#4 - The mind and the immune system have been shown to be

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

Must Be True. The correct answer choice is (D)

Basically what this stimulus is saying is that when we behave in a magnanimous way, or do good deeds, it produces beneficial chemicals that stimulate the activity of white blood cells needed to fight infection. This is a must be true question, so we must determine what follows from these premises.

Answer Choice (A): The stimulus does not address motives in any way. Therefore, there is nothing in the stimulus to support this answer choice.

Answer Choice (B): This is basically a mistaken negation of the information in the stimulus. The stimulus is implying that good behavior can help prevent illness; it does not follow that bad behavior would lead to more illness.

Answer Choice (C): This is basically a mistaken reversal of information provided in the stimulus. The stimulus states that good behavior leads to the release of beneficial chemicals; it does not follow that the presence or absence of chemicals influences good behavior.

Answer Choice (D): This is the correct answer choice. It follows from the stimulus information that if magnanimous behavior leads to the release of beneficial chemicals that stimulate white blood cells needed to fight infections, that such behavior is beneficial to the individual.

Answer Choice (E): The stimulus states that white blood cells are stimulated; it says nothing to support a conclusion that constant magnanimous behavior would increase white blood cells radically.

[smackmartine]

I have no clue why D is correct. The argument doesn't even mentions about "own interest" . :shock:

I selected C, however I later realized that the cause and effect relationship has been reversed. Is this the reason why C is incorrect?

[Steve Stein]

The author provides that being magnanimous (that is, doing good deeds) is beneficial to one’s immune system—such acts would thus serve one’s self-interest.

As for answer choice C, you’re right—they do have the causal relationship reversed, since the author provides that it’s the behavior that stimulates the activity of the blood cells.

[smackmartine]

Opps! Didn't realize that.

Thanks Steve.

[haideemaria]

Hello,

Currently I am working on Must Be True Questions and I wanted a few explanations for wrong answer choices, as the book does not provide any. All of these questions are from the Logical Reasoning Question Type Training book.

pg 26, Q19
I chose answer C.
Correct answer: D

[Robert Carroll]

haidee,

The general idea expressed in the stimulus is "doing good deeds benefits one's immune system," and the specific example is that magnanimous behavior causes the brain to produce beneficial chemicals that stimulate the activity of white blood cells. So the behavior causes the brain to produce something that benefits the body. Keep that in mind, and apply the Fact Test to all answer choices to eliminate any that go beyond the facts of the stimulus and contain new information.

Answer choice C misstates the relationship in the stimulus: in the stimulus, magnanimous behavior causes the brain to produce chemicals. This answer choice states that the presence or absence of chemicals regulated magnanimous behavior. In other words, this reverses the cause and effect relationship in the stimulus.

Answer choice D is true because magnanimity causes the brain to produce beneficial chemicals, so it is beneficial.

Answer choice A is wrong because the stimulus says nothing about whether good deeds must be based on unselfish motives.

Answer choice B is incorrect because, although magnanimity can cause something beneficial, the stimulus never claims that lack of magnanimity causes illness. This answer choice negates the cause and claims this will result in a negation of the effect, but this isn't warranted by the facts in the stimulus.

Answer choice E adds information not given in the stimulus, so it can't be the answer to a Must Be True question.

Robert

[Jkjones3789]

I have a question about this question .... What in the stimulus would allow me to infer that benefiting your immune system benefits one's "interests"? The two don't seem tantamount with one another .... Please help me

[BethRibet]

Hi JK,

Thanks for the question. I appreciate the instinct to be careful not to assume anything that isn't explicitly stated -- generally a good idea with the LSAT. The testmakers however, do appear to take for granted that if it's good for your immune system, it's good for you, i.e. in your "interests". That's a pretty safe assumption to make if you think about it. If something is good for your immune system, it helps you to avoid getting sick or to recover if you do get sick, so that certainly seems to be something we would generally understand as in our "interests". The only other way to think of it would be to try to come up with more outlandish scenarios in which it would be good for you to be sick, or bad to be healthy (for instance, if being sick might get you out of being drafted in a very dangerous war). There are such extraordinary circumstances in the real world, but I think in this case, it's safest to understand that one's interests would include being in better health.

Hope that helps!
Beth

[karen4300]

I was down to D & E but ultimately selected E. I was confused by answer choice D) because I didn't think to benefit your immune system automatically equates to "one's own interest". Some people might not think that it is in their interest to boost their immune system. But I do understand why D is correct. I probably was over thinking it.

Is E) wrong because of the strong phrasing "increase radically"? Since the argument only states it stimulates white blood cell production, not necessarily that it increases, let alone radically?

[Adam Tyson]

For a discussion of why helping the immune system is in one's own interests, see Beth's reply earlier in this thread. Your analysis of answer E looks good, Karen! There is no information in the stimulus about increasing the number of white blood cells, only stimulating their activity.