The earliest known records of wartime activities detail the history of the use of carrier pigeons to communicate classified military information. Many people are not aware that the birds were also used extensively in the world wars of the twentieth century. Even today, their uncanny ability to fly home over great distances makes them valuable even to modern military units that need a way to deliver messages without the use of portable electronic devices whose signals can be intercepted.

The statements above, if true, best support which of the following conclusions?


a. The use of carrier pigeons is usually preferable to the use of portable
electronic devices when a military unit needs a way to send classified
military information.
b. The messages that carrier pigeons carry cannot be intercepted.
c. The use of carrier pigeons decreased once portable electronic devices
became practical in warfare.
d. Carrier pigeons were used in warfare prior to the date of the earliest
known record of wartime activity.
e. Carrier pigeons are still used extensively by modern military units.
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When u r about to make ends meet, someone moves the ends.

D? Tight fight between A and D but would go with D as it is a possibility that they were used prior to the earliest known record.

it can be B
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shubhangi

anand--

You lost me there. Are you saying that I should explain myself? Or that I should change my answer? Or that I provided the correct answer to a stupid question?

a. The use of carrier pigeons is usually preferable to the use of portable
electronic devices when a military unit needs a way to send classified
military information.

There's no reason to believe that this is true in the strong form in which it is stated.

From the argument: use of portable electronic devices whose signals can be intercepted.

It's a little nuanced, but the argument does not state:
use of portable electronic devices, whose signals can be intercepted.

In other words, the argument does not claim that all portable electronic device signals can be intercepted. It states that some can be intercepted.
And it sates that pigeons can be "valuable". Not that they're preferable.

b. The messages that carrier pigeons carry cannot be intercepted.

Too strong of an inference, though not a terribly bad choice, IMO.

c. The use of carrier pigeons decreased once portable electronic devices
became practical in warfare.

We know that pigeons showed up in the earliest records. We know that they were used "extensively" in WWI and WWII. Today, they're merely "valuable" as an alternative. That seems like declining use to me.

d. Carrier pigeons were used in warfare prior to the date of the earliest
known record of wartime activity.

The argument did not state this! No reason to assume this. They were used at the date of first record, but it could be (for example) that only when literacy began to become widely held that people recorded of wars, and that you can only send written messages if you know how to write...

e. Carrier pigeons are still used extensively by modern military units.
We all know that this is wrong.

My guess is that B is the book answer, then.

I know most of you will not buy this since you already have made up your mind against D.
But, frankly speaking, I found only D closest to the stimulus..

The opening sentence says,
The earliest known records of wartime activities detail the history of the use of carrier pigeons to communicate classified military information

Obviously, when the record was written, piegons were used before that date. How can you write about the use of piegons when they are not being used in that or prior to that era ?

You can argue that it could also be imaginary...but again that is an assumption which we are not supposed to assume. Similarly, the point stoolfi brought up about literacy is also an assumption which cannot be considered.

But I agree with anandnk that this cannot be termed as a conclusion, but given the question this is the best bet. No doubt about that...

Now, dont fire me for the explanation...