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Three large companies and seven small

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by maihuna » Thu Dec 24, 2009 12:55 pm
Three large companies and seven small companies currently manufacture a product with potential military applications. If the government regulates the industry, it will institute a single set of manufacturing specifications to which all ten companies will have to adhere. In this case, therefore, since none of the seven small companies can afford to convert their production lines to a new set of manufacturing specifications, only the three large companies will be able to remain in business.
Which of the following is an assumption on which the author's argument relies?

A. None of the three large companies will go out of business if the government does not regulate the manufacture of the product.
B. It would cost more to convert the production lines of the small companies to a new set of manufacturing specifications than it would to convert the production lines of the large companies.
C. Industry lobbyists will be unable to dissuade the government from regulating the industry.
D. Assembly of the product produced according to government manufacturing specifications would be more complex than current assembly procedures.
E. None of the seven small companies currently manufactures the product to a set of specifications that would match those the government would institute if the industry were to be regulated.
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Source: — Critical Reasoning |
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by Testluv » Thu Dec 24, 2009 1:55 pm
The correct answer is choice E.

Denial test: if some of the small companies (DO) already have the proper specifications, then government regulation will NOT spell doom for them. So, when we deny (ie, remove) choice E, the author's argument falls apart. Thus, the author's argument relies on choice E.
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by gmatmachoman » Thu Dec 24, 2009 11:59 pm
Testluv wrote:The correct answer is choice E.

Denial test: if some of the small companies (DO) already have the proper specifications, then government regulation will NOT spell doom for them. So, when we deny (ie, remove) choice E, the author's argument falls apart. Thus, the author's argument relies on choice E.
Good CR bro!!

E seems to fit the bill
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by mmslf75 » Sun Jan 03, 2010 3:09 am
Testluv wrote:The correct answer is choice E.

Denial test: if some of the small companies (DO) already have the proper specifications, then government regulation will NOT spell doom for them. So, when we deny (ie, remove) choice E, the author's argument falls apart. Thus, the author's argument relies on choice E.


Why not B
B seems to be a good contender out here,
Since the argument explicitly mentions "AFFORD" B talks about MONEY

So B should also be a contender

Besdies, denial test on B...
""It would NOT cost more to convert the production lines of the small companies to a/.. "

Argument falls apart..

Or is it that

AFFORD implies other things besides money as well ??
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by Testluv » Sun Jan 03, 2010 3:28 pm
The argument does not depend on the idea that it costs more for the small companies. It can cost the same for both the small and large companies; but the smaller companies may not be as able to absorb these costs. Pay attention to the conclusion; it is about small companies necessarily collapsing in the wake of these regulations. That argument definitely depends on choice E.
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by mmslf75 » Mon Jan 04, 2010 3:51 am
Testluv wrote:The argument does not depend on the idea that it costs more for the small companies. It can cost the same for both the small and large companies; but the smaller companies may not be as able to absorb these costs. Pay attention to the conclusion; it is about small companies necessarily collapsing in the wake of these regulations. That argument definitely depends on choice E.
oh get the point now...

What abt AFFORD ?

Here afford could mean not only money but also other aspects right ??
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by Testluv » Mon Jan 04, 2010 11:00 am
No. In this argument, "afford" is definitely just being limited to costs. Again, the costs for converting might be the same; but the small companies may not be able to afford this cost of converting. He is assuming that the small companies will have to convert--that they don't already align with the new regulations--because if they are already aligned with the new regulations, they will not have to convert (ie, they are already converted!). If they are already converted, then the new regulations will not cause the small companies to collapse.
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by atulmangal » Sat May 28, 2011 5:04 am
I agree with OA but How to drop Op A here....if we negate the Op A...we get that the 3 large companies can go out of business, even if the gov. specs. are not implied.

While the conclusion is saying that After specs are applied only those 3 major companies will run
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by cans » Sat May 28, 2011 5:40 am
I agree with OA but How to drop Op A here....if we negate the Op A...we get that the 3 large companies can go out of business, even if the gov. specs. are not implied.

While the conclusion is saying that After specs are applied only those 3 major companies will run

option A - None of the three large companies will go out of business if the government does not regulate the manufacture of the product.
Author just says that if manufacturing is not regulated, the three large companies will remain in business.
He doesn't comment on what will happen if manufacturing is regulated. And the argument is about what will happen if industry is regulated. Thus you can drop A.
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by atulmangal » Sat May 28, 2011 6:54 am
cans wrote:
I agree with OA but How to drop Op A here....if we negate the Op A...we get that the 3 large companies can go out of business, even if the gov. specs. are not implied.

While the conclusion is saying that After specs are applied only those 3 major companies will run

option A - None of the three large companies will go out of business if the government does not regulate the manufacture of the product.
Author just says that if manufacturing is not regulated, the three large companies will remain in business.
He doesn't comment on what will happen if manufacturing is regulated. And the argument is about what will happen if industry is regulated. Thus you can drop A.
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by sachindia » Sat Jan 19, 2013 3:21 am
Folks,
What is wrong with C?
It seems right as well.
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Sach
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by brianlange77 » Sun Jan 20, 2013 7:26 pm
sachindia wrote:Folks,
What is wrong with C?
It seems right as well.
The issue with "c" here is that the argument itself talks about "If" the government regulates.... because of that the argument is not assuming that they do regulate, but rather introduces the possibilities of what would happen if it was regulated. Because of that, the argument does not assume that regulation is a given.

Thoughts?

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by sachindia » Sun Jan 20, 2013 7:39 pm
thanks brian.. i get it now :)
Regards,
Sach
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