请教大家一道LR

zsazsa

由于新东方的教材中题目的顺序被打乱（防止被控盗版），第十八套题着实找不到Kaplan的解释，又捉摸不透，忘各位指点迷津。

1、A linquist recently argued that all human languages must have a common origin because some concepts are universal; that is they appear in all languages. For example, all languages are capable of describing lightness and darkness Which one of the following, if true would most seriously weaken the arguement?

答案是：All speakers, regardless of their languages are confronted with similar stimuli like lightness and darkness.

但是我觉得这应该算加强吧，不知道怎么理解。另外，如果哪位牛人知道这是哪年哪月的题，麻烦告诉我一声，因为还有其他不确定的题目，谢谢大家！！

icewarm

This is the right answer.

This question is testing your understanding of causal relationship.

The stimulus is implying that universal concepts are caused by common origin of all languages.

The answer points to an alternative cause of universal concepts: universal stimuli.

Thus, the argument is weakened.

zsazsa

Super thx~Icewarm!

Here is another case if you may help.

Also in that section:24 Odysseus answered well when the priests showed him a picture of those who had honored the gods and then escaped shipwreck, and asked him whether he did not now acknowledge the power of the gods-"yes", he asked, but where are those pictured who were drowned after their prayers? And such is the way of all superstitions; wherein humans, having a delight in such vanities, mark the events where they are fulfilled, but where they fail, though this happens much oftener neglect and pass them by.

The question asked for a choice contains the error of reasoning described by the author, and the correct answer should be: I have disvovered that Friday the 13th really is a day of misfortune. Just this past Friday the 13th, I locked myself out of the house.

Unfortunetely, i cannot figure it out. Please any of you help me, and million thx, you guys.

icewarm

The essense of the stimulus is that superstitious people tend to remember/emphysize only the events that are in accord to a superstition and willingly ignore those that are not.

The correct option is a perfect example of this kind of faulty reasoning: he/she thinks that Friday the 13th is a day of misfortune because he had some back luck on that day, ignoring the fact that on most other Fridays the 13th no bad things happen or even good things happen.

zsazsa

It's so nice of you!

But forgive me to furthur the question above, according what you said, why not the answer E, which says "I cannot trust my lucky shirt any longer wore it to the game today and our team lost"?

BTW, are you preparing the test for 12/2?

icewarm

Even shorter recap of the stimulus is: marking all the positives (fullfillment of the superstition) and ignore the negatives.

E
is just the oppsite in that he/she marks the negatives and ignores
previous positives (if any): because of one negative event, discarding
the superstition.

[此贴子已经被作者于2007-10-7 21:37:27编辑过]

zsazsa

Thank you very much. I think this kind of questions is really worth my paying special attention to.

[此贴子已经被作者于2007-10-8 15:59:52编辑过]