Shivikaa wrote:
Hi,
I was confused between A and E. I chose E over A because I thought that the argument gave a number of people suffering from migraine.
Please explain.
Thanks in Advance.
Quote:
Among people experience migraine headaches, some experience what doctors call "common" migraines, whereas others experience "classical" migraines. Siblings and spouses of common migraine sufferers are themselves twice as likely as the general population to experience common migraines. Siblings of classical migraine sufferers are four times more likely than the general population to experience classical migraines, whereas spouses of classical migraine sufferers are no more likely than the general population to experience such headaches.
The information above provides the most support for which of the following hypotheses?
(A) Susceptibility to classical migraines is more dependent on hereditary factors than is susceptibility to common migraines.
(B) Unmarried adults are more likely to suffer from classical migraines than they are to suffer from common migraines.
(C) People who do not experience migraine headaches are unlikely to have spouses who are migraine headache sufferers.
(D) Children of people who suffer from common migraines are more likely than the general population to experience a common migraine.
(E) Between one-quarter and one-half of the general population suffer from either common or classical migraine headaches.
Let's review what we're given:
- Siblings of common migraine sufferers are twice as likely as the GP to experience common migraines. (hereditary factor)
- Spouses of common migraine sufferers are also twice as likely as the GP to experience common migraines. (non-hereditary factor)
- Siblings of CLASSICAL migraine sufferers are FOUR TIMES more likely than the GP to experience classical migraines. (STRONGER hereditary factor)
- Spouses of CLASSICAL migraine sufferers are no more likely than the GP to experience classical migraines. (no non-hereditary factor)
If we have a group of people who suffer from common migraines and another group of people who suffer from classical migraines, we can use the information in the passage to discuss how likely it is that their siblings and spouses will also have common or classical migraines.
But the information in the passage does not give us any information to determine the PROPORTION of the GP that actually suffers from one of those types of migraines. Maybe 10% of the GP suffer from common migraines and 15% suffer from classical? Maybe half of the GP suffer from one or the other? Maybe only 1% suffer from each? We have no idea, so (E) must be eliminated.
Looking at the bullets above, it seems that susceptibility to classical migraines is more dependent on hereditary factors than is susceptibility to common migraines.
(A) is the best choice.