LSAT 132 | Section 4 | Logical Reasoning: Q3

LR Question 3 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: A recent study of perfect pitch-the ability to…

QUESTION TYPE: Strengthen

CONCLUSION: Perfect pitch is genetic.

REASONING: You’re more likely to have perfect pitch if you’re related to someone who has it.

ANALYSIS: There’s a big flaw in this argument. It ignores that entire families can be musical and that music can be taught.

If one of your parents has perfect pitch, they may teach you perfect pitch. So in this case the cause is upbringing, not genetics.

We can strengthen the argument by eliminating this cause.

___________

1. CORRECT. This strengthens the argument by eliminating education/upbringing as a cause.
   If we didn’t know this, then it’s possible your relatives teach you perfect pitch.
2. It doesn’t matter if researchers have perfect pitch. It only matters if they can identify perfect pitch.
3. This isn’t relevant. The stimulus never talked about choosing music as a career.
   We only care if someone has perfect pitch – it doesn’t matter if they use it.
4. This weakens the argument. It shows that upbringing may be the cause, not genetics.
5. This weakens the argument by showing that genetics may not be the only cause.

Recap: The question begins with “A recent study of perfect pitch”. It is a Strengthen question. To practice more Strengthen questions, have a look at the LSAT Questions by Type page.