Evaluating Argument Strengths Flashcards
7 cards from real LNAT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Evaluating Argument Strengths flashcards as text
Which of the following best describes a 'straw man' fallacy?
Answer: Misrepresenting an opponent's position to make it easier to attack
A straw man involves distorting or exaggerating an opposing argument so it can be more easily refuted.
Passage: 'Allowing physician-assisted dying will lead to pressure on elderly people to end their lives prematurely.' This argument relies on which type of reasoning?
Answer: Slippery slope
A slippery slope assumes that one event will inevitably trigger a chain of increasingly harmful consequences without establishing why this chain is likely.
An argument is described as 'valid but unsound.' What does this mean?
Answer: The logical structure is correct, but at least one premise is false
A valid argument has correct logical form, but soundness additionally requires all premises to be true; a valid-but-unsound argument fails on the truth condition.
Which evidence would most weaken the claim that increased social media use among teenagers causes depression?
Answer: Depression rates rose before smartphones became widespread among teenagers
If depression rates were already rising before heavy teenage smartphone use, social media cannot be the primary cause.
In an LNAT-style argument passage, what is the purpose of identifying the 'conclusion'?
Answer: To determine what the author is trying to persuade the reader to believe or do
The conclusion is the main claim the argument is designed to establish; identifying it is the first step in evaluating argument strength.
Which of the following scenarios demonstrates circular reasoning?
Answer: The Bible is true because it is the word of God, and we know it is the word of God because the Bible says so
Circular reasoning uses the conclusion as a premise, making the argument logically self-referential and non-informative.
A debate judge must decide which team's argument is stronger. Both teams present true premises. Team A's conclusion follows necessarily from its premises; Team B's conclusion is only made likely by its premises. Which argument is stronger in terms of logical certainty?
Answer: Team A, because a deductively valid argument with true premises guarantees its conclusion
A sound deductive argument (valid form plus true premises) guarantees its conclusion, whereas a strong inductive argument only makes its conclusion probable.