GMA GMA Critical Thinking and Assumptions 3

Question 1

Argument: 'This medication is safe because it has been used for 20 years.' What is the primary weakness of this claim?

Accepted Answer

Long usage alone does not prove safety — harm may be subtle or long-term

Answer

Duration of use is not the same as proven safety; long-term or subtle adverse effects may not yet be fully understood.

Question 2

Passage: 'Students who read more score higher on literacy tests.' A principal concludes that forcing all students to read 30 minutes daily will improve scores. What is the key assumption?

Accepted Answer

Mandatory reading will produce the same benefits as voluntary reading

Answer

The correlation was found with voluntary readers; the assumption that mandated reading will produce the same outcome may not hold.

Question 3

Which of the following is an example of a valid deductive argument?

Accepted Answer

All rectangles have four right angles; all squares are rectangles; therefore all squares have four right angles

Answer

If all rectangles have four right angles and all squares are rectangles, it necessarily and validly follows that all squares have four right angles.

Question 4

Claim: 'Student test scores improved after school lunches were upgraded. Therefore, better nutrition causes academic improvement.' What additional evidence would best support this causal claim?

Accepted Answer

A controlled study showing improved scores only in schools with better nutrition, holding other factors constant

Answer

A controlled study that isolates nutrition as the variable rules out other explanations and directly supports causation.

Question 5

Statement: 'No evidence has been found that this chemical is harmful; therefore, it is safe.' The logical flaw here is:

Accepted Answer

Argument from ignorance — absence of evidence is not evidence of absence

Answer

Lack of evidence for harm does not prove safety; the chemical may simply not have been studied sufficiently.

(GMA) General Mental Ability Practice Test

(GMA) General Mental Ability Practice Test

GMA GMA Critical Thinking and Assumptions 3