Flawed Parallel ReasoningDiff: Medium
Logic Breakdown
Passage Summary: The people telling us that modified plants are safe are the same ones who were wrong about moving plants to new environments in the past. Since they were wrong then, we should assume their current project will also end in disaster.
Conclusion: Genetically engineered plants will likely prove to be harmful.
Reasoning: The experts who are currently vouching for the safety of these plants are the same ones who incorrectly claimed that introducing non-native species was a good idea.
Analysis: This is a 'flaw of character' or track record error. The author assumes that because a group of experts was wrong about one specific ecological issue in the past, they must be wrong about a different technological issue now. To parallel this, we need an argument that dismisses a current claim solely based on the fact that the person or group making the claim has been wrong about something else previously. The structure is: 'Group X said A (which was wrong), so Group X is also wrong about B.'
Conclusion: Genetically engineered plants will likely prove to be harmful.
Reasoning: The experts who are currently vouching for the safety of these plants are the same ones who incorrectly claimed that introducing non-native species was a good idea.
Analysis: This is a 'flaw of character' or track record error. The author assumes that because a group of experts was wrong about one specific ecological issue in the past, they must be wrong about a different technological issue now. To parallel this, we need an argument that dismisses a current claim solely based on the fact that the person or group making the claim has been wrong about something else previously. The structure is: 'Group X said A (which was wrong), so Group X is also wrong about B.'
Passage Stimulus
Passage Redacted
Unlock Full Passage21.The flawed reasoning in which one of the following most closely parallels the flawed reasoning in the argument above?
Correct Answer
C
C matches the form: economists with a bad predictive track record (failed to predict the end of the last recession) now predict the expansion will soon end; therefore, conclude the opposite—expansion will continue. It attacks credibility based on past error and flips to the contrary conclusion, just like the stimulus.
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