Bunuel wrote:
In a survey to collect data about sales of cars in various towns, it was found that the residents of the town BMWdorf buy more cars than the residents of the town Volkswagendorf. From this information it was concluded that the residents of the town BMWdorf are more fascinated with cars than those of the town Volkswagendorf.
All of the following statements, if true, weaken the argument, except which one?
A. The population of BMWdorf is higher than that of Volkswagendorf.
B. The residents of Volkswagendorf have a lower average income than those of BMWdorf.
C. Environment related rules restricting buying of personal vehicles are not as strictly implemented in BMWdorf as in Volkswagendorf.
D. Using public transport is cheaper and more convenient in BMWdorf than in Volkswagendorf.
E. The roads of Volkswagendorf have marked bicycle lanes making it safer for bicycle riders there than in BMWdorf.
Thank you
sayantanc2k for the question!!!
Conclusion:
the residents of the town BMWdorf are more fascinated with cars than those of the town Volkswagendorf.A. The population of BMWdorf is higher than that of Volkswagendorf.
INCORRECT. This weakens the argument by giving us an alternate reason. BMWdorf having higher population than Volkswagendorf may be the cause as to why residents of the town BMWdorf have bought more total cars han the residents of the town Volkswagendorf
B. The residents of Volkswagendorf have a lower average income than those of BMWdorf.
INCORRECT. This weakens the argument by giving us an alternate reason. The lower average income of residents of Volkswagendorf may explain why people refrain from buying more cars than people of BMWdorf.
C. Environment related rules restricting buying of personal vehicles are not as strictly implemented in BMWdorf as in Volkswagendorf.
INCORRECT. This weakens the argument by giving us an alternate reason. The residents of Volkswagendorf may not buy more cars just because there are more restricting environment related rules.
D. Using public transport is cheaper and more convenient in BMWdorf than in Volkswagendorf.
CORRECT This does not weaken. This may slightly strengthen the argument in fact by eliminating an alternate reason for the conclusion. In this case, even with better and cheaper public transport, residents of BMWdorf have bought more cars than residents of Volkswagendorf. This could indeed mean that the residents of the town BMWdorf are more fascinated with cars than those of the town Volkswagendorf.
E. The roads of Volkswagendorf have marked bicycle lanes making it safer for bicycle riders there than in BMWdorf.
INCORRECT. This weakens the argument by giving us an alternate reason. This shows that since it is safer for bicycle riders to ride bicycles in Volkswagendorf, residents there may just prefer bicycles over cars, and thus refrain from buying more cars.