Logical Reasoning

PT2 · S4 · Q19 Some cleaning fluids

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Some cleaning fluids, synthetic carpets, wall paneling, and other products release toxins, such as formaldehyde and benzene, into the household air supply.

Implied Conclusion

Poorly ventilated / well-insulated houses should get some houseplants?

Evidence

Poorly ventilated / well-insulated houses can trap toxins from household products. But in a test, 20 large plants eliminated formaldehyde from a small, well-insulated house.

Evaluate

This is a rare question stem for Main Conclusion (hasn't shown up on any modern tests). The idea that the passage is structured to lead to a conclusion means that there isn't actually an explicit conclusion in the stimulus (unlike all normal Main Conclusion questions).

These are sort of like Logical Completion (fill-in-the-blank) questions. We want to think about where this conversation is going, and safely land the plane.

The author alerts us to a problem and then provides the raw material for seeing a potential solution, so the most reasonable conclusion is that the author will be saying, "So use THIS SOLUTION for this problem."

Goal

Find the best available meaning match for *Houseplants could be beneficial in a poorly ventilated / well-insulated house".

19.

The passage is structured to lead to which one of the following conclusions?

  1. Houseplants can remove benzene from

    Inference-Bait

    We know benzene is a toxin and that houseplants can remove some toxins, so this answer is trying to bait us into assuming that houseplants can remove benzene. But even if we knew this, it would be a Premise, a reason for ultimately concluding "it would be a good idea to have houseplants!"

    6% picked this

  2. Nonsynthetic products do not release

    Inference Bait

    This sounds nothing like our goal (get some houseplants if your house is poorly ventilated / well insulated). It sounds more like a trap answer on an Inference question. We were told that synthetic products release toxins, so this is doing the classic "Illegal Opposite" kind of answer that "non-synthetics don't release toxins". This is essentially an Illegal Negation of a background fact.

    0% picked this

  3. Keeping houseplants is an effective

    Word Salad / Unrelated to Goal

    The passage is making us think that houseplants would absorb toxins that get trapped in the house. It says nothing about houseplants trapping heat. The insulation traps the heat (and the toxins).

    1% picked this

  4. Correct

    Keeping houseplants can compensate for

    Why this is right

    It suggests that houseplants can alleviate the problem of trapped toxins in houses with poor ventilation, aligning with the evidence about houseplants removing toxins.

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

    77% picked this

  5. The air in a well-insulated

    Unsupported Comparison

    This statement makes a comparison that the argument does not cover. The argument only mentions houseplants removing some toxins; it does not compare toxin levels in different house types.

    16% picked this

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