Critical Reasoning

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Session Unit
1 Intro + How to read Argument
2 Weaken Strengthen
3 Assumption
4 Evaluation, Flaw (test 1)
5 Thinking templates (test 2)
6 Must be true, Paradox
7 Boldface, method
8 Special types, Tips (test 3)

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UNIT 1 – Critical Reasoning Overview

1. Critical Reasoning Introduction

Critical reasoning questions appear in the Verbal section of the GMAT exam. You will
have 65 minutes to complete the 36-question Verbal section, or about 1¾ minutes to
answer each question.

Critical reasoning questions are based on written passages, and these passages tend to
be less than 100 words in length.

Critical reasoning questions are designed to test the reasoning skills involved in (1)
making arguments, (2) evaluating arguments, and (3) formulating or evaluating a plan
of action.

The GMAT exam does not suppose any familiarity with subject matter of the questions.
In other words, you don’t have to have knowledge of terminology and conventions of
formal logic.

2. Critical Reasoning Question Structure

a. The Parts of a Critical Reasoning Question

Every Critical Reasoning question contains three separate parts: the stimulus, the
question stem, and the five answer choices. Consider the following example:

Most serious students are happy students, and most serious students go to graduate
school. Furthermore, all students who go to graduate school are overworked. à
Stimulus

Which one of the following can be properly inferred from the statements above?
à Question Stems

(A) Most overworked students are happy students.

(B) Some happy students are overworked.

(C) All overworked students are serious students.

(D) Some unhappy students go to graduate school.

(E) All serious students are overworked. à Answer choices

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b. Stimulus – Arguments versus Fact Sets

GMAT stimuli fall into two distinct categories: Argument and Fact Sets

Argument Fact Set

Definition

Example All professors are ethical. Mason The Jacksonville area has just over one
is a professor. So Mason is million residents. The Cincinnati area
ethical. has almost two million residents. The
New York area has almost twenty
million residents.

3. Critical Reasoning question types

Families Question types

Argument Weaken, Strengthen, Assumption, Evaluation, Flaw
Must be true Must be true
Paradox Resolve the Paradox
Stimulus structure Boldface, Method of Reasoning

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UNIT 2 – How to understand an argument?

1. Argument Structure

Let’s just start with something simple first:

• All men are mortal. Aristotle is a man. Therefore Aristotle is mortal.

• I have all domino pieces in my box lined up in a straight line. The pieces are
placed at an equal distance from the adjacent ones, such that if one falls it will
always hit the next one. I tip the first piece and it hits the second piece, which
starts to fall. Therefore, the whole line of dominos will fall.

Can you see the:

• Premise(s)?
• (Hidden) assumptions?

Here is an example of a typical GMAT argument:

(1) The expansion of the runways at the Bay City Airport will allow for larger planes to
travel to and from Bay City. (2) These new planes will create a large amount of noise, a
nuisance for residents who live near the airport. (3) However, many of the residents in
this neighborhood work in construction, and the contract to expand the runways has
been awarded to a local construction company. (4) Thus, the expansion of the runways
will lead to an increased quality of life for the residents of this neighborhood.

An argument contains a Conclusion, the primary claim the author is trying to prove.
You can ask yourself “If the author can say only 1 sentence, which one the author
wants to say?” In the above example, sentence (4) is a conclusion.

To support the Conclusion, the author uses Premise(s). Premises are usually facts.
Sentence (3) is the premise of the argument.

Some arguments contain Counter Premise(s) — a fact that goes against the author’s
conclusion. Sentence (2) represents a counterpoint.

Many arguments contain Background information, which provides context to allow us

to understand the basic situation. Sentence (1) provides background. You can also
notice that the Background neither support nor go against the conclusion.

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Common Indicators

Premise (giving because for the reason that owing to

reasons) since in that due to
for given that this can be seen
for example as indicated by from
Concluding thus as a result for those reasons
therefore so clearly
hence accordingly consequently
Countering previous But Admittedly Whereas
sentence However In contrast In spite of
Even though Although Despite
Background Normally the first sentence of the argument.

Note:
GMAT can use indicators to mislead your understanding. Here is one GMAT’s favourite
argument template:
Many people have reported that this medicine is good. However, the current research
shows that the medicine contains a component that is harmful to the long-term health
of the users. Hence, people should not use the medicine anymore!

The second sentence starts with “However” – a Counter Premise indicator. But as it
supports the Conclusion, it is the Premise of the argument. Pay attention to the logic
of the argument to identify the argument components!

Argument exercises
1. Budget Fitness will grow its membership base by 10% in the next six months. Budget
Fitness has recently crafted a clever ad campaign that it plans to air on several local radio
stations.

2. Television has a harmful effect on society. This can be seen from the poor school
performance of children who watch significant amounts of television and from the fact
that children who watch more than six hours of television a day tend to read less than
non-television watching children.

3. The United States prison population is the world’s largest and consequently we must
take steps to reduce crime in this country. Although other countries have higher rates of
incarceration, their statistics have no bearing on the dilemma we currently face.

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Intermediate Conclusion

Simple arguments contain a single conclusion. Some complex arguments contain more
than one conclusion. In these instances, one of the conclusions is the main conclusion,
and the other conclusions are Intermediate conclusions.

In abstract terms, while a simple argument appears as follows: Premise à Conclusion,

a complex argument takes an initial conclusion and then uses it as a premise for
another conclusion: Premise à Intermediate Conclusion à Conclusion
The burglar is clumsy and often makes a lot of noise while robbing homes. As a result, he
is more likely to get caught. Thus, in the near future, he will probably end up in jail.

“Therefore” test
The owner of a small publishing company plans to lease a new office space that has
floor-to-ceiling windows and no internal walls, arguing that the new space will enhance
worker productivity. The owner cites a recent study showing that workers exposed to
natural light throughout the day tended to report, on average, a higher level of job
satisfaction than did those who worked in office spaces that used fluorescent lighting.
Thus, the owner concluded, exposure to natural light has a positive effect on workers'
job satisfaction.

You can use the below diagram to remember all argument components:

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2. Argument Flow

Remembering the complete argument is difficult and exhausting, distracting you from
the main task: finding the answer choice that answers the question. Instead, you
should remember how the ideas of the argument are developed – the Argument Flow.

You can organize the flow by taking notes on the paper or on your mind. In both cases,
these notes need to be neat.

For example, the initial example can be noted as:

↑ runway = ↑ planes

↑ planes à ↑ noise, bad for ppl

But, runway = more work for ppl

ð ↑ runway = ↑ quality of life for ppl

Based on notes, you will find it easier to make judgement on how convincing the
argument is and to find reasoning problems of the argument.

Flow exercises
1. Wine is made by crushing grapes and eventually separating the juice from the grape
skins. However, the separated juice contains impurities and many wineries do not filter
the juice. These wineries claim the unfiltered juice ultimately produces a more flavorful
and intense wine. Since these wine makers are experts, we should trust their judgment
and not shy away from unfiltered wine.

2. During last night’s robbery, the thief was unable to open the safe. Thus, last night’s
robbery was unsuccessful despite the fact that the thief stole several documents. After
all, nothing in those documents was as valuable as the money in the safe.

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3. Quantity, Probability, and Level of Extreme Indicators

This group of indicators is important to an argument. For example, if one author says
“All students in HBS are extraordinarily smart”, we can counter by pointing out only 1
student who is not extraordinarily smart (normally smart or not smart at all!).

But if the author says “Almost all students in HBS are smart”, pointing out several
cases will not damage the statement.

Quantity all few several

every some majority
most only minority
many not all
Many employees of the company are hard-working.
Majority of employees of the company are hard-working.

Probability must probably not necessarily

will likely could
always should rarely
not always would never
Due to the lack of materials, the price of our products will increase.
Due to the lack of materials, the price of our products could increase.

Level of Extreme significantly immensely slightly

extremely hugely pretty
completely intensely fairly
Experts predicted that the harvest will not significantly increase this year.
Experts predicted that the harvest will not increase this year.

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The point of the Argument Flow exercise is not just to write down the flow. To
understand the argument and be able to pre-think effectively, we summarize the
FLOW but with special emphasis on the followings:
1. The role of each piece of evidence / premise / counter-premise wrt to the
conclusion ie. What supports / strengthens the conclusion, what weakens /
refutes the conclusion.
2. Therefore, get a sense of whether the argument is strong or weak, and what
are the key assumptions (might be hidden) in it?
3. Pay attention to quantifier words. Quatifiers need to be understood within the
context of the prompt itself ie. No keyword hunting
For example, let’s put all those points to test on dissecting the following argument:
The national infrastructure for airport runways and air traffic control requires immediate expansion
to accommodate the increase in private, smaller planes. To help fund this expansion, the Federal
Aviation Authority (FAA) has proposed a fee for all air travelers. However, this fee would be unfair,
as it would impose costs on all travelers to benefit only the few who utilize the new private planes.

Which of the following, if true, would cast the most doubt on the claim that the proposed fee
would be unfair?

With that in mind, what about the answer choices?

(A) The existing national airport infrastructure benefits all air travelers.
(B) The fee, if imposed, will have a negligible impact on the overall volume of air travel.
(C) The expansion would reduce the number of delayed flights resulting from small private planes
congesting runways.
(D) Travelers who use small private planes are almost uniformly wealthy or traveling on business.
(E) A substantial fee would need to be imposed in order to pay for the expansion costs.

1. Flow:

(a) Infra requires expansion for private planes -> FAA propose fee on ALL travelers

(b) Fee = unfair because only benefits private plane ppl

2. Meta (relationship between ideas). Strong or weak?

Conclusion = (b), with reason. (a) = background, info, context. So everything so far
is pro conclusion. Nothing on the anti-premise side. => That’s why it’s a convenient
Weaken question because there is nothing to weaken the argument yet.
4. Quantifiers such as “all” air travelers = important here.

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5. Argument Analysis Drill

For each stimulus, identify the conclusion(s) and supporting premise(s), if any. If the
stimulus contains argument, is the argument strong or weak? If you think that the
argument is weak, explain why.

1. Every year, new reports appear concerning the health risks posed by certain substances,
such as coffee and sugar. One year an article claimed that coffee is dangerous to one’s
health. The next year, another article argued that coffee has some benefits for one’s
health. From these contradictory opinions, we see that experts are useless for guiding
one’s decisions about one’s health.
Inductive reasoning: example -> broad conclusion

2. Some teachers claim that students would not learn curricular content without the
incentive of grades. But students with intense interest in the material would learn it
without this incentive, while the behavior of students lacking all interest in the material
is unaffected by such an incentive. The incentive of grades, therefore, serves no essential
academic purpose.

3. Damming the Merv River would provide irrigation for the dry land in its upstream areas;
unfortunately, a dam would reduce agricultural productivity in the fertile land
downstream by reducing the availability and quality of water there. The productivity loss
in the downstream area would be greater than the productivity gain upstream, so
building a dam would yield no overall gain in agricultural productivity in the region as a
whole.

4. Any course that teaches students how to write is one that will serve them well later in
life. Therefore, since some philosophy courses teach students how to write, any student,
whatever his or her major, will be served well in later life by taking any philosophy
course.

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5. It is well known that many species adapt to their environment, but it is usually assumed
that only the most highly evolved species alter their environment in ways that aid their
own survival. However, this characteristic is actually quite common. Certain species of
plankton, for example, generate a gas that is converted in the atmosphere into particles
of sulfate. These particles cause water vapor to condense, thus forming clouds. Indeed,
the formation of clouds over the ocean largely depends on the presence of these
particles. More cloud cover means more sunlight is reflected, and so the Earth absorbs
less heat. Thus plankton cause the surface of the Earth to be cooler and this benefits the
plankton.

Identify the structure of the argument: specifically => what is the conclusion / the concluding
point / heart of the argument

Prethink: gaps in the argument.

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UNIT 3 – Weaken & Strengthen

1. Weaken & Strengthen Introduction

Weaken & Strengthen (W&S) questions require you to select the answer choice that
undermines/ strengthens the author’s argument as decisively as possible.

Keep the following rules in mind when approaching W&S questions:

a. Focus on the conclusion. Because the conclusion is the “soul” of an argument,

to weaken/strengthen the argument is to make the conclusion
weaker/stronger.

b. While the premises are considered true, the reasoning – how the author use
them to support the conclusion – is suspected.

c. The answer choices are accepted as given, even if they include “new”
information.

Let’s take a look at this argument:

The rain is coming

à The harvest this year will be bountiful

A Strengthen answer will give us a new piece of information that make the conclusion
more likely to be valid. For example,
Without the rain, the soil would be too dry for the corn to grow.

Similarly, a Weaken answer will give us a piece of information that make the
conclusion less likely to be valid. For example,
Agriculture experts announced today that a disease that has devastated some of the
corn crop will spread widely before the end of the growing season.

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2. Question Identification
W&S question stems typically contain the following two features:

a. The stem uses the word weaken/strengthen or a synonym. Following are some
examples of words or phrases:

Weaken Strengthen
attack undermine support help
refute argue against justify fortify
cast doubt challenge reinforce
damage counter reject the oppose
provide ground to doubt … counter the rejection
call into question

b. The stem indicates that you should accept the answer choices as true, usually with
the following phrase:

“Which one of the following, if true, ...”

Here are several W&S question stem examples:

- “Which one of the following, if shown to be a realistic possibility, would

undermine the argument?”
- “Which one of the following, if true, would most justify the analysts’
explanation of the price increase?”
- “Which one of the following, if true, could be used by Cora to counter
Bernard’s rejection of her explanation?”
- “Each of the following, if true, supports the claim above EXCEPT:”
- “Which one of the following, if true, LEAST strengthens the argument above?”

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3. Three Incorrect Answer Traps
There are certain incorrect answer choices that appear frequently in Weaken
questions:

a. Opposite Answers

These answers do the exact opposite of what is needed. In this case, they
strengthen the argument as opposed to weakening it. Although you might think
answers of this type are easy to avoid, they can be very tricky. Opposite answers
lure the test taker by presenting information that relates perfectly to the
argument, but just in the wrong manner.

b. Shell Game Answers.

A Shell Game occurs when an idea or concept is raised in the stimulus and then a
very similar idea appears in the answer choice, but the idea is changed just
enough, usually 1 word, to be incorrect but still attractive.

These answers are also called “One word wrong”.

c. Out of Scope Answers.

These answers simply miss the point of the argument – the point mentioned in the
conclusion.

For example, if the conclusion is “The method is then effective in killing mouses,”
all answers below cannot weaken the argument:

- The method is very expensive. (cost)

- The method would take longer to set up than the current method. (time)
- The method sometimes causes accidents for homeowners. (danger)
- There are other methods that are more effective but much more affordable.
(other methods)

These answers mention things other than “effectiveness of the method”. Hence,
they do not affect the conclusion in any way.

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Example:
Twelve years ago and again five years ago, there were extended periods when the Darfir
Republic’s currency, the pundra, was weak: its value was unusually low relative to the
world’s most stable currencies. Both times a weak pundra made Darfir’s manufactured
products a bargain on world markets, and Darfir’s exports were up substantially. Now
some politicians are saying that, in order to cause another similarly sized increase in
exports, the government should allow the pundra to become weak again.

Which of the following, if true, provides the government with the strongest grounds to
doubt that the politicians’ recommendation, if followed, will achieve its aim?
A) Several of the politicians now recommending that the pundra be allowed to become
weak made that same recommendation before each of the last two periods of currency
weakness.

B) After several decades of operating well below peak capacity, Darfir’s manufacturing
sector is now operating at near-peak levels.

C) The economy of a country experiencing a rise in exports will become healthier only if
the country’s currency is strong or the rise in exports is significant.

D) Those countries whose manufactured products compete with Darfir’s on the world
market all currently have stable currencies.

E) A sharp improvement in the efficiency of Darfir’s manufacturing plants would make

Darfir’s products a bargain on world markets even without any weakening of the pundra
relative to other currencies.

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4. W&S Question Analysis
Regardless of the question stems, your task is to find all W/S answer choices.
1. Since Java coffee shop began advertising on the local radio station 3 months ago, its
business volume has increased by 15%. In order to increase its business volume, Java's
next door competitor, Kahva, should also start advertising on the local radio station.

Which of the following most weakens the argument's conclusion?

A) Kahva's number of customers went down 15% last year.

B) Of the 9 coffee shops that advertised on the local radio, only Java's business increased.

C) 78% of the businesses that advertise on the local radio report an increase in business
volume.

D) The local radio station has over 10,000 listeners.

E) The local radio station dedicates 15% of its air time to commercials.

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2. The Eurasian ruffe, a fish species inadvertently introduced into North America’s Great
Lakes in recent years, feeds on the eggs of lake white fish, a native species, thus
threatening the lakes’ natural ecosystem. To help track the ruffe’s spread, government
agencies have produced wallet-sized cards about the ruffe. The cards contain pictures of
the ruffe and explain the danger they pose; the cards also request anglers to report any
ruffe they catch.

Which of the following, if true, would provide most support for the prediction that the
agencies’ action will have its intended effect?

(A) The ruffe has spiny fins that make it unattractive as prey.

(B) Ruffe generally feed at night, but most recreational fishing on the Great Lakes is done
during daytime hours.

(C) Most people who fish recreationally on the Great Lakes are interested in the
preservation of the lake whitefish because it is a highly prized game fish.

(D) The ruffe is one of several nonnative species in the Great Lakes whose existence
threatens the survival of lake whitefish populations there.

(E) The bait that most people use when fishing for whitefish on the Great Lakes is not
attractive to ruffe.

3. Statistician: A financial magazine claimed that its survey of its subscribers showed that
North Americans are more concerned about their personal finances than about politics.
One question was: “Which do you think about more: politics or the joy of earning money?”
This question is clearly biased. Also, the readers of the magazine are a self-selecting
sample. Thus, there is reason to be skeptical about the conclusion drawn in the magazine’s
survey.

Each of the following, if true, would strengthen the statistician’s argument EXCEPT:

(A) The credibility of the magazine has been called into question on a number of occasions

(B) The conclusions drawn in most magazine surveys have eventually been disproved.

(C) Other surveys suggest that North Americans are just as concerned about politics as
they are about finances.

(D) There is reason to be skeptical about the results of surveys that are biased and
unrepresentative.

(E) Other surveys suggest that North Americans are concerned not only with politics and
finances, but also with social issues.

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4. Beverage company representative: The plastic rings holding six-packs of beverage cans
together pose a threat to wild animals, which often become entangled in the discarded
rings and suffocate as a result. Following our lead, all beverage companies will soon use
only those rings consisting of a new plastic that disintegrates after only three days’
exposure to sunlight. Once we all complete the switchover from the old to the new plastic
rings, therefore, the threat of suffocation that plastic rings pose to wild animals will be
eliminated

Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?

(A) The switchover to new plastic rings will take at least two more years to complete.

(B) After the beverage companies have switched over to the new plastic rings, a
substantial number of the old plastic rings will persist in most aquatic and woodland
environments.

(C) The new plastic rings are slightly less expensive than the old rings.

(D) The new plastic rings rarely disintegrate during shipping of beverage six-packs because
most trucks that transport canned beverages protect their cargo from sunlight.

(E) The new plastic rings disintegrate into substances that are harmful to aquatic animals
when ingested in substantial quantities by them.

5. Question Problem Set

1. To reduce the danger to life and property posed by major earthquakes, scientists have
been investigating several techniques for giving advance warning of dangerous
earthquakes. Since catfish swim erratically before earthquakes, some investigators have
proposed monitoring catfish to predict dangerous earthquakes.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously undermines the usefulness of the proposal?

(A) In Japan, which is subject to frequent earthquakes, the behavior of catfish has long
been associated with earthquakes.

(B) Mechanical methods for detecting earthquakes have not proved effective.

(C) Tremors lead to the release of hydrogen sulfide gas into water, thereby causing various
fish and shellfish to behave erratically.

(D) Careful construction can reduce the dangers posed by earthquakes.

(E) Even very slight, fleeting tremors cause catfish to swim erratically.

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2. Tiger sharks are common in the waters surrounding Tenare Island. Usually tiger sharks
feed on smaller sharks, but sometimes they have attacked tourists swimming and surfing
at Tenare’s beaches. This has hurt Tenare’s tourism industry, which is second only to its
fishing industry in annual revenues. In order to help the economy, therefore, the mayor of
the island has proposed a program to kill any tiger sharks within a mile of the beaches.

Which of the following, if true, most strongly calls into question the likelihood that
implementation of the mayor’s proposal will have the desired consequences?

(A) Even if not all the tiger sharks that come close to the beaches are killed, the existence
of the program would reassure tourists.

(B) Business owners who depend on tourism are willing to pay most of the cost of
implementing the program.

(C) Tourists come to Tenare Island for its beaches, even though the island features a
number of other tourist attractions.

(D) The small sharks on which tiger sharks prey feed on fish that are commercially
important to the island’s fisheries.

(E) Not all tourists who come to Tenare Island enjoy swimming or surfing.

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3. Automobile Dealer's Advertisement: The Highway Traffic Safety Institute reports that the
PZ 1000 has the fewest injuries per accident of any car in its class. This shows that the PZ
1000 is one of the safest cars available today.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument in the
advertisement?

(A) The Highway Traffic Safety Institute report listed many cars in other classes that had
more injuries per accident than did the PZ 1000.

(B) In recent years many more PZ 1000s have been sold than have any other kind of car in
its class.

(C) Cars in the class to which the PZ 1000 belongs are more likely to be involved in
accidents than are other types of cars.

(D) The difference between the number of injuries per accident for the PZ 1000 and that
for other cars in its class is quite pronounced.

(E) The Highway Traffic Safety Institute issues reports only once a year.

4. FastMart, a convenience store chain, is planning to add pancake syrup to the items it sells.
FastMart stores do not have shelf space to stock more than one variety of syrup. Surveys
of FastMart customers indicate that one-fourth of them prefer low-calorie syrup, while
three-fourths prefer regular syrup. Since FastMart’s highest priority is to maximize sales,
the obvious strategy for it is to stock regular syrup.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?

(A) People buying pancake syrup at convenience stores, unlike those buying it at
supermarkets, generally buy it only a few times.

(B) People who prefer low-calorie syrup generally use about the same amount of syrup on
their pancakes as those who prefer regular syrup.

(C) Regular syrup sells for a higher price per unit than low-calorie syrup.

(D) In general, customers who prefer regular syrup will buy low-calorie syrup if regular is
unavailable, but those who prefer low-calorie will not buy regular syrup.

(E) Sales of syrup are not expected to account for a large proportion of total dollar sales at
the average FastMart store.

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5. Insect infestations in certain cotton-growing regions of the world have caused dramatic
increases in the price of cotton on the world market. By contrast, the price of soybeans
has long remained stable. Knowing that cotton plants mature quickly, many soybean
growers in Ortovia plan to cease growing soybeans and begin raising cotton instead,
thereby taking advantage of the high price of cotton to increase their income significantly,
at least over the next several years.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the plan’s chances for success?

(A) The cost of raising soybeans has increased significantly over the past several years and
is expected to continue to climb.

(B) Tests of a newly developed, inexpensive pesticide have shown it to be both

environmentally safe and effective against the insects that have infested cotton crops.

(C) In the past several years, there has been no sharp increase in the demand for cotton
and for goods made out of cotton.

(D) Few consumers would be willing to pay significantly higher prices for cotton goods
than they are now paying.

(E) The species of insect that has infested cotton plants has never been known to attack
soybean plants.

Pay attentions to:

• Quantifier (số lượng)

• Probability (apparently, probably…)
• Extremity
• Timeline: past, future….

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6. In the past year Harborville has had an unusually high rate of new cases of a certain
disease. An investigation revealed that over the past five years Harborville's public water
supply has had a high level of pollutants. Medical researchers have hypothesized that
Harborville's water is responsible for the high rate of new cases of the disease.

Each of the following, if true, provides additional support for the researchers' hypothesis
EXCEPT:

(A) Most of the people afflicted with new cases of the disease had regularly drunk larger
quantities of Harborville's water than had other Harborville residents.

(B) The same type of pollutants that were found in Harborville's water have independently
been linked to occurrences in other towns of high rates of the disease.

(C) Some of the people with newly diagnosed cases of the disease began to develop the
disease before Harborville's water became polluted.

(D) The rate of new cases of the disease among residents of Harborville who get their
water from private sources is not unusually high.

(E) Towns with geographic and demographic characteristics similar to those of Harborville
but without polluted water do not have as high a rate of the disease as does Harborville.

Typical pattern:

A => B (A causes B) (A implies B)

Equivalent: (not A => not B)

Correlation: you observe 2 things in parallel. From correlation to causation => need more
info.

7. State spokesperson: Many businesspeople who have not been to our state believe that we
have an inadequate road system. Those people are mistaken, as is obvious from the fact
that in each of the past six years, our state has spent more money per mile on road
improvements than any other state.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously undermines the reasoning in the
spokesperson’s argument?

(A) In the spokesperson’s state, spending on road improvements has been increasing more
slowly over the past six years than it has in several other states.

(B) Adequacy of a state’s road system is generally less important to a businessperson

considering doing business there than is the availability of qualified employees.

(C) Over the past six years, numerous businesses have moved into the state.

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(D) In general, the number of miles of road in a state’ road system depends on both the
area and the population of the state.

(E) Only states with seriously inadequate road systems need to spend large amounts of
money on road improvements.

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