PrepTest 132, Section 2, Question 13
Buying elaborate screensavers—programs that put moving images on(37 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(8 more words not shown)
- AA school that(13 more words not shown)
- BAn energy-efficient insulation(17 more words not shown)
- CThe time that(18 more words not shown)
- DA complicated hotel(15 more words not shown)
- EAn electronic keyboard(13 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
The screensaver protects the monitor, but who's protecting the company from time spent playing with it?
Saving electricity and preventing damage sound useful. Yet if employees stop working to play with the graphics, the company can lose more in employee time than it saves. The purchase can achieve its intended benefit and still be a bad bargain overall. A boring screensaver might avoid the distraction, but we don't need to design a replacement to understand what went wrong.
What we’re looking for
The question asks for another situation that follows that principle. Look for a measure meant to save something that creates a larger cost elsewhere. Merely having an advantage and a disadvantage isn't enough; we want the unexpected cost to outweigh the saving.
Working the answers
- A
Choosing books because students prefer them may sacrifice the lowest price. But the school isn't described as choosing that package to save money and then losing more elsewhere. It may simply be putting student preference ahead of cost. That's a different tradeoff.
- B
This investment works out as intended: a higher initial cost is repaid by savings over time. The screensaver example goes the other way. Its intended saving is outweighed by an added cost.
- C
Maybe the person ordering pizza just wants pizza. We aren't told that the delivery was chosen to save time, so a longer wait doesn't establish that the decision backfired. If the choice said someone ordered delivery to save time but lost more time waiting, it would be closer. We shouldn't add that motive ourselves.
- DCorrect
The security system reduces losses from theft, just as the screensaver reduces electricity and monitor costs. But its complication costs the hotel more in customer goodwill than the theft prevention saves, just as distraction costs the company more in employee time. The intended benefit remains real; another cost outweighs it.
- E
A cheaper purchase price and a higher repair price don't establish that the total repair expense outweighs the initial saving. Perhaps the keyboard rarely needs repairs, or the initial price difference is enormous. This gives us two different price comparisons without establishing the overall loss described in the screensaver example.
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