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Difficulty: EasyStrengthening Arguments

A municipal council recently planted thousands of fast-growing shade trees along residential streets with the goal of lowering household summer electricity bills. Council members reasoned that by shielding home roofs and exterior walls from direct sunlight during peak afternoon hours, the trees would significantly reduce the need for indoor air conditioning.

Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the council members' reasoning?

  1. Air conditioning units in the municipality consume significantly more energy when the surrounding air and building walls are heated by direct afternoon sunlight.Answer
  2. B
    Dense tree foliage retains heat and humidity during summer nights, causing residents to increase their air conditioner usage after sunset.
  3. C
    The municipal council recently approved additional funding to upgrade the public streetlighting system with energy-efficient LED fixtures.
  4. D
    Property values for residential homes located on streets with mature trees are on average higher than those for homes on unshaded streets.
  5. E
    The fast-growing tree species selected by the council requires more frequent pruning by municipal workers than standard street trees do.

Answer

The argument is most strongly supported by the statement establishing that air conditioning units consume significantly more energy when building walls are heated by direct afternoon sunlight.
The correct response directly strengthens the argument by providing evidence for the underlying physical mechanism. If air conditioners draw significantly more electricity when building walls absorb direct sunlight, then shading those walls directly reduces the thermal load on the cooling units, validating the council's claim that household electricity bills will drop.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the premises and conclusion of the argument.
Premise: Planting street trees shields home roofs and walls from direct sunlight. Conclusion: Shielding homes from sunlight will reduce indoor air conditioning reliance and lower summer electricity bills.
Recognizing the connection between the premise (shading building surfaces) and the conclusion (lowering electricity bills) reveals the unstated assumption.
2
Identify the core assumption bridging premise and conclusion.
The argument assumes that direct sunlight hitting building walls significantly increases the energy required by air conditioning systems to cool the home interior.
A valid strengthening statement must confirm this operational relationship.
3
Evaluate the choices to find the statement that confirms this core assumption.
The statement showing that air conditioners consume significantly more energy when surrounding walls are heated by direct sunlight directly validates the proposed mechanism of energy savings.
Confirming the direct causal link strengthens the council's conclusion.

Key Concept

Strengthening a argument by confirming an underlying causal link or operational mechanism.
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Strengthening Arguments

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