LSAT 114 | Section 3 | Reading Comprehension: Q5

RC Question 5 Explanation

DISCUSSION: On an author’s opinion you want to look for an answer that feels like a plausible opinion; this helps cut through the detail. The answer will only be correct if the author actually said it, and authors don’t tend to say implausible things. A lot of the wrong answers here don’t seem very likely.

For example, two answer suggest that controlled burns vs. natural burns don’t make much of a difference. In theory someone could believe that, but it seems unlikely, a controlled burn is totally different from a natural fire. One answer effectively says “tiny herbs stop giant trees from growing”. Why would they?

The right answer, by contrast, is very easy to believe is true. So it is not surprising the author said something in support of it.

___________

1. This is unlikely. Lines 53-57 say that pine forests in Nicaragua went away when humans lefts. Human fires are non-random, while natural fires are random.
2. Lines 32-34 say that mature forests do have herbaceous undergrowth. 
3. The passage argues that natives had a big impact. That doesn’t mean settlers didn’t also have a big impact.
4. CORRECT. Lines 35-37 support this. Berries were more common because of fires, for example. 
5. Hard to say. The passage implies that controlled burning is different from natural fires, which are random. Lines 53-57 say that the pine forests disappeared when humans weren’t around.