Logical Reasoning

PT149 · S4 · Q5 Safety expert: Tuna is often treated

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

  • Save & drill this skill — build targeted practice sets from questions like this one

  • Video walkthroughs — watch every question solved step by step

  • 81 official LSATs — as questions, timed sections & full-length tests

Start practicing free

Safety expert: Tuna is often treated with carbon monoxide so that it will not turn brown as it ages.

Background

Treating tuna with carbon monoxide (as is done to prevent browning) doesn't harm the tuna in any way.

Surprising Claim

There's a danger that doing this treatment will lead to more people getting sick from eating tuna

Evaluation

Given that treatment doesn't harm the tuna, How is it that more ppl get sick from eating it

A lot of correct answers to Paradox like to use the "breadcrumbs", the extra details, they included. Since this treatment -> doesn't get brown as it ages, I would imagine this correct answer is going to show us a way that not browning as ages -> more ppl get sick eating

5.

Which one of the following, if true, most helps to resolve the apparent discrepancy in the safety expert's statements?

  1. Workers in fish processing plants

    Out of Scope Too Weak

    We only care about how people are getting sick from eating tuna. These workers aren't getting sick by eating it. Also, answers that say "if measures aren't taken / if appropriate steps aren't followed" are inherently weak because we have no reason to think that appropriate procedures would not be followed.

    3% picked this

  2. Over the last several years,

    Unrelated to Goal

    This doesn't have anything to do with the carbon monoxide browning treatment. Independently, more people eating tuna leads to more people getting sick from tuna, but this has no tie-in to the causal connection between the treatment and the uptick in tuna-sick. We'd have to add in an assumption that "the treatment has led to increased tuna consumption in the most parts of the world".

    1% picked this

  3. Correct

    Tuna that is treated with

    Why this is right

    This connects the idea of "not browning" to "people get sick eating it". If there were some treatment that would prevent milk from smelling like spoiled milk once it had gone bad, then people would probably keep drinking the milk even once it had gone rotten and would get sick from it more often. This is similarly saying that the browning treatment is making it so that people can't tell when their tuna is rotten sometimes, so they're eating rotten tuna and getting sick.

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

    94% picked this

  4. Treating tuna with carbon monoxide

    Unrelated to Goal

    This doesn't explain in any way why people are getting sick from the treated tuna.

    1% picked this

  5. Most consumers strongly prefer tuna

    Unrelated to Goal

    Just like (D), this offers a reason why the treatment is given, but we need a reason why people are getting sick from eating the treated tuna.

    1% picked this

Continue the review in LSAT Lab

Save this question, watch the video walkthrough, and drill similar questions in your LSAT Lab account.

Save and practice this skill
LSAT Lab

Turn this review into a targeted study plan.

Save this question, drill more like it, watch the video walkthrough, and track your progress in your LSAT Lab account.

Start practicing free