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Zorluk: OrtaWeaken

City Councilor: Our new municipal tax on sugary beverages, implemented one year ago, has been a resounding success in improving public health. We know this because retail data shows that the total volume of sugary beverages sold within the city limits has decreased by 20% since the tax was introduced.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the city councilor's argument?

  1. A
    An independent audit of retail records suggests that the actual decrease in the volume of sugary beverages sold within the city was only 12%, not 20%.
  2. B
    Medical records from the city's hospitals show a notable decline in new cases of diet-related metabolic disorders over the past year.
  3. Since the tax was implemented, sales of sugary beverages at stores immediately outside the city limits have surged by an amount roughly equal to the decrease seen within the city.Cevap
  4. D
    Several major beverage corporations spent millions of dollars on local advertising campaigns opposing the sugary beverage tax before it was enacted.
  5. E
    Although the total volume of sugary beverages sold decreased by 20%, the total number of individual bottles sold decreased by only 5% because manufacturers shifted to smaller bottle sizes.

Cevap

The statement regarding the surge in sales of sugary beverages at stores immediately outside the city limits most seriously weakens the argument.
The argument relies on the assumption that lower beverage sales within the city mean city residents are consuming less sugar. The correct answer undermines this assumption by providing a highly plausible alternative explanation: the tax merely caused residents to drive just outside the city limits to buy their beverages. If total consumption remains roughly the same, the conclusion that the tax improved public health falls apart.

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1
Identify the conclusion of the argument.
The conclusion is: 'Our new municipal tax on sugary beverages... has been a resounding success in improving public health.'
Understanding the exact claim being made is necessary to know what needs to be undermined.
2
Identify the premise supporting the conclusion.
The premise is: 'The total volume of sugary beverages sold within the city limits has decreased by 20% since the tax was introduced.'
This shows the evidence the author uses to justify their claim.
3
Identify the logical gap between the premise and the conclusion.
The author assumes that a decrease in sales *within the city limits* directly equates to a decrease in overall consumption by city residents, which would lead to improved health.
Finding the assumption reveals the argument's vulnerability.
4
Evaluate the answer choices to find the one that exploits this gap.
The option showing a matching surge in sales just outside the city limits proves that consumption did not drop; the location of purchase simply shifted. This severs the link between the premise and the conclusion.
A valid 'weaken' answer must show that the conclusion is unlikely to be true even if the premises are true.

Anahtar Kavram

Evaluating Alternate Explanations / Assessing the Scope of Evidence
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Konular

Weaken

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