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655-705 (Hard)|   Weaken|                     
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Farmer: Several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen 12 Aug 2024, 21:37
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KaranB1
(E) Recent surveys show that more than half of the people in the region report that they have never seen a mountain lion before.

Answer choice E implies that people who claimed to have seen the mountain lions in the suburban outskirts MIGHT have never
seen a mountain lions before. Isn't this a strong weaker?


(C) No person who claimed to have seen a mountain lion had anyone else with them at the purported sighting.

I agree that this answer choice is a weaker too. But the point is according to the prompt Several people in the
past few years have claimed to have seen a mountain lion. Although a single person could have made a mistake,
but in this there are many people claimed to have seen a mountain lion.

Please help me understand why C is better?

KarishmaB
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­Hi KaranB1,

What you're saying is possible, but it isn't very likely.

First, let's lock down why we may look at option E: (i) people who've never seen a mountain lion before (surveys) suddenly claim they've seen a mountain lion (sightings) and (ii) people who in the past claimed they've seen a mountain lion (sightings) now claim they've never seen a mountain lion (surveys).

The first (i) would help because it'd tell us that these people are less likely to be able to identify a mountain lion accurately. The second (ii) would help because it'd tell us that perhaps the people who reported seeing a mountain lion realised that they made a mistake (and therefore now don't report having seen a mountain lion before).

Let's see what the question tells us:

1. The stimulus tells us "several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen a mountain lion... the latest just last month".

2. Option E, on the other hand, includes information from "recent surveys".

Although recent isn't clearly defined, it's reasonable to say that past few years ≠ recent. In other words, the reports of sightings came in before the surveys, so (i) is not likely. That leaves us with (ii), and I think we're stretching a bit too much by this point (firstly, assuming that there is overlap, and secondly, assuming that people have changed their reports).

Here's how we should look at option E: The surveys are recent, and they tell us that most people haven't seen mountain lions. Therefore the people the surveys are talking about are most likely not the same as the ones who reported seeing a mountain lion. This isn't inconsistent with the situation in the question, as only "several" people have reported seeing a mountain lion "in the past few years".

As far as option C is concerned, I see that you understand the logic. C is a weak weakener, but it is still better than the other options, so we mark it.­
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Farmer: Several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen 18 Aug 2024, 09:41
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Applying the logic of why C weakens then argument, can't we also strengthen the argument?

If all the sightings were by individuals rather than by a group, doesn't it strengthen the several aspect of the premise? Different individuals claiming to see a mountain lion separately seems like a relatively stronger indication of a mountain lion being present when compared with just several people seeing it.

The probability of several people seeing it in one instance and being wrong is higher than the probability of several people individually seeing the mountain lion separately and being wrong.
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Farmer: Several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen 18 Aug 2024, 21:41
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Sarthakdua3
Applying the logic of why C weakens then argument, can't we also strengthen the argument?

If all the sightings were by individuals rather than by a group, doesn't it strengthen the several aspect of the premise? Different individuals claiming to see a mountain lion separately seems like a relatively stronger indication of a mountain lion being present when compared with just several people seeing it.

The probability of several people seeing it in one instance and being wrong is higher than the probability of several people individually seeing the mountain lion separately and being wrong.
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­Hi Sarthakdua3,

I see what you're getting at, but you may be taking an extreme position on the number of sightings. Keep in mind (a) that we're definitely looking at more than one sighting ("the latest just last month") and (b) that all this is over a period of years. Also, your point about more sightings by individuals being better than fewer sightings by groups is a extremely limited, as you are focusing only on number of sightings.

Instead, we should ask ourselves why every single sighting is only by an individual. That is, if there really is a mountain lion in the suburban outskirts, why exactly has it never been seen even once in the past few years by a group of at least two people?
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Farmer: Several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen 18 Sep 2025, 01:05
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why not option D ? is it out of scope or something else ?
everyone mention the reason past year but the sitting is happening since past year so what is wrong in the option ?
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Farmer: Several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen 18 Sep 2025, 09:35
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sambhavrastogi
why not option D ? is it out of scope or something else ?
everyone mention the reason past year but the sitting is happening since past year so what is wrong in the option ?
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sambhavrastogi

Let me help clarify the specific issue with this answer choice.

The Key Timeline Issue with Option (D)

The critical problem with option (D) lies in a temporal mismatch between what the argument discusses and what the answer choice addresses:

From the stimulus:
  • People have claimed sightings over "the past few years"
  • The most recent sighting was "last month"
  • This suggests sightings spanning 2-5 years approximately

From option (D):
  • Only addresses migration reports from "the past year"
  • This is just a 1-year window

Why This Mismatch Matters
Think about it this way: If mountain lions have been spotted for several years, but option (D) only tells us there were no migration reports in the past year, this leaves a significant gap. The mountain lions could have:

  • Migrated 2, 3, or 4 years ago (explaining earlier sightings)
  • Already been established in the area before the "past year" timeframe

Option (D) essentially says: "No migration in Year 5" but the sightings occurred in Years 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. This doesn't explain or cast doubt on the earlier sightings at all.

Why Option (E) is Stronger

Option (E) provides an alternative explanation for ALL the sightings: if most people have never seen a mountain lion before, they could be misidentifying other animals as mountain lions. This directly attacks the assumption that the reported sightings are accurate, regardless of when they occurred.

You can find the detailed explanation to this question here- it will help you understand the logical structure of the question and understand the right framework to approach similar questions.

Key Takeaway for CR Weakening Questions

A strong weakener must:

  • Address the entire scope of the evidence presented
  • Provide an alternative explanation or cast doubt on a key assumption
  • Have temporal and logical alignment with the argument's claims

Option (D) fails the first criterion because it only addresses a fraction of the relevant time period, making it an ineffective weakener.
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Farmer: Several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen 19 Sep 2025, 15:33
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sambhavrastogi
why not option D ? is it out of scope or something else ?

everyone mention the reason past year but the sitting is happening since past year so what is wrong in the option ?
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It's very possible to have mountain lion sightings even without significant migration. (It's also possible to have migration even without reports of migration!)

In fact, if there already was migration of mountain lions into the region, there would likely be LOTS of sightings. And in order for there to be regional reports of migration, there would likely have to be significant sightings by the professionals/scientists making those regional reports. If that were the case, local wildlife managers would probably already be doing something address the situation (and the farmer wouldn't have to make this argument at all).

Remember, the expectation is for there to be NO mountain lions in the region. The local population likely wouldn't skyrocket overnight. Instead, we'd first expect only a few mountain lions to start wandering into the area, before there is significant migration or reports of migration. That's probably what's going on in the region now, and that's why the farmer is concerned. The farmer wants to make sure things don't get worse.

For more on why (C) is the right answer, check out this post: https://gmatclub.com/forum/farmer-sever ... l#p2554193.
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Farmer: Several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen 30 Sep 2025, 23:50
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I agree here E is a weak weakener, but so is C. I mean in C also we are assuming that people might be on some drugs thats why they couldnt state things right, there is some tiny possibility. In E too we can assume that people didnt recognize a mountain lion, and with no malice stated not there was a mountain lion, but in reality it could be some other animal. egmat MartyMurray
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Farmer: Several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen 03 Oct 2025, 01:55
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Aishna1034
I agree here E is a weak weakener, but so is C. I mean in C also we are assuming that people might be on some drugs thats why they couldnt state things right, there is some tiny possibility. In E too we can assume that people didnt recognize a mountain lion, and with no malice stated not there was a mountain lion, but in reality it could be some other animal. egmat MartyMurray
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Aishna1034

I can see you're wrestling with why (E) is better than (C) when both seem to cast some doubt on the sightings. This is actually a common point of confusion. My explanation may be a little detailed but just stay with me, you'll see where you're going wrong :)

The farmer's entire argument can be simplified to this:
  • Evidence: Several people have reported seeing a mountain lion.
  • Assumption: These reports are accurate.
  • Conclusion: Therefore, a mountain lion is present and managers must act.

To weaken this argument, we need to attack the assumption that the reports are accurate.

Why Choice (E) is an Ineffective Weakener

(E) Recent surveys show that more than half of the people in the region report that they have never seen a mountain lion before.

Your thinking was that if people have never seen one, they might not recognize it. While creative, this requires an extra assumption: that the people who made the reports are part of this group of people who have never seen one. The stimulus doesn't say that.

The core issue with (E) is that it's a statement about the general population, not the specific witnesses. Mountain lions are, by nature, rare and elusive. We would expect most people in any given region to have never seen one. This fact does nothing to discredit the specific claims of the few people who reported a sighting. It's like saying, "Most people have never won the lottery, so we should doubt the claim of the person who says they did." The two statements don't logically connect. Therefore, (E) has almost no impact on the argument's core.

Why Choice (C) is a Strong Weakener

(C) No person who claimed to have seen a mountain lion had anyone else with them at the purported sighting.

This choice directly attacks the quality and reliability of the evidence. An uncorroborated eyewitness report is fundamentally less reliable than one confirmed by multiple people.

  • A lone witness could be mistaken.
  • A lone witness could be confused by another animal.
  • A lone witness's account cannot be independently verified.

Since the farmer's entire conclusion rests on these reports, showing that the reports are all uncorroborated and thus less reliable is a direct and powerful attack on the argument's foundation.

You mentioned assuming the person might be on drugs. It's important to avoid bringing in such outside information. The weakness of (C) doesn't rely on extreme assumptions like drug use; it relies on the simple, universally accepted principle that uncorroborated testimony is less credible than corroborated testimony.

Please go through this detailed explanation here. It will help you understand how to break down a CR passage and approach these kinds of questions.

C. Process Diagnosis

The main issue in your thought process was two-fold:
  1. For choice (E), you made a logical leap by connecting a general statistic about a population to the specific individuals mentioned in the evidence. On the GMAT, you must stick strictly to the information provided.
  2. For choice (C), you introduced an unnecessary and external assumption ("drugs") to explain the weakness, when the weakness was simpler and more direct (lack of corroboration).

The goal is always to find the choice that weakens the argument with the fewest extra assumptions. (C) weakens the argument directly by targeting the reliability of its evidence.
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Farmer: Several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen 17 Aug 2026, 00:04
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Bunuel
Farmer: Several people in the past few years have claimed to have seen a mountain lion in the suburban outskirts—the latest just last month—and, while mountain lions were thought to have been driven from this entire region about twenty years ago, there is no reason for the people who reported seeing a mountain lion to have deliberately concocted a false report. Therefore, local wildlife managers should begin to urgently address the mountain lion's presence.

Which of the following would, if true, most seriously weaken the farmer's argument?

(A) Farmers in the suburban outskirts mostly raise cattle and hogs, which when fully grown are generally not attacked by mountain lions.
(B) Mountain lions are dissimilar in size and color to other wild animals found near the suburban outskirts.
(C) No person who claimed to have seen a mountain lion had anyone else with them at the purported sighting.
(D) There have been no regional reports in the past year of mountain lions migrating to the area.
(E) Recent surveys show that more than half of the people in the region report that they have never seen a mountain lion before.


CR90061.01
OG2020 NEW QUESTION

Show Spoiler
Argument Evaluation

Situation
A farmer argues that, because several people in recent years, including someone just last month, have claimed to have seen a mountain lion in the suburban outskirts, local wildlife managers need to address the mountain lion's presence. The farmer claims that people would not intentionally create a false story about seeing a mountain lion.

Reasoning
What would most seriously call into question the farmer's argument that because there have been reports of mountain lion sightings, wildlife managers should address the issue? Even if it is true that people would not intentionally create a false report of having seen a mountain lion, it is possible that people have mistakenly believed they have seen a mountain lion when in fact what they saw was something else. If some fact called into question the accuracy of the reports of mountain lion sightings, then the farmer's conclusion would have weaker support.

(A) Even if most fully grown animals raised by farmers would not be attacked by mountain lions, there could still be good reason to be concerned about the presence of mountain lions in the suburban outskirts. The mountain lion might attack animals before they are fully grown.

(B) A dissimilarity in size and color between mountain lions and other wild animals in the area where the mountain lions were purportedly sighted would make it less likely that people mistakenly believed that an animal they spotted was a mountain lion. So, this would strengthen the farmer's argument, not weaken it.

(C) Correct. If there actually were at least one mountain lion in the area, and several people over a period of a few years accurately claim to have seen one, then it seems likely that on at least some occasions a person would have been in the presence of someone else at the time, given the frequency with which people are in the company of others. So, if there have been no instances of a person reporting seeing a mountain lion when in the company of another, perhaps that is because when someone has mistakenly believed that an animal is a mountain lion, the other person helps correct the mistaken belief. With no one else present, an illusory sighting would be less likely to be corrected.

(D) There have been purported sightings of a mountain lion in the area for several years, so presumably, if the sightings are accurate, there has been at least one mountain lion for several years, so the sightings could be accurate even if no mountain lion has migrated to the area in the past year.

(E) It might be likely that most people living in the area would not have seen a mountain lion even if one lived in the area. For instance, the mountain lion might intentionally try to avoid people.
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I followed a proper process and arrived at : (E) Recent surveys show that more than half of the people in the region report that they have never seen a mountain lion before.

Even though it's not a great option it the most suitable - there's a chance that the people who reported seeing a mountain lion were among these who had never seen one before and then saw a wild animal which was different and labelled it as a mountain lion.

(C) No person who claimed to have seen a mountain lion had anyone else with them at the purported sighting.
This is just a poor answer from GMAT and any experts backing this just because it is official.

When it is already given in the statement as a fact " there is no reason for the people who reported seeing a mountain lion to have deliberately concocted a false report" 1. We cannot challenge facts and say they were lying. 2. 'They saw something else and mistook it for the mountain lion' is not valid enough because the same can be applied to E but which has another stronger layer that 50% people in town never seen it before. 3. Any argument bringing up the possibility of people being on drugs or not fully conscious is so absurd that if accepted the whole of CR section can become a 'what if'
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