Logic Breakdown

Passage Summary: We still use the clunky QWERTY keyboard layout because it was originally made to slow us down so old typewriters wouldn't jam, and now it's just too expensive and annoying for everyone to switch to something better.

Reasoning: The QWERTY layout was intentionally designed to slow typists down to prevent mechanical jams, and while more efficient layouts exist today, the high cost and difficulty of retraining users keep QWERTY as the dominant standard.

Analysis: Since this is a 'Most Strongly Supported' question, we aren't looking for a flaw; we are looking for a logical inference. The facts establish a tension between historical necessity (preventing jams) and modern inefficiency. You should look for an answer that reflects this 'path dependency'—the idea that we are stuck with an inferior system simply because it was the first one to become a standard. The stimulus strongly suggests that QWERTY's continued dominance isn't due to its technical superiority, but rather to the practical barriers of change.

Passage Stimulus

Passage Redacted

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21.

Which one of the following is most strongly supported by the historian's statements?

Correct Answer
E
The historian ties the speed-limiting design directly to the mechanical jamming problem of early typewriters. If the keyboard had been designed for computers (where adjacent key strikes do not cause jams), that original reason would be absent, so it’s most reasonable that the layout would not have been designed to limit typing speed.
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