LSAT 142 | Section 1 | Logical Reasoning: Q20

LR Question 20 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: If the city builds the proposed convention center…

QUESTION TYPE: Sufficient Assumption

CONCLUSION: Convention center ➞ tax revenue

REASONING: Convention center ➞ Conventions

Large conventions ➞ visitors ➞ tax revenues

ANALYSIS: On sufficient assumption questions, you should follow a three step process:

Identify the conclusion: CC ➞ T
Split it apart: CC                           T
Fill in the evidence: CC ➞ C         LC ➞ V ➞ T

This question plays a trick. The first sentence says that a convention center will lead to more conventions. But the second sentence says that large conventions are what lead to visitors.

Large conventions and conventions are not the same thing; conventions can be small. This is the gap in the argument. The right answer, E, fills the gap by saying that the new conventions will be large.

___________

1. We already knew that visitors lead to more tax revenue. This answer says that only visitors will lead to tax revenue. That’s useless.
2. This doesn’t help. The question is only about tax revenues, not money spent. We already know that visitors lead to tax revenue. It doesn’t matter how they lead to tax revenue.
3. This answer doesn’t prove anything. It says other methods of raising taxes won’t work, but that doesn’t prove that a convention center will work.
4. This is irrelevant. The stimulus already said visitors will increase if there are large conventions. That fact is not in doubt, and it doesn’t need the support of this answer.
   This doesn’t help connect convention centers to large conventions or tax revenue.
5. CORRECT. This shows why you should read all the answers before committing to any. Once E points out the difference between conventions and large conventions, it may seem obvious. But you won’t know that until you look at it. So don’t waste 30 seconds thinking at A if you haven’t looked at E yet.