Re: #9 - Ellen and Santiago disagree over the truth of

[hope]

I marked B on this question. I think I can see how A is correct but need your expert explanation. Thanks.

[Adam Tyson]

For any Point at Issue question, we need clear evidence from the stimulus that one of the parties would agree with the answer and that the other party would disagree with it. It's like a Must Be True question in that way, in that we have to rely on the facts we were given and not make any assumptions about whatever else these people might think or feel.

For answer A, we have evidence that Ellen would agree, because this is exactly what she based her argument on. She thinks that the economic value justifies protecting the biosphere. Meanwhile, Santiago disagrees - he says he is "uncomfortable" doing that because of what it implies. That means he doesn't think that's an appropriate justification.

For answer B, it seems clear that Santiago would say "I agree," because he is uncomfortable with that exact implication. But what would Ellen say about what is "most important"? We know she thinks that the economic value of the biosphere is important enough that it justifies protection, but that doesn't commit her to believing that it is the MOST important thing. Maybe she thinks the most important value of the biosphere is something else, like its intrinsic worth, or its support of all life and not just humans? Maybe she has religious beliefs that are her highest priority for protecting the biosphere, such as "it's Mother Nature's creation and we are charged by her with caring for it"? We just cannot infer anything about what she thinks is "most important," so we cannot select answer B as a point about which the two parties disagree.