Since 2010, the proportion of mosquito infestations in Cervances resis

Question

Since 2010, the proportion of mosquito infestations in Cervances resistant to the household insecticide proustein has increased considerably. Mosquitoes can rapidly become resistant to a household insecticide when it is used indiscriminately or when people fail to administer it as instructed. As proustein has not been used indiscriminately, public health officials theorize that the increase in proustein resistant mosquitoes is primarily a result of people failing to administer it as instructed.

Which of the following, if true of Cervances, provides most support for the health officials' theory?

A. The mosquitos’ resistance to several other commonly used household insecticides has not increased since 2010 in Cervances.
B. Proustein emanates an unpleasant smell that most people require a few days to get accustomed to. 
C. At the time it was introduced, proustein was much more effective in eliminating mosquito infestations than any other household insecticides used for such infestations at the time.
D. A large number of Cervancians never seek help from pest control experts when they have a mosquito infestation.
E. Cervancian health clinics provide household insecticides to their patients without generating any profits from their sale.

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pappal · Answer

A. talks about some other insecticide so not relevant. OUT
B. it actually supports what is exclusively denied in the argument not the conclusion, like if people take a time to get accustomed to its smell so wont be motivated to use it indiscriminately. OUT
C. it actually asserts a generalization regarding insecticides and not on what the health official ties to establish. OUT
E. focuses on the distribution of the insecticides by the health clinics without profits. though seems tempting that getting it cheaper will result in its indiscriminate usage, but its actually opposing what's exclusively denied by the health experts. OUT
D. this option clearly supports the conclusion by focusing on the reason why people fail to use as instructed, non taking the help from the pest control experts.  BEST CHOICE

ExpertsGlobal5 · Answer

B is the best choice.

Video explanation:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PihrwRRcKmk

Tinytrotter · Answer

I feel D is a stronger answer choice than B. I get the logic that because people are not taking help from pest control experts, they can use it indiscriminately but they can also just as easily use it incorrectly.

B gives a very weak suggestion point that because it has a particular smell that most people require a few days to get used to, this will keep the indisciminate usage in check. It is an assumption that an unpleasant smell is big enough of a deterrent to keep the usage in check, it is not mentioned anywhere in the question. Even if we compare it to real life, when dealing with a mosquito infestation - priority is to get rid of infestation and most people would not fuss over something like smell.

Hence, I feel D is a better choice than B.

RawFork · Answer

Please someone explain how B can be a good choice as compared to D because, in B we are talking about smell, it may or may not be related to the conclusion. Given that D was not mentioned in the options, the 2nd best would be to go with B as the answer. D directly talks about that as the proustein resistant mosquitoes increased because people are not using it properly, and hence maybe as they are not talking help or guidance/support on how to use it well enough.

egmat · Answer

Hi RawFork,

Your instinct is right: we need something that explains  why people would fail to administer proustein as instructed.  The theory has already ruled out indiscriminate use, so the winning choice must point at  improper administration  specifically. Let's test D against that bar.

Why D doesn't get there.  D says many Cervancians  "never seek help from pest control experts."  But the instructions for a household insecticide come  on the product  - you don't need a pest-control expert to follow them. So someone can skip the expert and still administer proustein exactly as directed. D never tells us that anyone actually deviates from the instructions; it just says they don't consult a specialist. That's a gap, not a link. Worse, "not seeking help" could just as easily point toward casual, indiscriminate use - the very thing the argument already ruled out.

Why B does the work.  B says proustein  "emanates an unpleasant smell that most people require a few days to get accustomed to."  That gives people a concrete  motive to break from the instructions  - cutting the treatment short, using less than directed, or airing the room out too early to escape the smell. Each of those  is  a failure to administer it as instructed, which is exactly the mechanism the officials' theory needs.

So the comparison isn't "D is direct, B is a stretch." It's that D never establishes misuse at all, while B supplies the reason misuse happens.

A quick parallel to lock it in:  think of a  10 -day antibiotic that tastes awful.
- "People don't ask a doctor how to take it" - doesn't prove they take it wrong (they could still follow the label).  That's D. 
- "It tastes so bad that people stop after  4  days" - a real reason they don't finish the course, which breeds resistance.  That's B.

The bad-taste fact is what actually explains the improper use - same move the smell makes here.

Answer: B

guddo · Answer

I’d say (D) requires an extra assumption that the passage never gives us: that people who do not call pest-control experts therefore use proustein incorrectly. They might simply follow the instructions on the product perfectly well.

(B) gives a more direct reason for misuse. If proustein smells unpleasant, people may stop using it too soon, use too little, or otherwise fail to administer it as instructed. That directly supports the officials’ theory.

So (D) is possible only after adding another step. (B) connects more directly to improper administration.

Since 2010, the proportion of mosquito infestations in Cervances resis

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Since 2010, the proportion of mosquito infestations in Cervances resis

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615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

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