Bunuel wrote:
Very powerful volcanic eruptions send large amounts of ash high into the atmosphere, blocking sunlight and causing abnormally cold temperatures for a year or more after the eruption. In 44 B.C. there was a powerful eruption of Mount Etna in Sicily. In the following year, Chinese historians recorded summer frosts and dimmed sunlight in China, thousands of miles east of Sicily. If these phenomena were caused by volcanic ash in the atmosphere, then the ash sent into the atmosphere by Mount Etna’s eruption must have spread over great distances.
In evaluating the support given for the conclusion advanced in the last sentence of the passage, it would be most important to determine whether
(A) modern monitoring equipment can detect the precise path of volcanic ash in the atmosphere
(B) the abnormal weather in China lasted for a full year or longer
(C) temperatures in Sicily were abnormally cold after Mount Etna erupted
(D) there were any volcanic eruptions near China around the time of Mount Etna’s eruption
(E) subsequent eruptions of Mount Etna were as powerful as the one in 44 B.C.
ArgumentVolcano eruption causes dust which blocks sunlight which leads to cold year for more than a year. China experienced cold weather after a year after Mt. Etna vocano erupted. If this cold in China was due to Mt Etna volcano eruption, that means the dust spread large distances that included china.
Question TYpe Evaluate the argument. Find a statement which provides two paths. If the statement is true, it gives one path and if false then it will give opposite path.
(A) modern monitoring equipment can detect the precise path of volcanic ash in the atmosphere -->
It does not provide two paths. The preciseness of path does not have any bearing on if dust from eruption at Mt Etna reached China. --> Incorrect(B) the abnormal weather in China lasted for a full year or longer -->
It may be true, but this can be due to other reasons as well --> Does not provide two paths --> Incorrect(C) temperatures in Sicily were abnormally cold after Mount Etna erupted --
> temperature in Sicily do not provide any evidence that chinese cold weather was due to eruption at Mt Etna. --> Incorrect(D) there were any volcanic eruptions near China around the time of Mount Etna’s eruption -->
If this were true, then Mt. Etna was not the only reason. If this were false, then Mt. Etna might be the reason --> Provides two paths --> CORRECT(E) subsequent eruptions of Mount Etna were as powerful as the one in 44 B.C -->
subsequent eruptions does not matter --> Irrelevent --> Incorrect