Twenty years ago, rats on a doc

Question

Twenty years ago, rats on a docked cargo ship came ashore and infested the island of Toumi. Since the nocturnal creatures had no natural predators, their numbers quickly multiplied—crop losses became significant and recently many people have been bitten near garbage cans. For environmental reasons, the government plans to import mongooses to prey on the rats, instead of poisoning the vermin.

Which of the following, if true, would provide the most support for the prediction that the government’s action will not have its intended effect? 
 
A. The proposed number of mongooses to be imported is insufficient to exterminate the rats this year. 
B In its natural habitat, the mongoose feeds on rodents somewhat smaller than rats. 
C Recent polls have shown that the public is solidly against the proposal. 
D Poison traps are a more efficient manner of exterminating rats than are mongooses. 
E In their native habitat, mongooses hunt and feed from dawn to dusk.

yash9045 · Accepted Answer

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION
(1) Identify the Question
Support the prediction in the question stem indicates that this is a Strengthen the Argument question.

(2) Deconstruct the Argument
The rat invasion is causing crop loss and human injuries so the government plans to import mongooses to eliminate the rats.

Here is one possible way to map the argument.

Rats invaded the island and multiplied.

Rats now damaging crops and biting people.

Import mongooses to eliminate the rats.

(3) State the Goal
The question asks for support for a prediction that importing mongooses will not solve the rat infestation.

(4) Work From Wrong to Right

(A) Like the rats, there is no reason that the mongooses will not breed and increase their numbers sufficiently, and the government did not claim that it would only take one year.

(B) This choice does not state that mongooses are incapable of killing rats. If anything, since they eat rodents, this choice would make it more likely that the plan would work.

(C) This choice is irrelevant as it does not say that public opinion will stop or hinder the plan.

(D) This is an irrelevant comparison. Even though poison is more effective, this does not mean that employing mongooses will not succeed.

(E) CORRECT. Since the rats are nocturnal and the mongooses hunt during the day, the two species will have little interaction and thus the mongooses will not winnow the rat population.

KUDOS PLEASE

AnirudhChalla · Answer

Brilliant question. I did not pay attention to the word nocturnal and ended up picking B as E seemed irrelevant.

yash9045 · Answer

Please explain the question stem. as it says will not have its intended effects.
This doesn't mean to weaken govt claim??

Abolnasr · Answer

This question, and similar questions, is clear evidence that GMAC favors native speakers.
The question may be testing your critical reasoning but even a brilliant mind won't be able to answer it if they don't know what nocturnal and dusk mean, it's testing both critical reasoning and lexical resources.

Deep32470 · Answer

I seriously give credit to this question as brilliant one.

AnkitNandwani1 · Answer

The government's plan to import mongooses is based on the expectation that these animals will hunt and reduce the rat population on the island. To undermine this prediction, the correct answer should indicate that the mongooses might not effectively control the rat population.

Evaluating the Answer Choices:
 
This suggests that the number of mongooses being imported may not be enough to control the rat population. However, it does not necessarily indicate that the mongooses themselves would be ineffective; it only questions the scale of the effort. This might weaken the prediction but does not directly address the effectiveness of mongooses in preying on rats.
 
This indicates that mongooses may not naturally prey on rats if they typically hunt smaller rodents. If true, this would directly challenge the effectiveness of mongooses in controlling the rat population on Toumi, thus providing strong support for the prediction that the government's action will not have its intended effect.
 
Public opinion, while relevant to the feasibility of the plan, does not directly impact whether the mongooses will effectively control the rat population.
 
This option suggests that there may be a more effective method than using mongooses, but it doesn't provide evidence that the mongooses themselves would be ineffective.
 
This implies that mongooses are diurnal (active during the day), while rats are nocturnal (active at night). If true, this could suggest that the mongooses and rats might not interact frequently, reducing the effectiveness of the mongooses in controlling the rat population. This directly challenges the plan's effectiveness.

Conclusion:
Both B and E provide strong support for the prediction that the government's action will not have its intended effect. However, E is the stronger choice because it more directly challenges the idea that mongooses will prey on the rats by highlighting a potential mismatch in their active times.
Thus,  E  is the best answer.

VerbalBot · Answer

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Twenty years ago, rats on a doc

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Twenty years ago, rats on a doc

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