Logical ReasoningDifficulty: Easy

PT126 S1 Q9 Explanation

Several major earthquakes

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

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Stimulus

Several major earthquakes have occurred in a certain region over the last ten years. But a new earthquake prediction method promises to aid local civil defense officials in deciding exactly when to evacuate various towns. Detected before each of the electric current in the earth's crust.

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
9.

Which one of the following, if true, most weakens

Answer choices

  1. Too Weak8% picked this

    Scientists do not fully understand what brought about the changes in the electric current in the earth's crust that preceded each of the major

    That scientists fully understand the changes in the electric current is not required in order for them to use the correlation between the change and earthquakes to make predictions about future earthquakes.

  2. Strengthens5% picked this

    Most other earthquake prediction methods have been based on a weaker correlation than that found between the changes in the electric current in the

    This makes the new prediction method more accurate than previous methods, though this doesn’t.

  3. Out of Scope1% picked this

    The frequency of major earthquakes in the region has increased over the

    More frequent earthquakes don’t make it any easier or more difficult to predict the next earthquake using changes in electric current in the Earth’s crust. The question is not how frequent the predictions are, but rather how reliable they are.

  4. Correct83% picked this

    There is considerable variation in the length of time between the changes in the electric current

    Why this is right

    The greater the variation in the length of time between the changes in the electric current and the subsequent the less accurate will be the prediction.

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

  5. Too Weak3% picked this

    There is presently only one station in the region that is capable of detecting the electric current

    The one station may be more than enough to measure the changes in the electric current in the Earth’s crust.

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