LSAT 126 | Section 4 | Logical Reasoning: Q14

LR Question 14 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: In 1963, a young macaque monkey was observed venturing…

QUESTION TYPE: Necessary Assumption

CONCLUSION: The new behavior of the macaques was a result of learned social behavior and not genetics.

REASONING: Macaques were observed going into hot springs, which they had not done before. The habit was formed over a short period, 1963-1990.

ANALYSIS: This sounds persuasive, because the timeline is short and evolution takes a long time.

Yet we have no evidence why the macaques started going into the hot springs. Was it simply a learned behavior, or did a genetic change attract them to the springs?

___________

1. The argument would actually be strengthened if this were false, since the stimulus argues that the changed behavior which occurred over a few decades was not genetic.
2. CORRECT. If you negate this, you get “new behaviors are necessarily genetically predetermined.” That destroys the argument, as it means that the macaques started going into the hot springs as a result of genetics.
3. This tells us when we can conclude something is genetic. The stimulus is concluding that the behaviors are not genetic. It’s a different situation.
4. This goes too far. The macaques’ behavior need not be completely independent of their genetics. Rather in this specific instance their behavior must be different.
5. It doesn’t matter whether the behavior lasts, as long as it initially occurred as a result of genetics.

Recap: The question begins with “In 1963, a young macaque monkey was observed venturing”. It is a Necessary Assumption question. Learn more about LSAT Necessary questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.