Logical ReasoningDifficulty: Easy

PT12 S4 Q12 Explanation

Fossil-fuel emissions, considered a key factor

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

TopicsParadox

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Stimulus

Fossil-fuel emissions, considered a key factor in the phenomenon known as global warming, contain two gases, carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide, that have opposite effects on atmospheric temperatures. Carbon dioxide traps heat, tending to warm the atmosphere, whereas sulfur dioxide turns into sulfate aerosols that reflect sunlight back toward space, thereby tending would actually be enhanced for more than three decades before the temperature rise began to slow.

What this question is testing

Paradox

Your task

Break the argument into its conclusion and evidence, then do exactly what the question stem asks with that structure.

Common trap

Answers that sound relevant to the topic but don't connect to the argument's actual reasoning.

Winning move

Predict what a right answer must do, then test each choice against the conclusion-evidence gap.

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

The question
12.

Which one of the following, if true, most helps to explain the claim made in the

Answer choices

  1. Correct92% picked this

    Carbon dioxide stays in the atmosphere for many decades, while the sulfate aerosols fall

    Why this is right

    Answer A is correct.

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

  2. Trap1% picked this

    Sulfur pollution is not spread evenly around the globe but is concentrated in the Northern Hemisphere, where there is a

  3. Trap3% picked this

    While it has long been understood that sulfur dioxide is a harmful pollutant, it has been understood only recently that carbon dioxide

  4. Trap4% picked this

    Carbon dioxide is produced not only by automobiles but also by power plants that

  5. Trap0% picked this

    Because fossil-fuel emissions contain sulfur dioxide, they contribute not only to global warming but also

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