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Difficulty: MediumWeaken

Archaeologist: Excavations at the ancient settlement of Veridia have uncovered hundreds of specialized obsidian tools. Obsidian does not occur naturally anywhere near Veridia. The nearest known geological source of obsidian from that era is the Khalen mountain range, located over 500 miles away. Interestingly, other settlements surrounding Veridia from the same time period show absolutely no evidence of obsidian use. Clearly, the inhabitants of Veridia must have established a direct, exclusive trade route with the people living in the Khalen mountains.

Consider the following statement: Nomadic hunter-gatherer groups frequently traveled between the Khalen mountains and the Veridian region, bartering raw materials for food with isolated settlements along their migration paths.

The provided statement, if true, actively weakens the archaeologist's argument.

Answer: Answer

Answer

True, the statement weakens the argument by providing an alternative explanation for the presence of the obsidian.
The archaeologist concludes that the people of Veridia must have established a direct trade route based on the presence of distant obsidian. The provided statement introduces an alternative explanation: nomadic groups acted as intermediaries. If nomads brought the obsidian to Veridia and traded it, the Veridians would not have needed to establish a direct trade route themselves. This alternative explanation accounts for all the premises but makes the conclusion less likely to be true, thereby weakening the argument.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the conclusion of the argument.
Conclusion: The inhabitants of Veridia established a direct, exclusive trade route with the people in the Khalen mountains.
To evaluate whether an argument is weakened, you must precisely understand what the author is trying to prove.
2
Identify the premises supporting the conclusion.
Premises: Obsidian is found in Veridia; the nearest source is 500 miles away; neighboring settlements do not have obsidian.
Understanding the evidence reveals the logical leap the author makes.
3
Identify the logical assumption linking the premises to the conclusion.
The author assumes that a 'direct, exclusive trade route' is the only way Veridia could have uniquely acquired materials from 500 miles away.
Exposing the assumption reveals the argument's vulnerability to alternative explanations.
4
Evaluate the impact of the new statement.
The statement shows that nomadic tribes could have carried the obsidian as middlemen. This severs the assumed necessity of a 'direct' route established by Veridia.
Introducing a plausible alternative explanation that accounts for the evidence (presence of obsidian) without requiring the conclusion (direct trade route) actively weakens the argument.

Key Concept

Evaluating alternative explanations to undermine causal or historical reasoning.
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Weaken

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