Five years ago, during the

Answer choices

1. A

   Opposite (if anything)20% picked this

   Many recent cattle deaths that have actually been caused by CXC have been mistakenly attributed to another disease that

   The idea that many recent cattle deaths from CXC have been misdiagnosed as another disease means there's even more death from CXC than we thought. That would if anything help the author argue, "See? CXC is getting so virulent." If this answer had said that a bunch of deaths that were from other causes were misdiagnosed as CXC, then that would have provided an alternate explanation for why the CXC death rate appears to have increased.

   20%
2. B

   No Impact11% picked this

   During the first North American outbreak of the disease, many of the deaths reported to have been caused by CXC were

   If we were being told that the old death rate was misleadingly low then that could offer an alternate explanation for why the death rate seems so high now. But this answer is saying that the old death rate was misleadingly high.

   11%
3. C

   No Impact7% picked this

   An inoculation program against CXC was recently begun after controlled studies showed inoculation to be 70 percent effective in preventing

   This option discusses an inoculation program that just started, so it has nothing to do with debunking the idea that virulence has increased or offering an alternate explanation for the uptick in the death rate.

   7%
4. D

   Correct57% picked this

   Since the first outbreak, farmers have learned to treat mild cases of CXC and no longer report them

   Why this is right

   If farmers have learned to treat mild cases of CXC and no longer report them, then today's reported cases would be skewed towards more severe and likely fatal cases. This would explain the increased death rate without implying the disease itself has become more virulent, as mild cases aren't reflected in the statistics, leading to an apparently higher death rate among the reported cases.

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

   57%
5. E

   No Impact4% picked this

   Cattle that have contracted and survived CXC rarely contract the disease

   This answer talks about disease recurrence, stating that cattle rarely contract CXC again after surviving it. This information doesn't affect the reported death rate's increase or undermine the increased virulence claim.

   4%