I have previously noted the value of spotting the “some people say” formula [hereafter, “SPS”] in an LSAT Logical Reasoning stimulus here and here. In this post, I document how frequently and consistently the SPS formula appears in just one type of question.
There are 27 “Main Point” questions in 10 Actual, Official LSAT Preptests, Volume V [hereafter, “Volume V”], and 14 of them have an SPS.
Note: I consider stimuli with a blank line at the end and a question stem that reads, “Which one of the following most logically concludes the argument” to be “inference-like” questions, not “Main Point” questions. None of these questions in Volume V include an SPS.
Here is the breakdown:
- PT 62, Section 4, Q1. The SPS is, “One suggestion is that….” Answer C states, “The suggestion that… is mistaken.”
- PT 62, Section 4, Q12. The SPS is followed by, “Such criticism, however, is never sincere.” Answer D states, “A politician criticizing… is being insincere.”
- PT 63, Section 1, Q8. This is a double-decker SPS. “Your article was unjustified in criticizing environmentalists for claiming….” Answer E says the evidence “does not warrant the article’s criticism of the environmentalists’ claim.”
- PT 63, Section 3, Q10: The SPS is followed by, “However, this accusation rests on a fuzzy distinction.” Answer A is “the claim… rests on a fuzzy distinction.”
- PT 65, Section 1, Q9: Answer C is “the claim… is likely to be incorrect.”
- PT 65, Section 4, Q14: The SPS is global warming “would cause more frequent and intense tropical storms.” Answer E is “Global warming probably will not produce more frequent and intense tropical storms.”
- PT 66, Section 4, Q5: The SPS is “A famous artist once claimed that all great art imitates nature.” Answer B is “Either the artist’s claim is incorrect, or most great music is not art.”
- PT 66, Section 4, Q9: The SPS is followed by, “Surely he is mistaken.” Answer A is “Terrence Gurney is mistaken when he suggests…”
- PT 66, Section 4, Q26: The SPS takes up two long sentences, and is followed by “This general line of argument may be reasonable, but… humans did not evolve from chimpanzees.” Answer B is “The assumption that something like human language must exist in some species from which humans evolved has no clearcut linguistic implications for chimpanzees.”
- PT 68, Section 3, Q8: The SPS is followed by “However, there is little evidence to support this belief.” Answer B says, “There is as yet little reason to accept….”
- PT 68, Section 3, Q11: The SPS is, “Many people assume that personal conflicts are inevitable.” Answer D is “Personal conflicts are not inevitable.”
- PT 69, Section 4, Q1: The SPS is followed by a clause that says, “but they need to reassess that view.” Answer E is “Scientists need to reconsider the belief that….”
- PT 70, Section 4, Q16: The SPS is “Some heartburn-medication advertisements imply that unrelieved heartburn is likely to cause esophageal cancer.” This is followed by “This is simply false.” Answer C is “Unrelieved heartburn is not likely to cause esophageal cancer.”
- PT 71, Section 1, Q7: The SPS is followed by “Gillette’s argument is not persuasive, however, because he fails to consider…” Answer E is “Gillette’s argument is unconvincing because it ignores…”
While I have yet to research this pattern in older tests, the most recent tests demonstrate that the SPS pattern is well worth recognizing. SPS appeared in just over half the “Main Point” questions in Volume V and was a reliable indicator of the correct answer in every case.