The legislature is considering a law banning the use of cellphones by

Question

The legislature is considering a law banning the use of cellphones by people who are driving a moving car. Drivers texting and talking while driving are distracted by their phone conversations and can’t give their full attention to driving their vehicles. Banning the use of cellphones by drivers will make the roads safer.

The argument depends on assuming which one of the following?

(A) A study by a sociologist has shown that the use of cellphones is occasionally a contributing factor in traffic accidents.

(B) The proper role of the legislature is to enact laws that protect the safety of drivers and passengers in automobiles.

(C) Drivers who hold their cellphones in their hands are more distracted than drivers who use a hands-free headset or speakerphone while driving.

(D) Because drivers talking and texting on cellphones are distracted, they are more prone to getting into accidents.

(E) Many drivers engage in behavior that distracts them from their driving, such as eating, adjusting the radio, reading maps, and talking on cellphones.

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vidhi421 · Answer

The correct answer is  D 
The argument that banning cellphones will make roads safer assumes that cellphone use causes accidents.
(A) is incorrect because it only mentions occasional contributions to accidents, not the necessity of a ban.
(B) is irrelevant as it discusses the role of the legislature rather than the effect of cellphone use on safety.
(C) is incorrect as it compares different forms of cellphone use, which is not central to the argument's claim.
(E) is too broad, mentioning various distractions without focusing on cellphones.
 The correct answer is (D) because it assumes that cellphone use specifically causes driver distraction, leading to more accidents, which supports the argument's claim.

Shwarma · Answer

Option D

The assumption on why the legislature should consider banning mobiles while driving

(A) A study by a sociologist has shown that the use of cellphones is occasionally a contributing factor in traffic accidents. -  But .. doesn't say while driving walking, running etc

(B) The proper role of the legislature is to enact laws that protect the safety of drivers and passengers in automobiles. -  Not related

(C) Drivers who hold their cellphones in their hands are more distracted than drivers who use a hands-free headset or speakerphone while driving. -  but we want to ban all altogether so
 
(D) Because drivers talking and texting on cellphones are distracted, they are more prone to getting into accidents. -  Yes, when you negate it, you destroy th e claim of the roads will be safer, coz technically it already is 
 
(E) Many drivers engage in behavior that distracts them from their driving, such as eating, adjusting the radio, reading maps, and talking on cellphones. -  Nope

PranavVyas · Answer

IMO D,

Conclusion- Banning the use of cellphones by drivers will make the roads safer.

(D) Because drivers talking and texting on cellphones are distracted, they are more prone to getting into accidents. -  Correct

suj11 · Answer

The legislature is considering a law banning the use of cellphones by people who are driving a moving car. Drivers texting and talking while driving are distracted by their phone conversations and can’t give their full attention to driving their vehicles. Banning the use of cellphones by drivers will make the roads safer.

Let`s understand the question first.
"The legislature is considering a law banning the use of cellphones by people who are driving a moving car." -> So, legislature is planning something. Next lines should answer Why?
"Drivers texting and talking while driving are distracted by their phone conversations and can’t give their full attention to driving their vehicles." -> Ok, so now we know Whis is Legislature is considering banning the use of cellphones while driving. Because drivers are distracted and can’t give their full attention to driving their vehicles.
"Banning the use of cellphones by drivers will make the roads safer." -> Notice the change here, the author goes on to state that this would make the roads safer. This is the conclusion.
We need to find a missing piece that has lead the author to this conclusion.

Notice here distraction/not being able to give full attention is linked to roads not being safer. what could be it.? "Accidents" maybe.?
Lets quickly go throught he answer choices:

(A) A study by a sociologist has shown that the use of cellphones is occasionally a contributing factor in traffic accidents. -> But this doesnot necessarily mean use of cell phones while driving, we are concerned with use of cellphones while driving. Eliminated.
(B) The proper role of the legislature is to enact laws that protect the safety of drivers and passengers in automobiles. -> We are not concerned witht he roles of legislature here. Eliminated.
(C) Drivers who hold their cellphones in their hands are more distracted than drivers who use a hands-free headset or speakerphone while driving. -> This choice compares use of cell phones handheld or hands-free headset or speakerphone. Not concerned with different modes of use. Eliminated.
(D) Because drivers talking and texting on cellphones are distracted, they are more prone to getting into accidents. -> In line with what we thought. Lets keep this for now.
(E) Many drivers engage in behavior that distracts them from their driving, such as eating, adjusting the radio, reading maps, and talking on cellphones. -> This talks about other activities are not concerned with other activities. Eliminated.

So answer choice D is the correct answer.
Lets quickly negate this choice and check if it breaks the conclusion(property of an assumption)
"Because drivers talking and texting on cellphones are distracted, they are NOT more prone to getting into accidents." Well this would break our conclusion that "Banning the use of cellphones by drivers will make the roads safer.", since drivers are NOT prone to more accidents or they are as good as others not talking on cellphone, that means banning will not make our roads any safer.

werty_123 · Answer

I was confused between B and D. I selected B. Usually it is said assumption is something which is not stated in the argument. Option D states something that is already mentioned in the argument. So how can D be the right option using this logic?

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Uday11 · Answer

Can someone explain me in literal terms that why A is not the answer?

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Shreya1211 · Answer

Bunuel  while i can negate option D and see that it will weaken the conclusion and also it is the better option amongst all, but, isnt Option D already stated in the argument? Generally, we have learnt and believed that options that are already stated in the argument cannot be the answer to an assumption question. Am i missing something?

Shreya1211 · Answer

Uday11  While i also selected A, i later understood that the option is vague. "Traffic accidents" can contain a lot of reasons, as driving is not speciafically mentioned in the option. The option may be talking about accidents while walking, riding, etc. and the passage is only concerned with accidents while driving! Hope that helps!

Bunuel · Answer

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION:

D. You’re looking for an assumption. Assumptions connect the premises to the conclusion. The conclusion that if drivers can’t use cellphones, the roads will be safer is based on the evidence that drivers on phones are distracted; the author assumes that distracted drivers are unsafe drivers. (Yes, that’s obvious, but the author doesn’t explicitly say what the connection is, so it’s an assumption.) Choice (A) is tricky and could be a possible answer if you were asked to support the legislator’s argument, but information about the results of a specific cellphone use study is way too specific to be the legislator’s assumption. Assumptions are rarely based on particular statistical data. See whether you can find a better answer. Choice (B) is wrong; the author probably does assume that this is the legislature’s job, but this assumption isn’t necessary to the specific argument connecting distraction

The legislature is considering a law banning the use of cellphones by

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The legislature is considering a law banning the use of cellphones by

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