Bamboo

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Bamboo

by vk_vinayak » Wed Aug 01, 2012 8:18 am
As a construction material, bamboo is as strong as steel and sturdier than concrete. Moreover, in tropical areas bamboo is a much less expensive construction material than either steel or concrete and is always readily available. In tropical areas, therefore, building with bamboo makes better economic sense than building with steel or concrete, except where land values are high.

Which of the following, if true, most helps to explain the exception noted above?

(A) Buildings constructed of bamboo are less likely to suffer earthquake damage than are steel and concrete buildings.
(B) Bamboo is unsuitable as a building material for multistory buildings.
(C) In order to protect it from being damaged by termites and beetles, bamboo must be soaked, at some expense, in a preservative.
(D) In some tropical areas, bamboo is used to make the scaffolding that is used during large construction projects.
(E) Bamboo growing in an area where land values are increasing is often

OA Later.
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by Kasia@EconomistGMAT » Wed Aug 01, 2012 9:29 am
Answer A does not explain the exception.
Answer B is correct. If bamboo is unsuitable for multistory buildings, then it is not economical to use it when the land prices are high. One of the ways of saving money is building high buildings on relatively small land plots. Bamboo cannot be used for this purpose.
Answers C,D and E - irrelevant.
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by Kevinst » Thu Aug 16, 2012 10:53 am
Doesn't the supposedly correct answer require to much of an outside assumption? From what I've studied so far one should always try to assume at least as possible.
This answer clearly requires a strong assumption, namely that multistory buildings are rather built on lands whose values are higher. It does make sense, but it requires outside "knowledge"

What do the experts say? Isn't this question as a whole rather flawed?
If not: When am I allowed to use "outside assumptions"?

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by jerryham » Tue Mar 21, 2017 7:11 pm
Does the official answer (OG 17) make a presumption that "Multistory buildings are particularly desirable in areas where land values are high"???
High valued land could also be a tropical area, couldn't it?

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by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Thu Mar 23, 2017 6:12 am
Kevinst wrote:Doesn't the supposedly correct answer require to much of an outside assumption? From what I've studied so far one should always try to assume at least as possible.
This answer clearly requires a strong assumption, namely that multistory buildings are rather built on lands whose values are higher. It does make sense, but it requires outside "knowledge"

What do the experts say? Isn't this question as a whole rather flawed?
If not: When am I allowed to use "outside assumptions"?
Keep in mind that our goal isn't to create a flawless argument here. We need only find the answer choice that goes the furthest in explaining why one might not use bamboo in certain locations. Since the other 4 answer choices do nothing to explain the exception, answer choice B is the best option.

That said, I'm not a huge fan of this question, since it does rely on test-takers knowing that multistory buildings are often related to areas where land values are high.

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by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Thu Mar 23, 2017 6:12 am
vk_vinayak wrote:As a construction material, bamboo is as strong as steel and sturdier than concrete. Moreover, in tropical areas bamboo is a much less expensive construction material than either steel or concrete and is always readily available. In tropical areas, therefore, building with bamboo makes better economic sense than building with steel or concrete, except where land values are high.

Which of the following, if true, most helps to explain the exception noted above?

(A) Buildings constructed of bamboo are less likely to suffer earthquake damage than are steel and concrete buildings.

(B) Bamboo is unsuitable as a building material for multistory buildings.

(C) In order to protect it from being damaged by termites and beetles, bamboo must be soaked, at some expense, in a preservative.

(D) In some tropical areas, bamboo is used to make the scaffolding that is used during large construction projects.

(E) Bamboo growing in an area where land values are increasing is often cleared to make way for construction.
Premise: Bamboo is strong, inexpensive and readily available
Conclusion: building with bamboo makes better economic sense, EXCEPT where land values are high.


We must identify a new premise that explains why we wouldn't use bamboo in areas where land values are high.

A) Suggests that we should use bamboo EVERYWHERE. ELIMINATE

B) IF we can link multi-story buildings with areas where land values are high, then this would explain the exception in the started argument. Since people often build multi-story buildings in areas where land values are high, this premise looks good. KEEP

C) This does not explain why we'd use bamboo in some areas but not in areas where land value is high. ELIMINATE

D) Who cares about scaffolding? ELIMINATE

E) The original argument says that bamboo "is always readily available." So, even though the bamboo may be cleared to make way for construction, the passage states that bamboo is still readily available. ELIMINATE

Answer: B
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