In the previous two years, significantly more rain has fallen in Browning in September than in July. Therefore, this year in Browning more rain will probably fall in September than in July.
The reasoning in the argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that the argumentThe argument predicts this year’s rainfall pattern from only the previous two years.
The flaw is that two years is too small a sample to support a reliable prediction about
future rainfall.
(A) contains a premise that presupposes the truth of the conclusion
This is incorrect. The premise does not assume that this year September will be rainier than July. It only reports what happened in the previous two years.
(B) draws an inference about a future event on the basis of a very limited number of instances of related past events
This is correct. The argument uses only two past years to predict what will probably happen this year. That is weak evidence for a weather pattern.
(C) overemphasizes the possibility that average rainfall statistics could be skewed by large rainfall in one year
This is not the flaw. The argument does not discuss averages or skewed statistics.
(D) concludes that two phenomena are associated merely from the claim that there are many instances in which both phenomena are present
This is incorrect. The argument does not claim there are many instances; it gives only two.
(E) uses evidence drawn from a source whose reliability cannot readily be verified
This is not supported. The problem is not the reliability of the source, but the limited evidence.
Answer: (B)