Asked by researchers to sort objects

Answer choices

1. A

   Unsupported Comparison / Opposite9% picked this

   Toddlers unable to sort objects by color tend to have a less developed prefrontal cortex than other children

   According to these researchers, almost all toddlers would be likely to have an undeveloped prefrontal cortex, not just these ones in the study who couldn’t follow the second rule. The toddlers who couldn't follow the second rule aren't considered the atypical. They are presented as though they are behaving typically for children of that age.

   9%
2. B

   Too Strong: "only"3% picked this

   Only adolescents and adults can solve problems that require adapting to

   “Only” is overly restrictive. If there is a toddler or even like an 8 year old (not yet an adolescent) who can solve a problem that requires adapting to new rules, it doesn’t contradict anything in this paragraph. Even the language of “almost invariably” in the second sentence suggests that some toddlers were able to follow the new rule.

   3%
3. C

   Correct53% picked this

   Certain kinds of behavior on the part of toddlers may not

   Why this is right

   This tortured phrasing allows us to reinforce the Causal Difference-Maker. How come the toddlers in the study seemed to disobey the new rule? Were they willfully trying to resist what the researchers asked them to do? No, according to the researchers, the toddlers just had difficulty following the new rule because of their stage of brain development. The toddlers are disobeying the new rule, but not because they’re choosing willfully to do so, rather because their brains aren’t letting them follow the new rule.

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

   53%
4. D

   Trap2% picked this

   The maturing of the prefrontal cortex is more important than upbringing in causing the development

   Unsupported Comparison "more important" / Out of Scope: “upbringing” We have no information about the influence of upbringing on adaptive behavior. We know that failures to adapt are often caused by an immature cortex, but they might be even more often caused by certain types of upbringing.

   2%
5. E

   Too Strong33% picked this

   Skill at adapting to new situations is roughly proportional to the level of development of

   Too Strong: “roughly proportional” / Out of Scope: “skill” “new situations” Even though it says “roughly”, saying that “A is proportional to B” is a very strong stepladder connection: more development of prefrontal, more skill at adapting to new situations. We don’t have grounds to infer that sort of relationship. It could be more of a binary off/on type thing; once the prefrontal cortex reaches a certain level of development, people have the ability to adapt. That would not be proportional. That would just mean there’s a minimum threshold before an ability is possible. Also, it’s drifting too much to conflate whether the toddlers were able to adapt to a new rule with their skill at adapting to new situations.

   33%