Critical Reasoning

Question 1

Nuts and Bolts of Critical Reasoning

Answer 1

Translate Arguments

First Things First - Read the question first.

Don’t Think So Much - Everything you need to consider on an argument question s right there in front of you (nothing more).

Question 2

Parts of an Argument

Answer 2

Two basic building blocks:
Premise - are stated within the passage.

 Assumption - assumptions are not (they're assumed).

 Conclusion - "Therefore" is the conclusion.

Question 3

Example:

Answer 3

I want to go to the movies. My car broke down last week. Therefore, I need to buy a new car.

Question 4

The author has concluded that he needs to buy a new car, based on two stated premises:

Answer 4

Premise 1: I want to go to the movies.
Premise 2: My car broke down last week.

“Black and White before my very own eyes!”

Question 5

But this argument cannot stand on premises alone. There have to be other supporting points that are assumed to be true in order for the conclusion to work. What does the author assume?

Answer 5

Assumption 1: The only way to get to the movies is by car.

Question 6

The author concluded that he needs a new car because he wants to go to the movies. The author assumes, then, that his automobile is the only mode of available transportation. If it were possible that he could take a bus or a subway to the movies, he wouldn’t have to get a new car.

Answer 6

Assumption 2: The car can’t be repaired

Question 7

This is also a big assumption. If he could fix his car, then he would not need to buy a new one. In both cases, the assumptions have to be true in order for the conclusion to be valid. Keep this idea in mind because we’ll talk more about it in the weaken/strengthen portion of the chapter.

Answer 7

That’s the basic construction of these arguments: a conclusion that rests upon a few supporting points (either explicit or assumed). The confusion sets in because the text of most arguments is deliberately hard to grasp right away.

Question 8

POE - Especially for Critical Reasoning

Answer 8

Fact: Most of the wrong answers to argument questions are incorrect because they’re irrelevant.

“irrelevant” to the argument”

Question 9

1) Read the Question

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument above?

Answer 9

Argument:
Because of the unusually cold winter Nebraska’s annual corn output will be one-third of what it was last year. As a result, the price of corn is sure to rise. and moviegoers can expect to pay an extra dollar for a large serving of popcorn.

Question 10

The argument states that popcorn prices are going to rise, and you have to weaken it. Thus, you’re looking for answer choices that suggest that popcorn prices won’t rise. Now look at some answer choices:

Answer 10

• Meteorologists are predicting that next winter will be even colder than this past one.
• This year, theaters are expected to spend upwards of $50 for a bushel of popcorn.
• Several theaters that have offered their patrons the choice of regular or caramel-covered popcorn have enjoyed steadily rising popcorn sales in each of the past four years.
• The cold winter did not have as detrimental an effect on Nebraska’s barley output.
• Studies show that movie ticket sales soar during periods of especially cold weather.

Question 11

Which of these answers choices is relevant. Each answer choice contains subject matter that pertains to cold weather and/or the price of popcorn, but none of them addresses the validity of the argument that the cold Nebraska winter will ultimately force you and me to shell out more dough for a buck of popcorn

Answer 11

• Meteorologist are predicting that next winter will be even colder than this past one.

Question 12

Analysis:

This might be true, and it might result in even higher prices in the future. But what about the present? We’re concerned with the here and now, not the there and then.

Answer 12

Decision: Irrelevant.

Question 13

• This year, theaters are expected to spend upward of $50 for a bushel of popcorn.

Answer 13

Analysis:
Great. So we know how much popcorn costs. Big deal! Is this any proof that the rice can’t go higher? In fact, this choice is especially evil because it wants us to think that popcorn is already expensive. (“Fifty bucks? Wow, that’s a lot. That’s even more than this book costs.”) But we have no other prices for comparison. Last year, the per-bushel price could have been $5 or $500, so we don’t know the price is rising or falling.

Question 14

Decision: Irrelevant.

Answer 14

• Several theaters that have offered their patrons the choice of regular or caramel-covered popcorn have enjoyed steadily rising popcorn sales in each of the past four years.

Question 15

Analysis:
This one wants to put a positive spin on the situation by stating that movie patrons are buying more popcorn. That doesn’t mean the price won’t rise, though.

Answer 15

Decision:

Irrelevant.

Question 16

• The cold winter did not have as detrimental an effect on Nebraska’s barley output.

Answer 16

Analysis:

Okay. Is popcorn made out of barley kernels? If not, then we have no reason to consider this one any further.

Question 17

Decision:

Irrelevant.

Answer 17

• Studies show that movie ticket sales soar during periods of especially cold weather.

Question 18

Analysis:
This one is especially nutty. It tries to appear relevant by linking tow separate parts of the passage, but it omits a crucial point: What about popcorn? Do we know that any of these moviegoers buy popcorn at theaters?

Answer 18

Decision:

Irrelevant.

Question 19

The Relevant Choices

Answer 19

The argument says that prices will rise because supply will fall. Therefore, there are several very important assumptions in play here. Each of these, however, is much more likely to be a credited response:

Question 20

• Other corn-producing states enjoyed an unseasonably warm winter, and their corn production will be higher than usual.

Answer 20

Analysis:
The choice pertain to the assumption that Nebraska is the only state in which corn is grown. If other states are also supplying corn that will make up for Nebraska’s shortfall, then prices are unlikely to rise; thus the argument is weakened.

Question 21

• Most theaters have struck long-term deals with corn wholesalers to purchase popcorn kernels in bulk at a fixed price.

Answer 21

Analysis:
The argument also assumes that supply and price are always directly related. In this instance, however, theater owners won’t be affected by fluctuations in supply because their popcorn costs are fixed. Again, this weakens the argument.

Question 22

• The majority of Nebraska corn farmers anticipated the cold winter and stockpiled vast quantities of corn during the fall.

Answer 22

Analysis:

The supply isn’t so low after all because corn farmers can compensate for this year’s drop. Weakened again.

Question 23

• In response to their more health-conscious clientele, many theaters are replacing the popcorn they normally sell with miniature rice cakes.

Answer 23

Analysis:
This choice attacks the assumption that demand among theater owners for popcorn will remain the same. If theaters aren’t buying as much popcorn anymore, then the decreased demand will match the decreased supply and prices won’t rise. This, too, weakens the argument.

Question 24

When you read an argument, don’t sit and think of all the possible assumptions that could pertain to it. You will lose valuable time. Better, scan the answer choices and learn to recognize which ones involve the argument’s assumptions and which do not. All of this relate to relevance to some degree, but there is also a quality technique that we’ll talk about in the section about assumption questions.

Answer 24

The Plan of Attack

Question 25

1. Read the question first and identify what type of question it is.

Answer 25

There are fewer than ten types of critical reasoning questions, and each has its own consideration. Take a moment to read the question first and determine what exactly is asked - especially if the question has a lot of double negatives that are meant to confuse you. Then move on to the argument.

Question 26

2. Work the argument.

Answer 26

After reading the question, it time to read the argument. You want to read for understanding, so try to paraphrase the information to make sure you understand. Also, identify the important parts of the argument. For most arguments, this means identifying the conclusion and the premises having a firm grasp of the main point (conclusion) of an argument and the evidence it uses (premises) to support that point is one of the keys to succeeding on argument questions.

Question 27

3. Predict what the correct answer should do.

Answer 27

Before you turn to the answer choices you want to have an idea of what you’re looking for. Applying POE to the answer choices will be easier if you already have a sense of what the correct answer needs to do. This will change depending on the specific question type (weaken, strengthen, assumption, and so on), but as you learn about each one you’ll lean what to look for.

Question 28

4. Use POE

Remember, you’re ultimately looking to eliminate four wrong answers.

So focus on flaws in the answer choices. Decide which answers are irrelevant and have nothing to do with the logic of the argument. Use your prediction from Step 3 to help you, and focus on differences between the answers, particularly when you’ve narrowed it down to two or three.

Answer 28

pg. 119 - THE QUESTION TYPES

GMAT - I am going to see 14 arguments that will fall within these categories:

1. Weaken/Strengthen Questions (closely related to Assumption questions)
2. Flaw Questions (look for new information to make less plausible (seeming reasonable or probable. 2. of a person - persuasive but deceptive)
3. Assumption Questions - what is the assumption? Correct answer is the assumption NECESSARY to the argument.
   BEWARE: STRONG/EXTREME words don’t work here ONLY, MUST, NEVER, ALWAYS and similar words).
   • Negation (absence or opposite of something actual or positive; 2. act of denying)
4. Evaluate-the-Argument Questions - this type is related to relevance (being on or having reference to the matter in hand (pertinent, appropriate, applicable, germane, i.e., connection, tie-in, relation) a conclusion is asserted, and the question will generally ask which answer choice helps to determine whether the (conclusion) is valid
5. Identify-the-Reasoning Questions - how argument is structured and finding the answer choice that best describes the logic used.
   (logic: 1) science of reasoning b) particular scheme of or treatise (tree’tis - a written work dealing formally and systematically with a subject) on this. 2) expected procedure or outcome. i.e., thinking, argument, rationale, philosophy sense.
   logical - 1) correctly reasoned 2) i.e., valid, sound, legitimate, reasonable, rational, consistent, correct, right, plausible, credible, believable, sensible, intelligent, practical.

When CPA Model Doesn’t Apply

6. Inference Questions - pick the answer that is definitely True, even though I wasn’t directly told so. “She didn’t tell you directly; she implied it and I inferred it.” WORK!!! :/
   BEWARE: STRONG/EXTREME words don’t work here ONLY, MUST, NEVER, ALWAYS and similar words).
   Warning is we are tempted to push the argument as far as we can, as long as the test writer seem reasonable. Key here for inference questions is to say rigorously with the scope of the passage. Strong language usually takes that information too far, beyond what we can really infer.
7. Beware of Your Heartstrings! FEELINGS, FEELINGS
   Sentimental.
8. Resolve/Explain Questions - splain a Discrepancy or Resolve two statement that don’t seem to coexist well. These contain contradictory ((deny (a stmt) 2. deny a stmt (made by a person) 3. be in opposition to or in conflict with (See synomynm study at OPPOSITE)) facts.

Other Point to Consider
These points will help me develop my techniques for analyzing arguments.

9. Watch for Extremes - strong is ok and when it not ok.
   (some Xamples of strong language: ONLY, MUST, NEVER, ALWAYS, and similar words).
   There are two question types that are particularly conducive to extremes and two that are Not.
10. What Caused What?
11. Statistics, Numbers, and Liess
12. Math? In This Book?
13. Arguing by Analogy
14. EXCEPT Questions

Question 29

Weaken and Strengthen Questions

Answer 29

About half of the arguments will be Weaken or Strengthen.

• most seriously weaken the conclusion?
• if true, is the best basis for a criticism…
• face the strongest opposition …

Question 30

When answering a weaken question, look for an answer choice that undermines the conclusion and is relevant to the premises. The answers to weaken questions usually refute (prove the falsity or error, Craig - screaming at me for an error!) an assumption. Biased. Coke taste test - test is taken by workers at Coke-a-Cola. Weaken supports the weaken.

Answer 30

Weaken and strengthen questions rely heavily on the CPA Model because they’re closely related to an argument’s assumptions. As you might imagine, strengthen question are the reverse of weaken ones.

Question 31

Strengthen questions

Answer 31

• Strong Support (as oppose to moderate support) /and relevant to the argument and relevant to its premise. Craig LeCompte! Strong Support NOT Strongly Worded

Question 32

When answering a strengthen question, look for an answer choice that generally supports the conclusion and is relevant to the premises. The answers to strengthen questions usually reinforce an assumption.

Answer 32

Review “Hong Kong” analysis

Question 33

• One last thing to know about using POE on weaken and strengthen questions is that strongly worded answers are good. It isn’t necessary that a correct answers use strong language, but because we’re trying to weaken or strengthen the answer as much as possible, we like strong answers more than moderate ones as long as they are relevant to the argument.

Answer 33

Flaw Questions

Question 34

Questions that want me to find the mistake are closely related to weaken questions, but they’re not the same. They usually look something like this:

Answer 34

• Which of the following indicates a flaw in the reasoning above?
• The above argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that…

Question 35

In a weaken question - decide which answer choice (which represents new information) would make the conclusion less plausible (of an argument, statement, etc.; 1) seeming reasonable or probable. 2) (of a person) persuasive but deceptive). In a flaw question, the mistake is already there, and you have to determine what it is.

Answer 35

See Flaw Questions on page 122.

Question 36

Assumption Questions

Answer 36

Argument must to be valid and its assumptions must be true. Remember, there is always a gap between the premises and the conclusion, and the assumptions fill that gap. The assumption will always be something that is Necessary for the Logic of the Argument to Work, something that Ties the Conclusion to the Premises. AKA: In order for the Logic to work…Tie the Conclusion to the Evidence (Premise). Assume what the author is trying to say in a Nice or Not so Nice way.

Question 37

• The argument above assumes that…
• Which of the following is an assumption on which the above argument depends?
• The conclusion drawn above depends on which of the following assumptions?

Answer 37

On assumptions questions, find the conclusion and determine which answer choice needs to be TRUE in order for the Conclusion to be Valid.

Question 38

When using POE on ASSUMPTION questions, get rid of answer choices that Weaken the Conclusion, are Irrelevant to the Argument, or are Too Strong. Strongly worded answers are usually wrong on assumption questions.

Answer 38

Skill
use negation (to cause something not to be effective) to each answer choice and see if the conclusion survives.
Once you realize that an answer choice is crucial to the conclusion’s survival, you know you’ve hit paydirt.

Question 39

Evaluate-the-Argument Questions

• …significant information that would hep to evaluate …
• …studied to assess the validity of the argument above?

Wrong answers to evaluate the argument questions are usually just not relevant to the debate.

Answer 39

Identify-the-Reasoning Questions

Success with these questions derives from mapping out how an argument is structured and finding the answer choice that best describes the logic used. They’re related to structure questions pertaining to reading comprehension passages.

Question 40

When the CPA Model doesn’t apply

Answer 40

Inference Questions

When you see an inference question, you have to ask yourself only one question: “Which of the answer choices absolutely, positively, must be true based on what I’ve read?”

Question 41

Beware of you Heartstrings

Answer 41

Feelings, semential, decency or fairness. Logic derives form the head, not the heart! Butter :/

Question 42

Resolve/Explain Questions

Answer 42

asks to explain a discrepancy or resolve two statements that don’t seem to coexist well. Each resolve/explain question contains two seemingly contradictory facts, and the questions will read something like the following:

Question 43

• if true, contributes most to an explanation …
• if true, best resolves the contradiction described above?
• if true, would best explain the ….

Answer 43

Your job is to find the answer choice that shows that the facts aren’t contradictory after all.

Straightforward, right? No conclusions, no assumptions, and none of that CPA stuff. Just a funny situation for you to reconcile

Question 44

Other Points to Consider

Keep these other points in mind as you develop your technique for analyzing arguments. Find as many practice problems as you can, and take note of the number of times each of these topics surfaces.

Answer 44

Watch for Extremes
One thing that is extremely important to the POE on arguments questions is knowing when strong language is okay and when it’s not. (Some examples of strong language are only, must, never, always, and similar words.) There are two question types that are particularly conducive to extremes and two that are not.

Question 45

Weaken and strengthen questions look for answer choice that will most weaken or strengthen the argument. As long as an answer choice is relevant to the argument and does what it’s suppose to do, the stronger the better. However some are quite mild and only weaken or strengthen the argument a little. But extremes are still good on those question types.

Answer 45

On assumption/inference questions be war of strong language. Remember, the correct answer to an assumption question is something necessary to the argument. An answer choice with strong language may help the argument, but is it really necessary? Prob not. So watch out for extremes on assumption questions. Extremes are also dangerous on inference questions because most of us are tempted to put the arguments as far as we can, as long as they seem reasonable. But the key to inference question is staying rigorously withing the scope of the passages. Strong language usually takes that information too far, beyond what we can really infer. It’s possible for an extreme answer to be correct on an inference question, but you had better have really good support for it.

Question 46

What Caused What?

Answer 46

Casual arguments are common because its makeup fits so neatly in the CPA Model: A conclusion is deemed to be true because of a few premises.

Question 47

When an argument asserts that A causes B, there are two common assumptions involved:

• There was not other cause for B. Seasonable warm weather caused the decrease/increase

- B wasn't a coincidence.
or 
A caused B
B caused A 
(decrease in customers caused the price increase)

Answer 47

Statistics, Numbers, and Lies

Crunch numbers - When an argument is based on a sample, survey, or statistical evidence, the assumption is that the people polled are representative of the whole or that the percentages are representative of the total populations.

Question 48

Math? In This Book?

Statistical matter, math into verbal section, test writer’s to pressure under stress to confuse you, especially in the middle of an exam. Many math-related questions involve inferences. China’s wheat, Mexico’s wheat, and my wheat.

Answer 48

Arguing by Analogy

Example:
You: Mom, will you let me stay up until 11 o’clock?
Mom: Why should I let you stay up until 11 o’clock?
You: Because Derek’s mother lets him stay up until 11 o’clock!

You tried to make an argument by analogy, and your mom shot you down by refuting your assumption that all families are alike.

• When an argument is based on an analogy between two separate things, the assumption is that the two things are similar.
• If you’re asked to weaken an argument by analogy, look for an answer choice that indicates that the two things are different.

Question 49

Except Questions

Four wrong answers and one correct answer or
Four right answers and on wrong answer, either way, one answer choice is suppose to stand out from the others.

The only difference is that you have to remember that you’re working with an EXCEPT question. Too many students forget this in the heat of battle; in fact, many students don’t even see the EXCEPT sitting right in front of them, even though it’s right there in capital letters.

Answer 49

To keep you focus, follow this technique:

• Write the letter A - E.
• Work the problem as you always do.
• Write “Yes” next to answer choices that answer the question properly, and “No” next to the one that doesn’t.
• Pick the choice with “No” next to it.

Example:
Each of the following is a state capital EXCEPT

• Moscow

Question 50

Putting it All Together

Answer 50

Remember “Therefore” is the conclusion.