Consultant: Ace Repairs ends up having to redo a significant number of the complex repair jobs it undertakes, but when those repairs are redone, they are invariably done right. Since we have established that there is no systematic difference between the mechanics who are assigned to do the initial repairs and those who are assigned to redo unsatisfactory jobs, we must reject the hypothesis that mistakes made in the initial repairs are due to the mechanics' lack of competence. Rather, it is likely that complex repairs require a level of focused attention that the company's mechanics apply consistently only to repair jobs that have not been done right on the first try. In the consultant's reasoning, the two portions in boldface play which of the following roles? A. The first is the consultant's main conclusion; the second provides evidence in support of that main conclusion. B. The first is evidence that serves as the basis for rejecting one explanation of a certain finding; the second is the consultant's own explanation of that finding. C. The first is a claim whose truth is at issue in the reasoning; the second provides evidence to show that the claim is true. D. The first presents a contrast whose explanation is at issue in the reasoning; the second is the consultant's explanation of that contrast. E. The first presents a contrast whose explanation is at issue in the reasoning; the second is evidence that has been used to challenge the consultant's explanation of that contrast. CR65030.02

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Consultant: Ace Repairs ends up having to redo a significant number of

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madhavbhaskar

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29 Sep 2025, 06:35

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You said, why D is wrong, but is infact the correct answer stated.
I am more confused

In fact I tried to ChatGPT the correct answer and with explanation and got a similar output.
Can someone check if D is indeed correct ?

egmat

madhavbhaskar

Your analysis of option B is actually on the right track! Let me help clarify the specific point that's causing confusion.

The Key Insight:
"That finding" in option B refers to the original phenomenon that needs explaining: Why do complex repairs fail initially but succeed when redone?

Understanding the Two Explanations:

Rejected explanation: Mechanics lack competence (disproven by BF1 - same mechanics do it right the second time)
Consultant's explanation (BF2): Mechanics don't apply enough focused attention the first time, but do apply it to redos

Where Your Thinking Got Tangled:
You wrote: "the second is not explaining 'mistakes made in the initial repairs are due to the mechanics' lack of competence' but is in fact explaining why the above is not the case"

Actually, the second boldface IS explaining the same core finding - just offering a different explanation. Both the rejected theory (incompetence) and the consultant's theory (lack of focused attention) are attempting to explain the same phenomenon: initial failures followed by successful redos.

Why D is Wrong:
The first boldface doesn't present a "contrast" - it presents evidence (successful redos prove competence exists). A contrast would be comparing two different situations; here we have one observation being used as evidence.

Pattern Recognition:
When you see "that finding" in answer choices, it refers to the central phenomenon the entire argument is trying to explain - not to intermediate conclusions or rejections.

I hope this helps!

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10 Oct 2025, 13:05

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madhavbhaskar

Main confusion was in B and D, my thought and direction:

Looking at B deeper and break in 2 parts:

The first is evidence that serves as the basis for rejecting one explanation of a certain finding;

evidence: when those repairs are redone, they are invariably done right rejecting on explanation of "a certain finding"
i.e. rejecting that "mistakes made in the initial repairs are due to the mechanics' lack of competence".

the second is the consultant's own explanation of that finding.

the second is not explaining that"mistakes made in the initial repairs are due to the mechanics' lack of competence"
but is infact explaining why the above is not the case

Maybe the consultant's own explanation of ~~that finding~~ evidence would atleast be in the correct direction.

Is this chain of thought correct ?

The first problem with your explanation is that you're using the same thing for both the evidence and the finding. If the "finding" is that "Ace Repairs ends up having to redo a significant number of the complex repair jobs it undertakes," then we can't say that this same thing is also part of the "evidence" for rejecting an explanation of itself.

You could say that the first BF is a finding. One possible explanation of that finding is that "mistakes made in the initial repairs are due to the mechanics' lack of competence." But the evidence that serves as the basis for rejecting that explanation comes at the beginning of the second sentence: "we have established that there is no systematic difference between the mechanics who are assigned to do the initial repairs and those who are assigned to redo unsatisfactory jobs."

So while the second half of choice (B) is okay, the first half doesn't work. For more on why (D) is a better option, check out these posts: