Xycorp plans to develop an innovative new video game involving extreme

Manhattan Prep Official Explanation

(1) Identify the Question Type
The word "assumed" in the question stem indicates that this is a Find the Assumption question.

(2) Deconstruct the Argument
According to the argument, Xycorp must find outside funding in order to cover the development costs of its proposed new game. The argument indicates that the military will only fund projects that pertain directly to training or operations.  The argument then concludes that the military will not fund Xycorp's project.

(3) State the Goal
The argument jumps from the idea that the military will only fund directly related projects to the notion that it will not fund Xycorp's game development. This conclusion can only be reached if the narrator assumes that the military considers Xycorp's project irrelevant to its training and/or operations.

(4) Work from Wrong to Right

(A) The conclusion centers on what sources Xycorp might use to fund the development of the game. While we might reason that a large potential market might help Xycorp to obtain funding, that does not tell us anything about whether the military will or will not fund Xycorp's project.

(B) The argument does state that Xycorp is unable to afford the cost of developing the game by itself, but there is no indication that the project is of so large a scope that only giant organizations could fund it. The military in particular is ruled out as a potential source of funding, but the military is simply presented as one source to be considered; the argument does not narrow the possibilities to organizations of that scale.

(C) Whether the game is based on historical events is irrelevant to the conclusion. The conclusion's reasoning is that the military will only fund games that are relevant to current training or operations.

(D) CORRECT. The conclusion is based on the assumption that Xycorp's game is irrelevant to military training and/or operations. Therefore, the author must be assuming that the military will not be using this game or the technology used to make it. Alternatively, use the negation test. The negation of this statement is that the military will use the technology in training recruits. If that is the case, then the military may actually be interested in funding the development of that technology, since it is relevant to training.

(E) The issue in the argument is not whether the military is aware of technological developments, but, rather, whether it considers those developments relevant to its own concerns.