The fabric dye Alidin was recently reformulated to eliminate certain

Question

﻿The fabric dye Alidin was recently reformulated to eliminate certain solvents known to cause damage to the ozone layer. When a factory in Bouvierville started to use the reformulated version of Alidin, several workers contracted serious lung ailments. The manufacturer of Alidin denied that the reformulated product could be the cause of the ailments since numerous other factories had also started to use it, and none of their workers had suffered any ill effects.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the dye manufacturer's argument?

A. At the time Alidin was reformulated, a number of other reformulated and new dyeing products became available.

B. The manufacturer refused for many years to reformulate Alidin, despite numerous complaints about the damage it was causing to the environment.

C. In the Bouvierville factory, many workers who do not use Alidin in their own work nevertheless contracted lung ailments.

D. While most dyeing factories apply Alidin by brush, the Bouvierville factory has always sprayed the dye onto fabric.

E. None of the solvents eliminated from Alidin was ever suspected of causing respiratory problems.

gmatophobia · Accepted Answer

Conclusion of the argument  : The manufacturer of Alidin denied that the reformulated product could be the cause of the ailments

Support provided  : numerous other factories had also started to use Alidin, and none of their workers had suffered any ill effects

We have to weaken the conclusion in light of the supporting evidence and show that reformulated Alidin was the cause of respiratory ailments.

A. At the time Alidin was reformulated, a number of other reformulated and new dyeing products became available.

This is an out-of-scope option and doesn't support or hurt the conclusion. There could be various reasons new dyeing products became available during the reformulation process. Hence, we can eliminate this option.

B. The manufacturer refused for many years to reformulate Alidin, despite numerous complaints about the damage it was causing to the environment.

The statement doesn't weaken the conclusion. It would be incorrect to assume that the manufacturer of Alidin refused to reformulate because they knew that the reformulated product would cause serious lung ailments. Hence, we can eliminate the option.

C. In the Bouvierville factory, many workers who do not use Alidin in their own work nevertheless contracted lung ailments.

This statement strengthens the conclusion and makes us believe that probably Alidin was not the cause of lung ailments as people who did not use Alidin in their own work nevertheless contracted lung ailments. Hence, we can eliminate this option.

D. While most dyeing factories apply Alidin by brush, the Bouvierville factory has always sprayed the dye onto fabric.

This option provides a piece of additional information that can help us evaluate if the supporting evidence that the manufacturer of Alidin provided is sufficient to believe their claim. The reason the manufacturer of Alidin denies the claim is that workers in other factories have not reported any side effects. In arriving at this conclusion, the manufacturer assumes that both factories follow the same set of standards for handling Alidin. This statement proves otherwise. The reason workers in other factories did not face any ill effects was that they used a different method of applying Alidin to the fabric. So it is well possible that the reformulation was the cause of the serious lung ailments among the workers. We can keep this option.

E. None of the solvents eliminated from Alidin was ever suspected of causing respiratory problems.

While we know that none of the solvents eliminated from Alidin was ever suspected of causing respiratory problems, we can't conclude that reformulated did. We have to weaken the conclusion in light of the support provided to arrive at the conclusion. Option D does a better job.

Option D

akanksha0417 · Answer

What is the right answer to this, experts please share your inputs. Is it option E?

Varuag93 · Answer

The answer should be option D as it explains a reason why people in a factory in Bouvierville contracted serious lung ailments. They are using a different method which can be a possible cause of lung ailments.

rahul620720 · Answer

The correct answer is D. 
We need to search which options is more likely to weaken the manufacturer claim which is " Their product does not cause illness as other factories which have used their dye do not fall sick"

Paras96 · Answer

A) "At the time Alidin was reformulated, a number of other reformulated and new dyeing products became available."
 - This option discusses the availability of other dyeing products but does not directly address the cause of the workers' lung ailments in the Bouvierville factory. It does not provide an alternative explanation for the illnesses.

B) "The manufacturer refused for many years to reformulate Alidin, despite numerous complaints about the damage it was causing to the environment."
 - This option provides information about the manufacturer's actions but does not directly weaken the argument by addressing the cause of the workers' lung ailments in the Bouvierville factory. It focuses more on the environmental aspect.

C) "In the Bouvierville factory, many workers who do not use Alidin in their own work nevertheless contracted lung ailments."
 - This option introduces an important fact: workers who do not use Alidin still suffered from lung ailments in the Bouvierville factory. This suggests that Alidin may not be the sole cause, potentially weakening the manufacturer's argument. However, it does not directly address the application method of Alidin.

D) "While most dyeing factories apply Alidin by brush, the Bouvierville factory has always sprayed the dye onto fabric." 
 - This option highlights a crucial difference in the method of applying Alidin between the Bouvierville factory and most other dyeing factories. The Bouvierville factory uses a different method (spraying), which can be relevant to the workers' lung ailments. This difference in application method suggests that the reformulated Alidin may indeed be a possible cause of the ailments, as the application method can impact exposure to the chemicals.

E) "None of the solvents eliminated from Alidin was ever suspected of causing respiratory problems."
 - This option discusses the solvents eliminated from Alidin during reformulation but does not directly address the cause of the workers' lung ailments in the Bouvierville factory. It focuses more on the properties of the solvents.

Option (D) is the most appropriate answer because it provides a specific difference in the method of applying Alidin in the Bouvierville factory compared to most other factories. This difference in application method can be a crucial factor in explaining why workers in the Bouvierville factory suffered from lung ailments when workers in other factories did not. It directly weakens the manufacturer's argument by introducing a plausible alternative explanation.

GmatKnightTutor · Answer

﻿The fabric dye Alidin was recently reformulated to eliminate certain solvents known to cause damage to the ozone layer. When a factory in Bouvierville started to use the reformulated version of Alidin, several workers contracted serious lung ailments. The manufacturer of Alidin denied that the reformulated product could be the cause of the ailments since numerous other factories had also started to use it, and none of their workers had suffered any ill effects.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the dye manufacturer's argument?

A. At the time Alidin was reformulated, a number of other reformulated and new dyeing products became available.

B. The manufacturer refused for many years to reformulate Alidin, despite numerous complaints about the damage it was causing to the environment.

C. In the Bouvierville factory, many workers who do not use Alidin in their own work nevertheless contracted lung ailments.

D. While most dyeing factories apply Alidin by brush, the Bouvierville factory has always sprayed the dye onto fabric.

E. None of the solvents eliminated from Alidin was ever suspected of causing respiratory problems.

The passage talks about how a certain company switched the dye it was using during the production process. After it did this, however, some workers began to have lung problems. The company denied it had anything to do with the new dye since other companies who were already using it and their workers faced no issues.

What would harm the reasoning the company gave?

(D) is a good choice. Even if the new dye is the same, HOW you use the dye may not be. Perhaps when you BURN the new dye onto a fabric it is safe but not when you SPRAY it on.

-contact: gmatknight site | gmatclub dm

JoeKan1234 · Answer

To explain the discrepancy in a way that weakens that conclusion, it is needed to find a variable that can prevent workers of other factories from contracting the ailments. D introduces the variable and explains the discrepancy. Therefore, the passage does not consider this variable, and its conclusion is weakened when this variable is present.

Vaishnavi_2498 · Answer

IMO E could not be the answer because if "None of the solvents were eliminated from Alidin" then it could have affected the other factories too not just Bouvierville

VerbalBot · Answer

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The fabric dye Alidin was recently reformulated to eliminate certain

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