Last visit was: 19 Nov 2025, 04:05 It is currently 19 Nov 2025, 04:05
Home
GMAT
Messages
Tests
Schools
Events
Rewards
Chat
My Profile
Close
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.

Customized
for You

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Track
Your Progress

every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance

Practice
Pays

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Go to My Error Log Learn more
Close
Request Expert Reply
Confirm Cancel
Back to Forum
Create Topic
   1   2 
605-655 Level|   Weaken|                  
User avatar
MukuDawra
User avatar
Joined: 22 Nov 2021
Last visit: 11 Apr 2025
Posts: 17
Own Kudos:
8
Given Kudos: 24
Posts: 17
Kudos: 8
Lockeport's commercial fishing boats use gill nets, which kill many of 20 Nov 2022, 06:18
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
KarishmaB
parkhydel
Lockeport's commercial fishing boats use gill nets, which kill many of the netted fish, including some fish of endangered species. The fishing commission has proposed requiring the use of tent nets, which do not kill fish; boat crews would then throw back fish of endangered species. Profitable commercial fishing boats in similar areas have already switched over to tent nets. The proposal can therefore be implemented without economic harm to Lockeport's commercial fishing boat operators.

Which of the following, if true, casts the most serious doubt on the argument made for the proposal?


A. In places where the use of tent nets has been mandated, there are typically fewer commercial fishing boats in operation than there were before tent nets came into use.

B. Even when used properly, gill nets require many more repairs than do tent nets.

C. Recreational anglers in Lockeport catch more fish of endangered species than do commercial fishing boats.

D. The endangered species of fish in Lockeport's commercial fishing area did not become endangered as a result of the use of gill nets by fishing fleets.

E. The endangered species of fish caught by Lockeport's commercial fishing fleet are of no commercial value.


CR51520.02

Lockporte boats use gill nets. So the endangered fish caught are killed in them.
Use tent nets. Fish are not killed. So endangered fish can be freed.
Profitable commercial fishing boats in similar areas have already switched over to tent nets.

Conclusion: Tent nets can be used without economic harm.
Note that there is only one actual premise in the argument - that profitable boats in similar areas have already switched to tent nets. Rest is all context to explain us what gill nets and tent nets are. Using this premise, we are concluding that in Lockport too, we can adopt tent nets without economic harm.

We need to cast doubt on the proposal.

A. In places where the use of tent nets has been mandated, there are typically fewer commercial fishing boats in operation than there were before tent nets came into use.

This tells us that in the places we are talking about in our premise, there are fewer commercial fishing boats today. It means some commercial boats went out of business or did not find tent nets profitable enough. Whatever the cause, the point is that it seems there would be economic harm. Hence our conclusion "without economic harm" may not be justified. Correct.

B. Even when used properly, gill nets require many more repairs than do tent nets.

Favours tent nets. Does not harm our conclusion.

C. Recreational anglers in Lockeport catch more fish of endangered species than do commercial fishing boats.

Irrelevant. The comparison doesn't affect us either way.

D. The endangered species of fish in Lockeport's commercial fishing area did not become endangered as a result of the use of gill nets by fishing fleets.

It is irrelevant why the fish became endangered - was it overfishing or some disease or low on food etc, it doesn't matter to our argument at all. The point is only this - if we now switch to tent nets, will there be any economic impact?

E. The endangered species of fish caught by Lockeport's commercial fishing fleet are of no commercial value.

If anything, it helps our plan. The fishermen will be required to free the endangered fish. If they have no commercial value, it means no impact economically.

Answer (A)
Show more

Hi KarishmaB
Thanks for wonderful explanation.

As per my understanding option E don't have any impact on argument .
If the endangered fish caught at Lockeport don't have any commercial value then than fisherman would avoid fishing those endangered fishes. So as a result it don't have any impact on argument. Could you please evaluate my reasoning.
User avatar
KarishmaB
User avatar
Joined: 16 Oct 2010
Last visit: 18 Nov 2025
Posts: 16,267
Own Kudos:
76,989
 [2]
Given Kudos: 482
Location: Pune, India
Expert
Expert reply
Active GMAT Club Expert! Tag them with @ followed by their username for a faster response.
Posts: 16,267
Kudos: 76,989
 [2]
Lockeport's commercial fishing boats use gill nets, which kill many of 20 Nov 2022, 21:49
2
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
MukuDawra
KarishmaB
parkhydel
Lockeport's commercial fishing boats use gill nets, which kill many of the netted fish, including some fish of endangered species. The fishing commission has proposed requiring the use of tent nets, which do not kill fish; boat crews would then throw back fish of endangered species. Profitable commercial fishing boats in similar areas have already switched over to tent nets. The proposal can therefore be implemented without economic harm to Lockeport's commercial fishing boat operators.

Which of the following, if true, casts the most serious doubt on the argument made for the proposal?


A. In places where the use of tent nets has been mandated, there are typically fewer commercial fishing boats in operation than there were before tent nets came into use.

B. Even when used properly, gill nets require many more repairs than do tent nets.

C. Recreational anglers in Lockeport catch more fish of endangered species than do commercial fishing boats.

D. The endangered species of fish in Lockeport's commercial fishing area did not become endangered as a result of the use of gill nets by fishing fleets.

E. The endangered species of fish caught by Lockeport's commercial fishing fleet are of no commercial value.


CR51520.02

Lockporte boats use gill nets. So the endangered fish caught are killed in them.
Use tent nets. Fish are not killed. So endangered fish can be freed.
Profitable commercial fishing boats in similar areas have already switched over to tent nets.

Conclusion: Tent nets can be used without economic harm.
Note that there is only one actual premise in the argument - that profitable boats in similar areas have already switched to tent nets. Rest is all context to explain us what gill nets and tent nets are. Using this premise, we are concluding that in Lockport too, we can adopt tent nets without economic harm.

We need to cast doubt on the proposal.

A. In places where the use of tent nets has been mandated, there are typically fewer commercial fishing boats in operation than there were before tent nets came into use.

This tells us that in the places we are talking about in our premise, there are fewer commercial fishing boats today. It means some commercial boats went out of business or did not find tent nets profitable enough. Whatever the cause, the point is that it seems there would be economic harm. Hence our conclusion "without economic harm" may not be justified. Correct.

B. Even when used properly, gill nets require many more repairs than do tent nets.

Favours tent nets. Does not harm our conclusion.

C. Recreational anglers in Lockeport catch more fish of endangered species than do commercial fishing boats.

Irrelevant. The comparison doesn't affect us either way.

D. The endangered species of fish in Lockeport's commercial fishing area did not become endangered as a result of the use of gill nets by fishing fleets.

It is irrelevant why the fish became endangered - was it overfishing or some disease or low on food etc, it doesn't matter to our argument at all. The point is only this - if we now switch to tent nets, will there be any economic impact?

E. The endangered species of fish caught by Lockeport's commercial fishing fleet are of no commercial value.

If anything, it helps our plan. The fishermen will be required to free the endangered fish. If they have no commercial value, it means no impact economically.

Answer (A)

Hi KarishmaB
Thanks for wonderful explanation.

As per my understanding option E don't have any impact on argument .
If the endangered fish caught at Lockeport don't have any commercial value then than fisherman would avoid fishing those endangered fishes. So as a result it don't have any impact on argument. Could you please evaluate my reasoning.
Show more

It is not feasible to catch only a certain type of fish. One could fish in certain areas where a certain type is abundant but other than that, one cannot control which type of fish will get caught in the net. So if 100 fish get caught, 20 of those could be endangered (for example). Currently, some of these 100 get killed including some of the endangered ones.

If tent nets are used, fish are not killed. The plan is to require fishermen to throw back the 20 fish of endangered species which would be all alive. Since these 20 don't have any economic value (as per option (E)), there won't be any loss to the fishermen.
So option (E) supports the plan that switching to tent nets will not have any economic harm.
User avatar
ArnauG
User avatar
Joined: 23 Dec 2022
Last visit: 14 Oct 2023
Posts: 298
Own Kudos:
42
Given Kudos: 199
Posts: 298
Kudos: 42
Lockeport's commercial fishing boats use gill nets, which kill many of 24 Apr 2023, 23:18
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Option A casts the most serious doubt on the argument made for the proposal because it suggests that mandating the use of tent nets could result in a reduction in the number of commercial fishing boats operating in Lockeport. This reduction in the number of boats could have a significant economic impact on Lockeport's commercial fishing boat operators, even if other areas have implemented tent nets without harm. Thus, it would suggest that the proposal could harm Lockeport's commercial fishing industry, despite evidence of similar areas not being harmed. Therefore, A is the correct answer.
User avatar
MBAchild
User avatar
Joined: 16 Dec 2022
Last visit: 02 Jul 2025
Posts: 23
Own Kudos:
6
Given Kudos: 35
Posts: 23
Kudos: 6
Lockeport's commercial fishing boats use gill nets, which kill many of 12 May 2024, 15:51
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Are argument and conclusion the same ? Always?
User avatar
SundayRoast
User avatar
Joined: 29 Oct 2024
Last visit: 23 Jul 2025
Posts: 40
Own Kudos:
6
Given Kudos: 11
Posts: 40
Kudos: 6
Lockeport's commercial fishing boats use gill nets, which kill many of 12 Dec 2024, 16:26
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
There is a lack of consistency between this question on less boats and the airline landing minimum time increasing could mean larger planes are used through inference. In this question there might be less boats but they are larger and the catch is the same
User avatar
NathanMasky
User avatar
Joined: 12 Feb 2024
Last visit: 17 Nov 2025
Posts: 15
Own Kudos:
53
Given Kudos: 27
Location: India
Schools: Berkeley Haas Goizueta '27 (A$$$) Broad (S) Stanford '26
GMAT Focus 1: 625 Q87 V80 DI76
GRE 1: Q170 V160
GPA: 3.92
WE:Project Management (Manufacturing)
Schools: Berkeley Haas Goizueta '27 (A$$$) Broad (S) Stanford '26
GMAT Focus 1: 625 Q87 V80 DI76
GRE 1: Q170 V160
Posts: 15
Kudos: 53
Lockeport's commercial fishing boats use gill nets, which kill many of 16 Feb 2025, 07:44
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Here's how to analyze the argument and find the option that weakens it the most:

The Argument:

Premise 1: Tent nets don't kill fish, allowing endangered species to be thrown back.
Premise 2: Profitable commercial fishing boats in similar areas use tent nets.
Conclusion: Therefore, Lockeport's fishing boats can switch to tent nets without economic harm.

The argument relies heavily on the analogy to "similar areas." Any difference between Lockeport and those areas could weaken the argument.

Analyzing the options:

(A): This is the strongest weakener. If fewer boats operate where tent nets are used, it suggests that tent nets might lead to a reduction in the number of profitable fishing operations. This directly challenges the claim of "no economic harm."

(B): This actually supports the proposal. If gill nets require more repairs, switching to tent nets could save money.

(C): Recreational anglers catching endangered species is irrelevant to the economic impact on commercial fishing boats.

(D): The reason the fish are endangered is irrelevant to whether switching to tent nets will cause economic harm.

(E): If the endangered species have no commercial value, then their being killed by gill nets (or saved by tent nets) has no impact on the profitability of the fishing operations. This is a red herring.

Therefore, the correct answer is (A).
User avatar
SiddharthSachdeva
User avatar
Joined: 04 Oct 2024
Last visit: 03 Nov 2025
Posts: 15
Own Kudos:
2
Given Kudos: 16
Posts: 15
Kudos: 2
Lockeport's commercial fishing boats use gill nets, which kill many of 01 Apr 2025, 23:06
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Option A tells about a correlation observed with execution of proposal and number of commercial fishing boats and we have to assume that the correlation is the causation also, i.e. the change of nets caused number of fisherman to decline

Ain't this question wrong in this sense because in a lot of questions, we are not allowed to assumer anything on our own in CR and are asked to take things at their face value but now here the answer wants us to assume correlation - causation
   1   2 
Moderators:
GMATNinja
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
7445 posts
GMATNinjaTwo
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
234 posts
miag
188 posts