PrepTest 155, Section 1, Question 2
Although the audience for part one of the(44 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(7 more words not shown)
- AMost of the(17 more words not shown)
- BMost of the(12 more words not shown)
- CMost of the(15 more words not shown)
- DMany of the(24 more words not shown)
- EMany of the(17 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
The same-sized audience could contain completely different people.
Suppose a small group watched Thursday and none of them returned. A new small group could stumble onto Friday's episode. The audience figures would look steady, but they wouldn't show that the first group liked the program enough to watch again.
That's the gap here. We're told Thursday's audience was small and Friday's wasn't significantly smaller. We aren't told who those viewers were. Even the exact sizes aren't supplied: Friday could have been a little smaller or larger. A comparison of head counts isn't a record of returning viewers.
What we’re looking for
The question asks for a required assumption. The author is reading continuity into those audience numbers: much of Friday's audience must be Thursday's audience coming back. Look for an answer about overlap between the groups, rather than a new claim about people's television preferences.
Working the answers
- ACorrect
This supplies the overlap the author is taking for granted: most Friday viewers had also watched Thursday. The author treats Friday's audience as evidence that the original viewers returned, so an answer connecting the actual people across the two nights addresses the missing step. Similar audience totals alone don't establish that connection. A still doesn't independently prove why anyone returned; the argument also interprets their return as a sign that they liked the first installment.
- B
Enjoying Friday's episode is different from liking Thursday's episode enough to return. Someone could eagerly tune in again and then find part two disappointing. The argument doesn't need most viewers to like the second installment.
- C
Nobody ranks the two installments. A returning viewer could enjoy Friday more, Thursday more, or both equally. The conclusion concerns liking the first installment enough to return, which doesn't require liking it more than the second.
- D
Why assume the people who didn't return were unable to watch television? Perhaps they could have watched but chose another activity. The argument concerns the viewers who supposedly returned; it doesn't require this particular explanation for the people who stayed away.
- E
We don't know whether these viewers generally like documentaries, and we don't need to know. Someone could usually avoid the genre but enjoy this particular program. A broad preference for documentaries is separate from the overlap between the two audiences.
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