Self-study
In a study, one group of volunteers was fed a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet; another group was fed a low-protein, high-carbohydrate diet. ████ █████ █████████ ███ ████ ██████ ██ █████████ ███ ████ ███████████ ████ █████ ██ ███ ██████████ ███ █████████ ████████ ██████ ██ ████████ ███ ██████████████ █████ ███ █████ █████ ██ ███ ████████████████ ████ ███ ████ ████ ██████ ████ █████ ██ ███ █████████████████ █████ █████ ███ ████ █████████ ███ ██ ████ ████ ███ ██ ██ ███ ████ ███████ ███ ████ ██████████████
Summarize Argument: Phenomenon-Hypothesis
The author hypothesizes that the most effective way to lose body fat is to eat much protein and avoid carbohydrates. Her evidence is a study that shows that volunteers who followed a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet lost more weight after ten days than those eating low-protein, high-carbohydrate diets.
Notable Assumptions
The author looks at two alternatives and then concludes that one of these alternatives is "the most effective" way to lose body fat. This assumes that no other alternatives are relevant, like different diets or lifestyle changes like increasing exercise. The author also assumes that the weight lost in the study was body fat, and not, for example, muscle or water weight. Finally, the author assumes that ten days is enough time to judge the effectiveness of a method of losing weight.
22.
Which one of the following, ██ █████ ████ ███████ ███ ████████ ██████
a
A low-protein, high-carbohydrate ████ ██████ ███ █████ ████ ██ ██████ ██████ ███ █████ ██████ ██ █████ ███████ ███████████ ███ ███ ██████ ██ ███ ████ ███ █████ ███████ █ █████████████ ████████████████ ████ ████ ████
This weakens the author's argument. It tells us that the reason the volunteers on the low-protein, high-carb diet appeared to lose less weight was not necessarily because they didn't lose as much fat, but because they were retaining more water. This potentially invalidates the comparison that the author uses to reach her conclusion.
Alternate explanation
Alternate explanation
Weaken: Introduce or support an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
Strengthen: Helps to eliminate an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
b
Many people who ███████ █████ ██████████ ██ ███████ ████████████ ████ ███████████ ███████ ██ ████ ████
The conclusion recommends both eating much protein and shunning carbohydrates. Just knowing that some people eat much protein and still gain body fat doesn't weaken this claim. It's possible these people gain weight because they eat lots of carbohydrates as well.
Illusory inconsistency
Illusory inconsistency
Answer is attractive because it seems to (but doesn't actually) contradict the premises or conclusion.
c
A high-protein, low-carbohydrate ████ ████ █████ ██████ ███ █████ ████ ██ ███████ ████ ████ ███ ████ ███████ ███████ ███████ ███ ███████████ ███████ ██████ █████
The conclusion is about losing fat, not losing weight generally. This answer choice doesn't weaken the argument, it just explains another way for a high-protein, low-carb diet to help people lose fat.
d
In the experiment, ███ ██████████ ██ ███ █████████████████ ████ ███████ ██ ███████ ████████ ██ █ ████ █████ ██ ███████ ██████ █████ ███ █████ ██ ███ ████████████████ ████ ███ ████
If anything, this strengthens the author’s argument. The high-carbohydrate volunteers were exercising and yet still didn’t lose as much weight as the high-protein volunteers.
Directionally wrong
Directionally wrong
Answers that, if they have any effect, do the opposite of what we want (weaken when we're trying to strengthen, or strengthen when we're trying to weaken).
e
Many of the ██████████ ███ ███ ████ ██ ███ ████████████████ ████ ██████████ ████████ ████ ██ ███ ██████ ████ ███ ████ ██ ███ ████ █████ █████████ ██ █████ ██████ ██████
This doesn't weaken the argument. We're interested in the effects of following these specific diets, not in what happens once people go back to their normal diets.