June 2017 LSAT Section 1 Question 24

Given the statements about cross-examination in lines 39-43, the author of passage B would be most likely to take iss...

amajerus on September 12, 2022

What is the main point of the second paragraph?

I believe my misunderstanding of this question comes from a faulty understanding of the second paragraph. I was confused because the author claims that appellate courts lack tools such as cross-examination, which is described as extremely important for truth-discovery. I don't see how that supports the answer choice. Could someone explain the main idea of the second paragraph and how that correlates to the correct answer here?

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Emil-Kunkin on November 28, 2022

Hi, the second paragraph of the second passage is intended to show how the appellate system is different from a trial court, in order to support the idea that appellate courts should not do their own research about the scientific literature. The author notes that trial courts have a number of powerful tools to discover the truth, even when faced with specialized fields in science. This suggests that the author thinks that trial courts are indeed able to handle specialized knowledge, which conflicts with B.