| Critical Reasoning Butler: May 2025 |
| May 19 | CR 1 | CR 2 |
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CR 1 Biologist: The relationship between our brains and our sensory organs is fascinating. We evolved these organs to better navigate our physical reality. However, doing so does not require our brains to process every bit of information our sensory organs provide. Rather, to function well, our brain analyzes only information relevant to the current situation and builds a generalized image.
The biologist’s statements, if true, most strongly support which of the following conclusions?
A. At least some people’s brains analyze all information provided by their sensory organs in at least some situations.
B. Their brains analyzing every bit of information provided by their sensory organs could help at least some people navigate the physical reality differently than they otherwise would.
C. If brains build a generalized image of reality using information relevant to the current situation, people can often navigate their physical reality better than they otherwise would.
D. Processing every bit of information provided by our sensory organs would be incompatible with the ability to build a generalized image from that information.
E. Building a generalized image requires a clear picture of most if not all details of the physical reality of any situation.
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CR 2 Monarch butterflies migrate much farther than do other insects of similar size. The reason for this behavior is that the range of atmospheric conditions in which monarch butterflies can survive is especially narrow, forcing the butterflies to travel more frequently and extensively to find a suitable habitat.
Which of the following, if true, most helps to confirm the explanation above?
A. Some monarch butterflies migrate over an area 10 times larger than the area over which any other insect of similar size migrates.
B. The monarch butterfly is more resilient to changes in atmospheric conditions than members of most other insect species.
C. During their breeding season, monarch butterflies must find a habitat suitable for both themselves and their newly hatched young.
D. Sometimes individual monarch butterflies spend their entire lives near a single location and never migrate.
E. Monarch butterflies migrate larger distances in years when atmospheric conditions stray further from the range healthy for them than they do in years when atmospheric conditions remain favorable to them.