Logical ReasoningDifficulty: Easy

PT1 S4 Q15 Explanation

Studies of brain lateralization in animals

A free, expert breakdown of this official LSAT Logical Reasoning question.

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Stimulus

Studies of brain lateralization in animals have purported to show that, whereas most human beings are right-handed, about half of any given group of animals will be “left-handed” (i.e., showing a preference for their left limbs) and half will be “right-handed.” This finding is suspect, will almost always “shake hands” with the right paw.

What this question is testing

Weaken

Your task

Find the choice that makes the argument's conclusion less likely to be true.

Common trap

Answers that look negative but attack a claim the argument never relied on.

Winning move

Find the assumption the argument depends on, then pick the choice that undermines it.

Reading along? Open the full official question in LawHub — we show a fragment here and keep the reasoning in our own words.

The question
15.

Which one of the following, if true, is the strongest defense against the counterexample of dogs

Answer choices

  1. Trap4% picked this

    Dogs are observed to scratch themselves with the left leg as well as with

  2. Trap5% picked this

    People who observe dogs “shaking hands” are observing a behavior that dogs perform only with

  3. Trap2% picked this

    Left-handed people sometimes feel inconvenienced or even stigmatized in a “right-handed world,” but dogs face

  4. Trap4% picked this

    Dogs that have lost a limb are able to compensate for the loss, regardless of whether the limb was lost from

  5. Correct85% picked this

    In learning to perform tricks, dogs are influenced by the behavior

    Why this is right

    Answer E is correct.

    Skill tested: Weaken · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

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