In the past, most children who went sledding in the winter snow in Verland used wooden sleds with runners and...
GMAT Critical Reasoning : (CR) Questions
In the past, most children who went sledding in the winter snow in Verland used wooden sleds with runners and steering bars. Ten years ago, smooth plastic sleds became popular; they go faster than wooden sleds but are harder to steer and slow. The concern that plastic sleds are more dangerous is clearly borne out by the fact that the number of children injured while sledding was much higher last winter than it was ten years ago.
Which of the following, if true in Verland, most seriously undermines the force of the evidence cited?
Passage Analysis:
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| In the past, most children who went sledding in the winter snow in Verland used wooden sleds with runners and steering bars. |
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| Ten years ago, smooth plastic sleds became popular; they go faster than wooden sleds but are harder to steer and slow. |
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| The concern that plastic sleds are more dangerous is clearly borne out by the fact that the number of children injured while sledding was much higher last winter than it was ten years ago. |
|
Argument Flow:
The argument moves from describing the old sledding situation (wooden sleds) to introducing the change (plastic sleds became popular 10 years ago with different characteristics) to making a conclusion about safety based on comparing injury numbers from two time periods.
Main Conclusion:
Plastic sleds are more dangerous than wooden sleds.
Logical Structure:
The author uses a simple before-and-after comparison: plastic sleds became popular 10 years ago, and since injuries are higher now than 10 years ago, the plastic sleds must be the cause of the increased danger. The logic assumes that the timing of the sled change and injury increase proves causation.
Prethinking:
Question type:
Weaken - We need to find information that would reduce our belief in the conclusion that plastic sleds are more dangerous than wooden sleds
Precision of Claims
The argument makes a specific causal claim: plastic sleds caused the increase in injuries from 10 years ago to last winter. The comparison is between injury numbers at two specific time points.
Strategy
Look for alternative explanations for why injuries increased from 10 years ago to last winter that have nothing to do with the plastic sleds being more dangerous. We need to find factors that could account for the injury increase while keeping the facts about sled types and injury numbers intact.