Why are violins made by Stradivarius

Answer choices

1. A

   Unsupported2% picked this

   some other Italian violin makers in the early 1700s produced violins that equaled the quality

   Unsupported: other violin makers Too Strong: equaled The paragraph we read definitely leaves room for this idea to be true. After all, Stradivarius violins are superior to most, but there can still be some violins as good. And it's possible that those as-good violins were made by other Italian violin makers who could have had access to the same wood. But why would this paragraph end by saying it's likely that other Italian violin makers from the early 1700s matched the quality of Stradivarius. It's possible yes, but there isn't any strong support for that here. We don't know anything about these other violin makers. If the paragraph had said, "The only other violins as good as S's violins were made by other Italian violin makers", then we could conclude "it's likely that they used the same wood". If the paragraph had said, "Some other Italian violin makers in the early 1700s used the same wood", then we could conclude "it's likely that their violins were also of superior quality". But this answer is making us assume that it's likely that they used the same wood.

   2%
2. B

   Too Strong: the only4% picked this

   Stradivarius was the only violin maker in the early 1700s to use the wood produced in

   We're told that Stradivarius violins are superior to most other violins, but it's possible that some other violin makers in the early 1700s used the same wood and had violins of comparable quality.

   4%
3. C

   Too Strong: no violin2% picked this

   no violin made from present-day materials could rival a Stradivarius violin

   We're told that Stradivarius violins are superior to most, but there might still be some violins that are equally good in sound quality, and some of those may come from the modern era.

   2%
4. D

   Correct91% picked this

   the special qualities of Stradivarius violins are due in part to the wood used

   Why this is right

   This is softly worded "due in part" and captures the momentum of where this paragraph was headed. It posed a curious question: Why are S's violins so darn good? It rejected one possible explanation: the notion that it's because of a special varnish has no evidence. And it is setting up this alternative explanation by telling us that, he did live in an area that produced wood with special acoustic properties.

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

   91%
5. E

   Too Strong: any2% picked this

   Stradivarius did not employ any secret techniques in making

   Although the passage says there's no evidence he used a secret varnish, that's not saying "he didn't use a secret varnish". And even if it were saying he didn't use a secret varnish, he might still have used some other secret technique.

   2%