As more and more women develop breast cancer, the disease is given mor

Question

As more and more women develop breast cancer, the disease is given more media coverage, which will lead to increased funding for breast cancer research.

Which of the following, if true, offers the LEAST support to the argument above?

A) Although some breast cancer cases may be inherited, the primary cause of the increased number of cases may prove to be environmental.
 
B) In the past five years, several famous women have been stricken with breast cancer and given numerous interviews on the subject.
 
C) When a cause receives increased media coverage, philanthropic foundations tend to give that cause added financial support.
 
D) As long as a disease is unpublicized, it is unlikely to attract either researchers or funding for research.
 
E) In recent years, breast cancer has stricken more women than has any other type of cancer, or even any other disease.

carcass · Answer

At first glace E seems not support the statement above BUT reading very carefully it is , indeed

Look at the first part of the stimulus

As more and more women develop breast cancer . As it turns out, E says just this as a starting point in the chain logic.

E is very tricky.

Instead A says that the cancer has ALSO environmental causes but this is not our concern. As such, A is out of scope and actually the right answer

Hope this helps

aniteshgmat1101 · Answer

See it this way. An argument based on principle or data can be weakened by providing a fact/evidence that the principle or the data is wrong. So, since option E provides an evidence saying that the triggering event (increasing number of Breast Cancer) is true, it is actually strengthening the argument.
Hope it helped!!!

Takoz89 · Answer

You are right; if I prove more women acquire breast cancer, I can strengthen the argument. However, in choice E, it is not certain that the number women who have suffered from breast cancer is increasing.

As the the number women with breast cancer has declined, breast cancer may have stricken more women than has any other disease because the number of women suffering from other diseases may also be declining.

rhine29388 · Answer

option A talks about inheritance of breast cancer and says that primary cause of breast cancer may be environmental thereby rendering the option as out of scope and hence the correct answer in this case. All other options are clear strengthener options

Abhishek009 · Answer

Place option (E) in the correct place it supports the arguement

In recent years, breast cancer has stricken more women than has any other type of cancer ---->disease is given more media coverage----> lead to increased funding

Whereas option (A) is irrelevant to the discussion as a whole...

Hence IMHO (A) least supports the arguement !! :-D

Mohammed22Abrar · Answer

Option A clearly doesn't support the argument. But, when the question asks for 'least supporting' option, does it mean 'not supporting' ? Or am I reading too much into it?

Show123 · Answer

Hello,
I have a concern regarding the Option D. If the disease is unpublicized, it is unlikely to attract either researchers or funding for research.
Doesn't this least support the argument above? I mean by this statement,even if the disease is publicized, it doesn't necessarily mean that the disease will attract research or funding. Ergo breast cancer wouldn't attract research or funding even if it were publicized? Please help

RMD007 · Answer

Hi, let me try explaining this.

First of all we are here to find the answer choice that LEAST supports the argument.

The explanation you have cited above is correct but not complete. In option D it just provides a negation of what will happen if the disease is unpublicized.
So according to choice D, if the disease is publicized, it MAY or MAY NOT attract research or funding. In above explanation you have provided only MAY NOT case. But still there is a possibility, given the option D, the disease MAY attract publicity. It leaves some possibility. At lease it talks about the facts given in argument in its line.

Whereas Option A: Although some breast cancer cases may be inherited, the primary cause of the increased number of cases may prove to be environmental.

is completely neutral. It does not support the argument/ conclusion in any way. It just says that reason behind increasing number of cancer patients may be environmental.

Hope it helps..

abhishekdadarwal2009 · Answer

As more and more women develop breast cancer, the disease is given more media coverage, which will lead to increased funding for breast cancer research.

Which of the following, if true, offers the LEAST support to the argument above?

A) Although some breast cancer cases may be inherited, the primary cause of the increased number of cases may prove to be environmental.
 Correct answer becuase the cuases of the breast cancer is out of scope of the argument.

B) In the past five years, several famous women have been stricken with breast cancer and given numerous interviews on the subject.
 Supports the arument becuase the famous women publicise the disease and spread awareness.

C) When a cause receives increased media coverage, philanthropic foundations tend to give that cause added financial support.
 Supports the argument.

D) As long as a disease is unpublicized, it is unlikely to attract either researchers or funding for research.
 Supports the argument by presengin alternate method of explaination that reaches the same point.

E) In recent years, breast cancer has stricken more women than has any other type of cancer, or even any other disease.
 It strengthens the argument but not as much as A does.

rvgmat12 · Answer

OE:

Conclusion: More media coverage will lead to increased funding for breast cancer research.

Premise: As more and more women develop breast cancer, the disease is given more media coverage.

Assumption: Media coverage leads to funding.

The question asks which choice offers the LEAST support to the argument. Because the question says support, this in a strengthen question. When a question says LEAST, determine which four choices support and which does not strengthen the argument. Note that offers the LEAST support is not necessarily the same as weakens. It is possible that a choice will neither strengthen nor weaken the argument. The passage notes that As more and more women develop breast cancer, the disease is given more media coverage, and assumes that this media coverage…will lead to increased funding. Evaluate the answer choices.

Choice A: Correct. This choice offers the LEAST support to the argument. The primary cause of breast cancer is out of scope. This choice does not relate to media coverage or to funding for breast cancer research, so it does not support the argument.

Choice B: No. This choice supports the argument by confirming the premise. The fact that several famous women…have given…interviews on the subject supports the premise that breast cancer is given…media coverage.

Choice C: No. This choice supports the argument. The fact that philanthropic groups tend to give when a cause receives increased media coverage supports the argument that media coverage…will lead to increased funding.

Choice D: No. This choice supports the argument. If an unpublicized disease is unlikely to attract…funding, this supports the idea that media coverage…will lead to increased funding.

Choice E: No. This choice supports the argument by confirming the premise. If breast cancer has stricken more women than has any other type of cancer, or even any other disease, then this supports the premise that more and more women develop breast cancer is strengthened.

The correct answer is choice A.

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