SheilyKamra wrote:
Can someone explain why D is correct? In my opinion, both paper and plastic do same damage per the passage. Conclusion is that current use of paper causes more harm than that of plastic.
Hi Sheily
What you have stated is only partly true. The exact premise stated in the question stimulus is:
The damage that a given weight or volume of trash does to the environment is roughly the same whether the trash consists of plastics or paper products.Therefore, to compare the damage caused by paper waste to plastic waste, it is necessary to know which kind of waste has greater volume and weight. Fortunately, the stimulus is very clear on this point:
A recent national study...confirmed that plastics constitute a smaller proportion of all trash than paper productsTherefor, prima facie, it is confirmed that that the end product of paper causes greater harm than the end product of plastic. In order to strengthen the argument, we are looking for something which shows another aspect of paper waste causing more harm than plastic waste (since the conclusion is about
use of plastic and not just the products themselves).
(A) A given weight of paper of product may increase in volume after manufacture and before being discarded as trash
We need a comparison between paper and plastic in some respect since the conclusion does the same. Hence incorrect.(B) According to popular opinion, volume is a more important consideration than weight in predicting the impact of a given quantity of trash on the environment
The passage states very clearly that paper causes more damage whether by volume or weight. Hence we are looking at reinforcing facts comparing paper and plastic. What happens to paper alone does not serve this purpose. (C) The sum of damage caused to the environment by paper trash and by plastic trash is greater than that caused by any other sort of trash that was studied.
Again, we are looking for something that compares paper and plastic. (D) The production of any paper product is more harmful to the environment than is the production of an equal weight or volume of any plastic
Correct.(E) The proportion of plastic trash to paper trash varies from one part of the country to another.
This does not impact the author's argument as the conclusion is based on a national study. _________________
Crackverbal Prep Team
www.crackverbal.com