LR Question 9 Explanation
QUESTION TEXT: Scientific and technological discoveries have…
QUESTION TYPE: Necessary Assumption
CONCLUSION: You can’t trust predictions about a society that makes many discoveries.
REASONING: Discoveries greatly affect how a society develops.
ANALYSIS: The argument is assuming that we can’t predict future scientific and technological discoveries, and how they will affect society.
___________
- The argument didn’t say predictions are harmful. It said predictions are hard.
- The argument didn’t say every society needed discoveries. It just said that it’s hard to predict how a society will change if that society has many discoveries.
- CORRECT. If forecasts of discoveries and their effects are completely accurate, then it shouldn’t be any harder to predict the development of a society with many discoveries.
- The argument did not say whether discoveries are good or bad. It just said they make it hard to predict how a society will evolve.
- If predictions were easier in more advanced societies (as E suggests), predictions in societies with frequent discoveries would be more trustworthy. This contradicts the conclusion in the stimulus.
Recap: The question begins with “Scientific and technological discoveries have”. It is a Necessary Assumption question. Learn how to master LSAT Necessary questions on the LSAT Logical Reasoning question types page.
I believe your explanation for why E is incorrect is at best confusing: I used GPT to help confirm and articulate my thoughts on why
Answer choice E suggests that it is easier to predict discoveries in advanced societies compared to less advanced ones. However, the argument’s conclusion is that predictions about societies with frequent discoveries are less trustworthy. If E were true, it would imply that predictions about advanced societies (where discoveries are presumably frequent) should be easier and therefore more trustworthy, which contradicts the argument’s conclusion.
Thank you for your comment. You’re right, and I have edited the explanation. The passage says that predictions are particularly untrustworthy in societies which have frequent discoveries. Therefore, the assumption in answer E actually directly contradicts that of the passage. Good catch!