The amount of water consumed in Anderville on any given day in the summer is directly proportional to the heat index on that day. Since the average heat index this July was four points higher than the average heat index last August, it follows that more water was consumed in Anderville this July than last August.
Which one of the following arguments has a pattern of reasoning most similar to the one in the argument above?
(A) The number of doctors working in the emergency room on any day is directly proportional to the number of services delivered by the emergency room that day and also directly proportional to the number of patients that visit the emergency room. Thus, the number of services offered by the emergency room on any given day is directly proportional to the number of patients that visit the emergency room on that day.
(B) The number of doctors working in the emergency room on any given day is directly proportional to the number of nurses working in the emergency room on that day. But the emergency room employs the same number of orderlies every day. Hence, there are usually more doctors than orderlies working in the emergency room.
(C) The bill paid by a patient at the emergency room is directly proportional to the number of medical professionals the patient sees during his or her visit. Since the number of patients going through the emergency room is increasing, it follows that the emergency room is collecting a greater amount in fees paid by patients than it used to.
(D) The increase in patients at the emergency room is directly proportional to the amount of advertising the hospital has done the previous year. The hospital seeks to attract more patients to its emergency room by increasing the amount the hospital spends on advertising.
(E) The amount of analgesics prescribed in an emergency room is directly proportional to the number of patients that go through the emergency room on a given day. Since the emergency room handled 15 percent more patients in the last year than in the previous year, more analgesics were prescribed in the emergency room last year than in the previous year.