gtr022001 wrote:
Measurements of the motion of the planet Uranus seem to show Uranus being tugged by a force pulling it away from the Sun and the inner planets. Neptune and Pluto, the two known planets whose orbits are farther from the Sun than is the orbit of Uranus, do not have enough mass to exert the force that the measurements indicate. Therefore, in addition to the known planets, there must be at least one planet in our solar system that we have yet to discover.
Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?
(A) Pluto was not discovered until 1930
(B) There is a belt of comets beyond the orbit of Pluto with powerful gravitational pull.
(C) Neither Neptune nor Pluto is as massive as Uranus.
(D) The force the Sun exerts on Uranus is weaker than the force it exerts on the inner planets.
(E) Uranus' orbit is closer to Neptune's orbit than it is to Pluto's.
i narrowed it down to 2 choices in which the rest are out of scope, but i really don't understand the argument. maybe i got lucky with the answer.
This is a weaken question. So, we have to find the conclusion and attack it.
Premise: Uranus pulled away from the sun and inner planets
Premise: Neptune and Pluto are farther from the sun, but no mass to attract Uranus
Conclusion :Therefore, there must be an undiscovered planet pulling Uranus away by gravitation forcesAs soon as I read the stimulus and the question stem, I knew I had to look for an alternate explanation for the phenomenon in order to weaken the conclusion.
A) Out of Scope.
B) Correct - It's not a new planet that attracts Uranus, but commets with powerful gravitation. Here is the alternate explanation.
C) So it's unlikely that they do the trick. We already know that.
D)
The force the Sun exerts on Uranus is weaker than the force it exerts on the inner planets. No effect on the conclusion. We already know that some other than the sun object influences Uranus movement. We just have to make sure it's not a new planet
E) Neptune and Pluto are mentioned in the passage in order to be excluded as possible causes. The distinction between them is irrelevant.