Astronomer: Conditions in our solar system have probably favored the emergence of life more than conditions in most o...

shunhe on August 7, 2020

Hi @ruchitaj,

Thanks for the question! Let’s break down the stimulus first. We’re told that conditions in our solar system probably favored the emergence of life more than most other solar systems aged similarly. This is the conclusion. Why does the author think this? Because any conceivable form of life needs enough heavy chemical elements, and our sun has a lot of these for its age.

Now we’re asked for the role of the following statement: any conceivable form of life depends on chemical elements heavier than hydrogen and helium. Well, what is this sentence doing exactly? It’s a premise that helps us get to the conclusion! This argument looks like:

Premise: Life needs heavy elements
Premise: The sun has an unusual amount of heavy elements for its age
Conclusion: Our solar system has favorable conditions than other similarly aged solar systems

And (A) just describes a premise, a statement for which no evidence is provided and that’s part of the evidence offered for the argument’s only conclusion, which is why it’s correct.

(B), on the other hand, tells us that this statement is a statement for which no evidence is provided, and is offered as support for another statement, that is then in turn offered as support for the conclusion of the argument as a whole. So that would be like

Premise: Life needs heavy elements
Intermediate conclusion: The sun has an unusual amount of heavy elements for its age
Conclusion: Our solar system has favorable conditions than other similarly aged solar systems

But does it make sense to say that the idea that life needs heavy elements supports the idea that the sun has an unusual amount of heavy elements for its age? No, those are two distinct facts, two distinct premises that stand alone! That’s be like saying: why does the sun have so many heavy elements? Well, because life forms need it. But what’s in the sun isn’t going to depend on what life needs.

Hope this helps! Feel free to ask any other questions that you might have.