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A recent research article published under the title An American Dream claims that the duration of REM sleep in adult Americans nowadays is significantly shorter than was the duration of REM sleep in adult Americans in the 1950s. In this, the research article's claim cannot be wrong because it compared the duration of REM sleep in 100 participants today to that of 100 participants of a similar study conducted in the 1950s, and the results clearly showed a decrease in the duration of REM sleep in each and every one of the participants.

Which of the following points to the most serious logical flaw in the writer's argument?

A. Dreaming is not only about the duration of REM sleep.

B. The argument fails to specify the exact duration of REM sleep in the 1950s and nowadays.

C. Modern day participants may have been chosen so that their results reflect the decrease suggested by the research.

D. The research does not refer to international statistics to show whether or not the decline has occured globally.

E. The title of the research does not properly reflect the results of the research.

Official Explanation



This is an Argument Flaw question. You are required to locate the inherent flaw in the argument's conclusion or in its underlying assumption. In this argument, sentence 1 is a premise, citing straightforward facts. Sentence 2 is the conclusion as it is the writer's opinion and contains the conclusion word clearly which also gives us a clue:
Premise A: REM sleep today is shorter than REM sleep 50 years ago.

Conclusion: the research article's claim is definitely accurate because 100% of the participants today had shorter REM periods than participants 50 years ago had The research revolves around adult Americans nowadays having a shorter duration of REM sleep compared to adult American in the 1950s. The argument does not state that they dream less or equate this with dreaming in any way. While the statement in this answer choice may be correct, it does not relate to the conclusion and, therefore, does not point to a flaw in the writer's argument.

Answer: C
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