Reading Comprehension

Section 3 - Logical Reasoning

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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