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June 1995 LSAT Section 2 Question 3

A certain strain of bacteria was found in the stomachs of ulcer patients. A medical researcher with no history of ulc...

cuitlahuacm on February 5, 2020

I am still confused why the answer choice is E

The question asks to most support the above statements. The main conclusion seems to be that the bacteria strain induces ulcers. Answer E states, 2000 people without ulcers did not have the strain. Well, what do we know about the 2000 or more than 2000 who do have ulcers? Do they have the strain? Is that a valid question in this context or is it invalid because I am thinking about something not in the passage?

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Annie on February 5, 2020

Hi @cuitlahuacm,

This question asks you to find the answer choice which most supports the argument. This means that some answer choices may sort of support the argument, but you're looking for the one that MOST supports it.

(A) is incorrect because it is irrelevant. We are talking about ulcers not kidney disease.

(B) is incorrect because it is also irrelevant. This brings up other serious health problems but the argument is about ulcers.

(C) is incorrect because it is contrary to the argument. You're looking for an answer choice which supports the idea that the bacteria causes ulcers. If it doesn't cause them in lab animals, then that hurts the argument.

(D) is incorrect because the medical researcher's expertise is irrelevant to the fact that he got an ulcer after ingesting the bacteria.

(E) is correct because it is the only answer choice which even somewhat supports the argument. It tells us that a study indicates that people without ulcers tend to not have this bacteria in their stomach. This helps indicate that maybe the bacteria has something to do with people getting ulcers. Your thought process is valid in that this answer choice doesn't prove the conclusion is correct, but it does provide some support for it, which is more than any other choice does.