Critical Reasoning

komal wrote:Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is a condition characterized by an inability to focus on any topic for a prolonged period of time, and is especially common among children five to ten years old. A recent study has shown that 85 percent of seven-year-old children with ADD watch, on average, more than five hours of television a day. It is therefore very likely that Ed, age seven, has ADD, since he watches roughly six hours of television a day.
The argument above is flawed because it
(A) cites as a direct causal mechanism a factor that may only be a partial cause of the condition in question
(B) fails to indicate the chances of having ADD among seven-year-old children who watch more than five hours of television a day
(C) limits the description of the symptoms of ADD to an inability to focus for a prolonged period of time
(D) fails to consider the possibility that Ed may be among the 15 percent of children who do not watch more than five hours of television a day
(E) does not allow for other causes of ADD besides television watching

OA B

Phirozz wrote:

komal wrote:Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is a condition characterized by an inability to focus on any topic for a prolonged period of time, and is especially common among children five to ten years old. A recent study has shown that 85 percent of seven-year-old children with ADD watch, on average, more than five hours of television a day. It is therefore very likely that Ed, age seven, has ADD, since he watches roughly six hours of television a day.
The argument above is flawed because it
(A) cites as a direct causal mechanism a factor that may only be a partial cause of the condition in question
(B) fails to indicate the chances of having ADD among seven-year-old children who watch more than five hours of television a day
(C) limits the description of the symptoms of ADD to an inability to focus for a prolonged period of time
(D) fails to consider the possibility that Ed may be among the 15 percent of children who do not watch more than five hours of television a day
(E) does not allow for other causes of ADD besides television watching

OA B

Answer ios clearly B.
85% of children with ADD watch TV more than 5 hrs a day, but its not saying anything about what % of seven yr children suffer from ADD (without knowing which conclusion is invalid)

komal wrote:Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is a condition characterized by an inability to focus on any topic for a prolonged period of time, and is especially common among children five to ten years old. A recent study has shown that 85 percent of seven-year-old children with ADD watch, on average, more than five hours of television a day. It is therefore very likely that Ed, age seven, has ADD, since he watches roughly six hours of television a day.
The argument above is flawed because it
(A) cites as a direct causal mechanism a factor that may only be a partial cause of the condition in question
(B) fails to indicate the chances of having ADD among seven-year-old children who watch more than five hours of television a day
(C) limits the description of the symptoms of ADD to an inability to focus for a prolonged period of time (this is targeting the symptoms of ADD not relevant)
(D) fails to consider the possibility that Ed may be among the 15 percent of children who do not watch more than five hours of television a day (this ic opposite to the premise because it says ED watches 6 hrs)
(E) does not allow for other causes of ADD besides television watching (Contender)

OA B

reply2spg wrote:It clearly says 'how many seven-year-old children are with ADD'

m&m wrote:I'm not sure of B - what's the source?

Even if you knew B - there's still a gap that links the ADD condition of a lack of focus to extended (or reduced) TV watching. You could say that if he/she can watch TV for that long then he/she should be able to focus on tv watching. C could equally be the answer - though I do agree B needs to be known too.