June 2010 LSAT Section 5 Question 14

The author uses the word "immediacy" (line 39) most likely in order to express

Andrew on December 19, 2019

is there a general principle I can use?

For the last example answer choice B the first sentence did you apply an if-then strategy to derive the sufficient necessary statement? Is there a principle I can follow so when i come across similar wordings I can use the same method?

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on January 3, 2020

Hello @Andrew-Chin,

In the last example, Question 8, answer choice B says: "Jenny will have lots of balloons at her birthday party."

There will be sufficient and necessary statements that do not appear in a crystal-clear if/then format. It is helpful to me to rephrase it in my head as an if/then statement.

The first sentence gives us a rule. Jenny's birthday party will have balloons. Keep an eye out for something that "will happen." In this case, it introduces the necessary condition, there will be balloons.

If it is Jenny's birthday party, then there will be balloons.
JBP - - - - - - - - - - - > B
Contrapositive: no B - - - - - - - - > not JBP (If no balloons, then not Jenny's birthday party)
This is valid according to the stimulus.

Be careful not to rephrase incorrectly.
If there are balloons, can we conclude that it is Jenny's birthday party? No, because there could be millions of parties with balloons.
B - - - - - - > JBP is incorrect, and a mistaken reversal of sufficient and necessary conditions.