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- Mon May 23, 2016 1:37 pm
#25360
Complete Question Explanation
(See the complete passage discussion here: lsat/viewtopic.php?t=10516)
The correct answer choice is (E)
Provided you have a good understanding of Passage Similarities and Differences, answering this Purpose question should be straightforward.
Answer choice (A): Hopefully, you were able to eliminate this answer choice relatively quickly. The author of passage B seeks to undermine, not support, the claims made in passage A.
Answer choice (B): While the author of passage B questions the logical validity of the claims made in passage A, it is not by creating an analogous argument whose conclusion is clearly false. Passage B only implies that there may be other plausible explanations for the altruistic behaviors observed in passage A.
Answer choice (C): The author of passage B never criticized the observations made in passage A as being inaccurate. The fact that humans exhibit various altruistic behaviors is not under dispute.
Answer choice (D): This answer choice may seem attractive, but is incorrect. The author of passage B does not reject the possibility that the arguments made in passage A can ultimately be confirmed or disconfirmed. These arguments are questionable, but not necessarily unprovable. Furthermore, although the author of passage B is hesitant to adopt the central tenets of the selfish gene theory, she never calls them “vacuous.” This term clearly exaggerates the degree to which the two passages diverge.
Answer choice (E): This is the correct answer choice. The author of passage B weakens the arguments made in passage A by showing that such arguments can lead to questionable inferences. In particular, the discussion in the third paragraph of passage B suggests that there may be all sorts of interests that would explain altruistic behavior, whereas evolutionary psychologists mistakenly assume that there is only one plausible explanation. The author of passage B clearly questions the reasoning that underlies the argument in passage A.
(See the complete passage discussion here: lsat/viewtopic.php?t=10516)
The correct answer choice is (E)
Provided you have a good understanding of Passage Similarities and Differences, answering this Purpose question should be straightforward.
Answer choice (A): Hopefully, you were able to eliminate this answer choice relatively quickly. The author of passage B seeks to undermine, not support, the claims made in passage A.
Answer choice (B): While the author of passage B questions the logical validity of the claims made in passage A, it is not by creating an analogous argument whose conclusion is clearly false. Passage B only implies that there may be other plausible explanations for the altruistic behaviors observed in passage A.
Answer choice (C): The author of passage B never criticized the observations made in passage A as being inaccurate. The fact that humans exhibit various altruistic behaviors is not under dispute.
Answer choice (D): This answer choice may seem attractive, but is incorrect. The author of passage B does not reject the possibility that the arguments made in passage A can ultimately be confirmed or disconfirmed. These arguments are questionable, but not necessarily unprovable. Furthermore, although the author of passage B is hesitant to adopt the central tenets of the selfish gene theory, she never calls them “vacuous.” This term clearly exaggerates the degree to which the two passages diverge.
Answer choice (E): This is the correct answer choice. The author of passage B weakens the arguments made in passage A by showing that such arguments can lead to questionable inferences. In particular, the discussion in the third paragraph of passage B suggests that there may be all sorts of interests that would explain altruistic behavior, whereas evolutionary psychologists mistakenly assume that there is only one plausible explanation. The author of passage B clearly questions the reasoning that underlies the argument in passage A.
