Q26

[hyewonkim89]

Agh I don't like inference questions in RC sections. I seem to get them wrong the most.

I can't seem to understand where in the passage infers (B) and why it's better than (A).

Please help!

[fmuirhea]

The elimination criteria for (A) is similar to that for (D) in Q27 - it's too strong. (A) states that the government should always intervene when an activity involves risk, but this does not align with the phrasing in lines 47-49: "In general, the government should attempt to save as many lives as it can, subject to the limited public and private resources devoted to risk reduction." This statement of intervention is qualified, and so the absolute wording of (A) is incorrect.

(B) is almost boring in how little it seems to reveal (imagine a similar pronouncement like "Some girls are bigger than others." It doesn't exactly set the world on fire with insight, eh?) - but the question doesn't ask you to pick a big, exciting answer. Your task is to pick something that is probably true based on the passage, so often you'll find that the credited response to an inference question is a cautiously-worded paraphrase of an idea from the passage. In this case, (B) is supported by lines 21-25: "Although voluntariness may be entirely absent...it is not an all-or-nothing matter, but rather one of degree."

[tommywallach]

Great response from fmuir here. Hope it helps!

-t

[billyye125]

Hi Manhattan experts:

I have yet a question. Although (A) has extreme qualifications, I wonder if (B) is too big a stretch? Even though the degree varies, we do not know if true within the environmental ones. May be in environmental issues every risk is indeed the same, only that they are 70% of time suitable to be defined as "risk" instead of being all-or-nothing. The paragraph did not specify.

"Most strongly supports" requires flexibility, and in some cases even strong words as "whenever" MAY be granted as a pass. I wonder how do we decide in POE, as in this case?

Thank you!

[ohthatpatrick]

Sorry for the delayed response.

You're definitely correct that sometimes we're forced to pick something stronger than what the passage truly gives us on a "most strongly support" question.

The key POE word there is forced.

You end up picking an uncomfortably extreme idea when there is at least SOME support for that answer and NO support for the other answers.

But that wouldn't apply here, since we have textual proof for (B).

It says "with most environmental ... risks, it is not an all-or-nothing matter, but rather one of degree."

What does "it" refer to?

"Voluntariness" from the previous clause.

In the case of an asteroid, it's an all-or-nothing matter.

Voluntariness is entirely absent when you're hit by an asteroid. In most environmental risks, though, the level of voluntariness varies.

You seemed to be thinking he was saying that "risk" is all or nothing vs. a matter of degree.

Hope this helps.