Sri07 wrote:
In a certain wildlife park, park rangers are able to track the movements of many rhinoceroses because those animals wear radio collars. When, as often happens, a collar slips off, it is put back on. Putting a collar on a rhinoceros involves immobilizing the animal by shooting it with a tranquilizer dart. Female rhinoceroses that have been frequently recollared have significantly lower fertility rates than uncollared females. Probably, therefore, some substance in the tranquilizer inhibits fertility.
Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?
a.The dose of tranquilizer delivered by a tranquilizer dart is large enough to give the rangers putting collars on rhinoceroses a generous margin of safety.
b.The fertility rate of uncollared female rhinoceroses in the park has been increasing in the past few decades.
c.Any stress that female rhinoceroses may suffer as a result of being immobilized and handled has little or no negative effect on their fertility.
d.The male rhinoceroses in the wildlife park do not lose their collars as often as the park’s female rhinoceroses do.
e.The tranquilizer used in immobilizing rhinoceroses is the same as the tranquilizer used in working with other large mammals.
SAME ARGUMENT, DIFFERENT QUESTION
Here is the argument:
Many rhinoceroses wear radio collars.
Often, collars slip.
When a collar slips, the animal is shot with a tranquilizer to re-collar.
Fertility of frequently recollared females <<< fertility of uncollared females. (Mind you, it doesn't compare collared females with uncollared)
Conclusion: tranquilizer inhibits fertility
We are looking for an assumption now.
a.The dose of tranquilizer delivered by a tranquilizer dart is large enough to give the rangers putting collars on rhinoceroses a generous margin of safety.Not in our scope. Whether the dose is large enough for a generous margin (so that rhinos don't wake up while collars are being put), we are not discussing.
b.The fertility rate of uncollared female rhinoceroses in the park has been increasing in the past few decades.We are not assuming that the fertility rate of uncollared females is increasing.
The negation here will be: The fertility rate of uncollared female rhinoceroses in the park has not been increasing in the past few decades.
When you take this to be true, does your conclusion fall apart? No. We know that there is a big difference in the fertility rates of uncollared females and frequently collared females currently. We are trying to find why.
Whether the fertility rate of uncollared rhinos is the same or decreasing every year doesn't matter. We don't need to assume anything about their annual rate.
Say fertility rate of uncollared rhinos was 50% last year and is 48% this year.
Fertility rate of frequently recollared was 25% last year and is 24% this year.
The point is why is there such a big difference between these two today. How it varies from last year has no relevance to us. We need to focus on the numbers of 48% vs 24% only.
Our scope doesn't talk about uncollared last year vs uncollared this year. It talks about uncollared last year vs frequently recollared this year.
c.Any stress that female rhinoceroses may suffer as a result of being immobilized and handled has little or no negative effect on their fertility.When we conclude that something in the tranquilizer inhibits fertility, we are assuming that the physical effect of recollaring is not causing this decrease. If it were true that female rhinoceroses were suffering from stress as a result of being immobilized and that was hampering their fertility, then the tranquilizer may not be at fault. Hence our conclusion breaks.
This is an assumption.
d.The male rhinoceroses in the wildlife park do not lose their collars as often as the park’s female rhinoceroses do.
Nothing about male rhino fertility.
e.The tranquilizer used in immobilizing rhinoceroses is the same as the tranquilizer used in working with other large mammals.
Other large mammals are out of scope.
Answer (C)
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