LSAT 23 | Section 3 | Logical Reasoning: Q18

LR Question 18 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: If the recording now playing on the jazz program is…

QUESTION TYPE: Parallel Reasoning

CONCLUSION: The announcer got the date of the recording wrong.

REASONING: The trumpeter was Louis Armstrong, who was dead in 1989. But the announcer said the recording was “Louis Armstrong recorded in concert in 1989”.

ANALYSIS: This is a good argument. Since the author is certain that the trumpeter was Louis Armstrong, then the date must be wrong.

Notice that there’s sarcastic humor. This appears in the correct answer.

Abstractly, here’s the method: we know one of two things is false. Since one of those two is true (it is Louis Armstrong), the other must be false (the date was not 1989).

___________

1. This isn’t a good argument. Sculptors can also make paintings, just as artists who are mainly painters sometimes make sculptures.
2. This argument is almost good, but it leaves out a second possibility: Maybe the painting is La Toilette, but it was painted by another artist. No one said the painting was labelled “Berthe Morissette’s La Toilette.“
3. CORRECT. This is it. There’s sarcastic humor. One of two things is false. Since we’re certain that it is a painting from 17th century Japan, then the other thing must be false: Frida Kahlo wasn’t the painter.
4. This is a bad argument. Just because Kollwitz was known for her prints does not mean she didn’t also make sculptures.
5. There are two possibilities: the painting is not acrylic, or it was not done by Vigee-Lebrun. It’s possible that the painting is not acrylic, but it’s also possible that someone else painted the painting.

Recap: The question begins with “If the recording now playing on the jazz program is”. It is a Parallel Reasoning question. Learn more about LSAT Parallel questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.