Prep2012-Pack1-CR-019 VCR008048 Easy
Reasoning
Why would environmental groups oppose a tax intended to discourage the use of bags that cause environmental problems? The environmental groups brought the issue to the city council's attention, so they do want to prevent the problems the bags cause. If the environmental groups oppose the tax, they must think that the tax will not actually help solve the problem, or that it will cause other problems. Therefore, look for an answer option that explains why the environmental groups might think that.
A. If the city cannot currently afford to recycle the bags, that's all the more reason for environmental groups to support the tax, which could discourage use of the bags and give the city enough funding to recycle them.
B. The objective of the tax is to discourage the use of paper and plastic grocery bags, but the information in this answer option gives no reason to think that the environmental groups oppose the tax on the grounds that it would fail to achieve the objective.
C. If plastic bags are a worse problem than paper bags, that would be a reason to tax the plastic bags more heavily, not to oppose taxing bags at all.
D. If most bags are distributed by smaller supermarkets that would not be subject to the tax, that might be a reason to extend the tax to cover those supermarkets as well, but it would not be a reason to oppose the tax.
E. Correct. This suggests that the tax will not help reduce the litter and landfill problems the environmental groups want to solve. Therefore, it could be a reason for them to oppose the tax (perhaps in order to institute an alternative measure that would be more likely to achieve the desired result).
The correct answer is E.
Prep2012-Pack1-CR-020 VCR008063 Easy
Reasoning
What additional evidence would most help determine whether magnetic fields from high-voltage power lines cause health problems for people who live near the lines? The public health official argues that power lines’ magnetic fields probably do not cause health problems beyond a few feet from the lines, because those magnetic fields are weaker than magnetic fields usually are in homes far from such fines. This argument assumes that magnetic fields in homes far from the fines do not cause health problems and that people who live near the fines do not spend much time within a few feet of them. Therefore, look for an answer option that indicates whether one or both of these assumptions is correct.
A. Correct. This information would straightforwardly indicate whether the first assumption discussed above is true.
B. People's beliefs about whether the power lines cause health problems may be ill-founded and mistaken; they are not relevant to whether magnetic fields can cause health problems.
C. This would indicate whether many people live near the power fines, but not whether those who five near the fines suffer health problems as a result.
D. Without further information (e.g., whether the incidence of such diseases or conditions is greater among people who live especially near higher-voltage power fines), knowing which specific health problems the researchers think the fines cause would suffice to evaluate the public health argument.
E. The argument concerns magnetic fields in homes, not magnetic fields in workplaces; but knowing how strong the magnetic fields are even in homes would not suffice to know whether such magnetic fields cause health problems or not.
The correct answer is A.
