Following question falls under what type of CR question

This topic has expert replies
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 115
Joined: Thu Mar 24, 2011 3:49 am
Thanked: 1 times
Scientist: My research indicates that children who engage in impulsive behavior similar to adult thrill-seeking behavior are twice as likely as other children to have a gene variant that increases sensitivity to dopamine. From this, I conclude that there is a causal relationship between this gene variant and an inclination toward thrill-seeking behavior.

Which one of the following, if true, most calls into question the scientist's argument?

A) Many impulsive adults are not unusually sensitive to dopamine.

B) It is not possible to reliably distinguish impulsive behavior from other behavior.

C) Children are often described by adults as engaging in thrill-seeking behvaior simply because they act impulsively.

D) Many people exhibit behavioral tendencies as adults that they did not exhibit as children.

E) The gene variant studied by the scientist is correlated with other types of behavior in addition to thrill-seeking behavior.




Ta

Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 184
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2007 9:23 am
Location: Madison, WI
Thanked: 17 times

by ldoolitt » Fri Apr 08, 2011 12:55 pm
In the question stem, replace "calls into question" with "weaken". It reads

"Which of the following, if true, most weakens the scientist's argument"

Which is obviously a weaken problem.

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1255
Joined: Fri Nov 07, 2008 2:08 pm
Location: St. Louis
Thanked: 312 times
Followed by:90 members

by Tani » Fri Apr 08, 2011 8:22 pm
From another perspective, this is also a "causal" argument. The conclusion says one thing "causes" another. WIth such arguments we always first look for "overlooked" causes. In other words, if we are told that X causes Y. To weaken we should first ask whether Z causes Y. We can also ask whether Y causes x (rare), or whether the relationship is pure coincidence.
Tani Wolff

User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 121
Joined: Fri Mar 13, 2009 8:44 am
Thanked: 9 times
Followed by:1 members
GMAT Score:610

by singh181 » Fri Apr 08, 2011 10:54 pm
Question Type: Weaken (Causation)

IMO E

Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 115
Joined: Thu Mar 24, 2011 3:49 am
Thanked: 1 times

by vidhya16 » Sat Apr 09, 2011 12:23 am
Thank you guys.. I referenced this question from another website.. Answer is not posted. Sorry for inconvenience..
Last edited by vidhya16 on Tue Apr 12, 2011 4:41 am, edited 1 time in total.

Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 165
Joined: Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:44 pm
Thanked: 8 times

by sandy217 » Sat Apr 09, 2011 7:25 am
vidhya16 wrote:Scientist: My research indicates that children who engage in impulsive behavior similar to adult thrill-seeking behavior are twice as likely as other children to have a gene variant that increases sensitivity to dopamine. From this, I conclude that there is a causal relationship between this gene variant and an inclination toward thrill-seeking behavior.

Which one of the following, if true, most calls into question the scientist's argument?

A) Many impulsive adults are not unusually sensitive to dopamine.

B) It is not possible to reliably distinguish impulsive behavior from other behavior.

C) Children are often described by adults as engaging in thrill-seeking behvaior simply because they act impulsively.

D) Many people exhibit behavioral tendencies as adults that they did not exhibit as children.

E) The gene variant studied by the scientist is correlated with other types of behavior in addition to thrill-seeking behavior.




Ta
I go with C.Nullifying the effect of gene variant

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1255
Joined: Fri Nov 07, 2008 2:08 pm
Location: St. Louis
Thanked: 312 times
Followed by:90 members

by Tani » Sun Apr 10, 2011 7:00 pm
B says you can't tell impulsive behavior from other behavior. If you can't tell whether behavior is impulsive or not, how can you tell whether it is correlated with a gene?
Tani Wolff

Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts
Posts: 27
Joined: Wed Apr 06, 2011 7:58 am

by Asher » Mon Apr 11, 2011 8:45 am
Tani, thanks for the ans.

Could you please explain why C is not the answer

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 574
Joined: Sat Oct 31, 2009 1:47 pm
Location: USA
Thanked: 29 times
Followed by:5 members

by Target2009 » Mon Apr 11, 2011 10:55 am
IMO - E.
Weaken by stating other cause of result.
Regards
Abhishek
------------------------------
MasterGmat Student

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1255
Joined: Fri Nov 07, 2008 2:08 pm
Location: St. Louis
Thanked: 312 times
Followed by:90 members

by Tani » Mon Apr 11, 2011 11:46 am
We are told that these children have impulsive behavior. It never says they are described as thrill-seeking.
Tani Wolff