PrepTest 129, Section 2, Question 16
Software reviewer: Dictation software allows a computer to(58 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(24 more words not shown)
- AIt is the(8 more words not shown)
- BIt is the(3 more words not shown)
- CIt is an(13 more words not shown)
- DIt is a(8 more words not shown)
- EIt is a(12 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Dictation software turns spoken sentences into written ones. That sounds as though it could save typing, but what if someone has to work through the resulting text and fix errors in wording, grammar, or punctuation? The labor may have shifted rather than disappeared.
That is the reviewer's concern. Writing still requires thinking and editing, which the reviewer identifies as the laborious parts. On top of that, proofreading the software's errors generally uses up the time saved by avoiding typing.
What we’re looking for
Those observations explain the claim that the software fails to live up to its billing as a labor-saving invention. For the role question, I would identify that claim as the conclusion. The description of dictation introduces the subject; the later claims about the work still required give the reasons for the unfavorable assessment.
Working the answers
- A
The first part is right: this is the main conclusion. But where is the additional conclusion A requires? The reviewer states the claims about thinking, editing, and proofreading as reasons for the assessment, without offering a separate argument to establish any of those claims. There is no second supported point in the passage.
- BCorrect
This is the only conclusion. The reviewer supports the claim that the software falls short of its labor-saving promotion by describing the difficult work that remains and the time needed to correct errors. The argument does not then draw another conclusion from that assessment.
- C
An intermediate conclusion would receive support and then serve as support for a further conclusion. Imagine adding, “Therefore, companies should not buy this software.” The unfavorable assessment could then support that additional recommendation. But the actual passage does not take that further step, so we should not invent it.
- D
The direction of support is wrong. The claims about writing and proofreading are offered to establish that the software fails to save the promised labor. The claim we are asked about is the assessment those reasons support, not a premise offered for some other stated conclusion.
- E
This would require the claim to support an intermediate conclusion, which would in turn support a main conclusion. We have no such chain. The given reasons lead to the unfavorable assessment, and the argument stops there.
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