Q3 - Because it permits a slower

[krnxbabe84]

[deleted copyrighted material]

I was able to narrow down my choices into A and B, and ended up choosing B. Can someone please explain to me why A is right and why B is wrong?

My thinking process for choosing B was:

Country living permits slower/natural rhythm of life ---> More healthy than city living

~More healthy than city living (people living in the country become ill just as much as those in the city) ---> ~Country living permits slower/natural rhythm of life

I can't seem to figure this one out

[ManhattanPrepLSAT1]

I can see you're reasoning, but the conditional relationship you've expressed is not implied in the stimulus.

The argument is causal, not conditional. What I mean is that the relationship between the slower and more natural rhythm of life supposedly causes a more healthy and relaxed way of life than the city.

What's being questioned is not the slower and natural rhythm but rather whether such actually causes a healthier lifestyle. The argument's conclusion says that it doesn't. And while it's definitely useful to take contrapositives of conditional statements, you cannot do that for a causal relationship.

The stimulus presents two statements: a statement supposed to be true, and another statement that directly contradicts the first statement.

Correct Answer
If we know the first claim is not true, then we know that living in the country is neither healthier nor more relaxing than living in the city _ best expressed in answer choice (A).

Incorrect Answers
(B) could be false. This answer misinterprets the portion of the first statement that is being contradicted by the second statement.
(C) is an unwarranted speculation. The rate of recovery from illness is not addressed in the stimulus.
(D) is unsupported. Just because we cannot say that a natural rhythm of life is healthier, that does not imply that it is unhealthy.
(E) could be false. In fact the rhythm of life seems to independent of the amount of stress one experiences based on the statements in the stimulus.

[gotomedschool]

@OP: I made the same mistake as you. Thinking in terms of conditionals will definitely screw you up on this question(and make it a lot more complicated then need be.)

The stimulus flat out states that in surveys, people are ill as often and they are equally stressed so answer choice A is pretty much a reiteration of what they survey results are: it is neither healthier nor more relaxing.

That may or may not be true--based on whether or not the survey's are accurate and representative but the question stem tells us, "the statements above, IF TRUE,....." etc.

[WaltGrace1983]

Wouldn't the very first sentence completely eliminate B?

"Because it permits a slower and more natural rhythm..." This is not a statement that should be questioned (in LSAT world) it is a statement that simply is. It is not saying "IF it permits..." the test is saying "BECAUSE it permits...."

If I said "BECAUSE the LSAT is a 5 section test..." this would assert that the LSAT is, in fact, a 5 section test and we cannot dispute that.

Right?

[ManhattanPrepLSAT1]

You've got it Walt! Answer choice (B) contradicts a statement that is simply given. The argument then takes the information given and suggests what some have supposed to be true based on it. The supposition is later challenged, but not the given statement that life in the country is slower and has a more natural rhythm.

Good work!

[kumsayuya]

did anyone else flat our read the question stem incorrectly?

I read it as what provides the most support for the above? Which lead me to (B).

However, upon closer inspection the statements ABOVE provide support for which ANSWER CHOICE! Now I can see how (A) is clearly supported.

Maybe someone else may find this useful.. I certainly need to read more carefully.

[WaltGrace1983]

did anyone else flat our read the question stem incorrectly?

I read it as what provides the most support for the above? Which lead me to (B).

However, upon closer inspection the statements ABOVE provide support for which ANSWER CHOICE! Now I can see how (A) is clearly supported.

Maybe someone else may find this useful.. I certainly need to read more carefully.

Is that even a question type

I guess you could say that the way you read it would be a Principle (Application) question?

[kumsayuya]

did anyone else flat our read the question stem incorrectly?

I read it as what provides the most support for the above? Which lead me to (B).

However, upon closer inspection the statements ABOVE provide support for which ANSWER CHOICE! Now I can see how (A) is clearly supported.

Maybe someone else may find this useful.. I certainly need to read more carefully.

Is that even a question type

I guess you could say that the way you read it would be a Principle (Application) question?

Walt, I think this was a case of "dumb mistake"! Sometimes when you're drilling you just skip some steps (even paying full attention to the question stem :/), terrible habit I know. Making sure not to do it any more.

[Sweetangel]

Why can't the stats be compatible with the fact that living in the country is more healthy than living in the city? What if the people who lived in the country moved to the city and got sick at a quicker rate (they were just more prone to becoming ill) or vice-versa (people who moved to the country from the city didn't get as sick as they would in the country)? I've been getting all my LR questions right... I thought this question was attempting to test this assumption so I chose E. Is my line of thought completely off?