assumption questions

jamesk486 · Posted: Thu May 03, 2007 4:03 pm Post subject: assumption questions

Researchers have concluded from a survey of people aged 65 that emotional well being in adulthood is closely related to intimacy with siblings earlier in life. Those who surveyed who had never had any sibilings or who said that at college age they were emotionally distant from thier sibilings were emotionally less well-adjusted at 65 than were those who had been close to at least one brother or sister.

Which of the following if true most seriously weakens the researcher's argument?

A. As they get older, many people think more about their mortality and thus must confront feelings of loneliness and isolation
B. People suffering from the emotional distress of maladjustment usually remember being less intimate with other people than they actually were.
C. Memory of one's past plays a greater role in emotional well-being of older people than it does in that of younger people.
D. Few people can correctly identiy the true sources of their emotional well-being or of their emotional difficulties
E. Sibilings are more likely to have major arguments and eep differences of opinion at college age than at any other time of their lives.

I couldn't choose between B and D...

Since 1941, Los Angeles has drawn water from mountain streams that feed into Mono Lake. If water continues to be drawn from the streams at the present rate, in about 30 years the resulting drop in the water level of Mono Lake will trigger a chain reaction ending in the destruction of the ecosystem of the lake.

Which of the following is an assumption on which the prediction is based?

A. Since 1941 the ecosystem of Mono Lake has changed significantly as a result of a drop in the lake's water level.
B. The amount of water that evaporates from Mono Lake has increased annually since at least 1941.
C. Los Angeles is investigating the availability of a different source of water that could supplement the water it draws from the mountain streams
D.Voluntary water conservation will not be itself be sufficient to hold Los Angeles' water needs to present needs
E. Any water flowing into Mono Lake from sources other than the mountain streams will be insufficient to prevent triggering even from occuring

I couldn't choose between A and E, but in A, if you use the negation test the whole argument falls apart so thats why I initally chose it but E sounds very strong as well.

rajesh_ctm · Posted: Thu May 03, 2007 4:49 pm Post subject:

1. D sounds close, but if you carefully look, it is not.

D. Few people can correctly identiy the true sources of their emotional well-being or of their emotional difficulties

The people surveyed are not told to identify the sources of their emotional well being or difficulties. These people were asked how well-balanced (emotionally) they were, and whether they had siblings. It is the Researchers' conclusion that both are related causally.

2. A is not an assumption.

Since 1941, Los Angeles has drawn water from mountain streams that feed into Mono Lake. If water continues to be drawn from the streams at the present rate, in about 30 years the resulting drop in the water level of Mono Lake will trigger a chain reaction ending in the destruction of the ecosystem of the lake.

A. Since 1941 the ecosystem of Mono Lake has changed significantly as a result of a drop in the lake's water level.

It is nowhere assumed that the ecosystem has changed significantly. What is mentioned is that if the water is drawn continuosly, it will reach a threshold level at which the ecosystem will start suffering. The change in ecosystem is not assumed to be continuous. The ecosytem might continue very well till the water reaches that certain level.