Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumDrawing Valid Inferences

Recent archival research on fourteenth-century Venetian merchant fleets indicates that any galley authorized to carry high-value spices was required to maintain a double-hulled structure and employ a certified chief navigator. Furthermore, all vessels with double-hulled structures were subjected to biannual naval inspections by the Venetian Maritime Council, whereas single-hulled vessels underwent inspections only quadrennially. Records show that during the decade from 1340 to 1350, no galley that underwent biannual naval inspections experienced hull breach incidents resulting in cargo loss. However, several spice-carrying galleys lost cargo during this decade due to severe weather conditions.

If the statements above are true, which of the following must also be true?

  1. A
    Single-hulled vessels were prohibited from carrying high-value spices only during severe weather conditions.
  2. B
    Biannual naval inspections prevented all forms of cargo loss aboard double-hulled galleys between 1340 and 1350.
  3. None of the cargo losses suffered by spice-carrying galleys between 1340 and 1350 were the result of hull breaches.Answer
  4. D
    Severe weather conditions caused more structural damage to single-hulled galleys than to double-hulled galleys between 1340 and 1350.
  5. E
    The Venetian Maritime Council introduced mandatory double-hulled structures specifically to combat severe weather risks.

Answer

None of the cargo losses suffered by spice-carrying galleys between 1340 and 1350 were the result of hull breaches.
The passage presents a deductive chain: all spice-carrying galleys had double hulls, and all double-hulled vessels underwent biannual inspections. Consequently, every spice-carrying galley was subject to biannual inspections. For the period between 1340 and 1350, the passage guarantees that zero galleys with biannual inspections lost cargo due to hull breaches. Therefore, any spice-carrying galley that lost cargo during severe weather in that decade must have done so via mechanisms other than a hull breach.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Chain the conditional premises given in the passage.
Being a spice-carrying galley implies having a double-hulled structure, which in turn implies undergoing biannual naval inspections. Therefore, every spice-carrying galley underwent biannual naval inspections.
Establishing the relationship between spice-carrying galleys and inspection frequency is necessary to evaluate the period from 1340 to 1350.
2
Apply the decade-specific fact to spice-carrying galleys.
Between 1340 and 1350, no galley undergoing biannual inspections experienced cargo loss from hull breaches. Thus, no spice-carrying galley experienced cargo loss from hull breaches during that decade.
Since all spice-carrying galleys were biannually inspected, the restriction on hull breach cargo losses applies to all spice-carrying galleys.
3
Reconcile with the fact that several spice-carrying galleys lost cargo during severe weather in that decade.
The weather-related cargo losses on spice-carrying galleys between 1340 and 1350 must have occurred without hull breaches.
If any of those weather-related losses had involved a hull breach, it would violate the premise that no biannually inspected galley suffered cargo loss from hull breaches.

Key Concept

Deductive inference using nested conditional rules and set inclusion.
Estimated Time:1m 30s
Rate this question

Topics

Drawing Valid Inferences

More questions from this topic