Q19 - Editorial: It is clear

[martintp]

I thougt the answer would be E.. Can someone help me break this down?

[maryadkins]

The answer is E!

Let me know if you still need help.

[nbayar1212]

Can we conclude that most universities aren't meeting their moral responsibilities instead of just that some aren't meeting them?

[maryadkins]

So we're told:

-if the universities were meeting moral and intellectual responsibilities, bestsellers in uni bookstores wouldn't be frivolous

-but they are frivolous at most uni bookstores

Can we conclude that most universities aren't meeting their moral responsibilities instead of just that some aren't meeting them?

Yes! (E) is just a softer version of this inference, would which also be correct.

(A) is about the wrong subjects; we're talking about the universities' moral responsibilities, not the people who buy the publications.

(B) is about "carrying" the publications but we were never told they can't carry them. It's a matter of what's selling best.

(C) isn't supported. Just because at most bookstores the bestsellers are these magazines doesn't mean most PEOPLE who go to the bookstores are purchasing them. Maybe most of the people are visiting the other bookstores.

(D) like (A) and (C) isn't about the bookstores and we're talking about the bookstores, not the people.

[Nina]

i have some problem eliminating C. since the two best sellers are TV TODAY and GOSSIP REVIEW, isn't it because most people who purchase publications at university bookstores are buying either of them?

Thanks a lot!

[ban2110]

i have some problem eliminating C. since the two best sellers are TV TODAY and GOSSIP REVIEW, isn't it because most people who purchase publications at university bookstores are buying either of them?

Thanks a lot!

I do not think that is an inference we can make because the stimulus deals first with universities' moral and intellectual responsibilities (sentence 1) and then with university bookstore sales (sentence 2). It does not talk about what people are actually buying, which is what (C) falsely claims. For all we know, Gossip Review and TV Today could be the worst selling items in the bookstores and yet Gossip Review still sells better than TV Today.

I find it sometimes helps to identify the subject of each sentence in a MBT stimulus; I've been in some situations where simply knowing what the stimulus is referring to has helped me rule out some tricky answer choices.

[kumsayuya]

I am not positive, but I think I know the issue with (C).

We know that these two magazines sell the most - but does that mean that most people who purchase publications at a University book store are buying these? Selling the most =/= sold more than all of the other books combined.

Lets say 10 people buy TV today, and 9 buy gossip review, and they are the best sellers at the University book store.

But consider all of the other books at a University book store!

Book A sells 8 copies
Book B sells 8 copies
Book C sells 8 Copies

Making for a grand total of 24 books sold, opposed to 19 sold between the two best sellers. This information tells us that most people who buy books from a University book store would actually be correctly be represented by people who buy books A-C, and not the two top sellers, because books A-C sell more, in total, than the top two sellers.

In other words, most people who purchase a publication from a University bookstore are buying books other than the two top selling ones.

Hope that helps.