Logical Reasoning

PT146 · S2 · Q7 Naturalist: Different nonhuman primate

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Naturalist: Different nonhuman primate species exhibit many contrasts in behavior.

Statements

Comparative Distinction If we leave a screwdriver within reach of different nonhuman primates, there is contrasting behavior:

- most chimps will examine it, play with it, and then move on to something else. - most orangutans will pretend to ignore it at first, and then once no one is looking they might grab the screwdriver and try to dismantle their cage.

Evaluate

There's not much to put together here. The 1st sentence is already a synthesis of the 2nd and 3rd sentences. It seems like the correct answer will just provide some other derivable claim based on the different reactions chimps and orangutans have to the screwdriver.

Goal

Pick the most provable claim. Avoid overly strong or specific language; avoid broad, unknown comparisons; avoid commenting on topics that weren't covered.

7.

Which one of the following is most strongly supported by the naturalist's statements?

  1. Orangutans are the most intelligent

    Too Strong: the most

    This is an extreme language freebie. We only read about two nonhuman primates. Just because orangutans seemed like the more clever of the two doesn't mean we crown them #1 among all and say they're the most intelligent.

    1% picked this

  2. Orangutans have better memories than

    Unsupported Comparison

    The fact that some orangutans (at least one) initially ignored the screwdriver and "remembered" to go back to it later for the sake of dismantling the cage is not support for a global comparison between chimp memories and orangutans.

    1% picked this

  3. Correct

    Some nonhuman primates are capable

    Why this is right

    This has very provable language. To support "some" we only need one example of something. Do we have an example of a nonhuman primate committing an act of deception? Does it qualify as deception when an orangutan pretends to ignore a tool and then later tries to sneakily grab the tool and plot an escape? Yes, definitely. In particular, we're guaranteed that it's an act of deception because the orangutan "pretends to ignore the tool". That means that the orangutan does notice the tool but is sending to zookeepers the deceptive impression that it doesn't notice it / isn't interested.

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

    83% picked this

  4. Orangutans dislike being caged more

    Unsupported Comparison

    The fact that some orangutans (at least one) used the screwdriver to dismantle its cage does not support a global comparison between chimps and orangutans, in terms of who dislikes imprisonment more. Not only would one data point (an orangutan may) not support a broad comparison, but you also can't judge how much someone dislikes being caged based on whether or not they attempt a prison escape. Prisoners who aren't plotting an escape don't necessarily like being caged more than others. It's more likely that they are just more pessimistic or clueless about plotting a successful escape.

    1% picked this

  5. Not all nonhuman primates understand

    Out of Scope: understand tool use

    This answer is pretty tempting since it has very weak language. We only need one example of a nonhuman primate that doesn't understand tool use. Can we say that the chimps are examples of a primate that doesn't understand tool use? No, not really. The chimps actually pick up the screwdriver and "play with it for a time", which could easily indicate an understanding of tool use. Overall, it's a pretty extreme claim to say that a species "doesn't understand tool use", so we wouldn't want to extrapolate that big claim just from this screwdriver example.

    15% picked this

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