Family #3 Hurt and Family #4 Cannot be True

[Canada101]

Hello,

I hope you are doing well.

What is the difference between weaken question stems and Cannot Be True Question Stems?

Could you please provide examples of each and how I will know if its Family #3 or Family #4? I know that Family #4 is very rare question type but just in case I would like to know the difference.

Thank you for taking the time and effort to respond to me, I appreciate it.

Kind Regards,
Canada101

[Dave Killoran]

Hey Canada,

In both our courses and the LRB we provide examples of both, and that's where I'd point you for more in-depth discussions of each.

That said, here are examples of each:

• Weaken:
  
  "Which one of the following, if true, most weakens the argument?"
  "Which one of the following, if true, most undermines Yu’s claim?"
  "Which one of the following, if true, casts the most doubt on the politician’s argument?"
  
  Cannot:
  
  "If the information above is accurate, a liver cell in which more than 60 divisions took place in a tissue culture CANNOT be which one of the following?"
  "Which one of the following conflicts with information in the passage?"
  "The statements above, if true, provide a basis for rejecting which one of the following claims?"
  "If the sociologist’s statements are true, then each of the following statements could be true EXCEPT:"
  "If the counselor’s statements are true, then which one of the following must be false?"

Weaken asks you to attack the argument/stimulus (use an answer to attack the stimulus) whereas Cannot asks you to use the argument to attack an answer (the reverse direction of Weaken). The information flows in opposite directions when the two are compared.

Thanks!