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09 Apr 2020, 05:57
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A
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
85%
(hard)
Question Stats:
48% (02:11) correct
52%
(02:16)
wrong
based on 467
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Some people have been promoting a new herbal mixture as a remedy for the common cold. The mixture contains, among other things, extracts of the plants purple cone-flower and goldenseal. A cold sufferer, skeptical of the claim that the mixture is an effective cold remedy, argued, “Suppose that the mixture were an effective cold remedy. Since most people with colds wish to recover quickly, it follows that almost everybody with a cold would be using it. Therefore, since there are many people who have colds but do not use the mixture, it is obviously not effective.”
Which one of the following most accurately describes the method of reasoning the cold sufferer uses to reach the conclusion of the argument?
(A) finding a claim to be false on the grounds that it would, if true, have consequences that are false
(B) accepting a claim on the basis of public opinion of the claim
(C) showing that conditions necessary to establish the truth of a claim are met
(D) basing a generalization on a representative group of instances
(E) showing that a measure claimed to be effective in achieving a certain effect would actually make achieving the effect more difficult
Which one of the following most accurately describes the method of reasoning the cold sufferer uses to reach the conclusion of the argument?
(A) finding a claim to be false on the grounds that it would, if true, have consequences that are false
(B) accepting a claim on the basis of public opinion of the claim
(C) showing that conditions necessary to establish the truth of a claim are met
(D) basing a generalization on a representative group of instances
(E) showing that a measure claimed to be effective in achieving a certain effect would actually make achieving the effect more difficult
jayarora
Current Student
Joined: 24 Oct 2016
Last visit: 26 Apr 2025
Posts: 163
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Given Kudos: 116
Location: India
Concentration: Technology, Strategy
Schools: Harvard '24 (A)
GMAT 1: 710 Q49 V38
GMAT 2: 760 Q50 V44 (Online)
GPA: 3.61
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12 Apr 2020, 03:00
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Bunuel
In this scenario it is easier to eliminate the 4 wrong answer choices:
(B): No public opinion is mentioned in the argument
(C): In this scenario, the necessary condition: 'almost everybody with a cold' uses it is NOT met.
(D): No group is sampled here
(E): Measure: Almost everybody using it , Effect: Cold mixture is effective. In no way the measure makes achieving the effect more difficult.
(A)Claim: Mixture is effective.
Author concludes that the claim is false based on the fact that 'not many having cold are using it'. If the claim were true i.e mixture if effective, then the necessary condition 'almost everybody with a cold uses it' would follow. But clearly this consequence is false since the premise says 'since there are many people who have colds but do not use the mixture'
07 Aug 2021, 16:34
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Bunuel
I know this came from LSAT because I just tried that LR section from LSAT now. But, sorry LSAT folks, this is a bad question.
How do you eliminate C?
Can't I say that the cold sufferer's method of reasoning is trying to show that conditions necessary to establish the truth are met?
I didn't choose A because I couldn't follow the LSAT option A - it doesn't have the critical comma you introduced to make A readable. That again means - bad question.
