Logical Reasoning

PT122 · S2 · Q14 Scientist: A controversy in paleontology

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Scientist: A controversy in paleontology centers on the question of whether prehistoric human ancestors began to develop sophisticated tools before or after they came to stand upright.

Conclusion

Humans stood upright before they began to develop sophisticated tools.

Evidence

Developing sophisticated tools requires free use of the hands, and standing upright makes this possible.

Evaluate

If this were a Flaw question, we'd call them out for a Necessary vs. Sufficient error. We know that making advanced tools requires free use of the hands.

If you didn't have free use, couldn't have made advanced tools.

Standing upright is identified as "one possible way" to have free use of hands. But that doesn't mean it's the only possible way.

Goal

Let's look for an answer suggesting another possible way to have free use of your hands (couldn't you lay on your back?), or any answer that reduces the plausibility that standing upright came first (i.e. an answer that makes it sound like advanced toolmaking happened before standing upright did).

14.

Which one of the following statements, if true, most weakens the scientist's argument?

  1. Many animals that do not

    No Impact

    This sort of just reinforces a connection between standing upright / making advanced tools, by giving the "No Cause, No Effect" version of, not-stand upright / make only-basic tools. That sort of covariation would strengthen the argument, but since this is so weakly worded it's not really having any impact.

    2% picked this

  2. Correct

    Advanced hunting weapons have been

    Why this is right

    This provides an Effect, No Cause weakener to the author's argument. The Effect (advanced weapons, i.e. tools) is present before the supposed Cause (standing upright) is present. If we were nervous about saying that a weapon is a tool, that's where they were trying to gum up the works here. A tool is a device you use to achieve a certain function. A weapon is a device you use to achieve the function of killing something. So it qualifies as a tool.

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

    71% picked this

  3. Many prehistoric human ancestors who

    No Impact

    This looks like a Cause, No Effect type idea. They had the standing upright, but didn't have sophisticated tools. However, the author was never saying that "if you could stand upright, then you definitely had advanced tools". Since our author thinks standing upright precedes making advanced tools, she's only thinking "if you couldn't stand upright, then you wouldn't have had advanced tools".

    2% picked this

  4. Those prehistoric human ancestors who

    No Impact

    The author isn't saying that standing upright is a way to have more dexterous hands; she's just saying it's a way to have free use of your hands. It doesn't matter how dexterous your hands are, if you're walking on all fours. Those two hands and two feet are all touching the ground, so they don't have the freedom to work on building stuff.

    12% picked this

  5. Many of the earliest sophisticated

    Out of Scope: using the tool

    This argument is about what it takes to develop / make a tool, not about what is required to use the tool. It's very easy for me to use an advanced tool like my smartphone while lying down -- but could I have built a smartphone while lying down? In general, it's much easier to use a tool than to construct the tool, so it's not a great comparison for us to hear what was required to USE the tool.

    13% picked this

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