A traditional view of Neanderthals is that they lacked the ability to think symbolically. However, recent evidence su...

Annie on February 13, 2020

Hi @calebhayter,

(B) is incorrect because it is too extreme. The final sentence of the argument just says that it is "likely" that the painting was made by a Neanderthal. This does not require that there be no other species of hominid in the area at the same time. If we negate this premise and say that there were other species of hominid in the area, it can still be "likely" that the painting was made by a Neanderthal.

shunhe on February 13, 2020

Hi @calebhayter,

Thanks for the question! (B) isn’t also a necessary assumption. Let’s negate (B). That means that there was another species of hominid other than Neanderthals that inhabited some part of Europe 40,800 years ago. This could still be true and consistent with the facts presented in the stimulus: that the drawing was likely made by a Neanderthal. Maybe, for example, there was another population of hominids in Eastern Europe. Then the argument still stands, and so (B) cannot be a necessary assumption. Hope this helps! Feel free to ask any other questions that you might have.

Courtney-McClelland on March 29, 2021

I chose B because I thought the question stem never established that Neanderthals lived in Spain during this time, and thus this was an assumption required by the argument. I see your reasoning for why B is too strong in that they were the "only" species around, but shouldn't the stem still establish that the Neanderthals themselves were at least around?