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16 Sep 2025, 04:16
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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:
35%
(medium)
Question Stats:
73% (01:19) correct
28%
(01:22)
wrong
based on 160
sessions
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Not Attempted Yet
A chemical company recently introduced a new type of foam spray that it claims will reduce the rate of erosion from the walls of road cuts. A study by the company showed that the rate of erosion was low on a road cut where the foam was applied.
Which of the following, if true, would most seriously weaken the company's conclusion?
A. Road cuts similar to the one studied typically show low rates of erosion without the foam.
B. Because the foam itself weathers, the foam would have to be reapplied every 4 years to order to maintain protection against erosion.
C. Studies by the company that produces the material are sometimes unreliable because of conflicts of interest.
D. The rate of erosion from the road cut in the study was greater than expected based on computer simulation models.
E. Other foams made from similar materials have failed to halt erosion from certain types of road cuts.
Which of the following, if true, would most seriously weaken the company's conclusion?
A. Road cuts similar to the one studied typically show low rates of erosion without the foam.
B. Because the foam itself weathers, the foam would have to be reapplied every 4 years to order to maintain protection against erosion.
C. Studies by the company that produces the material are sometimes unreliable because of conflicts of interest.
D. The rate of erosion from the road cut in the study was greater than expected based on computer simulation models.
E. Other foams made from similar materials have failed to halt erosion from certain types of road cuts.
Updated on: 17 Sep 2025, 01:04
Originally posted by findingmyself on 16 Sep 2025, 11:13.
Last edited by Bunuel on 17 Sep 2025, 01:04, edited 1 time in total.
Last edited by Bunuel on 17 Sep 2025, 01:04, edited 1 time in total.
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Option A is the correct answer here since If similar road cuts already have low erosion even without foam, then the foam may not be the reason for the result.
05 Oct 2025, 16:15
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Bunuel
KAPLAN OFFICIAL EXPLANATION:
A
Conclusion: The foam will reduce erosion from road cuts
Evidence: On a particular road cut to which the foam was applied, the erosion rate was low. The critical assumption is that that erosion rate on the road that was studied is lower than it would have been without the foam. If that's not true, then the effectiveness of the foam is in doubt.
By pointing out that road cuts similar to the one tested normally have low rates of erosion without the foam, (A) gives us reason to believe that the erosion on this road would have been the same without the foam. That calls the assumption into question and weakens the argument. (B) is concerned with the long-term use of the foam and its maintenance; even if true, it doesn't contradict the conclusion that the foam will lower erosion at the time that it is applied. (C) doesn't indicate whether this study is unreliable, so it is irrelevant. (D) is concerned with an erosion prediction model made by a computer simulation; the fact that the foam is less effective than predicted doesn't mean it's not effective at all. (E) is concerned with other foams, not the one under study.
