Logical Reasoning

PT112 · S4 · Q20 Consumer advocate: The introduction

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Consumer advocate: The introduction of a new drug into the marketplace should be contingent upon our having a good understanding of its social impact.

Conclusion (it is obvious, then)

There should be a general reduction in the pace of bringing to the marketplace new drugs that are now being tested.

Evidence

The introduction of a new drug into the marketplace should be contingent upon our having a good understanding of its social impact, but the social impact of the newly marketed antihistamine is far from clear.

Evaluate

The first two sentences would allow us to infer that . After all, introducing into market requires clear understanding of impact, and we don't have that clear understanding for he new antihistamine yet.

But the actual conclusion calls for a general reduction in the pace of brining new drugs to market.

It's kinda like if we said,

When we go from specific evidence to a general conclusion, we worry about Sampling issues. Is it fair to judge Patrick's teaching based on only one student? What if that student is an anomaly? What if there's a good reason for that student getting a lower score, and it doesn't apply to other students? Is that student's experience representative of the typical student in Patrick's classes?based on what happened with this new antihistamine, there should be a general reduction in the pace of bringing new drugs to the market", he has to assume that what happened with the new antihistamine is typical (or even slower) than the pace at which most other drugs have recently been brought to market.

Goal

We want more evidence that other drugs are being brought to the market before their social impact is clearly known, more evidence that we should slow our current pace of bringing drugs to the market, or something that rules out our objection of,

20.

Which one of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument?

  1. Correct

    The social impact of the

    Why this is right

    This provides evidence that most of the new drugs being tested are drugs where the social impact is super far from clear. The impact of the new antihistamine is already far from clear, and we actually understand that drug "much better" than we understand most new drugs. If an answer had said, "the social impact of most new drugs is as poorly understood as that of the new antihistamine", it would strengthen by making it seem like the situation with the new antihistamine is representative of most new drugs. By saying, "the social impact of most new drugs is much worse understood than that of the new antihistamine", the answer is super-strengthening!

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

    51% picked this

  2. The social impact of some

    Too Weak: Some

    This definitely strengthens somewhat, but since some just means "at least one", it's a very weak strengthener. Comparing this to (A), we get the same information (don't possess clear understanding of social impact) about but about most new drugs.

    29% picked this

  3. The economic success of some

    No Impact: Economic Success

    Nothing in this conversation has been about, or would be concerned about, the economic success that a drug does or doesn't have. We're only concerned with whether or not the current pace of bringing new drugs to the market involves bringing them to market before we have a clear understanding of their social impact.

    5% picked this

  4. The new antihistamine is chemically

    Too Weak

    Too Weak: Some Unclear Impact: Chemically Similar This definitely strengthens a tiny amount, but since some just means "at least one", it's a very weak strengthener. And since "chemically similar" is related to "social impact of drug" but definitely not equivalent to it, it's a weaker connection even than (B).

    11% picked this

  5. The new antihistamine should be

    Negated Logic

    Our author is thinking the illegal negation of this answer. "Only if" always means to put that attached idea on the RIGHT side of the arrow. Author: if the new antihistamine then most new drugs shouldn't have been ? shouldn't be brought brought to market yet to market at this pace This answer: if the new antihistamine then most new drugs should be brought ? should be brought to market yet to market

    5% picked this

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