#4 - If the regulation of computer networks is to be

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

Main Point. The correct answer choice is (B).

Answer choice (A):

Answer choice (B): This is the correct answer choice.

Answer choice (C):

Answer choice (D):

Answer choice (E):

This explanation is still in progress. Please post any questions below!

[med2law01]

I got the correct answer. I am just wondering how I can be more confident in my answer by having you explain why E is incorrect. I was thinking that it was incorrect because it uses the words "merely duplicates", which is not what I gleaned from the stimulus. I was wondering if there is something else that makes E wrong as well.

[KelseyWoods]

Hi med2law01!

As you point out, the phrase "merely duplicates" is not fully supported by the stimulus. We know that a computer network serves both the functions of a telephone system and of a public broadcasting network (another issue with (E) is that it uses "television network" when public broadcasting network could refer to radio or television). But that doesn't mean that it "merely" duplicates these functions. It could also serve other functions as well.

But the bigger problem with answer choice (E) is that, even without the phrase "merely duplicates" it would not be a good answer choice for this question. The stem states: "The passage is structured to lead to which one of the following conclusions?" This is not just a Must Be True question--it's a Main Point question! That means we need to identify the main conclusion that all of the premises in the stimulus are leading up to.

Premise 1: If we model the regulation of computer networks on past legislation, then it has to be modeled based on telephones or public broadcasting.
Premise 2: If we model it based on telephones, computer networks only held responsible for transmitting messages.
Premise 3: If we model based on public broadcasting, computer networks only held responsible for message content.
Premise 4: Computer networks serve both the functions of telephones and public broadcasting.
Sub-conclusion: Neither the legislation for telephones nor the legislation for public broadcasting can serve as a model for the regulation of computer networks.

What do these statements all lead to? Well, if we can't use the legislation for telephones or public broadcasting as a model for computer networks, then we can't use previous legislation as a model for computer networks. Premises 2, 3, & 4 support the Sub-conclusion which can then be combined with the contrapositive of Premise 1 to lead to the main conclusion: if we can't model computer network legislation on telephones or public broadcasting legislation, then we can't use past legislation as a model for computer network legislation.

Hope this helps!

Best,
Kelsey

[wisnain]

I'm just wondering if my diagram below is correct. Can I group 'telephone model' and 'responsible only for ensuring that messages get transmitted' together, and similarly, 'public broadcast model' and 'additionally be responsible for the content of those messages' as another unit?

If A(regulation of computer networks is to be modeled on past legislation), then B(telephone=responsible only for ensuring that messages get transmitted)or C(public broadcasting=additionally be responsible for the content of those messages).
A —> B or C

But since ~B and ~C, ~A.
~B and ~C —> ~A.

Also in conditional logic, I thought the phrase "If A, either B or C" typically implies the possibility of both B and C unless specified otherwise (e.g., "but not both"). So, in this scenario, is 'or else' serving a similar function? If not, then it's possible for the regulation to be modeled on both telephone and public broadcasting legislation simultaneously.

One last question on ‘Either A or B’… Why can’t it be diagrammed as: A -> ~B or B -> ~A
But instead it has to be diagrammed: ~A -> B or ~B ->A?

Thank you.

[Dana D]

Hey Wisnain,

I'm not sure what the ~ in your diagram represents, but to answer the first part of your question, yes, you can diagram it as A B or C. The "either/or else" here in the first sentence tells you that if we use past legislation, we have a binary choice of models - either the telephone system or the public broadcasting service. The crux of the argument is that using only one or the other option is insufficient, because they each fail to capture the full scope of what computer networks do.

Going back to the diagram, if we model computer network regulation on past legislation (A) we use a telephone system OR a broadcasting service model. This diagram is fine, but it doesn't really tell us much beyond what that first sentence said - we have two options here. The unstated inference for why using either of the options is insufficient is that each option alone fails to capture all the functions of a computer network, and because of that, the regulation should not be modeled on any single piece of legislation, which is answer choice (B). This answer also leaves open the possibility that you could combine both pieces of past legislation to better capture the role of the computer network's functions and regulate the networks that way - you just shouldn't use a singular piece of legislation