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12 Jul 2022, 08:00
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65% (02:24) correct
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The histories of many cultures in Alondia, a region comprising hundreds of small, remote islands spread over a very large geographic area, make reference to a great explosion that is said to have taken place several thousand years ago. These accounts vary somewhat as to the cause, extent, and timing of the explosion, and geologists studying the region have been unable to find evidence of a volcanic eruption or asteroid impact large enough to serve as the basis of the accounts. However, these facts do not justify the claim advanced by some scholars that such stories are entirely symbolic, created by these cultures to serve some societal need. Indeed, since the element that all of these stories have in common is the explosion itself, it is much more likely that the stories recount an actual explosion.
Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the argument above?
(A) In the languages of some of the cultures of Alondia, the word for “explosion” can refer to any kind of disaster.
(B) A small number of the stories also include an account of a large wave that followed the explosion.
(C) Most volcanic eruptions are only audible to humans within a few hundred miles of the source.
(D) Because ancient cultures often associated natural events with specific deities, many stories in these cultures cite such events as a way of indirectly referencing those deities.
(E) Until relatively recently, most of the people of Alondia had had no contact with one another, either direct or indirect, for at least five thousand years.
Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the argument above?
(A) In the languages of some of the cultures of Alondia, the word for “explosion” can refer to any kind of disaster.
(B) A small number of the stories also include an account of a large wave that followed the explosion.
(C) Most volcanic eruptions are only audible to humans within a few hundred miles of the source.
(D) Because ancient cultures often associated natural events with specific deities, many stories in these cultures cite such events as a way of indirectly referencing those deities.
(E) Until relatively recently, most of the people of Alondia had had no contact with one another, either direct or indirect, for at least five thousand years.
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12 Jul 2022, 10:30
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Bunuel
The histories of many cultures in Alondia, a region comprising hundreds of small, remote islands spread over a very large geographic area, make reference to a great explosion that is said to have taken place several thousand years ago. These accounts vary somewhat as to the cause, extent, and timing of the explosion, and geologists studying the region have been unable to find evidence of a volcanic eruption or asteroid impact large enough to serve as the basis of the accounts. However, these facts do not justify the claim advanced by some scholars that such stories are entirely symbolic, created by these cultures to serve some societal need. Indeed, since the element that all of these stories have in common is the explosion itself, it is much more likely that the stories recount an actual explosion.
Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the argument above?
(A) In the languages of some of the cultures of Alondia, the word for “explosion” can refer to any kind of disaster.
(B) A small number of the stories also include an account of a large wave that followed the explosion.
(C) Most volcanic eruptions are only audible to humans within a few hundred miles of the source.
(D) Because ancient cultures often associated natural events with specific deities, many stories in these cultures cite such events as a way of indirectly referencing those deities.
(E) Until relatively recently, most of the people of Alondia had had no contact with one another, either direct or indirect, for at least five thousand years.
Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the argument above?
(A) In the languages of some of the cultures of Alondia, the word for “explosion” can refer to any kind of disaster.
(B) A small number of the stories also include an account of a large wave that followed the explosion.
(C) Most volcanic eruptions are only audible to humans within a few hundred miles of the source.
(D) Because ancient cultures often associated natural events with specific deities, many stories in these cultures cite such events as a way of indirectly referencing those deities.
(E) Until relatively recently, most of the people of Alondia had had no contact with one another, either direct or indirect, for at least five thousand years.
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Manhattan Prep Official Explanation:
Step 1: Identify the Question
The words most strongly supports in the question stem indicate that this is a Strengthen the Argument question.
Step 2: Deconstruct the Argument
The argument mentions that a story about an explosion is common to the many remote cultures in the oceanic region of Alondia but that there are some discrepancies among the accounts. No geological evidence has been found to support the veracity of the story. While some scholars have inferred from this that the accounts were purely symbolic, the author concludes the opposite: Given that all of the stories cite an explosion, there is a strong likelihood that such an explosion actually occurred.
Step 3: Pause and State the Goal
Because this is a Strengthen question, look for an answer that supports the position that these stories recount an actual explosion. For instance, because this is a cause-and-effect argument (the author’s position is that an actual explosion led to the stories in these cultures), be on the lookout for answers that eliminate alternative causes as to how the story could have become commonplace across the different islands.
Step 4: Work From Wrong to Right
(A) If anything, this answer adds some doubt to the author’s position, as it implies that some of the stories about an explosion could actually be recounting some other kind of disaster rather than an explosion itself.
(B) On its surface, this answer looks like it might bolster the author’s position, as a large wave could have resulted from whatever caused the explosion. However, this element of the story is only present in a small number of the stories. The author’s logic is that the explosion likely occurred because it is a common element across all of the stories. Something that occurred in only a small number of stories doesn’t support that logic.
(C) If anything, this answer might make it less likely that a volcanic explosion that could be heard from many of the islands occurred, as it seems that Alondia’s islands might be spread farther apart than several hundred miles. This choice doesn’t do anything to support the author’s claim that there was some sort of loud explosion.
(D) This answer is an opposite trap, lending support to the position that such stories are symbolic rather than literal. That is not this author’s position.
(E) CORRECT. One possible weakener for this argument would be if the explosion story in all of these cultures had been copied from one original story, as this would provide an alternate cause for its prevalence among the cultures of Alondia. If however, as this answer makes clear, there was no contact among these different cultures during the timeframe in question, it is somewhat more likely that these isolated islands did witness a large explosion.
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12 Jul 2022, 08:23
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Bunuel
The histories of many cultures in Alondia, a region comprising hundreds of small, remote islands spread over a very large geographic area, make reference to a great explosion that is said to have taken place several thousand years ago. These accounts vary somewhat as to the cause, extent, and timing of the explosion, and geologists studying the region have been unable to find evidence of a volcanic eruption or asteroid impact large enough to serve as the basis of the accounts. However, these facts do not justify the claim advanced by some scholars that such stories are entirely symbolic, created by these cultures to serve some societal need. Indeed, since the element that all of these stories have in common is the explosion itself, it is much more likely that the stories recount an actual explosion.
Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the argument above?
(A) In the languages of some of the cultures of Alondia, the word for “explosion” can refer to any kind of disaster.
(B) A small number of the stories also include an account of a large wave that followed the explosion.
(C) Most volcanic eruptions are only audible to humans within a few hundred miles of the source.
(D) Because ancient cultures often associated natural events with specific deities, many stories in these cultures cite such events as a way of indirectly referencing those deities.
(E) Until relatively recently, most of the people of Alondia had had no contact with one another, either direct or indirect, for at least five thousand years.
Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the argument above?
(A) In the languages of some of the cultures of Alondia, the word for “explosion” can refer to any kind of disaster.
(B) A small number of the stories also include an account of a large wave that followed the explosion.
(C) Most volcanic eruptions are only audible to humans within a few hundred miles of the source.
(D) Because ancient cultures often associated natural events with specific deities, many stories in these cultures cite such events as a way of indirectly referencing those deities.
(E) Until relatively recently, most of the people of Alondia had had no contact with one another, either direct or indirect, for at least five thousand years.
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(A) In the languages of some of the cultures of Alondia, the word for “explosion” can refer to any kind of disaster.
This does the opposite by saying that it was an actual explosion that was heard by these people
(B) A small number of the stories also include an account of a large wave that followed the explosion.
Irrelevant
(C) Most volcanic eruptions are only audible to humans within a few hundred miles of the source.
This suggests the possibility that everyone in that area might not have heard and explosion and hence does not support the argument
(D) Because ancient cultures often associated natural events with specific deities, many stories in these cultures cite such events as a way of indirectly referencing those deities.
References to deities do not confirm these people heard the explosion independently
(E) Until relatively recently, most of the people of Alondia had had no contact with one another, either direct or indirect, for at least five thousand years.
Correct. This confirms that despite having no contact between these groups of people they have written the same account hence there must have been a high possibility of them hearing an explosion independently of each other.
IMHO Option E
