Logical Reasoning

PT153 · S3 · Q10 Giant ground sloths began disappearing

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Giant ground sloths began disappearing from the Americas about 10,000 years ago, around the time that the last ice age ended, and are now extinct worldwide.

New Belief

The arrival of human beings, not climate change, is what killed off the giant sloths.

Evidence

Humans arrived shortly before the last ice age ended, which is around the same time that giant ground sloths began disappearing from the Americas.

Evaluate

Since we're discussing what the Cause of a certain Phenomenon was, we can use our Curious Fact / Explanation mindset:

Curious Fact What caused the giant sloths to disappear from the Americas about 10,000 years ago as the last ice age was ending?

Author's Explanation The arrival of humans did it.

We always affect/evaluate these arguments in one of two ways: - Alternate Explanations for the Curious Fact - Plausibility of the Author's Explanation

We were already offered an alternate explanation (climate change), so we could assist the anti-causal part of the scientist's argument by picking any answer that makes it sound like "climate change didn't kill the sloths". (Maybe we get evidence that they would happily tolerate the new climate)

More likely on Strengthen questions is that the correct answer adds plausibility to the Author's Explanation.

Is there any evidence that the presence of humans would imperil sloths? Did humans hunt them or displace / ruin the sloths' habitat?

The most classic form to a Causal Strengthener is the old "No Cause, No Effect" answer, so maybe there will be an answer like,

Goal

Look for something that adds plausibility to the idea that the presence of humans would lead to the disappearance of the giant ground sloths (or something that makes it sound like climate change wouldn't have killed off the sloths)

10.

Which one of the following, if true, provides the most support for the scientists' new belief?

  1. Scientists have not found any

    Weakens

    This detracts plausibility from the idea that humans killed off the sloths.

    1% picked this

  2. Species of smaller tree-dwelling sloths

    Out of Scope

    Out of Scope: other types of sloths We're only discussing the giant ground sloths. And this answer doesn't tell us whether these surviving sloths tolerate humans around. So this does nothing for the conversation.

    1% picked this

  3. Their large size made the

    Weakens, if anything

    "Less adaptable" would make it more plausible that climate change is what killed them.

    1% picked this

  4. Giant ground sloths are not

    Unclear Impact

    Since we know humans arrived shortly before the end of the ice age, and the ice age ended around 10,000 years, if other big animals began to disappear around 10,000 years ago, that might be more compelling evidence for climate change than for the effect of humans. Regardless, it certainly doesn't tilt more strongly toward humans than toward climate change as the probable cause of why these large mammals are disappearing.

    2% picked this

  5. Correct

    One type of giant ground

    Why this is right

    This is the classic "No Cause, No Effect" type of strengthener. These isolated islands are like "the control group" in a science experiment. They tolerated the shift in climate from before ice age through well after the last ice age. They were doing just fine until HUMANS came!

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

    95% picked this

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