PrepTest 77, Section 2, Question 11
By Brandon Beaver | Published October 29, 2024
Type: Main Conclusion
Difficulty:
Explanations
This is a tougher Main Conclusion question because the argument has multiple conclusions:
- Farmers using genetically engineered plants at scale are at great financial risk
- It’s stupid to grow these sorts of crops
With the conclusions identified, let’s talk about two ways to attack this question.
The first method involves reading the conclusions as if they were the only evidence and conclusion provided in the passage, and then re-reading the pairing with the opposite evidence-conclusion relationship. For example:
- Farmers using these crops at scale are at great financial risk. Therefore, it’s stupid to grow these crops.
- It’s stupid to grow genetically engineered crops. Therefore, farmers growing them are at great financial risk.
Ask yourself: Which of these pairings makes the most sense? Hopefully, you said the first. If you didn’t, send me a Raised Hand.
In scenarios with multiple conclusions, isolating the conclusions like this—to see which one serves as evidence for the other—will help in most scenarios.
Here, you might also have simply noticed the author connects these conclusions through “risk.” There’s a reason farmers growing these are at risk, and they don’t bring in enough money to justify that risk, so it’s dumb to grow them.
So we’re looking for the answer choice that essentially says, “It isn’t wise to grow genetically engineered plants.”
A
Nope. This is the intermediate conclusion we identified, but it serves as evidence for the overall conclusion that it’s not smart to grow these crops.
B
Perfect. “It is not prudent,” simply means “It is unwise.” This is our answer.
C
No thanks. This is a premise for the argument’s overall conclusion.
D
Nope. This is a premise used to support the argument’s intermediate conclusion.
E
No way. This isn’t even something established in the passage. Didn’t read? Don’t pick!
Passage
Farmers who use genetically engineered plants on a large sca
Question 11
Which one of the following most accurately expresses the con