Critical Reasoning

Scientists have made genetic modifications to cotton to increase its resistance to insect pests. According to farmers’ report, the amount of insecticide needed per acre to control insect pests was only slightly lower for those who tried the modified seed than for those who did not. Therefore, since the modified seed costs more than ordinary seed without producing yields of higher market value, switching to the modified seed would be unlikely to benefit most cotton farmers economically.

Which of the following would it be most useful to know in order to evaluate the argument?

A. Whether farmers who tried the modified cotton seed had ever tried growing other crops from genetically modified seed.
B. Whether the insecticides typically used on ordinary cotton tend to be more expensive than insecticides typically used on other crops.
C. Whether for most farms who grow cotton it is their primary crop
D. Whether the farmers who have tried the modified speed planted as many acres of cotton, on average, as farmers using the ordinary seed did.
E. Whether most of the farmers who tried the modified seed did so because they had previously had to use exceptionally large quantities of insecticide.

IMO In evaluate the argument questions look for a answer choice which when answered positively strengthens/weakens the conclusion and when answered negatively does the vice versa.

Choice A,B,C are unrleated to the argument(conclsuion).

Choice D looks tempting but if u answer yes and no it does not affect the conclusion both ways.


Choice E does this.

The conclusion is since the modified seed costs more than ordinary seed without producing yields of higher market value, switching to the modified seed would be unlikely to benefit most cotton farmers economically.

If the answer to the question for choice E is yes then it means the farmers switched to the modified seeds only bevcause they had to use large quantities of insecticides that would have costed them more(if not ther is no reason to switch)

If the answer to the question for choice E is no then it means the farmers had no good reason to switch and the the argument that modified seeds are not economically benefiicial to the farmers stands.

Hope this helps!

Regards,
CR

cramya wrote:IMO In evaluate the argument questions look for a answer choice which when answered positively strengthens/weakens the conclusion and when answered negatively does the vice versa.

Choice A,B,C are unrleated to the argument(conclsuion).

Choice D looks tempting but if u answer yes and no it does not affect the conclusion both ways.


Choice E does this.

The conclusion is since the modified seed costs more than ordinary seed without producing yields of higher market value, switching to the modified seed would be unlikely to benefit most cotton farmers economically.

If the answer to the question for choice E is yes then it means the farmers switched to the modified seeds only bevcause they had to use large quantities of insecticides that would have costed them more(if not ther is no reason to switch)

If the answer to the question for choice E is no then it means the farmers had no good reason to switch and the the argument that modified seeds are not economically benefiicial to the farmers stands.

Hope this helps!

Regards,
CR

Thx for your help!!! While here I am still confused about E.
First of all, the word "most" is not that definite.

Second of all, as presented in the argument, " the amount of insecticide needed per acre to control insect pests was only slightly lower for those who tried the modified seed than for those who did not ". The author just told us the relative value but not the absolute value. Even though the farmer uses exceptionally large quantities of insecticide, the difference could still be insiginificant.

IMO, I think D is better. The acres of cotton is the base value of the report in the argument. If the acres are different, the result of the report is useless.

I think D is a trap. In the argument, we are told that the amount of insecticide needed per acre to control insect pests was only slightly lower so it doesn't matter how many acreage of cotton each type has, what matters is the comparative cost of the insecticide.

yangliu0401 wrote:

cramya wrote:IMO In evaluate the argument questions look for a answer choice which when answered positively strengthens/weakens the conclusion and when answered negatively does the vice versa.

Choice A,B,C are unrleated to the argument(conclsuion).

Choice D looks tempting but if u answer yes and no it does not affect the conclusion both ways.


Choice E does this.

The conclusion is since the modified seed costs more than ordinary seed without producing yields of higher market value, switching to the modified seed would be unlikely to benefit most cotton farmers economically.

If the answer to the question for choice E is yes then it means the farmers switched to the modified seeds only bevcause they had to use large quantities of insecticides that would have costed them more(if not ther is no reason to switch)

If the answer to the question for choice E is no then it means the farmers had no good reason to switch and the the argument that modified seeds are not economically benefiicial to the farmers stands.

Hope this helps!

Regards,
CR

Thx for your help!!! While here I am still confused about E.
First of all, the word "most" is not that definite.

Second of all, as presented in the argument, " the amount of insecticide needed per acre to control insect pests was only slightly lower for those who tried the modified seed than for those who did not ". The author just told us the relative value but not the absolute value. Even though the farmer uses exceptionally large quantities of insecticide, the difference could still be insiginificant.

IMO, I think D is better. The acres of cotton is the base value of the report in the argument. If the acres are different, the result of the report is useless.

iwant700plus wrote:I think D is a trap. In the argument, we are told that the amount of insecticide needed per acre to control insect pests was only slightly lower so it doesn't matter how many acreage of cotton each type has, what matters is the comparative cost of the insecticide.

yangliu0401 wrote:

cramya wrote:IMO In evaluate the argument questions look for a answer choice which when answered positively strengthens/weakens the conclusion and when answered negatively does the vice versa.

Choice A,B,C are unrleated to the argument(conclsuion).

Choice D looks tempting but if u answer yes and no it does not affect the conclusion both ways.


Choice E does this.

The conclusion is since the modified seed costs more than ordinary seed without producing yields of higher market value, switching to the modified seed would be unlikely to benefit most cotton farmers economically.

If the answer to the question for choice E is yes then it means the farmers switched to the modified seeds only bevcause they had to use large quantities of insecticides that would have costed them more(if not ther is no reason to switch)

If the answer to the question for choice E is no then it means the farmers had no good reason to switch and the the argument that modified seeds are not economically benefiicial to the farmers stands.

Hope this helps!

Regards,
CR

Thx for your help!!! While here I am still confused about E.
First of all, the word "most" is not that definite.

Second of all, as presented in the argument, " the amount of insecticide needed per acre to control insect pests was only slightly lower for those who tried the modified seed than for those who did not ". The author just told us the relative value but not the absolute value. Even though the farmer uses exceptionally large quantities of insecticide, the difference could still be insiginificant.

IMO, I think D is better. The acres of cotton is the base value of the report in the argument. If the acres are different, the result of the report is useless.

Guys how about B?

Whether the insecticides typically used on ordinary cotton tend to be more expensive than insecticides typically used on other crops.

IMO B looks good.

If spraying of insecticides on original cotton costs more than what is costs for modified cotton then it weakens the conclusion. It makes sense to use modified seed of cotton as it is economical.

and vice versa , if spraying of insecticides on original cotton costs same or less than what it costs for modified cotton then it strenghten the conclusion.

Please let me know your thoughts!

IMO E

A. Whether farmers who tried the modified cotton seed had ever tried growing other crops from genetically modified seed. Comparison is between new cotton seed and old cotton seed- out of scope

B. Whether the insecticides typically used on ordinary cotton tend to be more expensive than insecticides typically used on other crops.- Same as above

C. Whether for most farms who grow cotton it is their primary crop - primary or secondary crop doesn't make any difference.

D. Whether the farmers who have tried the modified speed planted as many acres of cotton, on average, as farmers using the ordinary seed did. - use of insecticide per acre is compared for both the seeds so acrage of new or old crop will not affect the result.

E. Whether most of the farmers who tried the modified seed did so because they had previously had to use exceptionally large quantities of insecticide. Correct

IMO B

My reasoning is same as that of Piyush.

Whats the OA guys??

IMO E

E is the answer

karmayogi wrote:IMO B

My reasoning is same as that of Piyush.

Shit! I missed that B is talking about "other crops."

yangliu0401 wrote:Scientists have made genetic modifications to cotton to increase its resistance to insect pests. According to farmers’ report, the amount of insecticide needed per acre to control insect pests was only slightly lower for those who tried the modified seed than for those who did not. Therefore, since the modified seed costs more than ordinary seed without producing yields of higher market value, switching to the modified seed would be unlikely to benefit most cotton farmers economically.

Which of the following would it be most useful to know in order to evaluate the argument?

A. Whether farmers who tried the modified cotton seed had ever tried growing other crops from genetically modified seed.
B. Whether the insecticides typically used on ordinary cotton tend to be more expensive than insecticides typically used on other crops.
C. Whether for most farms who grow cotton it is their primary crop
D. Whether the farmers who have tried the modified speed planted as many acres of cotton, on average, as farmers using the ordinary seed did.
E. Whether most of the farmers who tried the modified seed did so because they had previously had to use exceptionally large quantities of insecticide.

i gain from the passage that-
modified seeds costs more than ordinary
but modified crops require slightly lesser QUANTITY of insecticide
hence farmers may not switch
but what if genetically modified seeds require an insecticide that costs less than the ones used for normal seeds
B poses a similar question but it talks about other crops not modified cotton

another reason is that majority of the farmers who tried this new seed were part-time cotton growers and hence could not offset the higher seed costs with the savings from lesser insecticide usage
maybe if it was their primary crop, they could have offset the seed costs and got more economic value from their crops.

C would be incorrect for a farmer who grows cotton as his primary crop but cant breakeven due to smaller land size.

D is correct as if we grow equal acres of cotton, the modified ones will offset the costs and get more value
hence i would go with D

correct me if i am wrong, please post the OA too

IMO E

OA is B according to set 20 Q.21

I ignored B because it compares INSECTICIDE for ORDINARY COTTON SEED with THAT for OTHER CROPS

but not INSECTICIDE for ORDINARY COTTON SEED with THAT for MODIFIED SEED

So.....if option B has to be correct....we need to assume that INSECTICIDE used for any other crop COULD be used for modified crop.Ironically...no clue is given in the question.

However...If it is implied that the term " other crops" refers to " modified seed crops"....then YES B is correct.
But that doest look GMATish.

Could any of the instructors please look into this question ...

thankyou.

karmayogi wrote:

karmayogi wrote:IMO B

My reasoning is same as that of Piyush.

s***! I missed that B is talking about "other crops."

This error is what kills me in CR. Overlooking the tiny details, especially after 2 30mins essays and 1hr15mins brutal math. Is the gmat evil?

yangliu0401 wrote:Scientists have made genetic modifications to cotton to increase its resistance to insect pests. According to farmers’ report, the amount of insecticide needed per acre to control insect pests was only slightly lower for those who tried the modified seed than for those who did not. Therefore, since the modified seed costs more than ordinary seed without producing yields of higher market value, switching to the modified seed would be unlikely to benefit most cotton farmers economically.

Which of the following would it be most useful to know in order to evaluate the argument?

A. Whether farmers who tried the modified cotton seed had ever tried growing other crops from genetically modified seed.
B. Whether the insecticides typically used on ordinary cotton tend to be more expensive than insecticides typically used on other crops.
C. Whether for most farms who grow cotton it is their primary crop
D. Whether the farmers who have tried the modified speed planted as many acres of cotton, on average, as farmers using the ordinary seed did.
E. Whether most of the farmers who tried the modified seed did so because they had previously had to use exceptionally large quantities of insecticide.

What is the OA?