TIM: When a rare tragedy, such as a plane crash, occurs, many people profess a belief that they themselves are more likely to experience such a tragedy and take extraordinary measures to prevent it. This is unfounded, however. Winning a lottery jackpot, an extremely rare event, does not mean you are any more likely to win a second time.
SUSAN: I disagree. The belief is well founded. People who sense danger are more likely to trust their instincts and act in such a way as to prevent the danger from befalling them.
Susan's attempt to counter Tim's argument is best characterized as one that
A. makes apparent Tim's failure to consider the consequences of such a tragedy to its survivors
B. challenges Tim's assumption that the occurrence of a single event is sufficient to predict future occurrences of that event
C. questions the appropriateness of the analogy drawn by Tim
D. presents an alternate basis for judging the validity of people's reactions
E. disputes the meaning of the term unfounded
OA D
Source: Princeton Review
5-Day Free Trial
5-day free, full-access trial TTP
Available with Beat the GMAT members only code
MORE DETAILS
TIM: When a rare tragedy, such as a plane crash, occurs, man
This topic has expert replies
-
BTGmoderatorDC
- Moderator
- Posts: 7187
- Joined: Thu Sep 07, 2017 4:43 pm
- Followed by:23 members
Timer
00:00
Your Answer
A
B
C
D
E
Global Stats
-
deloitte247
- Legendary Member
- Posts: 2214
- Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2018 2:22 pm
- Followed by:5 members
Timer
00:00
Your Answer
A
B
C
D
E
Global Stats
We are to characterize Susan's attempt to counter Tim's argument.
Premise: When a rare tragedy occurs, people profess a belief that they might also experience it.
Explanation: Tim believes that when a rare tragedy occurs, people have a belief that it is likely to happen to them too; so they take extra steps to prevent it.
While Susan disagrees and believes people act in ways to prevent dangers from befalling them.
Option A - Incorrect
The argument has nothing to do with the survivors of a tragedy.
Option B - Incorrect
Susan didn't directly challenge Tim's assumption. Susan provided an alternative to Tim's assumption.
Option C - Incorrect
Susan did not question how true or false Tim's assumption is.
Option D - Correct
Susan disagrees, then proceeds to provide an alternative basis to Tim's assumption of judging the genuineness of people's reactions.
Option E - Incorrect
This is wrong because the argument is not about the meaning of the term unfounded.
Premise: When a rare tragedy occurs, people profess a belief that they might also experience it.
Explanation: Tim believes that when a rare tragedy occurs, people have a belief that it is likely to happen to them too; so they take extra steps to prevent it.
While Susan disagrees and believes people act in ways to prevent dangers from befalling them.
Option A - Incorrect
The argument has nothing to do with the survivors of a tragedy.
Option B - Incorrect
Susan didn't directly challenge Tim's assumption. Susan provided an alternative to Tim's assumption.
Option C - Incorrect
Susan did not question how true or false Tim's assumption is.
Option D - Correct
Susan disagrees, then proceeds to provide an alternative basis to Tim's assumption of judging the genuineness of people's reactions.
Option E - Incorrect
This is wrong because the argument is not about the meaning of the term unfounded.
