LSAT 23 | Section 2 | Logical Reasoning: Q6

LR Question 6 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Prehistoric chimpanzee species used tools similar to…

QUESTION TYPE: Necessary Assumption

CONCLUSION: The tools were used by humans.

REASONING: The tools were found in a savanna. Prehistoric humans lived in savannas, but prehistoric chimps didn’t.

ANALYSIS: Areas change over time. The badlands of Alberta (a dry, rocky place) were once jungle and many dinosaur fossils are found there.

Likewise, the present savanna could have been a forest in prehistoric times.

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1. If humans did carry tools, how would that wreck the argument? Humans could have created their own tools, and carried them around. This doesn’t mean they stole them from chimps.
2. This is too broad to be necessary. We don’t care if all of East Africa was savanna. We only need to know that the area where the tools were found was savanna.
3. Even if humans went into the forest, that doesn’t mean much. The tools that were found in the savanna were still probably created and used by humans.
4. CORRECT. If the area where the tools were found was a forest in the past, then maybe chimps were the ones that used the tools.
5. Who cares about other, more sophisticated tools? We’re trying to prove that chimps didn’t use the tool in question.

Recap: The question begins with “Prehistoric chimpanzee species used tools similar to”. It is a Necessary Assumption question. Learn more about LSAT Necessary questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.