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10 Dec 2018, 16:19
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AdityaHongunti
A team of researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology studied the effects of yogurt on mating. The researchers took a group of 40 male mice and 40 female mice and either fed the animals a high-fat, low-fiber, low-nutrient diet meant to mimic junk food or fed them standard mouse meals. They then supplemented half of each diet group with vanilla-flavored yogurt.In mating experiments, yogurt-eating males inseminated their partners faster and produced more offspring than control mice. Conversely, females that ate the yogurt diets gave birth to larger litters and weaned those pups with greater success. The researchers concluded that the probiotic microbes in the yogurt help to make the animals leaner and healthier, which indirectly improves sexual machismo.
Which of the following if true, would most weaken the conclusion reached by the researchers?
understanding the argument :
-group A was fed junk food
-group B was fed mouse meal
-half of A was given yogurt and half was not
-half of B was given yogurt and half was not
result : mice with yogurt faster sex than mice without yogurt
conclusion : pro biotic in yogurt >> lean body and healthy>> increases sex drive
NOTE: this is a TYPICAL GMAT comparison study question. Most of the time when we have to weaken the conlusion try to attack the control group because that is the least explicitly mentioned and that is where the argument tries to exploit.
Apply 2 part analysis : whenever we are explicitly provided with results of one group , attack the non explicit group.
Think: we are told that HALF of both A and B were given yogurt and the half were sex crazy. What are we comparing these groups to?? the non yogurt groups ... if the non yogurt group due to some reason (we dont care about the reason...they may as well be inherently weak) was weak and had low sex drive then comapratively the yogurt mice will be better right?? in this case with or without the yogurt the half group(not the control group) will still be more sex crazy..can we conclude that yogurt had some magic?? NOPE
This was my thinking...
A. Many of the mice in the control group died soon after the experiment.
- SravnaTestPrep The answer choice could be a little more clear and not confusing. I am not saying that this choice is wrong 100% but it could be worded better and more in line with the student's reasoning. This choice is very ambiguous
reasons:
-many does not mean 50% it could 10% too
- othersin the control group may still be healthy and hence lending strength to the onclusion by making comaprisn valid
- I agree that we do not have to destroy the conclusion outright but still there should atleast be some strong point.
"many "is more like "Some" , it could be "some" (in which case i wouldnt choose this answer)
- if the asn choice used "most" or "more than half" then this choice would be a more appealing choice
-if we try to be conservative and firm on our belief(which students often tend to be) ,they might make a point for options B and C becasue both of these options are close enough to A.
-each of the three choice A B and C have their own assumptions and each can be valid answer IF tried to prove as even some of the great experts seem to second this view
P.S. plesae do not get offended .I am not being condescending. Just a student trying to make a suggestion to an expert. Please do share your views on this. Thankyou
Which of the following if true, would most weaken the conclusion reached by the researchers?
understanding the argument :
-group A was fed junk food
-group B was fed mouse meal
-half of A was given yogurt and half was not
-half of B was given yogurt and half was not
result : mice with yogurt faster sex than mice without yogurt
conclusion : pro biotic in yogurt >> lean body and healthy>> increases sex drive
NOTE: this is a TYPICAL GMAT comparison study question. Most of the time when we have to weaken the conlusion try to attack the control group because that is the least explicitly mentioned and that is where the argument tries to exploit.
Apply 2 part analysis : whenever we are explicitly provided with results of one group , attack the non explicit group.
Think: we are told that HALF of both A and B were given yogurt and the half were sex crazy. What are we comparing these groups to?? the non yogurt groups ... if the non yogurt group due to some reason (we dont care about the reason...they may as well be inherently weak) was weak and had low sex drive then comapratively the yogurt mice will be better right?? in this case with or without the yogurt the half group(not the control group) will still be more sex crazy..can we conclude that yogurt had some magic?? NOPE
This was my thinking...
A. Many of the mice in the control group died soon after the experiment.
- SravnaTestPrep The answer choice could be a little more clear and not confusing. I am not saying that this choice is wrong 100% but it could be worded better and more in line with the student's reasoning. This choice is very ambiguous
reasons:
-many does not mean 50% it could 10% too
- othersin the control group may still be healthy and hence lending strength to the onclusion by making comaprisn valid
- I agree that we do not have to destroy the conclusion outright but still there should atleast be some strong point.
"many "is more like "Some" , it could be "some" (in which case i wouldnt choose this answer)
- if the asn choice used "most" or "more than half" then this choice would be a more appealing choice
-if we try to be conservative and firm on our belief(which students often tend to be) ,they might make a point for options B and C becasue both of these options are close enough to A.
-each of the three choice A B and C have their own assumptions and each can be valid answer IF tried to prove as even some of the great experts seem to second this view
P.S. plesae do not get offended .I am not being condescending. Just a student trying to make a suggestion to an expert. Please do share your views on this. Thankyou
Dear Aditya ,
Sorry for the delayed response. I agree that the choices could have been better worded.
I still think that A is a better choice than B or C. B and C do not strongly weaken the argument as A does. If you can say your reasoning for B and C , I would be happy to respond.
Regards
26 Jul 2023, 19:35
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A team of researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology studied the effects of yogurt on mating. The researchers took a group of 40 male mice and 40 female mice and either fed the animals a high-fat, low-fiber, low-nutrient diet meant to mimic junk food or fed them standard mouse meals. They then supplemented half of each diet group with vanilla-flavored yogurt.In mating experiments, yogurt-eating males inseminated their partners faster and produced more offspring than control mice. Conversely, females that ate the yogurt diets gave birth to larger litters and weaned those pups with greater success. The researchers concluded that the probiotic microbes in the yogurt help to make the animals leaner and healthier, which indirectly improves sexual machismo.
Which of the following if true, would most weaken the conclusion reached by the researchers?
A.Many of the mice in the control group died soon after the experiment
B.In another study, probiotic microbes were not found to produce any significant health benefits
C.Yogurt is not the only food which contains a high concentration of probiotic microbes
D.Mating advantage of the yogurt eating mice reduced in a few days after they stopped taking yogurt
E.The female yogurt eating mice were healthier than their male counterparts
However i had shortlisted A, D & E to choose from, i chose the wrong one due to time pressure. Now when i see the options again, it seems why A is the correct one.
Lets start with B & E. B says that 'In another study, probiotic microbes were not found to produce any significant health benefits'-- We are not concerned here about another study but the current one. Moreover, the another study doesn't mentioned the specific health benefits to compare with the current study. Also it is mentioned that at least the another study did produce some health benefits which are more or less having the same effectiveness as the currrent one. Hence we can leave it as of now.
Option E says that 'The female yogurt eating mice were healthier than their male counterparts'-- What effect does it have if female were healthier than male. We are not comparing between the m or f but the comparison is between two groups.
Now with A, it is said that control group males soon died after experiment which means that the mice (m/f) obviously will do better that the control group as their male counterparts have nothing to do, i.e to impregnate the female and hence we are left with nothing to compare with. Hence option A most weakens the argument.
Which of the following if true, would most weaken the conclusion reached by the researchers?
A.Many of the mice in the control group died soon after the experiment
B.In another study, probiotic microbes were not found to produce any significant health benefits
C.Yogurt is not the only food which contains a high concentration of probiotic microbes
D.Mating advantage of the yogurt eating mice reduced in a few days after they stopped taking yogurt
E.The female yogurt eating mice were healthier than their male counterparts
However i had shortlisted A, D & E to choose from, i chose the wrong one due to time pressure. Now when i see the options again, it seems why A is the correct one.
Lets start with B & E. B says that 'In another study, probiotic microbes were not found to produce any significant health benefits'-- We are not concerned here about another study but the current one. Moreover, the another study doesn't mentioned the specific health benefits to compare with the current study. Also it is mentioned that at least the another study did produce some health benefits which are more or less having the same effectiveness as the currrent one. Hence we can leave it as of now.
Option E says that 'The female yogurt eating mice were healthier than their male counterparts'-- What effect does it have if female were healthier than male. We are not comparing between the m or f but the comparison is between two groups.
Now with A, it is said that control group males soon died after experiment which means that the mice (m/f) obviously will do better that the control group as their male counterparts have nothing to do, i.e to impregnate the female and hence we are left with nothing to compare with. Hence option A most weakens the argument.
19 Jan 2025, 13:15
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Not sure if this explanation was mentioned already but the answer is A because if many mice in the control group (those who did not take yogurt) died, it leaves room to doubt the effects of the probiotics specifically within the yogurt when other factors could have led to the yogurt-eating mice being “healthier”.
For example, say mice need 300 calories a day to survive. Normal meals (both junk and normal mice food) are 200 calories whereas the yogurt is 100 calories. Obviously, mice that aren’t taking the yogurt simply aren’t getting the necessary amount of food each day leading to early death, whereas yogurt-eating mice are getting the necessary 300 calories. In this case, you wouldn’t be able to conclude the probiotics are the reason for the perceived healthiness, it’s just having enough food in general; this would call into question the design of the study itself and thus the conclusion. Remember the conclusion isn’t about yogurt, it’s about the probiotics within the yogurt
For example, say mice need 300 calories a day to survive. Normal meals (both junk and normal mice food) are 200 calories whereas the yogurt is 100 calories. Obviously, mice that aren’t taking the yogurt simply aren’t getting the necessary amount of food each day leading to early death, whereas yogurt-eating mice are getting the necessary 300 calories. In this case, you wouldn’t be able to conclude the probiotics are the reason for the perceived healthiness, it’s just having enough food in general; this would call into question the design of the study itself and thus the conclusion. Remember the conclusion isn’t about yogurt, it’s about the probiotics within the yogurt
