In a certain wildlife park, park rangers are able to track

Question

In a certain wildlife park, park rangers are able to track the movements of many rhinoceroses because those animals wear radio collars. When, as often happens, a collar slips off, it is put back on. Putting a collar on a rhinoceros involves immobilizing the animal by shooting it with a tranquilizer dart. Female rhinoceroses that have been frequently recollared have significantly lower fertility rates than uncollared females. Probably, therefore, some substance in the tranquilizer inhibits fertility.

In evaluating the argument, it would be most useful to determine which of the following?

A. Whether there are more collared female rhinoceroses than uncollared female rhinoceroses in the park. 
B. How the tranquilizer that is used for immobilizing rhinoceroses differs, if at all, from tranquilizers used in working with other large mammals 
C. How often park rangers need to use tranquilizer darts to immobilize rhinoceroses for reasons other than attaching radio collars 
D. Whether male rhinoceroses in the wildlife park lose their collars any more often than the park's female rhinoceroses do 
E. Whether radio collars are the only practical means that park rangers have for tracking the movements of rhinoceroses in the park

OA after some discussion.

anuragmaruti · Answer

I think the answer to the above mentioned Question is E.
Here the stimulus asks us to infer what could be reasons why the fertility rate of the female rhino decreases.

It may be either due to 2 causes 
a) use of tranquilizer may be the cause 
or 
b) the use of radio collars may be be the cause .

So to determine the real cause we must zero it down to these questions

Franklin · Answer

I think the answer is C.

The conclusion: Therefore, some substance in the tranquilizer inhibits fertility

My reasoning: So if the argument posits that a substance in the tranquilizer inhibits fertility, what would be helpful to know is how many times are female rhinos immobilized by a tranquilizer darts for attaching radio collars or for any other reason. The stimulus doesn't state how many times it just states frequently. So if a female rhino is tranquilized not only for reattaching a radio collar but for other reasons that could possible prove the conclusion.

On to the answer choices ...

A) How is that relevant. The stimulus is only concerned with collared female rhinos.

B) Totally irrelevant. We want to know the number of times.

C) Bingo. If a female rhino is tranquilized not only for reattaching a radio collar but for other reasons this may prove the conclusion.

D) Who cares about males?

E) We don't care about whether radio collars are a good method of tracking rhinos. We want to know about the frequency in which rhinos are tranquilized.

I will go with C. What is the OA?

aknine · Answer

Another vote for C.

The passage talks about ' putting radio collars ' and ' shooting with a tranquilizer dart to immobilize the anima l', which might be the reasons for lower fertility rates in female rhinoceros, so the following answer should have them to support the conclusion...

AR2010 · Answer

B can be a possibility..........if there is evidence of infertility in other mammals due to tranquilizer there is a good reason to believe that tranqulizers are the culprit.

yangsta8 · Answer

Argument: Tracking depends on rhinos wearing radio collars -> collaring requires tranquilizer -> frequent recollaring significantly lowers fertility
Conclusion: Probably, tranq inhibits fertility
My own inference is that we are looking for something that either supports/attacks: that no other means/reasons can attribute to the recollared females having lower fertility than the uncollared ones.

Question type is determining an assumption. 
a) Out of scope, doesn’t sway the argument.
b) Doesn’t help argument or conclusion, other tranqs may cause the same reaction may not, further the animals may not have same reaction.
c) My choice of answer: If we knew this, we it helps determine if other causes other than tranq can cause lower fertility. Such as the collars. 
d) Out of scope: Male rhinos are not mentioned in argument
e) Scope shift, We are not asked for a practical means of tracking rhinos.

prabu · Answer

+1 for E
This passage mainly deals with radio collars. not with female rhinoceroses or tranquilizer.
so this radio collars cause all the problem..

/Prabu

riteshbindal · Answer

OA:  C

atomy · Answer

nice one

KocharRohit · Answer

can somebody please post the OA?

In a certain wildlife park, park rangers are able to track

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