Unplugged Practice Test: Logical Reasoning Set 2, Question 16 (Fill in the Blank)
Taking the test? Finish it first. This page shows the answer.
- Fill in the Blank questions ask you to finish the argument. The blank is usually its conclusion.
- Read the words just before the blank. If they signal a conclusion (so, hence, it follows that), pick the choice the premises already prove. Skip anything that says more than they do.
- Every question on this test is original, written to the same logical skeletons as real questions, and Steve checked every one himself before release.
The question
The spread of automated grinding benches let optical shops cut the price of a new pair of eyeglasses, since one bench can be run by a small staff, most of whom need only a few days of instruction. Those lower prices put eyeglasses within reach of buyers who could not have paid for a pair before. But lenses finished by staff with only a few days of instruction are more prone to defects that show up only after several years, so _______.
16. Which one of the following most logically completes the argument?
- (A)eyeglasses made by large, long-trained staffs hold their value better than eyeglasses finished on automated benches
- (B)the spread of automated benches has given buyers less for their money while raising the earnings of optical shops
- (C)no pair of eyeglasses sold today can be counted on to stay free of serious defects
- (D)the share of households able to pay for a new pair of eyeglasses is falling
- (E)what put eyeglasses within reach of these buyers also makes the pairs they buy likelier to develop defects
EWhy (E) is correct
Automated benches let optical shops cut the price of eyeglasses because a small, lightly instructed staff can run one, and those lower prices reached buyers who couldn't afford glasses before. But lenses finished by staff with only a few days of instruction run a higher risk of defects that surface years later. The same shift, small staffs with little training, both opened eyeglasses to new buyers and made their particular pairs more likely to develop those defects, which is what (E) states.
Why the other answers are wrong
AWhy (A) is wrong
(A) draws a comparison about how well glasses hold their value that the stimulus never sets up.
BWhy (B) is wrong
(B) claims a net loss for buyers and a net gain for shops, a full accounting the stimulus never offers; it only tracks price and defect risk.
CWhy (C) is wrong
(C) overreaches into every pair sold today, when the stimulus flags a defect risk tied specifically to lightly trained staff.
DWhy (D) is wrong
(D) runs backward: the stimulus says lower prices widened who can afford eyeglasses, not that fewer households now can.
Common questions
What type of question is this?
Fill in the Blank. Fill in the Blank questions ask you to finish the argument. The blank is usually its conclusion.
How do I get better at Fill in the Blank questions?
Read the words just before the blank. If they signal a conclusion (so, hence, it follows that), pick the choice the premises already prove. Skip anything that says more than they do. The free LSAT cheat sheet lists the wrong-answer patterns to watch for on every type.
