LSAT 155 | Section 1 | Logical Reasoning: Q12

LR Question 12 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Physician: Of the health experts who advocate moderate…

QUESTION TYPE: Necessary Assumption

CONCLUSION: The evidence of the red wine advocates is inconclusive.

REASONING: There is statistical evidence that red wine drinkers are less likely to fall victim to heart disease than those who drink other alcoholic beverages, but the red wine advocates have not determined what biological mechanism would be responsible for the difference.

ANALYSIS: Essentially, the author is saying that because the biological mechanism is undetermined, the evidence is inconclusive. That’s it. The principle that they’re necessarily assuming is that evidence is inconclusive unless the mechanisms involved are established.

___________

1. This does not lead to the conclusion. The conclusion is not that physicians should advocate moderate consumption.
2. This doesn’t lead to the conclusion. There is statistical evidence here – the problem the author has is that the mechanism is not determined.
3. The author is not drawing a conclusion about whether a physician should recommend certain food or drink.
4. CORRECT. The author is saying that the evidence is not conclusive because we don’t know the mechanism. This is exactly in line with this principle.
5. The author is not concluding anything about whether or when someone should try to find a causal mechanism.

Recap: The question begins with “Physician: Of the health experts who advocate moderate”. It is a Necessary Assumption question. Learn more about LSAT Necessary questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.