Events & Promotions
|
|
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
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Nov 1912:30 PM EST
-01:30 PM EST
Learn how Keshav, a Chartered Accountant, scored an impressive 705 on GMAT in just 30 days with GMATWhiz's expert guidance. In this video, he shares preparation tips and strategies that worked for him, including the mock, time management, and more
Nov 2007:30 AM PST
-08:30 AM PST
Learn what truly sets the UC Riverside MBA apart and how it helps in your professional growth
Nov 2001:30 PM EST
-02:30 PM IST
Learn how Kamakshi achieved a GMAT 675 with an impressive 96th %ile in Data Insights. Discover the unique methods and exam strategies that helped her excel in DI along with other sections for a balanced and high score.
Nov 2211:00 AM IST
-01:00 PM IST
Do RC/MSR passages scare you? e-GMAT is conducting a masterclass to help you learn – Learn effective reading strategies Tackle difficult RC & MSR with confidence Excel in timed test environment- Nov 23
11:00 AM IST
-01:00 PM IST
Attend this free GMAT Algebra Webinar and learn how to master the most challenging Inequalities and Absolute Value problems with ease. 
Nov 2407:00 PM PST
-08:00 PM PST
Full-length FE mock with insightful analytics, weakness diagnosis, and video explanations!
Nov 2510:00 AM EST
-11:00 AM EST
Prefer video-based learning? The Target Test Prep OnDemand course is a one-of-a-kind video masterclass featuring 400 hours of lecture-style teaching by Scott Woodbury-Stewart, founder of Target Test Prep and one of the most accomplished GMAT instructors.
souvik101990
Expert
Alum
Joined: 19 Mar 2012
Last visit: 11 Nov 2025
Posts: 4,321
Given Kudos: 2,326
Location: United States (WA)
Concentration: Leadership, General Management
Schools: Ross '20 (M)
GMAT 1: 760 Q50 V42
GMAT 2: 740 Q49 V42 (Online)
GMAT 3: 760 Q50 V42 (Online)
GPA: 3.8
WE:Marketing (Non-Profit and Government)
Products:
Expert reply
Updated on: 19 Jan 2020, 09:49
Originally posted by souvik101990 on 05 Apr 2015, 08:17.
Last edited by Bunuel on 19 Jan 2020, 09:49, edited 1 time in total.
Last edited by Bunuel on 19 Jan 2020, 09:49, edited 1 time in total.
Renamed the topic and edited the question.
Kudos
Bookmarks
D
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
5%
(low)
Question Stats:
89% (01:57) correct
11%
(02:11)
wrong
based on 653
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Sedimentary rock hardens within the earth's crust as lavers of matter accumulate and the pressure of the layers above converts the layers below into rock. One particular layer of sedimentary rock that contains an unusual amount of the element iridium has been presented as support for a theory that a meteorite collided with the earth some sixty million years ago. Meteorites are rich in iridium compared to the earth's crust, and geologists theorize that a meteorite's collision with the earth raised a huge cloud of iridium-laden dust. The dust, they say, eventually settled to earth where it combined with other matter, and as new layers accumulated above it, it formed a layer of iridium-rich rock.
Which one of the following, if true, would counter the claim that the iridium-rich layer described in the passage is evidence for the meteorite collision theory?
(A) The huge dust clo8ud described in the passage would have blocked the transmission of sunlight and lowered the earth's temperature.
(B) A layer of sedimentary rock takes millions of years to harden.
(C) Layers of sedimentary rock are used to determine the dates of prehistoric events whether or not they contain iridium.
(D) Sixty million years ago there was a surge in volcanic activity in which the matter spewed from the volcanoes formed huge iridium-rich dust clouds.
(E) The iridium deposit occurred at about the same time that many animal species became extinct and some scientists have theorized that mass dinosaur extinctions were caused by a meteorite collision.
Which one of the following, if true, would counter the claim that the iridium-rich layer described in the passage is evidence for the meteorite collision theory?
(A) The huge dust clo8ud described in the passage would have blocked the transmission of sunlight and lowered the earth's temperature.
(B) A layer of sedimentary rock takes millions of years to harden.
(C) Layers of sedimentary rock are used to determine the dates of prehistoric events whether or not they contain iridium.
(D) Sixty million years ago there was a surge in volcanic activity in which the matter spewed from the volcanoes formed huge iridium-rich dust clouds.
(E) The iridium deposit occurred at about the same time that many animal species became extinct and some scientists have theorized that mass dinosaur extinctions were caused by a meteorite collision.
06 Sep 2015, 23:21
Kudos
Bookmarks
It is a weakening question.
X caused Y in the passage, however Z caused the X
X: a meteorite's collision with the earth
Y: a huge cloud of iridium-laden dust
Z: a surge in volcanic activity in which the matter spewed from the volcanoes
X caused Y in the passage, however Z caused the X
X: a meteorite's collision with the earth
Y: a huge cloud of iridium-laden dust
Z: a surge in volcanic activity in which the matter spewed from the volcanoes
15 Dec 2017, 02:25
Kudos
Bookmarks
souvik101990
--Meteorites are rich in iridium in comparison to the Earth's crust
---One layer of sedimentary rock contains an unusual amount of iridium
---A meteorite caused this iridium (meteorite collision theory)
The main key to this question is understanding the conclusion. "It was a meteorite!" the conclusion says. How can we weaken this? Pretty easily actually. All we have to do is show that it was actually something else that caused this "huge cloud of iridium-laden dust" to form the layer of iridium-rich rock.
(A) This just talks more about the huge dust cloud. We don't want to know what effect the dust cloud had; we want to know what caused the dust cloud to begin with.
(B) But does this mean that it was/wasn't the meteorite that caused the iridium in the dust cloud? We don't know! All we know is that rock takes millions of years to harden. Okay....
(C) This functions much like (A). We don't care about any effects of the rock. AKA, we don't care how sedimentary rock is used. We care about what caused the iridium in the sedimentary rock.
(D) This looks great! (D) basically says, "nope. It wasn't the meteorite that caused the iridium. It was actually the matter spewed from the volcanoes." In other words, this provides an alternate cause and that is exactly what we wanted to do!
(E) This actually strengthens the conclusion! It does so by giving more credence to the idea that it was a meteorite that caused the iridium dust. Why? Well it says that the iridium formed at about the same time as mass dinosaur extinctions. So what? This is important because many people believe that the dinosaurs were extinct because of, you guessed it...a meteorite! While it doesn't conclusively prove that a meteorite caused the iridium in the rock. It shows that it seems to be correlated with another event that involved a meteorite. Hmm.... Either way, this definitely does not weaken the argument.
