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by imskpwr » Mon Jul 22, 2013 9:48 pm
Cowonga lion cubs in the wild often engage in aggressive and even violent play with their siblings. This activity is apparently instigated by the parent lions. Cowonga lion cubs born in captivity, however, rarely engage in aggressive play. Zoologists have concluded that this form of play teaches the young lions the aggressive skills necessary for successful hunting in the wild, and that such play is not instigated in captivity because the development of hunting skills is unnecessary there.

The zoologists' conclusion would be most strengthened by demonstrating that

Cowonga lions raised in captivity are unable to hunt successfully in the wild

the skills developed from aggressive play are similar to those used for hunting in the wild

the young of other types of predatory animals also engage in aggressive play

parent lions that were raised in captivity do not instigate this play in their young

none of the Cowonga lions raised in the wild is incapable of hunting successfully

My doubt is why B is not a contender.
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by [email protected] » Mon Jul 22, 2013 10:42 pm
Hi imskpwr,

CR questions are usually based on a few specific details that are linked together to make a point. To strengthen an author's conclusion, you have to find an answer that supports/proves that the author is correct.

In this prompt, the author states that parent lions encourage their cubs to engage in aggressive/violent play. The theory is that the play teaches the young to be better hunters in the wild, BUT since the lions are in captivity, the play is not instigated because hunting skills are unnecessary.

We need an answer that links the captivity to the fact that the cubs aren't engaging in violent play.

Answer A compares things that the author doesn't care about. ELIMINATE.
Answer B doesn't talk about lions or captivity; it's seems vague to just mention violent play and hunting. ELIMINATE.
Answer C talks about other animals. ELIMINATE.
Answer D tells us that parents raised in CAPTIVITY DON'T INSTIGATE VIOLENT PLAY. PERFECT MATCH!!!
Answer E talks about wild lions, which is out of Focus. ELIMINATE.

Remember that CR prompts are specific, so their answers have to be specific.

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Rich
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by imskpwr » Tue Jul 23, 2013 1:30 am
[email protected] wrote:Hi imskpwr,

CR questions are usually based on a few specific details that are linked together to make a point. To strengthen an author's conclusion, you have to find an answer that supports/proves that the author is correct.

In this prompt, the author states that parent lions encourage their cubs to engage in aggressive/violent play. The theory is that the play teaches the young to be better hunters in the wild, BUT since the lions are in captivity, the play is not instigated because hunting skills are unnecessary.

We need an answer that links the captivity to the fact that the cubs aren't engaging in violent play.

Answer A compares things that the author doesn't care about. ELIMINATE.
Answer B doesn't talk about lions or captivity; it's seems vague to just mention violent play and hunting. ELIMINATE.
Answer C talks about other animals. ELIMINATE.
Answer D tells us that parents raised in CAPTIVITY DON'T INSTIGATE VIOLENT PLAY. PERFECT MATCH!!!
Answer E talks about wild lions, which is out of Focus. ELIMINATE.

Remember that CR prompts are specific, so their answers have to be specific.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
OA was A as per KAPLAN's Explanation.
Is this Q wrong?
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by GMATGuruNY » Tue Jul 23, 2013 9:59 am
imskpwr wrote:Cowonga lion cubs in the wild often engage in aggressive and even violent play with their siblings. This activity is apparently instigated by the parent lions. Cowonga lion cubs born in captivity, however, rarely engage in aggressive play. Zoologists have concluded that this form of play teaches the young lions the aggressive skills necessary for successful hunting in the wild, and that such play is not instigated in captivity because the development of hunting skills is unnecessary there.

The zoologists' conclusion would be most strengthened by demonstrating that

Cowonga lions raised in captivity are unable to hunt successfully in the wild

the skills developed from aggressive play are similar to those used for hunting in the wild

the young of other types of predatory animals also engage in aggressive play

parent lions that were raised in captivity do not instigate this play in their young

none of the Cowonga lions raised in the wild is incapable of hunting successfully

My doubt is why B is not a contender.
The correct answer choice must offer NEW INFORMATION that links the premise to the conclusion.

B: The skills developed from aggressive play are similar to those used for hunting in the wild.
This answer choice basically paraphrases part of the conclusion.
If we insert B into the last sentence of the passage, we get:
Zoologists have concluded that the skills developed from aggressive play are similar to those used for hunting in the wild, and that such play is not instigated in captivity because the development of hunting skills is unnecessary there.
Since B basically restates the conclusion, eliminate B.

D: Parent lions that were raised in captivity do not instigate this play in their young.
This answer choice basically paraphrases the premise.
From the passage:
Cowonga lion cubs in the wild often engage in aggressive play with their siblings.
This activity is apparently instigated by the parent lions.
Cowonga lion cubs born in captivity, however, rarely engage in aggressive play.
In other words, parent lions in captivity do NOT instigate aggressive play.
Since D basically restates the premise, eliminate D.

A: Cowonga lions raised in captivity are unable to hunt successfully in the wild.
This answer choice offers NEW INFORMATION that strengthens the link between the aggressive play instigated by parents in the wild and successful hunting in the wild: lion cubs raised in captivity -- cubs NOT urged to play aggressively -- are UNABLE TO HUNT.

The correct answer is A.
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by [email protected] » Tue Jul 23, 2013 1:37 pm
Hi Guys,

My apologies for the mis-post. Mitch's explanation is right on though. I realize now that I slipped part-way through my explanation and started treating the prompt as if it were an Explain question. There's another reason why you shouldn't take your GMAT too late in the day: fatigue leads to carelessness.

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