Since 1995, Congress has exempted oil companies that have leases issued by the federal government allowing them to drill for deep-water oil off the Gulf of Mexico from royalty payments as an incentive to spur development in times of low oil and gas prices. These leases were supposed to have included a provision that reinstates the royalties should the market prices of oil and gas exceed a certain level. Because of an error by the federal government, however, the language that reinstates the royalties is missing from the more than 1,100 leases issued by the U.S. government in 1998 and 1999. Since the market price of oil and gas has recently risen far above the threshold levels, this error could allow the oil companies to reap a windfall of more than $10 billion through the life of the leases. In response, the government is pressuring the oil companies to renegotiate the leases. The executives of the oil companies strongly oppose renegotiation; all have issued statements stating that they expect the government to honor the terms of the contracts and that renegotiating a duly signed agreement would set a bad precedent.
Which of the following statements best reflects the position of the oil company executives?
The children in the second grade at a local elementary school scored lower on tests of math skills this year than the second graders did last year. The school board blames the disappointing results on the budget cuts that forced the school to consolidate several classes of second-grade students, thus depriving them of the individualized attention that they had previously enjoyed.
Which of the following, if true, best supports the explanation offered by the school board for the students' lower test scores?
Ecologist: The incidence of alligator attacks on humans in the vicinity of the Blue Lagoon has increased in recent years. Relocating at least half of the Blue Lagoon's alligator population would help decrease the incidence of alligator attacks on humans.
The ecologist's claim relies on which of the following assumptions?
Congress has passed a law that scales back the tax credits offered to purchasers of hybrid cars. Because of this, the number of hybrid cars sold each year, which has approximately doubled in each of the last five years, is likely to flatten in the next few years.
Which of the following statements, if true, most weakens the conclusion that the number of hybrid cars sold annually is likely to flatten in the next few years?
The legislature of the Philippines voted recently to abolish the death penalty. In contrast, the death penalty remains legal in the United States. The difference in the legality of capital punishment demonstrates that the majority of American citizens believe in the death penalty, while the majority of Filipino citizens do not.
Which of the following is an assumption upon which the above argument depends?