A company decided to scan

Answer choices

1. A

   No Impact Cheats Paradox2% picked this

   Some of the salespersons gave huge paper files to the staff responsible for creating the database while other salespersons

   Without more information, this doesn't explain why the salespersons rarely accessed the files. We would need to imagine quite a few details in order for this to have any impact. And it doesn't explain why salespersons refused to surrender their paper files.

   2%
2. B

   Opposite (if anything)1% picked this

   Most of the salespersons already had portable computers before the new

   If anything, this only deepens the mystery. If most of the salespersons were not already using personal computers before this project started, that might lead to an explanation for why they didn't use the database. Maybe they were technophobes who were reluctant to use new computers or just didn't want to change their way of doing things. The answer choice doesn't actually state any of this, so we could argue that this simply adds details without explaining the situation. But if this did have an impact on the story, it could very easily be the opposite of what we want.

   1%
3. C

   Correct96% picked this

   The papers that the salespersons found most important all contained personal information about employees of client companies, which the salespersons did not

   Why this is right

   This isn't one of the exact explanations that we anticipated, but it's very similar. It provides a reason for the salesperson's refusal to turn files over to the people creating the database.

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

   96%
4. D

   Opposite (if anything)1% picked this

   All of the salespersons were required to attend a series of training sessions for the new database software even though many of them found

   If many of the salespersons found the software easy to use, that would seem to add to the list of reasons why we would expect them to use it. This is the opposite of what we want an answer to do. It doesn't explain why the salespersons didn't use the database.

   1%
5. E

   Cheats Paradox Thin Ice1% picked this

   The number of staff required to create the database turned out to be larger than anticipated, and the company had to pay

   This answer is trying to trick us into imagining that it took much longer than expected to scan the files into the database, and that's why the salespersons rarely accessed the database. But this would be adding a lot of detail that isn't actually stated in this answer choice. This answer also doesn't explain why salespersons refused to hand over files.

   1%