#16 - Local, Must Be True

[Dave Killoran]

Complete Question Explanation
(The complete setup for this game can be found here: lsat/viewtopic.php?t=1845)

The correct answer choice is (E)

The conditions imposed by the question stem force the hostile witnesses to be interviewed on Friday and Saturday, and this forces Z to be interviewed on Thursday afternoon. It follows that answer choice (E) is correct.

[concrottrox11@gmail.com]

Hi,

Can someone please explain to me why answer choice A is incorrect? I was between answer choices A and E and both sounded correct to me, but going back now I see why E is correct, just not why A is incorrect?

Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you!

[Robert Carroll]

concrottrox11,

It appears to me as if U could be on Tuesday and Q and R on Wednesday, making answer choice (A) not true.

Robert Carroll

[ridolph.lauren]

Hello,

Hopefully I'm in the right forum to ask about this question in the practice of advanced linear games, game 7, Q #16. As usual I was down to either answer A or answer E. It is tricky because at first glance your brain really does believe that answer A is correct as it seems that the only place for QR can be is on Tuesday afternoon; the trick lies in catching the fact that Y could also be on Tuesday afternoon forcing QR to be on Wednesday morning therefore making answer A not correct as it is a "must be true" question. When this happens to me, I look at answer E knowing it seems also true but then I "reason" that because it says "sometime before Friday" that the word "sometime" is so general implying that it could be anytime before Friday instead of the only choice of Thursday afternoon, that it can't be correct and I would pick answer A instead.

My question is besides practice, how do I avoid making this mistake initially? How do I get my brain to pay attention and be suspicious of the answer choices given and not have this initial tunnel vision? Is there a trick? My set up is pretty exact to the homework explanation, I'm just trying to pin this common mistake down.

Thank you,

Lauren

[Adam Tyson]

The problem lies in this interpretation, Lauren:

I "reason" that because it says "sometime before Friday" that the word "sometime" is so general implying that it could be anytime before Friday

"Sometime before" just means that it must be before. It does NOT mean that it can be ANYWHERE before! Don't think of it as "could be anytime before," but only as "must be before."

I was born sometime before 1985. Would you interpret this to mean that I might be several thousand years old? Of course not! But you would know that my birthdate was not in 1985 or after that year. It's the same thing in this case! Z could not be on Friday or Saturday, and therefore must be "sometime before" Friday.

Another way to think of it is by using negation, similar to an Assumption question. Negate answer A - could Q be interviewed on some day OTHER than the day on which U is interviewed? Definitely! That negation doesn't cause a problem.

Can Z be interviewed on Friday or Saturday? No way! The negation of answer E is impossible, proving that it Must Be True.

[ridolph.lauren]

Ok, that really does make it clear.

Thank you Adam.

Lauren