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Flints

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by gmatmachoman » Fri Mar 05, 2010 1:34 pm
There is evidence to suggest that our cave-dwelling
ancestors polished many of their flints to a degree far
surpassing what was necessary for hunting purposes. It
seems, therefore, that early humans possessed an
aesthetic sense.

Which one of the following statements, if true, most
seriously weakens the argument?

(A) Most flints used by our cave-dwelling ancestors
were not highly polished.
(B) The caves in which the highly polished flints
were found are unadorned by cave paintings.
(C) There is evidence that these highly polished
flints were used for display in religious
ceremonies.
(D) Flints were often used by early humans for
everyday chores other than hunting.
(E) Any benefits that an aesthetic sense would have
given to cave-dwelling humans are poorly
understood
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by max37274 » Fri Mar 05, 2010 5:02 pm
IMO D
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by Phirozz » Fri Mar 05, 2010 5:49 pm
gmatmachoman wrote:There is evidence to suggest that our cave-dwelling
ancestors polished many of their flints to a degree far
surpassing what was necessary for hunting purposes. It
seems, therefore, that early humans possessed an
aesthetic sense.

Which one of the following statements, if true, most
seriously weakens the argument?

(A) Most flints used by our cave-dwelling ancestors
were not highly polished.
(B) The caves in which the highly polished flints
were found are unadorned by cave paintings.
(C) There is evidence that these highly polished
flints were used for display in religious
ceremonies.
(D) Flints were often used by early humans for
everyday chores other than hunting.
(E) Any benefits that an aesthetic sense would have
given to cave-dwelling humans are poorly
understood
Answer is D
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by gmatmachoman » Sat Mar 06, 2010 11:22 pm
OA : D
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by fibbonnaci » Sun Mar 07, 2010 12:53 am
guys it would be quality discussion if u can paste your explanations for the stimulus rather than just IMO's.
users in the future would gain nothing looking into a post filled with IMO's. It would do great for the forum if you guys could post explanations henceforth.

My take:
Premise: The hunters sharpened their flints more than necessary[ie. more than it is required for hunting]
Conclusion: They must possess aesthetic sense.

Assumption: Sharpening flints more than necessary has no other use other than for aesthetic purpose.
We need to attack this assumption.

(A) Most flints used by our cave-dwelling ancestors were not highly polished. [This is the reverse of what the passage tells. Eliminated!]

(B) The caves in which the highly polished flints were found are unadorned by cave paintings.[ Cave paintings not found does not mean they did not possess aesthetic sense. Is there any link that says aesthetic sense is achieved only if they can paint? Eliminated!]

(C) There is evidence that these highly polished flints were used for display in religious ceremonies.[Here one might say- we have another reason for extra sharpening of flint. but do religious ceremonies count as aethetic or not? we dont have info abt it. suppose say religious ceremonies are considered aesthetic displays then our conclusion is strengthened. Since we need further info to comment on this, Eliminated!]

(D) Flints were often used by early humans for everyday chores other than hunting.[Bingo! It rightly points out another reason for the extra sharpening of flints.]

(E) Any benefits that an aesthetic sense would have given to cave-dwelling humans are poorly understood [When did we talk about benefits of aesthetic sense to our ancestors?? Eliminated]

Hope this helps!
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by gmatmachoman » Sun Mar 07, 2010 2:47 am
fibbonnaci wrote:guys it would be quality discussion if u can paste your explanations for the stimulus rather than just IMO's.
users in the future would gain nothing looking into a post filled with IMO's. It would do great for the forum if you guys could post explanations henceforth.



Hope this helps!
Guys, I think fibo's words mean a lot to us..So plz do listen!!There is a logical point...See after 3 days I am damn sure we will forget what we posted..Atleast to trak our TP, plz post some explanation...

The explanation can be relevant to the option selected!
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by joseph32 » Sun May 15, 2016 11:53 pm
I agree with you guys. I also think that the right answer is D
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