Logical ReasoningDifficulty: Hard

PT6 S2 Q12 Explanation

By dating fossils of pollen

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

TopicsParadox

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Stimulus

By dating fossils of pollen and beetles, which returned after an Ice Age glacier left an area, it is possible to establish an approximate date when a warmer climate developed. In one glacial area, it appears from the insect record that a warm climate developed immediately after the melting of the glacier. warm climate did not develop until long after the glacier disappeared.

What this question is testing

Paradox

Setup

This is a Paradox EXCEPT question, which is just a flipped Paradox. Four answers will explain why two pieces of evidence point in different directions; one will fail to explain it. That non-explainer is the answer.

The Discrepancy

Two records disagree about when the climate got warm: beetles say "right away," pollen says "much later."

Evaluate

Anything that explains the gap will say either: (a) beetle evidence is misleading us into thinking it was warm earlier than it was, (b) pollen evidence is misleading us into thinking it was warm later than it was, or (c) the two organisms naturally show up at different speeds. The wrong answer for this question type will be the one that doesn't do any of those jobs.

Goal

Pick the one that doesn't resolve the discrepancy.

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The question
12.

Each one of the following, if true, helps to explain the apparent

Answer choices

  1. Resolves Paradox8% picked this

    Cold-weather beetle fossils can be mistaken for those of beetles that live

    This explains the discrepancy. If cold-weather beetles can be mistaken for warm-weather beetles, the insect record may falsely suggest warm climate appeared earlier than it actually did. The pollen record could then be the accurate one. Discrepancy resolved.

  2. Resolves Paradox5% picked this

    Warm-weather plants cannot establish themselves as quickly as can beetles in

    This explains the discrepancy. If beetles arrive in a new environment faster than warm-weather plants do, the insect record will register warm conditions before the pollen record does — even if both records are accurate. Discrepancy resolved.

  3. Resolves Paradox10% picked this

    Beetles can survive in a relatively barren postglacial area

    This explains the discrepancy. If beetles can survive in a barren postglacial area by scavenging, beetles can be present right after the glacier leaves even when the climate isn't warm yet. The insect record then falsely suggests warm climate, while the pollen record (which depends on actual warm conditions) accurately shows warm climate developed later.

  4. Resolves Paradox7% picked this

    Since plants spread unevenly in a new climate, researchers can mistake gaps in the pollen record as evidence

    This explains the discrepancy. If plants spread unevenly and gaps in the pollen record can be misread as no growth, the pollen record may underestimate when warm-weather plants actually arrived. So warm climate could have developed earlier than the pollen record suggests, lining up with the beetle record. Discrepancy resolved.

  5. Correct71% picked this

    Beetles are among the oldest insect species and are much older than

    Why this is right

    This is the answer that does NOT resolve the discrepancy. The age of beetles as a species (vs. plant species) doesn't bear on whether either record is accurate or on the rate at which beetles vs. plants arrive in a postglacial area. The discrepancy is about the timing of climate change as recorded by two different fossil sources — not about evolutionary age. This fact is irrelevant to the puzzle.

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

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