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Difficulty: EasyWeaken

Consider the following argument: A municipal commuter rail system reported a 15 percent increase in passenger volume during the three months following the installation of free onboard Wi-Fi. The transit authority concluded that offering the complimentary Wi-Fi service was the primary reason for the surge in commuters.

Statement: The fact that a major parallel highway bridge was closed for emergency repairs during those exact same three months weakens the transit authority's conclusion.

Answer: Answer

Answer

True: The statement accurately notes that introducing an alternate explanation for the increased ridership weakens the transit authority's causal claim.
The statement is true because the emergency highway closure offers an obvious alternate cause for the commuter surge, directly weakening the author's claim that onboard Wi-Fi was the primary driver.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the argument's premises and main conclusion.
Premise: Passenger numbers increased after Wi-Fi was added. Conclusion: Wi-Fi was the primary cause of the increase.
Isolating the causal link is necessary to determine what would undermine the argument.
2
Assess the logical impact of the supplementary statement.
The emergency closure of a major parallel highway provides an independent reason why drivers switched to the train during that exact period.
Providing a viable alternative cause for an observed effect directly weakens a causal conclusion.
3
Evaluate the truth value of the statement.
Because the alternate cause undermines the original causal attribution, the assertion that it weakens the argument is true.
The statement correctly classifies the weakening effect of the new evidence.

Key Concept

Weakening a causal conclusion by identifying an alternative explanation
Estimated Time:45s
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Topics

Weaken

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