The downtown area of the city of Stannicton is bustling during the work day, but when all the downtown workers (many of whom live in outlying suburbs) go home, the downtown area, now relatively empty, becomes a haven for crime. Many citizens have reported being attacked in the downtown area in the evening; typically, the assailants do not live downtown but rather come from other neighborhoods. The mayor of Stannicton has charged the city police to reduce the evening downtown crime rate. Police cars patrol the downtown area in the evenings, and the police can monitor any suspicious individual they see, but they can't possibly be on every block at once. In order to extend their "range", the police have established a crime-watch phone number so that downtown residents can report to the police any suspicious-looking individual not from the downtown neighborhood, allowing the police to monitor this individual. The police chief feels the establishment of the crime-watch number will play an important part in reducing the evening downtown crime rate.Which of the following, if true, would provide most support for the prediction that the establishment of the crime-watch number will have its intended effect?

Megalimpet is a nationwide owner of office space. They have major office buildings in the downtowns of several cities in the 48 lower states, and rent this space to individual companies. Megalimpet office spaces vary from small office to large suites, and every space has custom-designed wall-to-wall carpeting. The carpet in several Megalimpet facilities needed replacing. The winning bid for the nationwide carpet replacement was submitted by Bathyderm Carpet Company (BCC). The bid contract involves all delivery costs, all installation, and any ongoing maintenance and upkeep while the carpet is under the three-year warranty. Both BCC executives and independent consultants they hired felt BCC would be able to perform all these services for far less than their bid price; these circumstances would allow BCC to reap a considerable profit. Which of the following, if true, most calls in question the argument that BCC will make a large profit from this contract with Megalimpet?

A senator, near the end of his first six-year term and running for reelection, made the claim: "Citizens of our state are thriving. While national unemployment levels have remained high, our state unemployment rate has been at astonishingly low levels for eleven years running. Clearly, everyone in our state has benefitted from the economical packages I have introduced during my time in the Senate. Therefore, grateful citizens of our state ought to vote for my second term."This argument is most vulnerable to what criticism?

Educator: Despite claims that books offer a better reading experience than electronic readers, a recent study found 90% of subjects demonstrated an increased ability to recall facts when that material was presented on an electronic reader rather than on the printed page. Therefore, if the reader hopes to have a deeper understanding of the material he or she is reading, that person should study using an electronic reader.Which of the following calls into question the conclusion of the educator?

Only reducing the number of customers at the Fairhaven branch of the Tax Center by 15 percent will allow the center to reduce the significant waiting time that many of their clients experience. The Tax Center in Brookerton, 30 miles away, would-if expanded-provide an attractive alternative for 30 percent of the customers currently using the Fairhaven Tax Center. Nevertheless, the Tax Center CEO has rejected the proposal to expand the Brookerton branch, claiming that it will not end the long wait times at the Fairhaven branch.Which of the following, if true, most helps to justify the CEO's position?

A soccer league is divided into a junior and a senior division, separated not by age but by a player's skill level. This year, to determine the division for which an aspirant is best qualified, the league held a week-long trial, after which coach A and coach B selected players. Coach A nominated sixteen of the forty players for the senior league. Amongst Coach B's nominations for the senior division were four players not nominated by Coach A. Therefore, there will be twenty players in the senior division.Which of the following, if true, provides the strongest basis for the conclusion above to be warranted?

A sports arena is considering a new stadium design, one in which each block of seats would be in an enclosed weather-proof room with a view of the playing field and a large screen TV showing the action of play, including the instant replays typical of television broadcasts of sports games. The developer reasons that exposure to elements and lack of access to instant replays significantly limits the typical spectator's enjoyment of the live game.This stadium design would be unlikely to increase the pleasure the spectators take from live games if they enjoyed

Economic analysts, noting the sharp increase in ADHD-related disability claims over the past decade, have posited an epidemic of ADHD among younger generations. These analysts, though, ignore advances in psychoanalytical classifications. ADHD is now listed as an official psychiatric disorder in the DSM-5, whereas those with ADHD were simply treated as undisciplined and irresponsible in the past. Therefore, a greater number of serious cases are recommended now for disability, because Human Resources workers are more likely to identify these behavior patterns as ADHD. Which of the following, if true, provides the most support for the argument?

President of the Smalltown Chamber of Commerce: In the past decade, the businesses in Smalltown have reported average profits of 15% above inflation. The mayor of Smalltown has explained this by citing decreased crime and a growing population, but he is incorrect. In reality, this increase in profitability is not due to these factors, but rather to the sharing of business acumen and market research that occurs at the monthly Chamber of Commerce meetings.Which of the following, if true, best supports the President of the Smalltown Chamber of Commerce's attribution of the increased profits to her organization's meetings?

A luxury apartment condo recently opened up along the Biltmore's waterfront. Within the first two months, 80% of the standard units in the first ten of the condo's twelve stories were sold. Nonetheless, only two of the eight penthouses, all of which are located in the top two stories of the building, have sold. In order to sell the remaining six penthouses, the corporation that owns the property, should drop the rate of the penthouses by 20%.Which of the following, if true, would argue against the proposal above?

A table made entirely from the trunk of a tree said to have lived a thousand years was recently claimed to be that of a much younger tree. In order to rebut this charge, the craftsman summoned a team of dendrochronologists to prove that the tree lived to be at least to 1,000 years old. Dendrochronology, or the technique of using tree rings to date wood, is based on the fact that for each passing year a tree develops exactly one ring, as seen in a horizontal cross-section of the trunk. Given that dendrochronology is accurate for trees that lived less than 2,000 total years, the dendrochronologists will be able to determine whether the work comes from a tree that lived to be at least 1,000 years old.Which of the following is an assumption that the argument makes?

Algorpal Industries produces high quality pneumatic filters. For years, they have primarily served manufacturers of domestic agricultural equipment, and over time, this market has been decreasing. A consultant recommended that, with a minor modification, Algorpal could expand into pneumatic filters for biomedical research technology, a rapidly expanding market. The consultant argued that this single change could reverse a ten-year decline in Algorpal's profits. Which of the following would be the most useful to establish in evaluating the consultant's recommendation?

Professor Knight has noticed that students who guess on her multiple-choice tests are significantly more likely to choose answer choice C instead of A, B, D, or E. Basing her judgment on the fact that a variety of students from different social groups and backgrounds all do this, she has concluded that this tendency was acquired from her colleague Professor Leigh's habit of predominantly using C as a correct answer choice, rather than students' natural tendency to choose the middle letter. Professors Knight and Leigh are the only professors who give multiple choice tests in the required classes of the first and second year.Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the conclusion drawn by Professor Knight?

A study has recently shown that happier employees are more productive. Employees at Davis Industries are more productive over the course of the business day than those at Saturnine Corporation. Therefore, we can conclude that Davis Industries' employees must be happier than those at Saturnine Corp.The argument is most vulnerable to which of the following criticisms?

For centuries, mathematics seemed to exist in service to the natural sciences. Many of the great mathematical breakthroughs, like Newton's Calculus, were spearheaded in the effort to solve scientific questions. In the nineteenth century, though, mathematicians made it clear that the primary object of mathematical study were the abstract creations of mathematics-numbers and shapes and functions and their more abstruse extensions-irrespective of whether this study has any bearing on scientific investigation. Therefore, mathematics is not properly one of the natural sciences.Which of the following is an assumption that supports drawing the conclusion above from the reasons given for that conclusion?