PrepTest 149, Section 2, Question 20
Passage A Comedians are not amused when their(497 more words not shown)
Passage A(293 more words not shown)
Passage B(212 more words not shown)
Which one of the following,(12 more words not shown)
- AThere is no(19 more words not shown)
- BChefs are significantly(17 more words not shown)
- CRecipes published in(12 more words not shown)
- DThe community of(16 more words not shown)
- EIn practice it(21 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
B says chefs' informal rules function much like intellectual-property law. But a rule against copying is more reassuring if breaking it has consequences. What keeps a chef from taking the recipe anyway?
What we’re looking for
A supplies that missing step for comedians: reputational damage and refusals to work with a thief. For B, evidence of a comparable professional consequence would help show that the chefs' norms offer practical protection. We do not need proof that nobody ever breaks a rule.
Working the answers
- A
Allowing inspiration while prohibiting exact copying clarifies the rule's boundary. It does not show that chefs obey the rule or that a violation carries a cost. We still lack a reason to think the rule will protect anyone.
- BCorrect
A chef who violates the norms risks losing access to colleagues' information. Picture a chef asking for a recipe technique and being refused because the colleague no longer trusts them to respect the rules. That gives chefs a professional reason to comply even without a lawsuit. It supplies the enforcement mechanism that B's description of the norms leaves unstated.
- C
This concerns legal protection for recipes published in cookbooks. Even if true, that does not show that the informal rules protect chefs' innovations. Available copyright protection is not evidence that social sanctions work.
- D
This would undermine the argument. If the community cannot effectively enforce sanctions, the rules may offer little protection against someone willing to ignore them.
- E
This also creates an enforcement problem. If exact copying cannot be distinguished from independent development, chefs would have difficulty identifying a violation and directing consequences at the person responsible.
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