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- Fri Jul 29, 2016 11:57 am
#27574
Complete Question Explanation
Weaken. The correct answer choice is (A)
Here, the author discusses a settlement dated to 1000 B.C. Based on the fact that a piece of wood found there has been shown to be much older than the statues and pottery at the site, the author concludes that the settlement must be older than previously estimated. The author appears to assume that the rest of the settlement must date as far back as that single piece of building timber.
The question that follows asks for the choice that would most weaken the author’s conclusion; any evidence that the building timber came from a different time would hurt the author’s argument.
Answer choice (A): This is the correct answer choice. If, as this choice provides, there is reason to believe that the building timber came from an older settlement, then that would match the prephrase above and weaken the author’s argument.
Answer choice (B): The author has already based his or her conclusion about the whole settlement on the dating from a single piece of building timber. This was somewhat weak to begin with, so this choice doesn’t have much effect on the strength of the argument.
Answer choice (C): This choice provides that the dating technique for the rest of the site was devised more recently than the test used for the timber, but that doesn’t necessarily lead to the conclusion that such a test is more or less accurate. The issue with the author’s argument is not about the reliability of the specific tests, but rather about the reliability of a single piece of wood to date the entire settlement.
Answer choice (D): The author’s argument is based on the dating of the timber, against the weight of all other evidence at the settlement. The wood dates back to a different time than the rest of the settlement, regardless of how many artifacts were found elsewhere.
Answer choice (E): Pottery from different eras may be similar, but this choice does not have any effect on the strength of the author’s argument.
Weaken. The correct answer choice is (A)
Here, the author discusses a settlement dated to 1000 B.C. Based on the fact that a piece of wood found there has been shown to be much older than the statues and pottery at the site, the author concludes that the settlement must be older than previously estimated. The author appears to assume that the rest of the settlement must date as far back as that single piece of building timber.
The question that follows asks for the choice that would most weaken the author’s conclusion; any evidence that the building timber came from a different time would hurt the author’s argument.
Answer choice (A): This is the correct answer choice. If, as this choice provides, there is reason to believe that the building timber came from an older settlement, then that would match the prephrase above and weaken the author’s argument.
Answer choice (B): The author has already based his or her conclusion about the whole settlement on the dating from a single piece of building timber. This was somewhat weak to begin with, so this choice doesn’t have much effect on the strength of the argument.
Answer choice (C): This choice provides that the dating technique for the rest of the site was devised more recently than the test used for the timber, but that doesn’t necessarily lead to the conclusion that such a test is more or less accurate. The issue with the author’s argument is not about the reliability of the specific tests, but rather about the reliability of a single piece of wood to date the entire settlement.
Answer choice (D): The author’s argument is based on the dating of the timber, against the weight of all other evidence at the settlement. The wood dates back to a different time than the rest of the settlement, regardless of how many artifacts were found elsewhere.
Answer choice (E): Pottery from different eras may be similar, but this choice does not have any effect on the strength of the author’s argument.