Logical ReasoningDifficulty: Medium

PT113 S4 Q11 Explanation

Lydia: Red squirrels are known

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

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Stimulus

Lydia: Red squirrels are known to make holes in the bark of sugar maple trees and to consume the trees' sap. Since sugar maple sap is essentially water with a small concentration of sugar, the squirrels almost certainly are after either water or sugar. Water is easily available from other sources in in trees just to get water. Therefore, they are probably after the sugar.

Galina: It must be something other than sugar, because the concentration of sugar in the maple sap is so low that a squirrel would need to drink an enormous any significant amount of sugar.

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.

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The question
11.

Which one of the following, if true, most undermines the force of Galina’s attempted rebuttal

Answer choices

  1. No Impact3% picked this

    Squirrels are known to like foods that have a high concentration

    This indicates that squirrels like foods high in sugar, but it acknowledges Galina's point about low sugar concentration and doesn't address how squirrels might still find the sap appealing.

  2. No Impact3% picked this

    Once a hole in a sugar maple trunk has provided one red squirrel with sap, other red squirrels will make

    This comments on squirrels making additional holes, which doesn’t address Galina’s point about sugar concentration nor provide insight into the sugar’s appeal.

  3. No Impact21% picked this

    Trees other than sugar maples, whose sap contains a lower concentration of sugar than does sugar maple sap, are less

    This states that trees with lower sugar concentration are less tapped, implying sugar preference but not addressing the specific challenge about low sugar concentration in sugar maples.

  4. Correct72% picked this

    Red squirrels leave the sugar maple sap that slowly oozes out of the holes in the tree’s trunk until much of the

    Why this is right

    This states squirrels allow sap to evaporate, increasing its sugar concentration. This counters Galina's argument by showing squirrels have a method for increasing sugar levels, suggesting they indeed target sugar.

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

  5. No Impact1% picked this

    During the season when sap can be obtained from sugar maple trees, the weather often becomes cold enough to prevent sap from

    This mentions cold weather limiting sap flow, which doesn’t connect to the argument about sugar concentration or explain why squirrels are attracted to the sap.

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