Logical Reasoning

PT146 · S1 · Q18 Office worker: I have two equally

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Office worker: I have two equally important projects that remain undone.

Conclusion (should = opinion)

I should devote all my time to the second one.

Evidence

It's equal in importance to the first project, the first one is late already, and if I work on the first then I won't finish the second before it's deadline.

Evaluate / Goal

We need a rule that tells us which project to work on. It should have a trigger that applies to the situation this worker is in, and an outcome that makes it seem like the worker .

18.

Which one of the following principles, if valid, most helps to justify the office worker's reasoning?

It is better to focus
No Distinction Between 1st / 2nd
This helps to strengthen the part of the conclusion that is saying "devote all my time to Y", because it's saying that we should focus on one rather than dividing our time amongst both projects. But this answer doesn't give us any reason to pick devoting all our time to the 2nd project over devoting all our time to the 1st project. This answer would equivalently strengthen the conclusion that "I should devote all my time to the first one".
4% picked this
It is better to finish
No Distinction Between 1st / 2nd
Similar to (A), this helps to strengthen the part of the conclusion that is saying "devote all my time to Y", because it's saying that it would be better to finish one of them then to try to work on both projects and potentially finish neither. But this answer doesn't give us any reason to pick trying to finish the 2nd project over trying to finish the 1st. This answer applies as much to the 1st project as it does to the 2nd, so it's not strengthening our decision to go all-in on the 2nd project.
12% picked this
It is better to first
Bad Evidence Match
This answer could serve our purposes if we knew "the 2nd project must be done, whereas the 1st project is only optional". But we were never told any such thing. In fact, we're told that the 1st and the 2nd are equally important.
1% picked this
It is better not to
Bad Conclusion Match
This answer would help us support a conclusion about whether or not "to worry" about having failed a project. The conclusion we're trying to support is about "which project should we devote all our time to".
10% picked this
Correct
It is better to attempt
Why this is right
In order for this rule to be useful, we would need to know these things about the 1st and 2nd projects: 1st 2nd late project eligible to be finished on time doesn't have higher priority We do know those things! The rule is saying that it's better to attempt to finish a project like the 2nd one on time than it is to try finishing a project like the 1st one. To put this into plainer English, think about 2 equally important projects. You've already missed the deadline on the first project. Should you try to finish that one up or work on the 2nd project, where you still have at least a chance of being on time. This is saying, "You might as well try to get at least one of your projects done on time. The other project's already late, and it's not like it's more important than the 2nd one."
Skill tested: Principle-Strengthen · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.
73% picked this

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