All practice questions

Maritime Regulator: The proposed automated docking protocol relies entirely on continuous satellite telemetry rather than traditional visual guidance from harbormasters. Therefore, mandating this new protocol for all commercial vessels entering the bay will definitively decrease the frequency of docking collisions and subsequently reduce the port's overall operational liabilities.

Which of the following statements function as required assumptions to logically bridge the gaps in the regulator's argument? Select all that apply.

The annual spring festival will definitely not be held in the town square this year. We know this because the festival is held in the square whenever the municipal budget runs a surplus and the mayor's office approves the permit. However, the municipal budget is not running a surplus this year.

Which one of the following arguments exhibits a flawed pattern of reasoning most similar to that exhibited by the argument above?

Agronomist: In a multi-year agricultural study across several commercial grain farms, fields planted with hairy vetch as a winter cover crop produced subsequent corn yields that were on average 20 percent higher than those from fields left fallow during the winter. Because hairy vetch is known to fix atmospheric nitrogen into the soil, this substantial increase in yield must be directly attributable to the additional nitrogen provided by the cover crop.

Which of the following statements, if true, most seriously weaken the agronomist's argument? Select all that apply.

An environmental audit of reclaimed sub-boreal wetland zones established the following criteria for ecosystem stabilization:

• Any wetland zone that undergoes successful peat layer restoration exhibits stable anaerobic methanogenesis, unless it experiences persistent sulfur runoff.
• Every wetland zone that exhibits stable anaerobic methanogenesis maintains a neutral pH level throughout its rooting substrate.
• No wetland zone that maintains a neutral pH level in its rooting substrate supports the proliferation of invasive reed canary grass.
• During the previous assessment cycle, Zone 14 underwent successful peat layer restoration and did not experience persistent sulfur runoff.

If the statements above are true, which of the following statements must also be true? (Select all that apply.)

Economist: Software developers routinely release preliminary versions of their applications to a restricted user base. This practice allows developers to identify unforeseen design flaws through actual user testing before a general release. Analogously, the central government should implement its proposed comprehensive corporate tax overhaul in just two mid-sized provinces first. Doing so would allow policymakers to observe real-world economic impacts and correct any legislative flaws before applying the new tax code nationwide.

The economist's argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that it

City Council Member: To reduce the alarming rate of bicycle thefts in our city, we should implement a mandatory bicycle registration program, much like our existing automobile registration system. Our automobile registration requires owners to display visible plates and maintains easily traceable records in a central database; this system has made stealing cars incredibly difficult and risky. Similarly, requiring visible registration tags and maintaining a database of bicycle owners will effectively deter bicycle thieves.

Which of the following, if true, points out the most serious weakness in the city council member's argument?

Political Scientist: A thriving democracy cannot exist without a highly educated electorate. Critics of the proposed national curriculum argue that its heavy emphasis on critical thinking and media literacy is a waste of resources. But this curriculum will undeniably result in a highly educated electorate. Therefore, the adoption of this curriculum will inevitably result in a thriving democracy.

Which of the following most accurately describes a flaw in the political scientist's reasoning?

In order to qualify for the accelerated development grant, a local infrastructure project must be classified as high-priority by the regional council and must secure matching private investments. Any infrastructure project that secures matching private investments is subject to the strict environmental oversight of the federal preservation board. However, no project proposed by the municipal transit authority is subject to this strict environmental oversight. Nevertheless, some projects proposed by the municipal transit authority are classified as high-priority by the regional council.

If the statements above are true, which one of the following cannot be true?

Analyze the logical structure of the following counterexamples. Pair each argument in the primary list with the argument in the secondary list that employs an identical method of refutation.

A comprehensive urban redevelopment plan will successfully revitalize the downtown district only if it includes substantial financial incentives for small businesses. The city council's newly proposed redevelopment plan features unprecedented financial incentives specifically designed to attract and retain small businesses. Thus, the council's plan is certain to successfully revitalize the downtown district.

Which of the following most accurately describes a flaw in the argument's reasoning?

According to the newly ratified Outer Space Mining Treaty, securing a commercial extraction license on the lunar surface requires that a corporation either establish an autonomous life-support habitat or formally partner with a state-sponsored space agency.

Which one of the following statements logically follows from the treaty's requirement?

An educational researcher reviewed data from a large district of elementary school students. The researcher noted that students who regularly participate in after-school chess clubs consistently achieve higher grades in computer science classes. Based on this observation, the researcher concluded that playing chess directly enhances a student's computer science abilities.

Which of the following statements, if true, expose the flaw in the argument by providing a valid alternative explanation for the observed correlation? Select all that apply.

A city council should approve a commercial development in the historic district only if the development preserves the original facades of all existing structures. Furthermore, the development should be approved only if it meets at least one of the following two conditions: it provides affordable housing units, or it does not require a municipal tax subsidy. However, if a development preserves the original facades, provides affordable housing, and does not require a tax subsidy, the council must approve it.

Which one of the following judgments most closely conforms to the principle stated above?

Paleoecologist: Marine sediment cores from the Subarctic Pacific show that during historical epochs characterized by high atmospheric dust deposition, the ratio of preserved giant virus DNA fragments to diatom microfossils was more than four times higher than during dust-poor epochs. Because atmospheric dust delivers bioavailable iron that accelerates diatom reproduction, researchers concluded that iron enrichment intensifies the rate of viral infection among diatoms.

Which one of the following is an assumption on which the researchers' conclusion depends?

Public Health Official: The new occupational safety regulations implemented at the Apex Manufacturing plant have clearly been successful in making the facility a safer place to work. Despite the plant increasing its total manufacturing output by 30 percent this year, the annual number of reported workplace injuries has remained exactly the same as last year before the regulations took effect.

Statement: The public health official's argument depends on the assumption that the plant did not achieve its increase in output by heavily automating its processes and significantly reducing the size of its human workforce.

Chronobiologist: A recent two-year study monitored adolescent students who completed their academic assignments during early morning hours rather than late evening hours. These morning-studying students reported substantially higher sleep quality and improved memory retention. Therefore, shifting mentally demanding tasks from late evening to early morning directly optimizes sleep architecture and cognitive performance in adolescents.

Which of the following statements, if true, most seriously weaken the chronobiologist's argument? (Select all that apply)

Match each paradoxical operational scenario with the underlying causal fact that most effectively resolves its apparent discrepancy.

Match each short argument on the left with the evidentiary finding on the right that most effectively strengthens its central conclusion.

Each passage below presents an academic argument that relies on an unstated foundational premise. Match each numbered argument with the underlying assumption on which it strictly depends.

Legal Scholar: A statute cannot be considered legitimately authoritative unless it reflects the deeply held moral convictions of the populace it governs. Reflecting such convictions necessitates that the legislative body drafting the statute be completely insulated from the financial influence of special interest groups. The recently enacted Corporate Accountability Act was drafted by a committee heavily financed by the very industries it seeks to regulate. Therefore, the Act will inevitably face widespread civil disobedience.

Which one of the following, if assumed, enables the legal scholar's conclusion to be properly drawn?