LSAT 37, Logical Reasoning I, Q19

QUESTION TEXT: Physician: Hatha yoga is a powerful tool…

QUESTION TYPE: Necessary Assumption 

CONCLUSION: Hatha yoga helps us quit smoking.

REASONING: Hatha yoga + counseling were as effective as self-help groups + counseling.

ANALYSIS: This is a really bad argument. First, we’re not told how much each group reduced its smoking. It’s possible it was a very tiny change.

Second, it’s possible that individual counseling was the major reason for each group’s success. That would mean that Hatha yoga and self-help groups are equally useless. 

We can ignore individual counseling since it was an equal factor for both groups. That means that Hatha yoga must be exactly as effective as self-help groups. 

___________

1. This still doesn’t tell us how large a reduction each group experienced. It would be hard to say that Hatha yoga was a powerful tool if it only reduced cravings by 5%.
2. It doesn’t matter how many smokers can practice Hatha yoga. It only matters how effective Hatha yoga is for those smokers who can practice it.
3. CORRECT. If this is true, then Hatha yoga must also be a powerful tool. Individual counseling was the same for each group. So Hatha yoga must be exactly as powerful as self-help groups. 
4. This would be nice, but the main question is whether Hatha yoga helps quit smoking. It doesn’t matter if it’s harmful in some other way.
5. Other forms of yoga are quite irrelevant. 

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