PrepTest 16 - Section 3 - Question 2 | Explanation & Discussion

Hide analysis

Support Despite the best efforts of astronomers, no one has yet succeeded in exchanging messages with intelligent life on other planets or in other solar systems. ██ █████ ██ ███ ███ ████ ███████ ██ █████ ████ ███ ████ ██ ████████████████ ████ ███████ █████ █████ ██ ███████ ██ ███████████ ████ ████████ ███ ██ ██████

Summary: Flawed Argument

The author points out that astronomers haven't succeeded in communicating with intelligent life on other planets or in other solar systems, and that no one has proved that extraterrestrial life exists. The author therefore concludes that intelligent life only exists on Earth.

The argument’s reasoning is flawed ███████ ███ ████████

Question Type

Flaw or descriptive weakening

This is a pretty classic and straightforward flaw pattern. Absence of evidence isn't evidence of absence: just because no one has yet communicated with intelligent life elsewhere in the universe, or somehow "proved" it exists, doesn't mean that it doesn't exist.

fails to consider ████ █████ █████ ██ ████████████████ █████ ██ ████████████ ████ ███ ███ ██████ ██████

Incorrect. The flaw in the argument isn't that it fails to consider the possibility of nonliving intelligence (whatever that means). The flaw is that it confuses the lack of evidence for intelligent extraterrestrial life with proof that such life doesn't exist.

confuses an absence ██ ████████ ███ █ ██████████ ████ ███ █████████ ██ ████████ ███████ ███ ██████████

Correct. This is the flaw we pre-phrased.

99%

interprets a disagreement ████ █ ██████████ ██████ ██ █ ████████ ██ ████ ██████

Incorrect. The author doesn't talk about disagreement over the theory that intelligent extraterrestrial life exists, only about the lack of evidence for that theory.

makes an inference ████ ██████ ██ ███ █████████ ██ ███ ████ ██████████

Incorrect. The argument doesn't rely on the vagueness of the term "life".

relies on a ████ ███████ ██████ ████ ██ ████████ ██ ████ █ ██████████

PrepTest 16 - Section 3 - Question 2

Difficulty

Analysis

Answer Popularity

Question history

Confirm action