Quote:
The facts show that the fear of flying in airplanes is not rational. In 1986 alone, there were 46,000 fatalities in highway accidents, but from 1980 to the present an average of only 77 per year in accidents on major domestic airlines. The rate for regional airlines was only slightly higher.
Which of the following, if true, would argue most strongly against the conclusion above?
In addressing Logical Reasoning style Reading Comprehension problems, first identify the question task. In this case, the task is to find the choice that "would argue against the conclusion".
Then, identify the conclusion. In this case, that "the facts show that the fear of flying in airplanes is not rational". So, the correct choice should show that the fear of flying
is rational.
Evaluate the choices looking to eliminate choices that have a reverse impact, a vague impact, or no impact.
(A) Since the inventory of spare parts kept at each airport is smaller than in earlier years, planes are often delayed at an airport while parts are flown in from another airport, and then repairs are carefully made and checked.
Delays have no clear impact on the conclusion, so eliminate for having a vague impact(B) Air fatalities from 1980 to the present have been concentrated in the last two years, with the rate rising sharply.
This stat shows that the fear is rational, so select for having the correct impact(C) The number of reports of near collisions in midair in 1986 was less than half those in a typical year of the 1960's, even with double the traffic of the 1960's.
This stat shows that the fear is irrational, so eliminate for having a reverse impact (D) Many reported near collisions in midair are closer than regulations allow but are nevertheless without actual danger.
Near collisions have no clear impact on the conclusion, so eliminate for having a vague impact(E) Between 1980 and 1986, safety improvements in the design of automobiles steadily improved their crashworthiness.
Safety improvements in automobiles have no clear impact on the conclusion, so eliminate for having a vague impactChoice B is the only choice that appropriately weakens the conclusion, so select Choice B.