Q8 - Climatologist: The waters off the Pacific coast

[Misti Duvall]

Question Type:
ID the Conclusion

Stimulus Breakdown:
Pacific waters have warmed by 4 degrees over the past 15 years. Some scientists claim this is due to global warming, but there are many natural cycles of ocean temperature changes. So the scientists' claim is far from justified.

Answer Anticipation:
Good exercise in reading literally! Take the information as given and look for the conclusion. Here it's part of the last sentence: "this conclusion is far from justified." It's a pretty neat summary of the main idea of the argument, with the "this" referring back to the scientists' claim. It also contains a clear judgment/opinion, which is often the main conclusion.

Correct answer:
(C)

Answer choice analysis:
(A) This answer refers to the first sentence of the argument, which is not the conclusion. Eliminate.

(B) Tricky. This answer seems to refer to the correct part of the argument, but it says the warming of the Pacific waters "is not a symptom" of global warming. But that's not what the argument says - the argument just says that the scientists' claim isn't justified. This answer is too strong. Eliminate.

(C) Bingo. This is close to answer choice (B), except it says that the scientists' claim is far from justified, which matches the strength of the conclusion in the argument.

(D) This answer refers to the premise. Eliminate.

(E) Again, too strong. (And the conclusion is not conditional.) Eliminate.

Takeaway/Pattern:
If you're not sure about the conclusion of an argument, look for a judgment/opinion.

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