Is this accurate? (LR, language, scope of argument) Forum

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WeightliftingThinker

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Is this accurate? (LR, language, scope of argument)

Post by WeightliftingThinker » Sun May 08, 2016 9:05 pm

If the language in the premises is probabilistic, then the conclusion is most likely going to use probabilistic language. (probably, likely, may)
If the language in the premises is categorical, then the conclusion is most likely going to use categorical language. (always, will, definitely, every)

This is not always true, but is it fair to say it is most likely true?

4PfeifferP

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Re: Is this accurate? (LR, language, scope of argument)

Post by 4PfeifferP » Mon May 09, 2016 1:43 pm

It's a decent rule when when searching for analogous answer based on prems.. or conc.., but I wouldn't count on that theory. Many times 'some of this' and 'some of that' equal 'ALL of something else. In other questions, the 'leap' between 'some' and 'all' is the answer you need to find.

I guess my highly un-helpful answer is maybe.

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Re: Is this accurate? (LR, language, scope of argument)

Post by forum_user » Tue May 10, 2016 2:30 pm

WeightliftingThinker wrote:If the language in the premises is probabilistic, then the conclusion is most likely going to use probabilistic language. (probably, likely, may)
If the language in the premises is categorical, then the conclusion is most likely going to use categorical language. (always, will, definitely, every)

This is not always true, but is it fair to say it is most likely true?
Obviously it depends on the question, but it's probably a fair rule, particularly for parallel reasoning questions:

Q: Sam usually goes to the store only on Saturdays; however, today is Wednesday, so Sam will probably not be going to the store today.
A: Terry will not walk his dog right now, because it is the morning and Terry tends to only walk the dog in the afternoon. (bad)
B: It is the weekend, so it's unlikely that Taylor will write a blog post; Taylor typically posts only on weekdays. (good)

But, I'd say you should rely on this trick to confirm the correct answer rather than to find it.

abcdefg1234567

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Re: Is this accurate? (LR, language, scope of argument)

Post by abcdefg1234567 » Tue May 10, 2016 3:34 pm

WeightliftingThinker wrote:If the language in the premises is probabilistic, then the conclusion is most likely going to use probabilistic language. (probably, likely, may)
If the language in the premises is categorical, then the conclusion is most likely going to use categorical language. (always, will, definitely, every)

This is not always true, but is it fair to say it is most likely true?
Don't forget, just because the conclusion matches the premises (categorical v probabilistic) doesn't mean it's valid. Looking at a stem this way may be helpful in parallel questions, but you should understand the conclusion/premise relationship independently of imaginary rules. LSAT makers are tricky and this could end up hurting you in the harder questions.

WeightliftingThinker

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Re: Is this accurate? (LR, language, scope of argument)

Post by WeightliftingThinker » Thu May 12, 2016 11:49 pm

Thank you everyone.

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