Unplugged Practice Test: Logical Reasoning Set 3, Question 22 (Sufficient Assumption)
Taking the test? Finish it first. This page shows the answer.
- Sufficient Assumption questions ask for a premise that would guarantee the conclusion.
- Look for the choice that, once added, forces the conclusion. It often connects a term in the evidence to a term in the conclusion.
- 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
Health system consultant: Hospital boards keep passing over the service line that brings in the most money, namely outpatient surgery. Outpatient surgery brings in more of the region's total hospital revenue than every other service line put together. So a hospital board can bring its own hospital's revenue to the greatest possible figure if it points its capital planning chiefly at outpatient surgery.
22. The consultant's conclusion is properly drawn if which one of the following is assumed?
- (A)Outpatient surgery has grown for longer and draws on a wider patient population than other service lines do.
- (B)No hospital reaches the greatest possible figure for its revenue unless its board points capital planning chiefly at a service line that supplies most of the region's total hospital revenue.
- (C)Any hospital board that points its capital planning chiefly at a service line supplying at least half of the region's total hospital revenue will bring its hospital's revenue to the greatest possible figure.
- (D)No hospital board that points its capital planning chiefly at a service line supplying only a little of the region's total hospital revenue will bring its hospital's revenue to the greatest possible figure.
- (E)Capital planning aimed at the highest-earning service line is the surest route to a better reputation for a hospital among referring physicians.
CWhy (C) is correct
The consultant concludes that pointing capital planning at outpatient surgery brings a hospital's revenue to its greatest possible figure, because that line already pulls in more of the region's revenue than every other line combined, meaning it holds over half. (C) supplies the missing rule: any board that points its planning chiefly at a line supplying at least half the region's revenue reaches the greatest possible figure. Outpatient surgery clears that half mark, so C makes the conclusion follow.
Why the other answers are wrong
AWhy (A) is wrong
(A) explains why outpatient surgery earns so much, longer history and a wider patient base, but that alone never promises the biggest revenue outcome.
BWhy (B) is wrong
(B) states a necessary condition, no board reaches the biggest revenue outcome without targeting the top line, which never guarantees that targeting it succeeds.
DWhy (D) is wrong
(D) rules out only low-earning targets without saying that aiming at outpatient surgery pays off.
EWhy (E) is wrong
(E) swaps in reputation among referring physicians, a different goal than the revenue the conclusion is about.
Common questions
What type of question is this?
Sufficient Assumption. Sufficient Assumption questions ask for a premise that would guarantee the conclusion.
How do I get better at Sufficient Assumption questions?
Look for the choice that, once added, forces the conclusion. It often connects a term in the evidence to a term in the conclusion. The free LSAT cheat sheet lists the wrong-answer patterns to watch for on every type.
