Summarize Argument
The task force recommends an arrangement where climbers forfeit money to the government if they need rescuing. Why? Because mountain climbing is dangerous, and rescuing mountain climbers cost the government almost 3 million dollars in one year.
Notable Assumptions
The task force assumes the proposed agreement will either create an incentive strong enough to reduce the number of mountain climbers, thus reducing the number who die or need rescuing, or raise enough money to pay for those rescues. They assume it should be the responsibility of a mountain climber to pay for their own rescue, rather than the government.
A
Taxpayers should not subsidize a freely chosen hobby and athletic endeavor of individuals.
This principle supports the proposal, which would shift the financial burden of mountain climbing rescues from taxpayers to the climbers.
B
The government is obliged to take measures to deter people from risking their lives.
This principle supports the proposal, which creates a strong financial incentive against dangerous climbing by making climbers pay for their own evacuations.
C
For physically risky sports the government should issue permits only to people who have had at least minimal training in the sport.
This principle doesn’t apply. There’s no indication the proposal in question is available only to those with some training in mountain climbing.
D
Citizens who use publicly subsidized rescue services should be required to pay more toward the cost of these services than citizens who do not.
This principle supports the proposal, which would make mountain climbers who use public rescue services pay more for those services than people who don’t.
E
People who engage in physically risky behavior that is not essential to anyone’s welfare should be held responsible for the cost of treating any resulting injuries.
This principle supports the proposal, which would make risk-taking mountain climbers who suffer “calamity” and need government help—such as rescuing and medical care—responsible for the cost of that help.
Summary
Among adults in country X, most consume an increasing amount of fat as they get older. For example, at 30, they eat less fat than at 40, and at 40, they east less fat then at 50. But for almost all adults in country X, the percentage of fat in a person’s diet stays the same throughout adulthood.
Strongly Supported Conclusions
If the amount of fat increases with age, but the percentage of one’s diet that is fat stays the same, that implies the overall amount of food eaten must increase with age. For example, let’s say fat is 10% of one’s diet. If you eat 200 grams of fat at 30 years old, that means you’re eating 2000 grams overall. Let’s say at 40 years old you eat 300 grams of fat; that means you’re eating 3000 grams overall.
A
They generally consume more fat than do people of the same age in other countries.
Unsupported. We don’t know anything about other countries besides country X.
B
They generally eat more when they are older than they did earlier in their adulthood.
Strongly supported. If the amount of fat eaten increases with age, but the proportion of fat in one’s diet stays the same, that means the overall amount eaten must increase.
C
They generally have diets that contain a lower percentage of fat than do the diets of children in country X.
Unsupported. We don’t know anything about children in country X.
D
They tend to eat more varied kinds of food as they become older.
Unsupported. Although the stimulus implies that the adults eat more food as they get older, that doesn’t mean they’re eating different kinds of food. They might just eat the same foods, but more of it.
E
They tend to lose weight as they become older.
Unsupported. We can infer that adults in the country eat more as they get older, but that doesn’t imply they lose weight as they get older. If anything, that could suggest they gain weight as they get older.