Welcome! Check out our free B-School Guides to learn how you compare with other applicants.
Login or Register
 

A newspaper recently reported

This topic has 1 expert reply and 12 member replies
LalaB GMAT Destroyer!
Joined
08 Dec 2010
Posted:
425 messages
Followed by:
5 members
Thanked:
54 times
Test Date:
soon (hope so)
Target GMAT Score:
700+
A newspaper recently reported Post Tue Mar 27, 2012 10:54 am
Elapsed Time: 00:00
  • Lap #[LAPCOUNT] ([LAPTIME])
    A newspaper recently reported the story of a group of hunters who found a heavily damaged mobile home suspended in the treetops in a forest. Although mobile homes in many towns in the surrounding area had recently been swept away by tornados, officials suspect that this particular mobile home came from nearby New City, which had been almost completely destroyed by a tornado three months earlier, on March 10th.

    Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the officials' hypothesis about the origin of the mobile home?

    -Many residents of New City and the surrounding areas live in trailer homes.
    -A calendar found inside the mobile home was turned to March 10th.
    -Weather stations widely reported the tornado of March 10th.
    -Sales of this particular brand of mobile home have been very strong in New City and other surrounding towns for the past six months.
    -Decals supporting the nearby State University football team were found on the mobile home.

    interested in the answer choice D. any explanation?

    _________________
    Happy are those who dream dreams and are ready to pay the price to make them come true.(c)

    In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure.(c)

    Need free GMAT or MBA advice from an expert? Register for Beat The GMAT now and post your question in these forums!
    sam2304 GMAT Titan
    Joined
    26 Apr 2011
    Posted:
    1239 messages
    Followed by:
    25 members
    Thanked:
    228 times
    Test Date:
    26/06/2012
    Target GMAT Score:
    720
    GMAT Score:
    680
    Post Tue Mar 27, 2012 11:20 am
    We are asked to support the hypothesis about the origin of the mobile home, so D seems fine.

    _________________
    Getting defeated is just a temporary notion, giving it up is what makes it permanent.
    http://gmatandbeyond.blogspot.in/

    ice_rush GMAT Destroyer! Default Avatar
    Joined
    25 Mar 2012
    Posted:
    336 messages
    Followed by:
    3 members
    Thanked:
    14 times
    Test Date:
    04/10/2013
    Target GMAT Score:
    700+
    GMAT Score:
    650
    Post Tue Mar 27, 2012 4:35 pm
    D is definitely not the answer...matter of fact, I am not sure if any of those choices are correct.
    what is the source of the problem? One might be able to make a case for B, but it requires some assumptions.

    venkart89 Just gettin' started!
    Joined
    06 Feb 2012
    Posted:
    16 messages
    Target GMAT Score:
    780
    Post Tue Mar 27, 2012 8:46 pm
    This is indeed a tough question.

    Got stuck with two options B & D.

    If I consider option D, it throws some information about the mobile home, whereas it also creates confusion as the home could be from surrounding areas rather than from New City.

    Whereas Option B gives an edge over Option D as the calendar date was March 10th.

    My take is Option B.

    _________________
    800 is my lucky number.

    http://cat4iimgmat4isb.blogspot.in

    patanjali.purpose GMAT Destroyer! Default Avatar
    Joined
    03 Apr 2011
    Posted:
    784 messages
    Followed by:
    10 members
    Thanked:
    112 times
    Post Thu Mar 29, 2012 1:16 pm
    LalaB wrote:
    A newspaper recently reported the story of a group of hunters who found a heavily damaged mobile home suspended in the treetops in a forest. Although mobile homes in many towns in the surrounding area had recently been swept away by tornados, officials suspect that this particular mobile home came from nearby New City, which had been almost completely destroyed by a tornado three months earlier, on March 10th.

    Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the officials' hypothesis about the origin of the mobile home?

    -Many residents of New City and the surrounding areas live in trailer homes.
    -A calendar found inside the mobile home was turned to March 10th.
    -Weather stations widely reported the tornado of March 10th.
    -Sales of this particular brand of mobile home have been very strong in New City and other surrounding towns for the past six months.
    -Decals supporting the nearby State University football team were found on the mobile home.

    interested in the answer choice D. any explanation?
    Conclusion: Mobile home came from near by city

    B - supporting the premises that this mobile home is completely dstroyed by 10th March tornedo. BUT, It does not support the above conclusion

    IMO D

    GMAT/MBA Expert

    chris@magoosh GMAT Instructor
    Joined
    17 Jan 2012
    Posted:
    88 messages
    Followed by:
    26 members
    Thanked:
    41 times
    Post Thu Mar 29, 2012 4:03 pm
    This definitely is an odd question, I question the original source. Nonetheless, there are a few things I can definitely say:

    (D) is not the answer. Sure mobile home sales have been strong for the last six months. But notice it says that sales have been strong in New City AND surrounding areas. Therefore, the mobile home could have come from the surrounding areas. Even if mobile home sales had been strong only in New City that doesn't mean that the mobile home came from there. Mobile homes have been sold for years, and could have came from any of the other cities. Or, since it is a mobile home, it could have been purchased in New City and then driven somewhere else. You can see that this answer choice has more holes than Swiss cheese.

    (B) A calendar found inside the mobile was turned to March 10th

    This is the best answer, but requires the sort of stretch you wouldn't want to make on the GMAT. That's why I always say bad questions are only hurting you. Use them at your peril.

    Hope that helps Smile.

    Thanked by: sam2304
    LalaB GMAT Destroyer!
    Joined
    08 Dec 2010
    Posted:
    425 messages
    Followed by:
    5 members
    Thanked:
    54 times
    Test Date:
    soon (hope so)
    Target GMAT Score:
    700+
    Post Fri Mar 30, 2012 8:30 am
    chris@magoosh wrote:
    I question the original source.

    the image is attached. kaplan is a source.

    Quote:
    Nonetheless, there are a few things I can definitely say:
    (D) is not the answer. Sure mobile home sales have been strong for the last six months. But notice it says that sales have been strong in New City AND surrounding areas.

    yep, I didnt pay attention to the words "surrounding areas" ((

    the OA is B, but I dont like this answer choice. I didnt choose it,since I thought that the calendar could be turned during that tornado. So, it is not a fact, that if the calendar showed March 10th, it was really March, 10th.

    the OE is the following -

    Identify the Question Type:

    The phrase "most strongly supports the officials' hypothesis" indicates this is a Strengthen question. To strengthen the argument the answer choice will confirm that the home originated from New City.

    Untangle the Stimulus:

    The stem states that hunters found a damaged mobile home in the treetops. Mobile homes in the area had been damaged by tornadoes. The hypothesis is that this one came from New City and was damaged in the March 10th tornado.

    Predict the Answer:

    The correct answer will confirm that the home originated from New City.

    Evaluate the Choices:

    The correct answer is Answer Choice (B) because it provides a specific fact connecting this mobile home with a tornado that hit New City on March 10th.

    Although choices (A) and (E) suggest the mobile home came from the general area, they do not specifically point to the March 10 tornado.

    Choice (C) is incorrect because it simply restates that the tornado occurred on March 10th, but provides no link between this mobile home and that date.

    Choice (D) is incorrect because it is too vague; it suggests that the mobile home may have been purchased locally within the last six months, but it does not confirm that the trailer was purchased before March 10th.

    _________________
    Happy are those who dream dreams and are ready to pay the price to make them come true.(c)

    In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure.(c)

    Thanked by: sownthar
    Post Sat Mar 31, 2012 1:06 am
    chris@magoosh wrote:
    This definitely is an odd question, I question the original source. Nonetheless, there are a few things I can definitely say:

    (D) is not the answer. Sure mobile home sales have been strong for the last six months. But notice it says that sales have been strong in New City AND surrounding areas. Therefore, the mobile home could have come from the surrounding areas. Even if mobile home sales had been strong only in New City that doesn't mean that the mobile home came from there. Mobile homes have been sold for years, and could have came from any of the other cities. Or, since it is a mobile home, it could have been purchased in New City and then driven somewhere else. You can see that this answer choice has more holes than Swiss cheese.

    (B) A calendar found inside the mobile was turned to March 10th

    This is the best answer, but requires the sort of stretch you wouldn't want to make on the GMAT. That's why I always say bad questions are only hurting you. Use them at your peril.

    Hope that helps Smile.
    Thank you for expert comment. pls, help
    One way to strengthen an argument is to confirm the assumption-type 1. another way to strengthen an argument is to support the conclusion directly-type 2. In this problem, I see B strengthen the conclusion directly and is correct answer.
    B is a strengthener type 2. is my thinking correct? experts, members, pls, confirm.

    We needd how a strengthener work before fint it. It is clear there are 2 types of strengtheners. Is my thinking correct. pls, help /comment.

    vikram4689 GMAT Titan
    Joined
    01 Nov 2009
    Posted:
    1324 messages
    Followed by:
    13 members
    Thanked:
    99 times
    Post Sun Apr 08, 2012 9:19 am
    What do we want to strengthen
    Mobile came from nearby New City OR Mobile came on 10th March.
    I guess its former as evident from "officials suspect that this particular mobile home came from nearby New City"
    B supports Mobile came on 10th March &
    E supports Mobile came from nearby New City

    So i choose E... what's wrong in this analysis

    _________________
    Premise: If you like my post
    Conclusion : Press the Thanks Button Wink

    GMAT Kolaveri Really wants to Beat The GMAT!
    Joined
    23 Mar 2012
    Posted:
    286 messages
    Followed by:
    6 members
    Thanked:
    59 times
    Target GMAT Score:
    730
    Post Sun Apr 08, 2012 7:21 pm
    LalaB wrote:
    A newspaper recently reported the story of a group of hunters who found a heavily damaged mobile home suspended in the treetops in a forest. Although mobile homes in many towns in the surrounding area had recently been swept away by tornados, officials suspect that this particular mobile home came from nearby New City, which had been almost completely destroyed by a tornado three months earlier, on March 10th.

    Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the officials' hypothesis about the origin of the mobile home?

    -Many residents of New City and the surrounding areas live in trailer homes.
    -A calendar found inside the mobile home was turned to March 10th.
    -Weather stations widely reported the tornado of March 10th.
    -Sales of this particular brand of mobile home have been very strong in New City and other surrounding towns for the past six months.
    -Decals supporting the nearby State University football team were found on the mobile home.

    interested in the answer choice D. any explanation?
    B is the correct option.
    Conclusion: Mobile home came from New city.

    D: Sales of this particular brand of mobile home have been very strong in New City and other surrounding towns for the past six months It gives us the possibility that the home could ve come from other cities as well. This will be the answer option in weaken type. not in strengthen case

    B is correct because it confirm that home was destroyed on March 10. We have evidence in the argument that New City was destroyed on March 10. Hence B is the correct option.

    As Ron from MGMAT says for CR one has to think logically not just follow a set of rules.
    Primary skill: thinking logically.
    Secondary: knowing the rules to identify incorrect and correct option (for using POE)
    Most students follow the wrong order (they swap the primary and secondary skill order

    _________________
    Regards and Thanks,
    Vinoth@GMAT Kolaveri
    https://www.facebook.com/GmatKolaveri
    http://gmatkolaveri.tumblr.com/

    Click the thank you button if you like my reply Smile

    vikram4689 GMAT Titan
    Joined
    01 Nov 2009
    Posted:
    1324 messages
    Followed by:
    13 members
    Thanked:
    99 times
    Post Sun Apr 08, 2012 9:06 pm
    What do you think of my response above your post

    _________________
    Premise: If you like my post
    Conclusion : Press the Thanks Button Wink

    GMAT Kolaveri Really wants to Beat The GMAT!
    Joined
    23 Mar 2012
    Posted:
    286 messages
    Followed by:
    6 members
    Thanked:
    59 times
    Target GMAT Score:
    730
    Post Mon Apr 09, 2012 5:58 pm
    vikram4689 wrote:
    What do you think of my response above your post
    I have written in my post why D is incorrect.

    We have strengthen that the mobile home came from New City (not any other city)
    AO E tells us that it could ve come from New City or any other city

    _________________
    Regards and Thanks,
    Vinoth@GMAT Kolaveri
    https://www.facebook.com/GmatKolaveri
    http://gmatkolaveri.tumblr.com/

    Click the thank you button if you like my reply Smile

    vikram4689 GMAT Titan
    Joined
    01 Nov 2009
    Posted:
    1324 messages
    Followed by:
    13 members
    Thanked:
    99 times
    Post Mon Apr 09, 2012 9:18 pm
    GMAT Kolaveri wrote:
    I have written in my post why D is incorrect.
    We have strengthen that the mobile home came from New City (not any other city)
    I am not concerned about D.

    I mistook State in E for New City. If following were the option then E would have been correct what say
    Decals supporting the nearby New City University football team were found on the mobile home

    _________________
    Premise: If you like my post
    Conclusion : Press the Thanks Button Wink

    Gaurav 2013-fall Really wants to Beat The GMAT! Default Avatar
    Joined
    22 Feb 2012
    Posted:
    277 messages
    Thanked:
    10 times
    Test Date:
    2012
    Target GMAT Score:
    800
    GMAT Score:
    700
    Post Thu Apr 26, 2012 9:11 am
    Nice question, teaches us the benefits of careful reading.

    Best Conversation Starters

    1 varun289 31 topics
    2 sana.noor 23 topics
    3 killerdrummer 21 topics
    4 Rudy414 19 topics
    5 sanaa.rizwan 14 topics
    See More Top Beat The GMAT Members...

    Most Active Experts

    1 image description Brent@GMATPrepNow

    GMAT Prep Now Teacher

    199 posts
    2 image description GMATGuruNY

    The Princeton Review Teacher

    134 posts
    3 image description Jim@StratusPrep

    Stratus Prep

    106 posts
    4 image description Anju@Gurome

    Gurome

    47 posts
    5 image description Jon@Admissionado

    Admissionado

    39 posts
    See More Top Beat The GMAT Experts